CAP AND JACKET

Sinbad says " Trump Card is likely to have a grand season in the Geraldine district." The Totalisator Bill will lie again introduced into the Tasrnaninn Assembly. Mr. Webb's mare Lady Florence (Middleton's dam) has thrown a nice filly foal to Albany. "Caspian," in the Sydney "Town and Country" tips Grand Flaneur, Wilson's best and Rothschild for the V.B.C. Derby. Lurline's colt Darebin was nominated for the Two-year-old Stakes at the Flemiagton meeting last month. If he ran he finished nowhere. Sweetmeat is not so seriously injured as was at first supposed, but it is still doubtful if he will be . able to carry silk in the Melbourne Cup. Nolan will again visit New Zealand this season, the Yadhurst stable having the first call on his services, as usual. The sporting men at Gisborne are quarrelling and the Poverty Bay meeting will very probably come to grief in consequence. One of the leading members of the Victorian betting ring has declared that he has still no less than £1168 to collect over the events that have been decided this season. The victory of Don Juan in the big event last Saturday was ireceived with considerable enthusiasm. There were not many people in the paddock, but they cheered uproariously, Tom Chaloner, after a long absence from the saddle, reappeared in the colours of his old master, Mr. James Snarry, on Cup day at Goodwood, when he won the last Bentinck Memorial upon Jessie Agnes. The Pakuranga Hunt Club Steeplechase was won by Dout Juan, though scarcely so easily as people anticipated. The first round appeared to me little more than an exercise canter, none of the competitors seeming really to race tijl they passed the stand a second tune.

T. Hales and W. Yeomans, the well-known jockeys, may now be ranked among tlie landed proprietors of Australia, as they have given £11,000 for a station on the Darling. Robert the Devil's weight in the Cesarewitch must have been nearly 9st. and Cipolata' s about Bst. The highest weight previously cara-ied to victory in the race by a three year old was Bsfc. by Julius in 1867. When Blue Gown, carrying 9st. ran second to See Saw for the Cambridgeshire of '6B the performance was considered a wonderful one. It will not, however, compare with Eobert the Devil's in the Cesarewitch. The Cesarewitch, the. greatest of the English handicaps, is run at Newmarket over a course of 2 miles 2 furlongs 28 yds. The field usually numbers about thirty horses, though, (as in Hartingfcou's year 1862) upwards of forty have started. A well-known hotel keeper at Waimate, who has a strong predilection for sporting matters, bought ten tickets in a £5,000 sweep on the Melbourne Cup and has drawn no less than three horses, one of which is Mata. For the Melbourne Cup, Progress has had some money invested in his favor at 10 to 1, and after Camballo's running at the V.R.C. meeting, his stable companion, Mata, advanced to 100 to 8. Lord Burghley has an upward tendency, and so has Sweetmeat, but Faublas and Lothair are decidedly weaker in the market. In the Victorian Assembly, during the debate on the Totalisator Bill, a member stated that at Caulfield one afternoon when one of the machines was in use he had seen the whole of the bookmakers standing idle. Allowing that the use of the instrument became legal, he thought the right to run them should be put up by auction, as he was sure it would bring at least £5000. A lady in Dunedin advertises that, for the small consideration of 2s 6d in stamps, "and one for reply," she will divulge the name of the winner of the coming Melbourne Cup, which winner was seen to pop first past the post by her while in a dream — no doubt after the dreamer had indulged in a heavy supper. Hon. E. K. Cox Avho is now in England, has purchased the famous steeplechaser Chaudos, from Captain Machell. Chaudos is by Oxford from a mare by Van Troxnp out of Erato. He ran fourth to Doncaster in the Derby of '73, and started favourite for the Grand National won by Regal, which he was winning easily when he ran through a fence and fell. The victory of the St. Leger winner, Robert the Devil in the Cesarewitch is a niost^extraordinary circumstance and proves that Mr. Brewers colt must be one of the best thoroughbreds foaled for many a long year. Only twice before has the double event been pulled off by the same horse, viz., in 18ii and 1845 when FaughaBallagh and The Baron proved successful. Fred Hedge seems to be able to get more out of Lone Hand than any other jockey who has tried him on this side of the water. In the Geraldine Hurdle Race he managed to keep the eccentric Australian celebrity straight, and the horses running on their merits. Lone Hand won. Perhaps during the season this extraordinary horse will shew that he is not such a " fraud" as his last season's performances indicated him to be. The Doncaster Cup, run on ihe last day of the great Yorkshire meeting was, I gather from a cablegram in the Sydney papers won by Mr. Perkins's eh f Dresden China, Mr. W. S. Crawf urd's