TALK OF THE DAY.

Br MAZEPPA.

*** Tne Dunedlh Jookey Club has instructed its committee to "go ahead with the mooiio" to the extent of negotiating for a new oours* at the Taiflri. There are three sites seleotO^

atid, as .1 understand the position, these have been placed in' a xeriain order of preference, the committee's instructions being to come to ifccißß if possible with' the owner of the first on fctielist; if ho asks fcoo-rxmob., to treat with the proprietor of* No. 2 ; and as a l&sb resource to try to make a -bargain with the third man. lavested with euoh powers, the committee >s -:ct likely to delay matter* viery lung, nnd I sha'l Dot be surprised if in £ few days a bargain is finally oonotaded. There are no political influences to delay this bnsinese, and we may expect it to ba undertaken pretty well offhand. t venture to predict Jshat an agreement for sale Wd pnrobase will »be the outcome, and .that Jbefore a month is over our heads the clnb will be the proprietor of a course of its own. " I'll believe it when I, see it, J ' "is the remark heard on all sides even yet whenever the shift is talked Ifaf. Lots of people affeot to regard the talk of a wove as simply blcff, in order to get a more advantageous tenancy of -fchs Forbury.^ I tappen to know, however, that this fe quite a jtnistake. The D. J.O. is in sober earnest, and it 9is odds on a shift being determined upon. JThe concession agreed to by the RailWay department in the matter of tares- removes one possible objection Jto a change. Trains will take the people to jany point near Mosgiel for Is 8d Firel-class and Is second-class. A shilling there and baok is jlhe fare to the Forbury, so that those to whom *he coppers are of consequence ceed pay no more jfcogo to l&e.Taieri than they do now to Teach Jfche Forbury. Tossiblyj also, there mayb e a <hanca of securing a license for booths if the blub go beyond the reach of the suburban Tea J)r inkers.. As to what will become of the' For after -the -evacuation, it is already said •that:.racing will go on, but I (don't see how -that j»n be when no totalizator permit isto be hoped lor. ■

*** More than once during the past week I

Jave been asked what 1 make out of Liberator's

vanning *t Auckland, the query .being *ocom.panie'd by an invitation to reply that he must

jbave been "dead" in the Hurdles. The fact that he ran a muoh better horse in the Steeplechase hao been already commented upon, and it dirl not e«capß^my notice at the time that iib was nowhere in tße^Sardles, for whioh !he feafl a weight practically the^sssas^as he won. With a year ago, while in the Steepfeohaßeto Ant up a great deal more than hi§ laafc^ wear's impost and was beaten only by ja ncse after being interfered with. But . ffa against the common deductions from '/these facts, I have to state that "after Inquiry I am -fairly satisfied that Holmes tried Ids best to win the Hurdles. Circumstances

"within my knowledge lead me to think that he was a trier, and fairly outweigh all the, Reductions that can bewrayed to the contrary. Ifc is very easy to be mistaken on suoh a point. 1 shall never forget a' lesson on the subjeot that • once came within my own exparienoe. At a «eitain raoe meeting which I attended a lad ■yffcom I did Jiot at first 'recognise accosted me •fey name, and said he would like my 'advice on 4i matter that warpngdingiiim. "Notioing that to know him, he mentioned his■oame, and then 1 identified him *s* grown- , our-of-knowledge mercbur of » family that -I was , >wellarquainted with. Said he to me: "'.This' \\b what's the matter. I've got a trotter here ; .Jhe's pretty f ast^ and I've taken a lot of trouble 'with him, and if trots up to his trial 'he'il very diear win. '.I've got £5 .here, and am going to 't»ekiiim. Do you think I ought to put -all -the £s>ori,.or anly part of ifc:? You see, I want the ! lot. if I win, or as much as ;I can get. How ! would -you work ifc ?" - 1 ,pointed out that it was

ntberly'imposfifble to advise him how to invest .io as to gvt the best ohanoe of the machine, irat suggested i>hat perhaps bis best course -wouid J»e to put on £2 ■Dfide and £1 outside and let it go at that. "The Jad^said that would do fine, -as in *ay ca«e he would bessifing-£2. *Then.he^»kea<Kie to invest the £3 forfaim. Shis I deoliued. to do, but, being pressed, I ooniented to sse that the money was .prou-rty -plesed. Three newssaper men wb>< "take bo interest personally hi betting took £1 each and plankea it on to oblige me, and I held the tickets. When the fcellrang I looked at the maohine, and found that there was -only -£4 invested on this horse altogether — my £3 and one from somebody else, and there was about £500 as a .grand 'total. Then I the .raoe. The nefldy showed

