SPORTING INTELLIGENCE

The Derby is still the world's chiefest race. Established m 1880, it has been won by Sirs and Colonels and Lords and Dukes, and the list of winning owners includes a Count, an Admiral, a Baron, and two Princes, one of the latter being now His Majesty the King. Amongst this glittering company the "Mr" is but small potatoes. It is one of these, however, who has captured the prize this year — MiRichard Croker, sometimes called " Boss Croker." He is described m ' Who's Who ' m America as a politician. The same publication tells us that he was prominent m Tammany Hall, and long recognised as its leader. In his day, I understand, he knew something, too, of the prize ring. He is Irish by birth, but was taken to the States when two years old. In his later years it was his ambition to win the Derby and build a church m his native place, Black Rock. The first of these aspirations is now accomplished, and the second should toe easy. Mr Croker is not, however, the first American to win the Derby. That distinction belongs to Mr Pierre Lorillard, Avho m 1881 captured the stake with that great horse Iroquois. Recent winners of the stake are here shown : — 1896 Persimmon 1902 Ard Patrick 1897 Galtee More 1903 Rocksand 1898 Jeddah 1904 St. Amant 1899 Flying Fox 1905 Cicero 1900 Diamond Jubilee 1906 Spearmint 1901 Volodyovski 1907 Orby The following amusing incident is said by "The Vagrant" to have occurred at Tamworth (N.S.W.) recently: — "M'Gowan, trainer of N. and R., heard that Thomas was disengaged for the Jockey Club Handicap, and determined to secure him for his horse. Going to the course, he caught up to Thomas, of whom he had only a faint knowledge, and the pair fixed the business "up. Latex m the afternoon, M'Gowan went to the jockeys' room, saw the lad he wanted, and called out ' Come along ! I want you to weigh for my horse now.' The lad smiled, and replied: 'AH right.' The weighing-out was completed, and m answer to a query from the clerk of the scales as to his name, the jockey nearly up-ended M'Gowan by responding" 'Bolton.' 'Why, you're Thomas,' interposed M'Gowan. 'No, I'm Thomas,' remarked a quiet voice at his elbow, and, 10, there was another Richmond m the field. ' I'm Thomas, and you engaged me to ride your horse,' said the newcomer. 'He engaged me, too,' said the young fellow on the scales. M'Gowan look uncertainly from one to the other, but at length Bolton saw a way out of the difficulty, and said : ' Well, I'm ready, and I may as well ride. Thomas may have the losing mount.' ' Oh, I don't care,' replied Thomas, 'that will do.' And that's how Bolton came to have a winning mount at Tamworth. M'Gowan said that chaps who are so much alike should be ear-marked or something. " The oldest steeplechase of which any record is to be had took place m Ireland m the year 1752, and consisted of a tv" over four and a-half miles of country " from the Church of Buttevant, County Cork, to the Church of St. Leger," between a Mr O'Callaghan and Mr Edmund Blake. The first instance of an English chase was an eight -mile run m the year 1792 m the County of Lancashire. Even m the year 1816 a ride m England of twenty miles across country against time (unrter one hour and nine minutes) was regarded as something extraordinary, although about that time steeplechase matches were coming into fashion with the young fox-hunters of the

,day. Two months ago an action was began m the Supreme Court, Melbourne, by '£dvard Kelly, a bookmaker and racehorse owner, against James Laurence Allietti, who is well known m racing circles. The plaintiff claimed £1,000 as damages f r alleged libel, and £500 for alleged slander, arising out of statements made! m connection with an attempt to bribe the handirapper to the Moonee Valley Racing Club No appearance was entered to the suit by the defendant, and an interlocutory judgment wus signed against him. When the case came before the Prothonotary for assessment the damages were assessed at £250. "I believe I con tell a champion iiar<3luck story," said an old-time American plunger recently. " Il> occurred seventeen or eighteen years ago. I made a threeliorse lOOdol combination with Jonnny Humphries m San Francisco, and to win 4,600d01. The first two m the combination won easily, and the third horse was quoted at 1 to 2. To make sure, as I thought, of winning 500dol or 4,000d01, 1 hud off 600dol .at even monej r .^. Now for th<- tale of woe. The race was run, oiid ihfl judges, believing it was not ''on the level, declared all bets off. The 600dol hedge bet did not go, and as the combination was ' p y or play,' I not only did i-ot win that, dm actually lost the lOOdol paid f-.r the C"iii-.;nation. This, state of affairs would not of-cm once m 30,000 times ; oat it oceurr-.d ti> me, and I lost lOOdol whm ;t api cared :• thousand dollars to a little nd apple that T must either -win 500dol or 4,000dn1. Green B. Morris race at Memphis, where he had three horses running m a stake, and finished first, second, and third, only to have the trio disqualified for a foul on an outsider, made me think of that combination that looked good for a 4,700d0] draw-down." W. E. Elsey, the English trainer, can claim to! have the biggest team of horses m training probably m the world. At the commencement of the season he had no fewer than 110 to looli after, and though Elsey has for some years always had a great crowd of horses to train, he managed to turn out a large proportion of winners. His patrons do not, as a rule, fly at high game, and though his horses won £13,000 m stakes last year, there were no coveted stakes included, and that amount represented 110 races won during the season. At the Paris April meeting, My Pet, who won several two-year-old races m England last season, and was expected to do particularly well m the classic; events m France this year, dropped backers very badly. In a field of fifteen he started favorite at a shade shorter than 6 to 4 against for the Prix Hocquart, a three-year-old mile and a-half race, of 2,610 soys. So far from winning, however, he finished tenth, the winner turning up m Pitti. According to a Sydney paper the wellknown jockey E. Huxley has decided to abandon race riding and devote his energies to training horses. From India comes word that Long Tom has been fired. In Ireland, m April, after winning a race at the Curragh, ai three-year-old colt named Haydn (Avidity— Languor) was bought by Mr R, Croker for £2,500. A new grand stand is being built at Randwick. The English-bred filly Thalaba, by Greyleg — Thalostris, Avon a double at Sydney Tattersall's meeting on 25th May. Putty, by St. Leger— Ellershe. Avon his first race m Australia on the 3rd June. • this being the Prince of Wales Stakes at RandAvick, Avhen, starting at 7 to 2 against, he carried 8.2 and beat Legion (8.0) by five lengths, doing the eleven furlorics m 2min 27sec. At the V.R.C. meeting on the 3rd inst. Haloya, by Gozo—^Necklace, Avon the Royal Handicap, six furlongs, carrying 8.4 and starting at 6to 1. Boidol, winner of the Birtbjday Handicap, carried 7.5,

and ran the mile and a-half m 2min 38|sec. His price was 10 to 1. The Steeplechase was a disastrous affair, as only three of tho six starters completed the course. Decoration fell before the treble was reached, and two fences later Airly came to grief, and received injuries which made it necessary to destroy him. Laitiere, who was favorite, had a four-lengths' lead of Warfield at the abattoirs, but after passing the sheds she fell, and Warfield, who was left m front, won easily from Confusion and Tact. Ten started for the Two Thousand Guineas at Newmarket, and Slieve Gallion, favorite, at 11 to 4 on, Avon by three lengths from Bezonian. Slieve Gallion ccirpassed the mile m lmin 41fsec, excellent time seeing that the course was on the holding side. For the One Thousand the public made Witch Elm favorite at 4 to 1 against, and she won m a canter from sixteen others.