IN A NUTSHELL.

' — The pick of the St. Albans yearlings is a brother to Aurora. — The loss on the late A. J.C. Spring meeting was £2500, which is larger than usual. — Mr Charles Carter, who was well known in sporting circles in Tasmania, died theie on October 5. — Mr Stead when in Sydney stated that he had no intention of sending any horses to Australia this season. — It is said that the Hon. J. Carroll has promised to reconsider the Woodvilla Club's request for a second license. — Mrs Langtry's Australian-bred Merman won the Long Distance Plate at the Hurst Park (England) meeting in a canter. — Lancaster Park Club has decided to license bookmakers at 6gs per day, subject to reduction if more than 25 take out licenses. — The Lancaster Park Club has decided to give 10gs to the owner of auy horse that breaks a New Zealand record during the coming meeting. — Dan O'Brien has wop the New Zealand Cup - twice— with Tambourini (when the race was called the C. J.C. Handicap) and with Tasrnan. — At Morphettvillc this season there were 31 mares to foal, and by September 30 all but one had foaled. For the number of mares, this is . probably a record. __ — ,In the Hurdle Race, at Warwick. Farm ' (N.Sl W.Jßi'anxtoniost bis rider irt the first jujnp, r and- from that out finished the course, jumping eyery hurdle riderlees.' ' •— ' News has been received-at Palme'rston-Noftb. " that the Natator mare Franchise,-' which .Mr \ Donald Grant took home to Scotland, won va. •■' important race at Perth. .'. — A. fu.rtb.er test of Gray's starting machine was ' madei'at Hurst' Park (England), race meetii-g, a field of 13 horses being started in' capital stylo. | : The machine produced a most favourable impres- j aion. I — A trotting race in which the horses were driven by women, "attired in divided skirts," •was "enjoyed" at Pittafield, America, recently. J The fastest mile was in 2min 25i«ec. What next? — The net result of the Doncaster bloodstock sales this year was the quitting of 319 yearlings for 86,52?g3, an average of 271igs roughly. Last year there were 344 sold at an average of — Lord Zetland's once useful old brood mare Spiegelshiffc, dam and graoddam of many winners, on being brought out of the stable to be shot, suddenly dropped df ad, to saving a painful but necexMary execution. « — The A. J.C. committee have paesed a resolution that no scratching of any horse be accepted from any person other than the owner or lessee unless authority to act had been lodged by the owner or lessee with the secretary. — Kngland has sold 18 thoroughbreds io the Mikado. If the energetic ptople over whom he rules shonld awake to the value and importance of English blood stock a new and profitable market will speedily be opened to breeders. —M. Harris, who Bteeved Amberite home in th*e Canlfield Cup on Saturday, has done very well through his success. In addition to £1000 laid him to nothing, he will receive a cheque for jE9B 13s from the V.A T.C. as'his jockey's fee. — I'he cables bring us news of the result of the ; Ttewburst Plate. The winner is Mr J. Porter's ! Hawfinch (by Goldfinch— Chalk Hill Blue). 1 Minus, son of Sheen and Nina, finished second. 1 beating Dieudooiie, by Ampbion — M»n Droit. I — Dieudonne, winner of the Middle Park Plate, is by Amphion from Mon l>rait,by Isonomy from •In Sounds, 'by Hermit. Mr- W.H. Wilson's colt, purchased in England, is' bred on very similar : lines, being by Amphiou from an Ispnoroy mare* _ ■— Mr T.- Atuueld; ' the Vie. bookmaker, has re.turue'd from England. He brought out a very, r : light saddle as a -present for the jockey J. Cunninsbam.. It ;only, weighs Hib,;aud was made 1 under tlie direction of S. Loates, the English Ljopkevi: - > .- . - .