3orm for a mile or so, then .broke ■badly, and finished oiowhete. -As I -was -turning -away a

stranger ,'caaght me by the < collar and nid.i *• Lookiy'ere, old chap, I'd give a quid to have your job and get acbanceto tell thetruth about -this raoe -in jprint. D'ye see that horse there Tindioatingmy friend's nag]— he could Jxave won -|n« walk, "but he -was dead. See — only £4 on - him, and one >of them's mine. Fonr .dashed fools— three -and me." I didn't trust myself to maka any answer. That man is no doubt fully wmvinoed to this day that he backed a " stiff 'sw." .As forme,!. was mademore careful than tef ore about »uoh matters. - '

* # * Mr M'Ginnu 'has become the owner of r |hree more horses, or rather of two mares and

i gelding— namely, the racers Miss Hadge (by -^.premont — -TFake Miss) and Maremma (by liubi^ahl—^Lady Emma), and the brood mare Gitana (by Rapid Bay — Gip«y,by Yattendon).

She latter, hredin New -South Wales in 1878,

jh»b only a moderate performer x -jon the turf. Her first race, I think, was when as a three-

ye»r-old she starred (M Allan -Tiding) in the maiden Plate at Dunedin Bpring -won by Bawdon, and h«r first win — the only one for the season out of 10 Starts— was in the Trial Stakes

»t South Canterbury, when-*he had Meteor and .(Naughty Boy as opponents, and t0«k2.27t0 do fehemile and a-quarter. In her four-year-old .season Gitana won five of the 20 races in which

phe started, and earned £443 in stakes. The Jflret of these wins was the Belling Plate at the taeetinjiat which Wejcome Jack wonthe C.J.C. fljmdicap. There -were eight starters. Four of thsm got off to a false start and fought out a Blushing finish, in whioh Statesman beat Amulet. Gitana was 'one df the four that abstained from the foolish excursion, and she

eventually won by a length from Whitbaoh. - Vai'.e, who afterwards rode for .Major George, was on her back. From that' point Gitana went On improving very -slowly up»to the 'time of what I may call .her grand feat— tbe winning of the ISaster^auaicap, then a mite race. She carried 612 and was ridden by M'Cluskey. The other starters were "Welcome Jack (ridden at .5.2 by Rudings) and Luna (at 82by W. Butler). •It i»»» -reckoned -a bad handicap, the une they v were all frightened of and pulled out for being "* 4he- redoubtable -Welccnv Jack, wlio th«» aay previously had won tbe Grat Aiuumu with Something in hand uadtr 8.4. Gitana took the lead from the start, two lengths soon separating her from Luna, while ithe favourite rent on in the rear. These positions were maintained throughout the race, Git*pa winning by three lengths from Luna, who beat Welcome Jack

J»yahe*d, Time, lmin 45**60. Dividend, £4 IB* 6d. Gitana won the Selliqg Raoe the same j3»y. At Timaru she finished second to Biesta la the Plying, and next day won the Winter JQtfs, * mile welter, carrying 10,11, beating

Jack .10.2 and a fair field. Goodman rode Gitana 1n that race. She had no further triumphs on the turf, but at the stud she produced at least one flrst-cloas horse in Gipsy Efog, -whoixad the misfortune to be contemporaneous with such clippers -as Maxim and Sextanr, snfl yet -managed to win a lot of money, his performances including a Dunedln Cnp win. Arline also cams from Gitana. The old nine 'has good oreßential», therefore, andiffhe produces a foal to a good horse she ought to fully return to Mr M'Ginness the price paid for her. As for his* other purchases above referred to, everyone knows Maremma andivhatht can do; and the little boys have a knowledge of Miss Madge, so there is no need to go into particulars. 1 hope, however, that M'Ginness may have the luck to keep them well and that 2iis salmon jacket m%y be creditably borne by both in many enoounteis.

#*# " Fentagraph," of the Referee, is smartly out to time with his annual batch of statistics for the season. The leading linos are reproduced In another column. It will 'be seen that the Warringfcon-bred and Ofcago-owned Enroolydon heads, the list ai winning horses, this being the' -result of his Oamaru raoe and the treble at Ohriitohuroh. His total is £656 ahead of .the sum with whioh Mabaki topped the list the previous season. A somewnat remarkable fact about .these statistics is that <our three j y.ear-dldß are the chief winners, and that the on]y other horse to get into the f onr figures is a two-year-old. Another of the four besides. Euroolydon .hails from -Otago. I ; refer, of -course, to Gipsy Grand, who comes in at a jjouple of hundred less -.than Fabulist. After him we have nothing in the li&t from -south of the Waitaki till reaching the n*me of Vanilla, who won .£520 odd (I am omitting -shillings and ■pence), itlaremma scoured £468, St. Ouida £378, Tor* £307, Jane Eyre £247, Warrington £243, Skirmisher £237, Marlin £213, .Brln £209, Lobo £208, Silverstraam £204. and •mongthe lesser winners are Captive £199 and Tan Buren £185, with Hippomenes as low down £8 £142 There are, however, celebrities even further &long : in the Jist — to wit, Pega?us £95, Mahftki £86, Prime Warden £67, aud Mfltmlicher £23. In the acoount of winning i sires we find St. Leger again on top with £438 more than -the amount with which he beaded 4he:list « year ago. This stallion's .recent record is remarkably good, as -the 'following figures

