THE COUNTRY GENTLEMAN . [WRITTEN FOR THE "WEEKLY NEWS"] ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS .

WwivAru. — 1 am afraid juu lobe join lict, tlit.it U no authentic record of any horse Ii.vmuk inn out mill) ill one niiuutu The lcpoit tlmt Uuldtn did so is not bclitvul NoVicK. -The regular fo3 ut lioine lccogniied bj tin. Jockey Club is live K'lint'iis for winning, tvn^l tlncc guineas for it losing riilo , a specml .i n 'ic>.iiitiit is geiiciiilly niudu heio, but nc lm\o no uile, and in tliu Hbsfiicu of one, tlio above, J l)olie\o, would guide the decision, $xuiMiiiAi.r— Is ono of tlioso mysterious coni)il>iints ' which no fulluh cim underiitaiid ," theio is no known cure, and 1 do not think geldings me nioic 11 il)lo to this romplaint than mares. Mr Calvoit, ol Otiiliuhu, is, 1 boliovc, a M.lt.O.A' S.

Hotter to roam In flolcU eJar for health uiibought. Than fco tho doctor for liLi uautcou* draught. We hate news by telegraph of the winner of tho Derby. It wAs rtia on the 3rd ouirait, micKwoa by Mr. Cartwright's Guorgo Fud--riok; Lord Jtosetoerry's Courouuo do For second ; Loid Falmouth's Atlantic third. i Twenty hones started, Couronuo do For being favourite j Aquila, Atlnutic, and George Frederick wo. e also backed. Atlantic, aa 1 mentioned last week, won the Two Thousand Guineas, and ia ndw placed for tho Derby. This, running must have largely Added to the vatuo of Mr. if uuter'* laty purchases, tho pedigroj of wbioh 1 gavo last week. (Jouronne de For was a ruoonfc purchase of Lord Koseberry From Atr. Pudwick, at 2,500 guineas ; he i« by Maocaroni, out of Mias Agnes. The Oako, which is fdr marcs only, 'was run on the 5th June, and wou by Mr. Laundes' .JApology,' Mr. Lofovre's Miss To'to scoond, ana Mr. Landy's Patrician third. We must patiently wait until the arrival of tho June mail for particulars of tho muning of these two important raoes. The United Kingdom Gi^ud Steeplechase has just buen ruu at Croydon, and won by Couac St.Sauvour'a Mouttort, Mr. Brayley'u Silvormero second, aud Cupuiu Machell'a Defence third; the value of tho stakes 1,255 sovs. 'J he Warwijk bpring Meeting was no. t the usual success, probably i u oousequence of its clashiug with tha York meeting or same day. Twenty of B*ron llothaohild's two and throo-year-olaa were recently sold ; they wore moutly by hit favorite horse Kiug Tom, the uighest-pricad one being Marswortb, 5,000 guineas ;, hodometer, 1,'JOO j Tancred, 1,300; and Coomassie, 1,000 ibeinj an averagj of 73U guineas each, and they Werjinoatly two-year-olds. Who nhall aay after this that breeding thoroughbreds won't pay ? Tho sale realised 14,605 guinea). I don'£ see why breeding on i a large scale would uot pay m Auuklaud. Look at tb» large suula of' money wiiich Within the last two years have been sent to the South for good bred stock. We have a oliinate far before thflirs f6r the purpose. If we had only some good blood to start with I should not tear the rosult. The Wellington Dei by, to be run in December, ha* closed with 15 entries, tire of which are from Auckland. Mr. Walters enters his newly.pur. ohaied filly by Towton out of Symphony, and Mr. Watt ontera Liangi, Tioko, Ngaro, and Tui. The Southern clubs cannot complain thai we in the North do not support them by entries, a3 iu this rav-o one-third of tho nominations are from Auckland. I wish we could say aa much j for thorn : recently our Leger, Derby, and Produce Stakes closed without a single entry from the South. In Loudon the Chaueeilor of theExchequer, in making his financial statement, found himself (happy man !) with a large surplus. Among a number of taxes which, iu consequoncu, he proposed to remit was the horse duty, the hurso-dealers' duty, and the racehorse duty, whidh amount in all to close upon half a million of mooey. The collective wiidom of England do not appear, at any rate, to endorse the opinion of some, that racing is a great evil, as the tendency of modern legislation is to remove some of the disabilities it worke 1 