SPORTING. TURF NOTES BY VIGILANT.

Evening Post, Volume XXX, Issue 22, 25 July 1885, Page 2 (Supplement)

SPORTING. TURF NOTES BY VIGILANT.

Tho first attempt of thft Weliingtonßacing Club to carry ont a Winter Steeplechase Meeting has proved so successful that the fixture is certain to be included in future in the regular programme of the year. In fact, I have already Ic.irnt fro'n the Secretary that, in view of this being dono, arrangements are being made for having the Club's annual meeting, which is genenlly held iv July, pushed on to the following month in order that time may be allowed for making up tho acoounts on the SteeDleohise meeting. To do this, a roaolultion will bi proposed flt the next annual meeting (which will probftbly bo nailed in n. few d*ya, and then postponed for a fortnight) making the 31st July the end of the Club's financial year, instead of tho .10th Juno, as it stands at presont. Tho racinpr on Saturday la^t was as good iw any seen at thn Hult. Fielila of peven. ten, Be yon, fright, six, and saven are quite lar^o enough for sport, and not so large that the public are in despair of being ablo to pick tho winner. Faugh-a-Ballagh'B win in tho Trial was finch an easy one, that it is surprising so few of tho knowing onrß backed him for tho great event. Ho was in grand buckle, and jumped like a out Mr. Dennett acemn to bo in good luok this season. _ In the Hpting he pinked np Deceiver for a trifle, and 'won Reveral racea with him, and now ho finishes by winning about £300 with a horso ono might havu h4Ptv o months a?o for JJfiO. ¦Ravoiiswood wan made n. groat pot for the Hnrdln llttoc and the Cone olat.ion, but ho failed to reward hifl admirers in oith<ir fuse, thontrh tho way hn oamo through his hoi'Roi and pa-sod all bnt Krobns in tho Hurdlo P.ace won n f wat to sao. Whnthor TiiUy-go-by-'om rutold have won this rnco no ono will over know, bnfc tho Jittle Bon of Dead Shot wa* showing a very bold front when ho met* with his aocidont. Erobna is ovidnntly n coming horari over lumll(H, aiid ho has many a win in him yet if ho konps Bound. Tn the. Local Hurdle Eaoo, Wanda, at tha lg.at Hurdle, lookod like winning easily, bnt I am afraid aho has turned a jade, or she conld not possibly have boon beaten on tho flat by a hlow old stager like Ngatitoa, who, however, is a very useful Bag for hia owner. The rumour that Macaroni was going for the Hurdles turned out mere bunVum. and aa soon as it ¦waa known he wai intended for the steeplechaso ho becamo a big favourite. My own impression ia that tho party connected with him did not bank him for mnoh , but the publio rushod lrra to a very short prioo. Hia running wag altogother too bad to be true, for ho could certainly have won at Napier with tho sair.o weight up, and hore he nevor ehowed prominently thron«hont. Orient looked and wont well, bnt, aa I prophesied in my anticipations, the heavy troing dulled his ftpeod whon ho wanted it at tho finish. Berrinpfcon w^nt very well for two miles, but failed to Btav home. There was a good deal of talk after tho mooting about a match between Romeo and Fangh-a-Ballagh, but when tho ownerc of both bearan to think oalmly ovor it, they deoided that it waa not worth tho oandln to go for ono another, and the negotiations came to nought. I hear from Mr. 15votfc that the Hawke's Bay Racing Clnb nrocrramme for next season is now in tho pross, and will be published in book form in a few days. Tho club have re^ solved to give away about in prizemoney. Dan O'Bripn. whilo in Melbourne, hinted to "Angur" that if tho weights put on Trenton and Tasman for the Melbourne Cnp •woro satisfactory ho might send ono or the other over. An thoy aro considered well in, ono will probably go ovor. Mr. J. ,T. Miller intonda to have a Supreme Court decision, if nfioesaivry, bofo-o yielding to tho nkaßO of tho Poatmastor-Genoral, whioh prohibits all letters, newspapers, and packets addressed to him at Sydney. The objont of tho Gazette notioo i«, of course, to provont Mr. Miller oarrying on hia famous sweeps this year. About seven months aeo, in accordance with tho powers conferred by the now Act of 1883, the Postma^ter-Goneral stopped delivery of letters to "Boz" and " Champion," nnd recognising the anthority, Mr. J. J. Millor, like Mr. Boland, established his offioein New South Wales. The party who desire to suppress every sign of spaoulation, exoept from the Stook Tfrohange, naturally felt wrath at their victims thus escaping from their grasp, and it is pretty probable that pressure was brought to bear unon the Poatmastor-Gonoral to issue this further decroo. Mr. Croker, solicitor for Mr. Miller, has written formally to the Hon. Mr. Campbell, pointing out that tho Act gives him control only ovor letters, &c , addrißsod to poople in Viotoria, and that in extending his prohibition to communications addressed to roßidenta ontsido tho colony, he is aoting ultra vires. It is vory ovtdent that Parliament had no idea, whon pasainsr the Act, of involving the country in intercolonial, and possibly international difficulties. Consequently there ia little doubt that tho Crown law officers, to ¦whom tho matter has beon referred, will advise the postal authorities to quietly withdraw tho ill-advised Gazette notice. When the last English mail loft the groat English two-yoar-old, The Bard, was still carrying all before him, having jußb .scored his olevonth successive win. The total amount of money, so f«\ won by Mr. Peck's oolt ia i(5103. In all his races, oxcept the Brooklesby Stakes, at Lincoln, ho was Bteered \>y Arohor. Tho Bard ia by Petraroh ont of Magdalone. Petrarch is h<»lf brothor to Proto-Martyr. It is said tha Prince of Wales owns Royal Hampton, who ran third in the Derby, and that his Koyal Highness landed i-50,000 through baoking his horso for a place. " AsmoHens " in tho Loader hai evidently a very small opiniou of the New Zealand horses, or he would not havo written as follows about thoir chanoos in the Melbourne Cvp :— Tho Now Zealand contingent, oonFiating of Tasman (Oat). Vanguard (Bst 111b), nnd Ondoia (83t 51b), hayo jiot o-sonpod Mr. Barnard's notioo, and it.,' ,: ': übtful whether any of this trio lire liSbiy to figure among the aoooptora, and Trenton (7at 131b) is also woll oared for, and is treatod with moro lenioncy than tho remaining Maoriknders— viz , Thundorbolt (7st 51b), Jnly (7st 51b), and Winohoßter (Gst 01b). Tt is quite possible that tho ohanoos of ono or other of those will bo sufficiently estimated to wairant New Zealand boing ropro3ontod in tho groat equine contest of the year. Coronet has been baoked to win j£25,000 for the Molbourne Cup, and is said to be doing famously. It will be remembered that this horse won the Newmarket Handioap last Maroh, and was backed down to level money for the Australian Cnp, in whioh, however, he finished last, having, it was aiid, rioked his back. "Nemo," in the Sydney Mail, after diaonssing the chances of the horses engaged in the Hawkesbnry Handicap, seleots the following as about the best in :— Highland Mary, Gst 111b ; Prince Imperial, 6st 121b ; Privateer, 7st 01b ; Wing, 7st 71hs ; Lord Exeter, 7at 21bs : Caliban, 6st 121b ; The Jewel, Gat 101b ; and First Demon, 7at 121b.