I have here .given stallions that have been competing against .St. Leger during tbe whole term, and we -find the totals .for the five seasoos to be : fib. Leger, £21,649; Apremont, :£14,850 ; Nor.deafeldt, £17.603; St. George, £14,680. I note aiso T-hat. my favourite horse Awemont comes wtli out of the .comparison. .He is not (getting .the .show he -deserves. In regard ix> winning owners, I have .been looking at baok records, -and ihave compiled the following summary for the past eight tyears :—

'In iihis season Mr Butler had that slashing colt "Manton at his best, he capturing six ef the 13 i races "in which he -started and Knithing second in four others ; Mr Beresford'* best winner was Ooruntra, who, then in hw two-year-old season, sustained but one defeat ; Mr Cutts owed his position to that sterling raareDudu ; more than j half of JSIr 'Stead's total was due to Loohiel; of the Otago owners 'Mr Stephenson found 'Captain Cook the most profitable ; and Mr Goodman had Moss Roie earning £561 towards 'his total.

I There is no need to tell racing men that this I was Tirailleur's year. What a obampion this oolt was ! No other three-year-old that we have -ever had in the colony .has .such a record an 10 wins »nd not a singk defeat. That he deserves this high position by comparison with suoh colts as Welcome Jack .and Maxim- and Manton and .Gipsy King and Euioolydon, I do not allow ; in other words, he came in * lucky year, as witness the fact that, bur Oynieoa, nothing better' faced him in the Derby than Aliace, Peerswick, and Renata ; still, the son of Florence Macarchy was really a good colt, and decidedly superior to Scots Grey, who may be reckoned the next beat three-year-old of the season. . Mr Stophemon won the Exhibition Cup and three other races with Occident ; Mr .Stead bad Scots Grey, Rose Argent, Medallion, and others carrying the yellow jacket; Mr ■Somervillo was doing well with Hilda, Cissy, and Mary.; Mr Harris was represented by & (sterling colt in Pygmalion ; while Mr Goodman 'found Bl'zzard profitable; and the Hon. G. 'M'Lean got nearly all his money from St. James, whose lucky win in the Dunedin Cap will never be 'forgotten by those who saw the race.

Mr O Brien won two-thirds of his money with Freedom, then 3jra, and Florrie, a sapling, and raked in a fair stake also with Hazel when she unexpectedly secured the Autumn Handicap ; Mr Stead had two fair racer* working for him in Medallion and Lebel ; Mr Butler won nearly all his money with Crackshot, who headed the li&t of winning hones for 'the eeason ; and Mr Brett's- appearance in the -place of honour was due to Wolverine's win in the New Zealand Cup.

owing to British Lion, who, on a muddy couise, ■beat all his opponents in <the New Zsniaud Onp, and Wnkawatea, -who deserved "to be regarded ~as the champion two-year-old of his season, inasmuch as he started in no fewer thau 21 .races, and eventually won at *ix furlong* from a fair field with no leas •than 9.12 on hiß back. Mr O'Brien's sheet anchor was th*t game mare Florrie, who annexed" the double of Derby and Oaks, and, coming to Duuedin, fought out two fine finishes withSoulanger, that in the Olago Cup being a veal treat iowitnoifl, Mr Stephenson got oplen-

did service out of Hippomenes, who, bought out of a selling raoe at Christohuroh tor £100, won a rave pretty early, and oapturad the Great Enter Handicap and Challenge Stakes in the style of a workman, leading us to hope "that the stable had found a seoond Ocoident. Lady Zetland was the Hobbs's best winner, and Mr Lunn got his place mainly with Olanranald ; while Mr Harsh came into notice as the owner of Crown Jewel, who in the autumn of her four-year-old season got a out in with the Hawke's Bay "Cup and the Burke Memorial Stakes.

Mr Stead had Stiwan and Stepniak at their besfc; Mr Nathan's • good~S3«oji(^wfts attributable to the ever-remembered St. Sljjpo^who ran through hit tunee-yea'-old season with .onlyone defeat and that in the raoe which, acoording to all form, he ought to have won— the Derby ; Mr Rathbono found Merganser winning no less than £2052 of his total I Captain Russell got a good lilt with that staying mare St. Katherine ; and Mr O'Brien had Loyalty at his best ; while Tempest was the mainstay of Mr Stephenson's stable.