under. What has our Auckland Jockey Club done with Southern Olubs to arrange for a uniform date at wKoh our thoroughbreds are to take thfair ago from ? Wo all remember the unfortunate occurrence at our annual meeting in January lust with Mr. lied wood's team, in consequence of our club dating from a different day to wbioh they do down South ; it was much to bo regretted, as, hud the horses not reverted to their old owner, there would have been better contested races, and more excite tntne. The Queensland Club have just agreed to date from tbe @rst of August, and so will tbe New South Wales and Viotoria clubs ; aud the sooner a similar understanding is come to the bettor in New Zealand. Tho pride of Yorkshire sportsmen, and ono of the best and most popular horsos that ever trod tho British turf, Voltigeur, had lately tb be shot 'in consequence of his leg being broken. He was bred in 1817 by Mr. Robert Stophemon, of Hurt, and was bought as a colt by the late Lord Zetland for 350 guinr as. His trainer and Lord Zetland had immense confidence in him, a ad he boeame a favourite for the Derby. Tho tenantry on the Zetland estates backed liim to a man ; even tho domestic servants anticipated their wagos for mouths to come about him ; ladies' maids could not sleep for dreaming of his success ; a special train of Yorkshire tykes wont with him to London. He won both tho Derby and the St. Lager,' following up this, feat by defeating the hitherto uncouquored Flyiug Dutchman for the Doncjster Cup. Next year was a proud year for Scotland, as he was in turn beaten by Lord Eglinton's Fly inn Dutchman in tho memorable match for 2,000 guineas at York. No radp or match had hardly over created such a general interest as this ono. Kveri those who took little or uo interost in racing matters got drawn into tho whirlpool. It is hardly, possible, at this distance of time and space, to make people here believe' tho interest wh'ioh was taken by all classes in this event. The high character which both uoblsmen held iu turf matters only added to this, aud although the amount of stakes was large, tbe honour of winning was still greater. The white and rod spot jacket had, however, to succumb to the tartan that day. Yoltigeur was very valuable at the stud. Among the many turf celebrities, he was the sire of Vedette,' Skirmisher, B,ivouac, Sabreur, "Bmntolekite, Greant dos B&tailles, Brenus, Fragrance, aud •Falkland, tho latter being the winner of last year's Northumberland Plate. % VoHigoui •vas a dark brown horse, and was got fry Voltaire' out of Martha Lynn. Tho ohampionsbip of the Thames wai rowed ,for lately between J. Sadler, of London, aud Bagnall, of r- ewoastle. The course was frcm Putney to Mortlake, the Londoner being tho winner. Tho match for the billiard ohampionship 'has just been played between Willjam Cook and John Robert*, jun. *Two years ago Cook was defeated by the young 'un ; this time he has turned the tables. " The game was for £200 and the* champion's gold on p —1,000 up. Although the admission was. a guinea, nearly 400 wore present, the room being crowded. Cook's great forto is' tho " spot " stroke, and he has reduced this particular stroke - iu which, however large » part .was borne by nkill, chance entered very considerably - tu n sort of mechanical exoroiuo. Tc obviato this a table had been expressly made, in wbioh the oiroumferonoe of the pocket* had b«<m reduced and* the spot )>Ii>oed ou« inch nearer the top cushion — fch* v«fcuit baiug that where formerly he made 20C to 300 by his favourite akrok^ in no oa»t> wi< he sucocMfat in looriug more fcban 12 or 1£ point* thlt tjuitf. Iu conaequbDDB of tin difficulty of tb'o table, the game took a mucl )ou$er t>mo in playing. Only ouoe was 10C scoied in a single break. Cook won by 214 point». ! Any time from now to the 10th of July it 1 tho best time «f or getting in^whet. To onsuroagoo'd crop, above all got it ai dry m ))i>»»ible, and look to the water furrowa boing well oknned aut, which eliauld be doini rtaijy os tho land is harrowed. ■ W« hold at home that »e*d flooded for 24 hours it spoiled. Wo have got over the shortest d*y, and that puU mo in mihA of Wateiloo Day, and that pufn mo in mind of a late Uoyal \va>--rant, wbioh authorised tho Secretary of St&t for War to reoommeiul for poneiotin up to la. Gd. par day euoh soldiers who served before and up to 1815 We h*vo n : many ptmiotiers ia New Zealaud that it s

