LATE SPORTING.

TALK OF_THE DAY.

By MAZEP^A.

*** There was a deal of feeling on the part of a large section of the spotting pubic when the scrntiblng of Bova. foe the Caultield Cup was aunouuetd. " Asaaodeus" thus speaks out oa the subject: —" Hova, by reason of his fine weight-for-age performances at Fl^mtngton and CaulQeld, had ingratiated himself with tbe public to an Extent which caused him to be immensely fancied for thdCJup, and the appear- j aoce of his nt»me in the list of acceptors on the Monday prec«;Hng the race was taken as an indication that he would ba a certain starter. He thereupon was freely supported by the ' public, a»d for four daya remained firm iv the market at 100 to 8. Then came (hut splendid gallop on Thursday momiug, which waa good enough to win any Caulfield Cup ever run. This tended to further promote corifidwc?, and jfc wes not until the following d»y that di=quifct'U^ rumoiiiß wete afloat concerning him. At fir&t it was snid the stable had not btu ked him, that efforts had failed to obtain a share of tbe Br'sV-aoe sweep money, end that Hova was in coos quence an rmlikely ttavt^r. Thekoowledgfe that the horse was part ownfd by Mr Richard Qrico, a lnembir of the V B.C. Committee, led none but the most crolulous to give lued to what was said c jue^rning tfce improbability of Hova eef-ing the pwit. Mr Grice's interest in the horsy. was accepted as a guarantee that tbe pnblic would be given a run for tteir money. In these circumstance* Hova'a ultimate ■withdrawal came as an overwhelming surprise to fcbe majority of people. Fiom rrbftfc c*n be gathered from A. D.»viee, the nominator and trwner, the only reason assigned ia tbathirf luck is S'J proverbially bad »,t paulfitld that this aloue influenced him in retiring Hoya. To ordinary minds tbis is palpably an iuMiflicient excuse. In the first place Davies, who, according to Mr Grice, has sole control of the horse, knew all about his bad luck, &c, on the day of acceptance. Why, therefore, did he ptroiit Hova to retnaiu iv the race all.tbrougu tb.« week In tbe full knowledge of the fact —l prtsuuvo he reads tbe daily pipers —tlM he was bi-ing f re*ly sapported by tfcs public ? Theu, again, j why that txhibition g-llop on Thurdday awn- ! ing, when, knowing 'his luck fco be so bad ab ! Caulfield,' he mut-t at the time have meditated | the use of the scratching p»n ? The exptana- ' fcion in too transparently thin to convince any ] but the mosb gullible, and the public generally ; will look el*e»here for more cogent reasv-iif to j fiati-fy thtumlvc* than the romantic motive j vyncbsafecJ by the hcrst's trainer." *** An old resident of South Australia in the very early fifties tells me that the name of I the owner of the Melbourne Cap winner has brought to his recollection a yarn current in those 'days. A steeplechase took place somewhere aboafc Encounter Bay. The rider of one of the hortes fell, and tho horse was mounted | by a bybtandtr, who rode ia and won the race tinder rather peculiar circumstances. The horse wat a bit of a rogae at his fences, aud although a good jumper, wanted a resolute rider. He played h;s usual g*me at one of the obstacles, and the bystander aliuded fco —John Ewart, commonly known as "Hoppy Jack," from having been born with one leg shorter than the other—ran up to the rider and told him when he tried him again to fall off and pretend to be hurt. This be did, and Hoppy Jack then tied a pocket handkerchief round the' horss's eyes, was lifted into the saddle, and rode the horse blindfold at the fence, which was a pretty old one, consequently he broke through it and Hoppy Jack came to grief, but remounted and ■won the race. The name of the horse was War Eagle, and be belonged fco a Mr James, who had a station at Encounter Bay. This Mr James my informant believes to be the grandfather of the winner of this year's Melbourne Cup. *** The Doneasfcer Cup has this yeai gone to the Irish-bred Kilßallaghan, owned by Captain Machell, after an exciting finish such as is seldom eeen over a two-mile course in England with the aged horsa Houndsditeh. Against the latter liberal odds wera obtainable at the fall of the flag. The winner was fancied, but not bo strongly aa Sir J. Miller's La | Sagesse, who went out an odds-on chance, i and, being unable to stay, finished last. The time, 3mia 38sec and a solid fraction, seems slow, but then the course is "about" two miles, which may mean anything. An extraordinary thing, this, with respect to the distances of many^of the English races. What need for the " about," when somebody must know the measurement to a tomtit's eyebrow ? R A colonial trainer would, anyhow. If Harry or Ted Cutta or Jim Mon»ghau were there they would be out firafc thing v with the chaio and find out aU abont the •'about," The Park Hill Stakes, a valuable prize which is to the Leger what the Oaks iB to the Derby, resulted in a win for the unnamed filly by Saraband from Busybody, by Petrarch ~Spinaway, by Macaroni, and as she oufc•tayed ou their merits the filly Butterfly, who secured a place in the Leger, tbe nameless one can hardly be much inferior to Sit Visto. The winner waß bred by the late Mr " Abiagton,"