Rasefeldt's New Zealand Cup was the -chief contribution towards Mr Douglas's total ; Mr Stead's bent friend was that great; filly Bluefire ; Mr P. Bdtler relied mainly on Au Reyoir : Mr Hohbs had a staunch stake-earner in Lady Zetland ; and Mr Reid won £ 1300 odd with Skirmisher. Major George collared the Auokland Cup with Pegasus; Lottie placed Mr Eean where we find him in the list ; and the Mr "Walker whose name comes to -the front had good old "Lib "to thank.

Mr Stead had a strong team racing, of whom Mannlichor, Bluefirt-, and Bloodshot were the TftjSfci- 32r^ Hobbjs received a constant backing from Pirinie~-W-Ax4eß and Lady Zetland — the iron-legged pair ; Mf^Osaond won £1382 with North Atlantic alone ; Mr Gnodasan/i^ position was due largely to Cask«t ; while in Mshaki the Maori .owner had tbe chief stake-winner of" the colony for the seasou. j

The Yaldhurst stable has daring the season received £1316 from Bloodshot. £1016 from ! bombshell,' and £747 from Ballicent; Mr Ormond hasiad a capita] season, as all Stewart Waddell's friends will be glad to see, the chief winners being Spindrift £993 and Dauntless £807; Mr Craig's Euroclydon won £2090 of the total standing to the Lawrence owner's credit ; Mr Hobba's ohiof «upport has been L»dr Zetland £516, .and Gipoy Grand earned £1092 for Sir Stephenson, while Sirs Duncan's £1269 is entirely owing -to that useful colt Fabulist. In conclusion, 1 append a statement of the winning* daring the eight seasons of the most successful owner in Canterbury, and also | thoße of the ohief winner in Otago :—: — Mr G. G. Stead. Mr J. Stephenson. 1888 89 ... ...£1570 1888-89 £1096 "1889-flO/ 2681 1889-SO 2982 ] 189H-91 2609 1890-91 ... ... 812 1891-92 1051 1891-92 2226 1892-93 3172 1892-93 1819 i 1893-94 3109 1893-91 1408 | 1894-95 3361 1891-95 1348 1835-96 3609 1895 96 ... 1657 £21,062 £13,346 — an average of £2632 odd psr year, or about £59 13s a week, for Mr Stead,,. and £1668 per year, or about £32 Is 6d a weak, for Mr Stephenson. *#* A vivid description of the raoe for the Brisbane Cup, the best and most stubbornlycontested battle that lias ever been seen oh the Bugle Farm course, is supplied by the Austen- ] lasian's correspondent. All the interest in the race, he sajs, was quickly centred iv JSfewbold, ' : Tornado, and Young Bnokthorpe, the firstI named at onoe going to the front and cutting i out the running at a slashing pace two or three lengths in front of the other two. In this position they ran for nearly 15 of the 16 furlongs, nothing olse having a chance of ever getting near ttwm, and as Nawbold came round the turn for home, with* big hold it looked any odds an him maintaining his lead to the .finish. Tornado and Young Buckthorpe were hard at one another all the way from the half-mile, and the Ipswich colt was .the first upou whom the severity of the straggle told its tale. Ju»t as < they turned the corner Young Buckthorpe dropped back, but Tornado, making a final effort, ran np to Newbold at the distance, and amidst the frantic excitement of the onlookers the pair ran looked together all the way to the winning post. Fifty yards from the goal Tornado got his head in front, but Newbold came again, and when they flatbed past the line there was not An inch between them. A dead heat .was the verdict, with Young Buckthorpe about three lengths off third. After such a race nearly everyone expected that the owners would divide,- hut the two horses are trained in the one stable, and as Tornado was ths one heavily backed straight out and coupled with Newbold for the double his owner insisted upon a run off, while John Finnic refused to let Ms horse run another two milei after such a race. The result wfcs, much to the annoyanoe of those who had backed Newbold, that Tornado cantered the distance again and was declared the winner. The time was 3min 34-^Rec, which is only a quarter of a second slower than the record put up by Yelverton, and there can be no doubt that in Nawbold and Tornado J. Blaoklook trains two of the besb horses that «ver stripped at Eagle F*rm. It is scarcely neoessary to say anything of the others who took part in the Cjjjp race. Israelite and the Sydney pony Grand* ■Clogs made a-forward move t*o furlongs from .the winning po»t, but itj. was on'y a dying ■effort.