-'v ' * ' —Mr J. Austin's. The Broker won the Hob.art Point to Point Steeplechase ; Wanderer was second, and Panic third. There were eight starters, and 22 fences were negotiated, ificho fell during the race, and was so badly injured that he had to be destroyed. — At Innatninoka (S.A.) on September 36 and 17 somethitig of a record was established. On the two days there were 10 races, and the whole of the wianeis were ridden by a jockey named D. Kaston and an amateur, Mr W. Cherry. Th^y were each successful five times. "—" — The Cromwell Club reports an actual loss of J6lO olj£l2 for the year. The credit balance now stands*at £85. Th-5 sum of £320 is allotted in stakes for the Summer mesting, and there.is some talk of shortening the distances in the Gtrand Stand and Jockey Club Handicaps. — The Cambridgeshire St-.kes, of 500sovs, a mile and a distance, run at Newmarket on Wednesday of last week, was won by Sir W. Ingram's • three-year-old Comfrey 7.2, with two American horses in the places, Mr Keene's St. Cloud II (3yrs, 7.0) being second and Mr Lorillard's Sandia <3yrs, 7.8) third. . . — Fortalice was well backed for the Park Hill Stakes at Doncaster, but she wa3 <ioue with a quarter of a mile from home, and the finish was fought out by Galatia and Laughing Girl. The laet-named struggled gamely, but with the advantage of Wood's jockeyship Galatia won by threeparts of a length. — The Melbourne writer " Javelin " asks : What will opponents of the totalisator, on moral grounds, think of magistrates allowing fines for hettiog in the street to be paid on the time-payment system ? A bookmaker is fined £100 for street . betting, »and.it is agreed that he shall pay it at the rate of £\S per month. r (—( — The loug list," of. fatal .accidents- -which, has '. been recorded of late'in steeplechases has induced the Adelaide -Racing Ulub to alter the nature of .' its big jump 3by taking off the top rail of gome of the present formidable ' obstacles aud substitute ■ furze, while at all the. jumps- furze will be grown 'up as fat aa the second rail. ' ' v < — .Very few horaes now on .the turf have done . the amount'of racing which '^Wakawate* has,, yet '. the eight-year-old son of Apremont is as sound - ' now as the day he was foaled. So writes a Sydney scribe, and he further says that Mr Hungerford has given the old sprinter a good rest, and just now the son of Apremont is doing gentle work at Kensington. -„ — The director-general of the Indian Ariny^ veterinary department states that lately the New * South Wales horses sent to India have shown signs of unsoundness, ringbone, and roaring, which he ascribes to the indiscriminate use of unsound stallions. "Apparently this is one of the reasons which induces the British Army authorities to purchase Argentine remounts in preference to Australian. — Tempe. daughter of imp. Somnus from imp. White and Blue, was recently destroyed at Kirkham, after undergoing the Csesaiian operation in order to get rid of a foal. Tempe was a great mare. She won the Summer Cup, Tatteraall's Cup, and Anniversary Handicap. Her son, Titan, was the crack two-year-old of his time, and at the sale of the late Hon. James White's racing stud he, though a gelding, was knocked down to Mr Brodribb for 4600 guineas — Mr P. Campbell owns a h»lf share of ObVK garde, the colt by Orville from Flirt, purchased by Mr Stead in England. So writes " Castor," and he adds that Mr Campbell whilst in England sold a half share in Engagement (by Musket —Sylvia) te Mr J. Russell, owaer of Whittier, who is to train Engagement s progeny. The Duke of Portland asked Mr Campbell to put a price on the . daughter -of Musket,* and the reply that £1000 ' would buy her did not lead to business. — " Peeping Tom," of Queenstbwn, reports that • • Mr Davis's JDerby filly'BUck Charm fs furnishing r into a beauty. ~ Little Trixieis weir Little Jane and Miss Palmer are both trotting fairly at Fraokton, whilst ' Lunacy, Blackthorn, Dagmar, 1 and- Di6k have each a following in regard to the - Two Mile and a-Half Trot. Taipo is another that • is fancied. It is said that Mr George Barnett will held a strong hand in up-country racing this sea- ! son, and that Ted' M'Nulty, with his string of four, won't be far behind him. — A boookmaker's bodyguard appeared as plaintiff at the Croydon County Court in September. Michael Daragon sued William Brighton, a Croydon bookmaker, for £40 for breach of agreeaaept. Plaintiff said he w#* engaged for the flatracing season to go about the country to race i meetings with defendant's son, a youth of 17, as physical guardian and protector. Plaintiff was

dismissed- after seven weeks, and" Nunc" Wallace, a pugilistic champion, was retained in a similar capacity. Judgment was given for plaintiff for £21.