and at the sale of hiß horses in training ia J 1893 waß purchased as a yearlmg by Mr Hamer i Bas) for 2590g5. She only ran twice as a two-year-old, being unplaced each time in a race for maidens, and after that^ did not run till appearing in the event above referro.l to. It will be ohsprved that Gas, the half sister to Ladas, fiimhed last. Sho has been a dreadful disappointment.

*** The Great Foal Stakes at Newmarket, which in past years has fallen to such ctlebritiea as Riyoo dOr, Robert the Devil, Melton, Ormofcd*, Reve dOr, Ayrshire, and Ormj», was this seasou captured by thai profitable filly Wise Virgin, on whom M. Cannon rode, tbis being his third suecessiv« winning mount iv tfce race. Ufciea started favourite, a»d for the greater jart of tho journey »he seemed likely to land the odd*, bat tbe challenge by Wire Virgin was so dashing &s to put the issue beyond doubt ! long befoie the judge wr~s reached. Tho winner wae brtd by Sir TaMon S>kes, ai.d, an a yearling, realised 220^s. Ia she not nicely named for a mare by Wfodcm from Elizabeth ? At Goodwood this season there was a dead heat between FJittcts and Omladiua. When the Utter wou the Champagne at Doncatter the publicthought that sfce must have had bad luck or had rs» framed from showing her true form in the Good wocd r*ee. That impression received confirmation in the Hopeful Stakes at Newmarket, when, the dead hooters m <$ting again, Omladiua wen rather easily, -ml Flitters finished a poor third. Ib is no-r reckoned that Oaalndiua is In© best filly of her age yet seen this eeanon. Lord Rcstbsry declared to win the Jockey Club Stakes with Lada«, and Sir Visto carried ths second colours. Not for j a gi>:*t number of years, if ev^r before, lias an ; owner started in a race two Horses each of ', whom has won a Derby, each animal being i ridden by the jockty who was associated with j L» Epsom triumph. But both finished ou* of a pkc-\ Ladas", who is said to have had only two legs to gallop with, came in fourth, and his chum fifth. They were carrying preUy heavy weight?, as will be sr-en by the report. L»veno, who won, thercly givi»g a life to Mr Houldswortb, who hid been ou'j of luok for Botno time previously, was bred by his owner, Kot by Bend Or from Napoli, by Mtcaroni — Sunshine, by Thorm^nby. He had run only twice before this Newmarket racr, namely, ia the Two Thousand, wfaeu ac fioished second to Kirkconcel, and in the Derbj woa by Sir Visto.