1 possible soiuo old WiUcilo- nu . i. y be. heie. blioald aiiv "i «'■ % t i ■>!..' .v <»' such, t!. _> ', .oiild n. i: n .!■•*>' « io t!i< m, as, pool old ch>\py, tli y arj v.cli eutitled t » it. The pailKiiUra will be fouud iu the army list of 10th Marcu la^t, So a section of the butchcra Lavo been getting up ci muting t<> a«ilat.' against the removal of tho 8lnnghtrr-hoi * ). Tao » itc chosen is without doubt tUo voiy best that could hivo b cii Lit upon, in a healthy oponplaiu, abundance of good ■pnug*watoi, railway right iuto tho building, and a good load for those who do uot tfaut to uso that moio of transit. Id is besides »o situated that no buildiugs are likfly to bo erected anywhere near, and lust, but f»r from least, thoro are plenty of good grass paddocks iu tho immediate neighbourhood. The enly argument brought beforo tho mooting Wft* tho diatance from town ; this with railway and telegraphic communication i* all nonaense. At present if a butsher Wants to tend a me?say«s out to the &laughter-house he has to send a special meisengar at great cost and exnouse. If some of your town subscribers wore only Wituoss to half the horror* that daily occur in the existing establishment, it would cause many of tnemtotuin vegetarians. We in the oountry often congratulate ourselves that out 1 meat is not so treated. Some of the butchers set up the ■aine cry when Mr. Buokland removed his . yards to Hemuera. What will they say if ha again moves out olose to the proposed ■laughtcr-bouso. Many mor« unlikely things h.iro happened. Then as to trying to frighten tho people by saying they will raise the price of meat, a* the oxpenses will be ni re, it s all nonsense. How mauy times do the butcher* tell the farmers in the hot weather they can* not afford to give more money ■ for cattle, th^ir loites are so great on acoount of the miserable state tho meat gets info while in the present slaughter-homo. Sometioioaitisquifco grt-eu, tind unlit for consumption, when brought to their shops. Another advantage by bringing it in by railway — it will come in cool »ud cImq. Who hat not seen, in going up tho Kyber Pass Road, a spring-cart full of meat, the driver sitting on the meat smoking his pipe, in hot sun, the dust blowing, and not an attempt at a covoriug of any kind. These aro facts, aud fact* aro stubborn things. A correspondent in the CkoSS in reply to editorial remarks ro the wholesale and retail pi ice of butchera' meat, 'forgets a very important item which comes off the wholesale price quotcl by Mr. liucklaud, or whut is termed the "fifth quarter." In bullocks, the hide, worth from 20*. to 30s., the Ullow, looae fat, head, tongue, heart, tail, feet, horns, &c. ; while in sheep, the skin and wool from now to clipping time is worth from 4s. to 7s. 6d , besides tallow, &o. Of course to Mr, Buckland's quoted price the cost of slaughtering aud carting in to town have to be added. A letter has been banded to me purporting to come from the gentleman who caused the accident to Karey, taking exception to my remarks last week, as to the term 1 'applied to his offer of compensation. He seems to object to its being called ridiculous, an opithet which he doesnot consider applicable, as ho offered £100 for the horse, which he affirms the owner has. said was worthless. Ptrhaps this may be true, hut through whose fault was it made worthless ? I can only say that as tho owner of Earey did not accept tho offer, he, at any any rate, must have thought it a ridiculous ono under the circunaB'.ancor I do uot say more as tho matter will probably come leforo a jury. NUNQUAM DOHMIO.