* # * For the Two Thousand Guineas this year there was a party of seven, tho smallest field since Ayrshire won in 1888. St. Frusquin, the favourite, won easily, bub bis performance did not impress beholders, and 5 to 4 agst him for the Derby w*s at once on offer. The weakness in his exhibition was' about the central etago of tho race, S*js the Sportsman's special t— "lt

is undeniable that St. Trusquin did not Sash Sown the hill from the Bashes with anything like the freedom he displayed at the last meeting. Indeed, a cry arose that he was beaten as Tommy Loates was seen to be driving him with sonte vigour into the dip. It never for a moment occurred to me that he was beaten, fox I well knew the asoenfe would make all the difference in the world to him ; hut had there been much more of the down-hill work they would seemingly have had him In dire trouble. In short, though he may come downhill all right on good going, he showed that he does nob do so when the going is hard, and the long descent at lEps'om may trouble him no end. OF course, he drew out and won handsomely when the hill climbing began, but Love Wisely sbuok well <to him." On the score of pace, however, no fault could be found with the winner. He had plenty to spare at the finish, and his time was only IJ-sec worse than the record of lmin 42§seo made by Isinglass and Eirkconnel. The race has often taken from 7seo to lOsec longer in running. In short, Sfc. Frufcraia in the Two Thousand Guineas covered the Rowley Mile in sf*ec less 'time 'than he did when he won over the same course at the last meeting. What was evidently feared was that St. Frucquin was beginning even then to feel the effects of the hard going, and would require extraordinary oare to prevent him from becoming stale by Derby Day. -Prophetic utterances to that effect seem to have proved true, judging by whatwt'have since learned through the cable. The following is a list of winners of the Two Thousand 1 for the past 30 years :— ISH-'Lati Glasgow's General Peel Aldcroft 1866-CountLagrangeVSlsrJia*«9tJ^H. Grimshaw 1866— Mr button's Lord Lyon ... THomas- __ -Wit— Duke of Beaufort's Vauban... Fordham IKO^-MtW. a.Crawfurd'«Moßlem T. Ohaloner 18'>9— Mr J. Johnstone's Pretender J. Osborne IS7O— Mr Merry's Macgrttgor ... J.Daley 187 1 — Mr J. Johnstone's Both well J. Oaborne 1872— Mr Jos Dawson's P. Oharlie J. Osborae 1873— Mr Orawfurd'sG'ng Forward T. Chatoner 1874— Lord JMmouth's Atlantic ... F. Arofeer 1876— Mr H. O. Vyner's Oamballo J. Osborne 1876— Lord Dupphn's Petrarch ... Luke 1877— Count Lagrange's Ohamant J. Goater 1878— Lord Louadalo s Pilgrimage T. Cannon 1879— Lord Falmouth'sCharibert... ¥. Archer 1880— Duke of Beaufort's Petronel Furdharn 1881— Mr Norman's Peregrine ... F. Webb 1882— D. of Westminster's Shotover T. Cannon 1883— Lord Fahnouth's GalliarU ... F- Archer 1884-Mr Foy's Scot F<ee W. Platt 1885— Mr B rod.- Cloete's Paradox ... F. Archer 1886— D. of Westminster's Ormonde G. Barrett 1887— Mr D. Baird'e Enterprise ... T. Gannon 1888— Duke of Portland's Ayrshire J. O 'borne I 188H -Mr D. -Baud's Enthusiast ... T. Cannon , 1890-M. A. W. Merry's Hurefoot... Liddiard I 1891— Lord Aliagfon's Common ... G. Barrett IS92— Mr Rose's Sonavikt'a Robinson 1893— Mr H. M'Calmont'slslnglass T. Loatos 1894— Lord Uoaebery's La-laß J. Watts 1895-Sir J. B. Maple's Elrkconnel J. Watts 1896— De Eothsohild's Bt. Frusquin T. Loates