*»* From L-csnstd Victu»l!ec* J Gazstte : Max Leb»udy, the young French millionaire, is by the law of his country serving hi* time in the French army. On the ground of ill-health ho was released from duty, and was exceedingly joyful at bit good fortune. A week after toe doctors had certified Max "upfit for service" h«j roi'.c over tbe heavy steeplechase course at Auteiul, and tub^quently got coixf d up in the Fcu.ds.l at Deauville, which resulted iv t*o joefefcyi being warntd off. For this, his " freedom " has been re-caJled, and back he has gone to the army. No less than 25 doctors have been called in to report aa to his fifctte-w for service, aud it is said Aat only three of them are in favour of Max, so that his prospects of being freed from military training cerWnly appear remote ; but millionaires are — well — millionaires ; eo'it will not be surprising to hear that he is "out" once more. Mar Ltbaudy, from all accounts, is practically a secood edition of the l*te • ' Squire " Abington. For a long time past the little Frenchman h?s been causing his friends and well-wi&hera no inconsiderable amount of anxiety, chiefly on Recount of his exiraordin&vy escapade", which, to say the least of them, are peculiarly " peas in the pot " and of the "out-cf-tho-fryingpan-iiito-the-fiTe'' order.

* # * France lost one of her best sportsmen in September by the death of M. Auguste Lupin, one of the first of French owners to challenge English racers on their own courses. He waa 85 years of epe. His colours were registered as early as 1836, when b.9 had Belida racing. Being a frequent visitor to England, he there became possessed of a desire to be a breeder. After the death of George IV he brought busk to France from the royal stud at Hampton Court some brood mare?, which enabled him to la.y tbe foundation for the first victory secured in England by a thoroughbred foaled iv France, with Jouvenee, by Sting out of Currency, who won the Goodwood Cup in 1653 with the greatest ea^e. During his eventful career he won the French Derby six times and the Oaks five times, and twice he got home in the Grand Pm — viz., with Glaneur and Salvator. With Dollar he wou races on both sides of the Channel, and fcbis horse proved of immense service as a sire. One of his geb w&b Rupee, who afterwards came to New Zealand and produced Florin, Spade Guinea, Apropos, and others. Ia his younger daya M. Lupin used to back his horses pretty freely, and the Sportsman relates one incident which shows that ha was not altogether destitute of luck. In 1847, thinking he had more than an average chance of winning the French Derby with Gambetti, he backed his stable for a very large sum of money. The revolution broke out in 1848, and by common consent all bets made on the French Derby were declared void. It was impossible to think of racing at Chantilly, the property of the Orleans family, or on the Champ de Mars, where the men employed at the National Workshops would have resented any indulgence in what' was considered a purely aristocratic p&stime. The very eve of the race came round without anything baing settled, and a deputation from the Jockey Club waited on M Ledru Rollio, f.B the chief of the Democratic party. He gave the deputation to understand that he insisted oa the race taking place, and consequently the Derby of 1848 was decided at Versailles, Gambetti winning.

At a sale of racehorses at Christchurch Messrs Pyne and Co. sold to Mr V. Harris the gelding Quiltiri for 290gs and Conranto for 51gs. Mr G. White purchased the filly Fecala Cor 30ge; Mr M. Mills; the colt Legion of

Honour for 03.48 ; lit R. Sbowart, the ChainBbot— Bribery filly for 13gs and the mare Corruption for ll£gs; Mr D. Knight, the filly Decoration for 42gH ; and Mr M'Anally, the mare Minerva for 29gs.

At fcho Otski (Wel)ing l on) races Volfca vron the Trial Stakes (£3 17s), Sterl King the Hurdle* (£1 17s), Vylta the Bright Handicap (£6 16<), Waingongora the Raukdewa Plate (£1 18s), Miser the November H&ndiaap (£2 6s), and Hitlsttn* the Welter (£lO 14s).

At the Tarafeahi - Carterton meeting Mr Tanered won the P.ince of Wales Handicap with Senator, paying £3s 6*, and the Telegraph Handioap with Kiug's Bowman, £1 6s. Petroleum won the Wairarapa Hack Guineas, paying £7 4s, and Kent the Grand Stand Handicap, £2 ss.

The Napier syndic tte who own The Shrew purchased Mr Douglas's smart filly Torpina fcr 225g5,