— The Austro-Hungariau Government, who maintain an extensive stud for military purposes, have for many years been purchasers of first-class English thoroughbreds. The Derby winners Teddington, Kettledrum, and Doncaster ; Conynghatn and Diophantus, winners of the Two Thousand Guineas ; and such famous horses as Clincher, Buccaneer, Cambuscan, Carnival, and many other English-bred horses have been at various times located at the various breeding establishments for which Galtee Elore's services have been secured. — Aurum is destined for England, states aHomc sportiog paper, at the termination of his three-year-old career. It will depend a great deal, however, on how his split hoof stands through the colt's autumn ordeal. It appears that whilst in England Mr W. R. Wilson was offered a big price for Aurum by Mrs Langtry, and since his Guineas win he has had a bigger offer made; but so far nothing very definite has been arranged. Should Mr Wilson's colt win the VR C Derby, then something like £10,000 will be asked for the son of Trenton and Aura.

— The special commissioner in the Sportsman writes : " A Melbourne sportsman has received a letter from a friend in the State?, who writes 'that a syndicate is being formed in New York for the purpose. of buying a number of Australian steeplechasers, whith- are either to be sold on arrival -in Amerioa or to.be raced. At present the&his no steeplechasiiig in'^Che United States, I , believe,' and it is principally with the' view- of "introducing the sport that ; the syndicate is being formed. Whether it will prove successful in' its object remains to be sees."* ' — One of the lucky punting division in America (he has wonr-this season £60,0l)0).is Plttsburg Phil. I -otherwise' Mr Greorge K. Smith. He defines his ' system of betting as follows : "If you want to win money by turf betting have no superstitions, no system, no set rules or ideas. Shun professional touts and the tips they offer to sell, as you would shun theplague. Try to form an Intel- ] Jigtnt judement as to the respective merits of the horaes and of their jockeys on that particular day and track, and then don't be afraid to back it. Never own any racehorses yourself. If you do it i will certainly influence'ypur judgment." | —"Javelin" tells this story:— "Are you in favour of an export tax on thoroughbred geldings?" a»kei a Victorian elector. "Certainly not," replied the candidate emphatically. " Look," he added. " what a grand advertisement for the colonies Carbine has been. I ani not a ( raciDg man, but any measure haying for its object the perpetuation of the Australian horse in the countries of the old world will always command my patriotic support." The cunning candidate, who knew there were 20 or 30 votes in the neighbouring training stables, went home a sadder and a wiser man after his chairman had explained why Paris 111 wai not so valuable as Carbine for stud purposes. — The best two-year-old runners of the Doncaster week, says the Sportsman's special, are Wildfowler, The Baker, and Royal Sport, at least co I think; and though the last-named shows I perhaps the greatest promise of the three, his psr- : formancc at preaent does not compare with these \ of the other two. Wildfowler is not far removed, | if at all, from top class, but I must sajf^J wai even i more impressed with The Baker's running over the : Sandkll mile under 8.7. He is a lightish chestnut j tolfc, built after the style of a 500gs hunter, and he j would be ve>y bad to beat in a show ring. It i« no easy task to win the Prince of Wales's Nursery with such a weight, and I am glad we have a really worthy 'descendant of Blair Athol a.t last.