I *# tf Large fields were the rule at Sydney Tatterssll's Grand National meeting on the 30th JWay. The three flat raoes produced 61 starters. In tiiß Flying, g& furlongs, it is considered that Mr Hordern should have (cored "with Collarette 8 0 had she bees judiciously ridden. As it was, the lad tried to win 'a* every post, and succeeded as far as five of them, when the I mare wearied under "the pressure, and ~waß* unable 'to respond to the challenge by 'Hurst 83, this two-year-old winning by a clear length. "Wakawatea 9.0 was one of the beaten crowd. Mr Hordern was luckier in Tattersall's ' Stakes, run also at six furlongs, his fonr-year-old gelding Armenia 7.0 waiting on Lieutenant 8.10. to the home turn, und then taking a lead that he was not deprived of, though Mr Long's Rose Noble, the high-priced four-year-old by Grand Flaneur from Aureola, came fast at the finish, and was beaten only a length or so, both all out. Armenia, by Doubloon from Plevna, by Ben Battle, was sired in England and foaled in the colony. He ran badly at Rosehill, bat on this occasion was made favourite at 3 to 1, and backers were right. Cooee, an outsider, won the Winter Stakes, a mile and a-quarter, carrying 7.3. Royal "Rose 711 and Wyalong 7.9 oame in a dead beat for second place. Oxide must be a horse of the past, for he could do nothing even with the comparatively light weight of 7.12. The Hurdle Raoe went to Mountaineer after a olose contest, during which Thor, a recent winner, injured himself ; and the Steeplechase was a close thing, beiug won by only a head Tbe starters were Grandwhig 11 9, Othello 11.5, Over 10.6, Mark Twain 9.4, and Bernal 92. Urandwing and Othello were equally fancied. Othello soon established a strong load, and forced the running from the I others, who were clustered, until six furlongs from home, 'when Grand wing, passing Over, who had been running, second, went to the leader, and the pair jumped the last fence together. The pace in the possession of Grandwing enabled him to lead into the course proper, but Oohello, coming again, fairly wore his opponent down, and just getting up in time defeated him by half a neck. The winner is by Emir Bey from Taupo Belle, and was bred up Gisborne way. He is owned by Mr Skipworth, who took Ladybird across from Auckland.

*#* "Terlinga" went to Adelaide, and this is what he says about the Birthday Cup : Lord Richmond, who was nasty at the pott, lost ground through having to go right round his field, and it goes without saying that Lord Grenville would have done better if his rider had not been physically incapable of doing him justice, but there is no doubt Destiny won by sheer merit. Walker oame right out of the field with him when half the distance had been covered — Walker simply can't wait with ahorse — and the colt sustained the mo to the end, and was goiog the strongest of the placed horses when the goal was reached. I have not seen suoh extravagant use made of a horse in an important handicap over a distance of ground since Cyclops oame away from the field at the sheds in Mentor's Melbourne Cup. Walker was very clever ia.getting a place in the early part of the race. As usual Destiny was very slow in getting under way, but as the big field swung out at the first turn his rider dashed him up on the inside, and was soon with the lqaaers. When Destiny came out with suoh a lead so far from home I thought he would surely die away at the fitihh, but he is somewhat unkind, and perhaps Walker was justified in letting Mm go on when he felt in the humour.

*v* Parliament is to be once more asked to abolish the totalisator. Mr O&rnell gave notice on the opening day of his intention to introdnoe a bill to that effect. The attack is not one which need be feared by friends df the machine or hailed with rejoicing by those who desire to see a return to the days of the bookmaking monopoly with its acandalons abuses. I venture on that prophecy with the utmost confidence. Why ? Because in the first place Mr Cornell will have some difficulty in persuading Parliament to reconsider the question ; beoanse, if be -does bring on a discussion, he is sure to experience trouble in persuading a democratic House to consent to violently interfere with the people's sport ; because, even if a majority against the totalisator is secured in one House, the other will very likely refuse to follow the lead ; and because— 'here is the stumblingblook Against whioh Mr Garuell must break his thins if hegsU so far.— ehonld ftillament $ua

Booh a WIl m If projected, the sovereign People will at once demand its repeal. This has been •aid over and over -again every time the tdtail* ■ator has been threatened, and I still rely on the commoniense of tna People to-proteot the machine against its foes. Does Mr Oamdl really imagine for a moment that Parliament !• the protector of the toUltaator P I jhenld consider such a defence very weak and inefficient, leaving the machine practically exposed to dangers from even pony -enemies. It is became we who acknowledge tbe totalisator as a beneficial agency place onr seilanee on. a much stronger" support than any that Parliament can give it that I make bold to assert my faith in the conLiuuanoe of .the totaliiator. It tt upheld by the will of <the'People,»nd it willnfanfl secure until superseded by some 'better «ystem which has nofr yet been thought of. That we ehontd voluntarily give up the .greatest Wessin| the turf has ever known, and' return like the sow thafr was washed to her wallowing in the mire, could not be supposed possible by any man who knows the wan of rasing' and prefers the comparative wholeaomeness of the tarS as it is at present to the iniquities now happily a mere memory.