Edelweiss, second, and the same owner's Schoolboy third. Dresden China, it will be remembered, ran. second for the Cesarewitch, and also beat Chippendale in the Cup at Goodwood two months ago. Freeman and " Joe" Thompson meeting each other in Sydney soon after the bribery dispute, the two proceeded to appeal to what is sometimes called the " good old English fashion of coming to an understanding.". In line, they fought heroically in front of Tattersall's Hotel for some minutes, but were eventually separated. The " Leviathan" is understood to have had the worst of the physical encoiinter. The settling over the late A.J.C. meeting in Melbourne was the reverse of satisfactory. Two English visitors were anxiously inquired for, and as one took his departure by the " John Elder," and did not "part" on friendly terms with some of the ring men, he was not wished " bon voyage" by those who considered that they had been victimised. It is, however, stated that all will be right m time, and that the money will be forthcoming by-and-bye. Lady Emma and her three companions in training are doing steady work on the beach near the Hutt Course. They are getting on very fairly, and Mr. Keen appears to be perfectly satisfied with his string. The mare is in excellent form, and local men who have seen her have supported their opinion by taking 100 to 12 on her chances for the Canterbury Cup, although her price at Christchurcb, according to last quotations, is only 100 to 7. The famous American mare Maud S., in a recent match at Chicago against Trinket, trotted a mile in 2 mm. 13£secs. The first three-quarters of a mile she accomplished in linin. 37fsecs. Captain Stone, the manager of Maud S., said he was not at all surprised at the result, and is confident she could have beaten St. Julien's time easily if she had not slowed up to save Trinket's distance. Indeed, Captain Stone expresses his opinion that the mare can trot as good as 2.10, and says her 2 13£- record, the best ever made in a race, and made by her in her second public trial, ranks her as the best trotter in the world. A few days ago, says the " Australasian of the 25th it was rumoured that Faublas one of the prime favourites for the Melbourne Cup had pulled tip lame after a gallop at Ballarat. The report arose in consequence of the colt having had a canter without his shoes Mr. Howie had taken him to the blacksmith to have a new set of shoes fitted on, and, after the old shoes had been removed, and while waiting, he gave him a canter on the grass in front of the shop. While going, "Faublas trod on a stone or some hard substance and bruized one of his heels, but though the colt was very limpy afterwards, he is now all right again, and doing good work. In order to clear himself from the charge made against him by Mr. Win. Freeman, of having given the iockey Bancroft £50 to pull Laertes, Mr. Thompson, (says 'Augur') has submitted his books to show that he lost money on both of the races referred to, and he intends to brina- the matter before the Australian Jockey Club, which tribunal will be called upon to hear the case. Aspinall (whose name has also been dragged into the matter) is prepared to make a statutory declaration to the effect that he is innocent of any such charge as that made against him by Mr. Freeman. The "Australasian," in its sporting leader, deals immercif ully with the ]ockey Bancroft. Some peculiar racing was witnessed at the recent meeting at Teniuka. Lone Hand and Eobin Hood started for the Hurdle Race at a hard walk On getting over the first hurdle a trot was 'indulged in, and on one occasion it was found to be absolutely necessary to pull Lone Hand up so that he should not leave his opponent too far behind. On negotiating the last hurdle the horses were actually galloped, and Lone Hand came in a winner by fave or six lengths The time occupied was said to be nfteen minutes, or, as a local paper says ' • The race was run at the rate of eight miles on hour, It was decided to pay the stakes over, as the horses were considered to have run a " waiting" race— too much waiting perhaps. Mr. Thomas Ivory has received a letter from Mr Egan of Junee, N.S.W,, in reference to the mvsterious'disappearanceofthewell-knownhorseßylong. The story is very simple. The horse was left securely housed at night. When the groom visited the stable in the morning he found the lock of the door forced and the horse cone Mr. Egan was promptly informed, and a search, unavailing as it happened, quickly made. The tracks were followed for about six miles, and eventually lost on a main road. The Temora and other police were Informed, but up to the time of writing no trace of the stolen horse has been discovered. The theft is a more than ordinarily daring one, and as the perpetrators can scarcely hope to dispose of him, the affair assumes a very mysterious aspect. Messrs. Egan and Ivory have offered a reward of £100 for such information as will lead to the recovery of the horse and conviction of the thief. Saul,