NOTES AND COMMENTS.

(By "Early Bird.")

Marton to-morrow and Thursday. Travel by road only will be the order of things.

It is understood that Zola represents Walter Rayner's stable in the nig* handicap

Sensitive, unlucky over the small sticks, is reported as being expected to make good in crosscountry events.

Nominations for the Wanganui Spring meeting must be regarded as highly satisfactory, and, everything points to a successful gathering on the 25th and 27th inst.

A two-year-old sister to the wellperformed. New Zealand filly Punka (Cooltrim —Drowsy) has been put into, work at.Rosehill (N.S.W.) by W. Booth.

Desert Gold is said to be looking as well as at any previous time, and it is expected she will add to her winning record this season. A little while back it was reported that she might visit Australia again this season, but with Sasanof, Gloaming any other good horses. absent from New Zealand, Mr Lowry may deem it advisable to keep her over here for the spring w.f.a. races. It would certainly be good policy, as the great mare cannot well be expected to show her best form of the past.

The day before the Australian Steeplechase was run an offer of £500 for Algous was refused. In the race Algous cut one of his coronets, and, as a result of over-reach-ing himself, was nearly on his knees after clearing the last jump. Beacon, in his notes in the Leader, said Algous finished like a drunkren man, but things were worse with Sir Prim, who stopped almost to a walk in the last fifty yards, despite Moon's effort to get a last kick out of him.

I am unaware from what source they glean their Australian figures, but some of our New Zealand exchanges continue to credit Gloaming with only £5144 for his two wins in Sydney (says the Referee.) His earnings here was £5411, the Chelmsford Stakes carrying £687 for first, and the A.J.C. Derby £4724, but of the latter sum £250 went to Mr E. E. D. Clark© as his breeder. Added to his New. Zealand winnings of £6765, Gloaming's total for last season % was £12,1,76. His ex-stable companion, Biplane, won £11,746 as a three-year-old. .

Since the arrival of Messrs W.. G. Stead's and W. Richmond's horses in Sydney/it has transpired that those owners are partners in Spannerr, and the other day I heard the former say that the price paid for -him in New Zealand was 2000 gns.,and not 3000 gns. (says a Sydney -writer.) Although the amount of money that went on Spanner for the Epsom Handicap was sufficiently great to give the commission a genuine ring at the time it was launched, it is now certain those concerned were New Zea land bookmakers. Knowing the enthusiasm of New Zealand backers where horses from the Dominion are concerned, the books interested would have been able to retail the Spanner money at prices that best suited them if he had remained in the Epsom. From what I can glean the attempt to beat thte market cost them fully £300.

England's champion sprinter, the four-year-old Irish Elegance is not in the Stud Book, and his pedigree on his dam's side can only be definitely traced back four generations. He is by Sir Archibald out of Sweet Clorane, by Clorane, whose granddam (May Day) on / the maternal side, was by Uncaff out of a mare of unknown breeding. As a two-year-old Irish Elegance shaped so promisingly that MrThorburn gave £2000 for him, and then parted with him somewhat reluctanly for £9000 tp the horse's present owner, Mr J. White, who will later use him at his stud farm in Wiltshire. Despite the flaw in his pedigree, it is probable I Irish Elegance's form as a racehorse will a&sure Kirn some good mares, apart from those olf his owner.

Tagai, winiier of the 1912 Epsom Derby, is represented in England this season by an exceptionally, brilliant two-year-old. This is Poltava, who is by Polymelus, but favours his dam in color, being a grey. On the opening day of the Epsom meeting at which the Derby was run, he won the Woodcote Stakes, of £930, in a canter .by six lengths from three others. The race was run over the last six furlongs of the Derby course, which,is so much downhill that Poltava, with 8.12., cut out the distance mentioned in 1.9. 3-5.

Racing was going strongly in.Germany at the commeiicement of May notwithstanding.the outcry as to the Allies1' Peace terms being so severe that they would crash that country monetarily. On May 24 there was a race meeting at Leipsic, also racing at Berlin-Gruenwald and Dresden, and big trottirig meeting at Hamburg Farmsen and Berlin-Mariendorf at the same time. The value of the eight races at Berlin-Gruenwald was £8050, the principal event being the Jubilamus Preis of £2500. The attendance was so great that the money taken at the gates in admission fees amounted to £11,000. From the above it will be gathered that the populace of Berlin is neither taking its defeat in the war sadly nor is short of cash. .

Excuses of various kings were being made in many of the English papers for The Panther's rank failure in the Derby, and the Special Commissioner of the London Sports-, man at first said the crowd and noise so upset the favorite that he went off his head. The Panther was in a lather as he went to the post, and was

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fighting with his rider. He played up, broke the barrier, lost ground through dwelling when a start was finally effected, and at no part of tfi*e race was galloping sufficiently well to suggest he had a possible charice of winning. A couple of days later the writer I quote gave another reason for The Panther's display of mad-headednecs at.the post and poor showing in the race. He wrote: "It appears that the policeman who led the parade, in which The Panther came first, was riding a mare in a condition to upset any stallion. This I am assured by a trainer (Fallom) of great experience who had his glasses on the animal, and he is strongly of opinion that The Panther's trouble was caused by this unfortunate incident. It may well be so, for it is a well known rule never to let a horse follow ; mare in a string of horses in training.