*J* The weights for the V.E.C. Grand .National races are of interest to -us by reason of the fact that Mr Douglaa has two horses engaged. .Mutiny has 11.11 in the Hurdle Raoe and Tiritea 11.7, thtwe hones recaiving 161b and 201b respectively from tbe top weighs. At Auokland, Tiritea sad 131b from .the, top weight, who. in that ease was Liberator, to in receiving 201b from Se&eft? it leemn to me the Napier^relding has at least aTcOCu^^how in "Viotoria, by comparison with toe top -weigntpas i^-bad in Auokland, for ' Liberator is »lir# and active, ~"vrfcere»s Rsdleap has. presumably iseen his best .days. It must ba r<memb«red, -«ko, that Tiritea ran very wall over the Elleralie course, finishing fourth in faab time. I do not think that Mr Douglas need be very much afraid of Bodleap, nor of two or throe others near the head of the handicap, lor", though Tiritea has passed his prime, he is still on the aotive list. Whether, however, either Tiritea * or Mutiny has a chance as against others in the light-weight division Is a very moot point. Tiritea is a hone whose best form has been thoroughly exposed, and he is weighted up to it. In the oloud of light-weights to be found in the Victorian list there mutt be many promising members, some of whom have been expreisly reserved for this event, and on the whole, if I were Mr Douglas, I should keep my horse at home hi preference to running the very great risk of striking a " snag " in the ten-stone or nine-stone division. In considering Tiritea's ohaace I include Mutiny's. Tbe pair are relatively 'brought together with fairneis In regard to. the Strepleohase, I fanoy -that New Zealand's representatives have a somewhat better show. Redleap is taken care of with 13.12 ; down the list— as far as Dondi, at any rate — the cracks are cettainly wall provided for; and Mutiny at 12.2 and Tiritea at 12.0 claim attention as approved steeplechasers. They may be relied on to mates a job of the task it put to it, whereat the bulk of the candidates lower in the handicap are .more or less ift the apprentice class. There is always leas chance of a surprise in -a steebleohase,; and for this reason I give Mr Douglas a show if he sends bis horses across.

* # * In the Hardies at Hawke'o Bay the h«ndioapper finds nothing bettor than Liberator to start with, and has given the old horse 12.10, the same weight as he oarried at Auokland, while Hopgarden, the only one that defeated Lib there, is rained 171b. That should 'suffice to keep the Giiborne gelding near his field on thit occaiion, though 11.0 is not a heavy impost for a meritorious win, and if gent for the money, Hopgarden has a good show. - Others that I like the look of on .paper are Tiritea, Revolt, Rangipunehu, Chris, and * Grenadier, and, though I dare not try to absolutely pick the winner prior to the appearance of the acooptanoes, I should not be surprised to find him included in this lot. My real f*noy, bat it is only a fanoy, not a .statement made on information, is Revol*, who' if well ought to make the pace very merry with only 10.6 to carry, and I like Chri* next-best. " Only three of the steeplechasers that started at Auckland are engaged in the corresponding race at Hawke's Bay — viz., Liberator ■ (raised lib), Mutiny (reduoed 31b), and Tiritea (reduced 61b). The two last-mentioned teemed to be beaten at Ellerclie by quite as much as the concession now allowed them by Liberator, and I am inclined to think he is the most to be trusted of the three. Others that seem to have a fair •how are Boot'«s and Timothy, who have been running very well of l*te, and Nat and Narrate, while amongst the 9 7 contingent is the ancient Otaieri, for whom the raoe would be a xoft thing if ho were in hia old form. We must not, however, look to resurrectionists in a race of this port. I prefer something that has been winning lately, and in Booties we have such a one. He has enough weight,' I grant;, bat then he is probably pretty well.

# # # The well-known English steeplechaser Cloister broke down so badly in April that it is doubtful if he will ever be able to run again. He met his engagement in the Great Shropshire Handicap at Ludlow, and so good a thing was he considered — on the strength of his recent viotory in the Welsh Grand National at Cardiff —that, though carrying 13.5, odds of 5 to 2 were betted on him, but he succumbed to Lady Guudrede 12.6 For three parts of the juurney he seemed to be waiting upon the mare, but when called upon to finish was unable to respond to his rider, and not without sufficient cause. On being examined after .the raoe, it was found that Mr Duff's gelding had split a pattern and broken the tendons of his off foreleg. Sanuon-like, however, he conquered even In his defeat, for, a protest! being lodged against the mare on the grouud that the carried insufficient weight, the stakes were awarded to Cloister.

*** "Onlooker" telegraphs on Wedneiday night : " I understand Mr Douglas will not make the Melbourne journey, but will conof eta at Hawke's Bay and Wellington instead. TUa / acceptances for tbe Hastings events to-rsorsow morniug will show whether this is correct. Freo Holmes returned south to-day with Liberator. Mr Evett will, as osual, m&ke the handicaps fot the first day of "the Wellington Steeplechase EKSting, also for the big Steeplechase on the second day, Mr Henry doing the other events. Mr Evett will therefore not have to leave Auokland. His health of lata hat been none too good."

1&92. 1893. 1594. 1895. £ £ £ SkJLeger ... 3497^-s^o 33.^6 4559 Apremont... 4667 3§TS^249O 24:^9 Jforaenfeldt 2910 4854 S23S- .4162 St. George 2545 4250 4035 21S0-_ 1898. £ 1781 2139 .1700

Mr,-P. Butler ...£3678 Mr Stephenson £1098* .MrCßeresfora... 2310 Mr~EL. Goodman.. 1094 .MrE.Cutts - ... 1618 li H Hammond 1092 MrG.G. Stead ... 1570 "Mr 11.I 1 . Panetti ... KB*} "H^sirn & Kennedy 1264 Mr Somerville ... 1046 ; Mr'K.BaTke ...1228 Messrs Kotibs' ... 984

[rS.'H.Gollan £4030 MrW.Bobbett £1271 ir J. Stephenson 2982 Mr H. Goodman- I£Hl [r G. 0. Stead ... 2681 Hoa. tt. M'Lean 118: [r W. Somerville 2004 Captain Ruasell... 102! [rj. Harris ... 1390 MrH. Lunn ... 100S [r Q. Hunter ... 1334 Mr G. Ellis ... ICM

•isnn.9l. •J.6HU-yi. Mr D. O'Brien ...£3464 Mr J. Paul ..,£1617 Mr G. G. stead ... 2509 Mr T. Hungerford 1276 MtW. Dough*.. . 2204 Major George ... 1858 Hon.J.D.Ortnond ZLiB Mr J. Brett ... 1234 MrS. H. Gollan 2087 Mr W. Somerville 1201 M. and C. Hobbs 1827 Mr W. Russell ... 1144 Mr G. Hunter ... • 1650 Mr E. Oatts ... 1129 Mr P. Butler ... 1628 MrW. O.Webb 1013

MrT. Hungerford £3470 .Mr J. Paul ... £1272 MrD.iO'BHen ... 2337 Mr W. H. Marsh 12<4 Mr J. Stephenaon 2226 M.r W. Bobbett ... 1225 M.snc*. C. Hobbs 2073 Captrfn Ruusell... 1172 Mr 6 Hunter .. 1951 Mr W. Douglas ... 1107 Hon J.D.Ormond 1800 -Mr J. Loughlin ... 1079 Mr H. Luna ... 1754 Sir.G. Clifford ... 1031 MrE. E. M'Bae 1395 Mr G. G. Stead ... 1051 MrD.M'Kinnon 1383-Mr J. Maher ... 913 Mr Huugerford gained his position chiefly

[r G. G. Stead ... Mr J. Button ... £1276 tr L. t>. ISfathan 3038 M. and 0. Hobbs 1276 [r W. Kathbone 2330 Mr H. Lunn ... 1193 aptain Russell... 2273 M> D. Rutherford 1192 [rD. O'Brien ... 218!) MrT. Hungerford 11H4 [r J. Stephenaon 1819 Mr Ji P»ul ... 1139 on.J.Dbrmond 1743 MrW. RusseU ... 111 l Cr U. Marumam 1509 Mr I. Freeta ... lOfii [r W. Dsl>«las ... 1298 Mr A. ElHnghjun. 942

Mr W. Douglas ... £3492 Mr J. Button ... £1303 Mr Ct. G. Stead ... 3109 Mr J. Kean „. 1274 Mr P. Butler ... 2381 Mr M. Walker ... 1222 MrM. Hobbs ... 1958 Mr <J. Wright ... 1104 Mr.i."B Reid ... 1854 Mr J. t). Dimofld J062 M»j->r«-:sorge ... 1554 Mr E. Oalthrop ... 10.B' Mr A. Poitland... 1412 Mr D. O'Brien ... 102 Mr J. Sttjn'aenson 1406 Mr U. Mnrumaru 956

[r G. G. Stead ... £3361 Mr S. Bradley ...£1157 [rM. Hobba ... 3110 Mr G. Wright ... 1106 :on.J.D.Ormond 2463 MrJ. Kean ... 1104 [rH. Goodman 1577 Mr W. Douglaa... 1073 h-TePere ... 1516 Mr E. Oalthrop... 1065 [r A. Portland... 1357 Mr W. Tuck ... 1044 [r J. Stephenson 134S Mr M'Minamin... 1007 I

1895 86. [r G. G. Stead ... £3609 Mr W. Douglas ... £l26o [on.J.D.Ormond ;8108 Mrß. Burfee ... 1250 [r H. Craig ... 2352 Mr W. Davies ... 1136 tr M. flobbß ... 1834 Mr J. Ohaafe ... 1073 [r J. Stephenson 1657 Mr W. Homes ... 1067 Crs Duncan ... 1269 MrT. Quinlivan 1057