IN A NUTSHELL.

— Siriu3 is book:d to leave for Chiutchurch Ibis we«k.

— Zither gull-ed up lama alter a gallop the other morning. — Tlie tracks ai Elccarton are reported to be in good order.

— A French racenorse rejoices in lha nanie of Hip, Hip, Hurrah!

— Trackewinct aad Comi'ort arrived at E cea:toa on Saturday last.

— Dunedin has- six horses in the Wmtsr Cup after the first acceptance. — Prices oa cßer for the" National doub"e range from 12 to 909 to 1. ■<- Social Peat has gone amis*, and will not •port silk at the National meeting. r- During tlia past eight seasor-s Mr G. G. Stead has capttirarl £52,7(33 in prize money — Haydn aad Bait.eaxe are quoted at 32"s to 1 for the forUicomrag National double. —Mr J. H. Pollock 'has been appointed fcaudiotppcr to the Otaki Maori Racing Club. — Ayrdale has been nominated for ths hunters' hurdle races at tb.9 National meeting. —A. Ward I«Jffc on Satur-any ]»3t for Riccarton with Southerly- Buster, Phaetonitis, a".d Victor 11.

— Final payments for the Grand National Hfrrdles, Steep 1-ecliasa, and "Winter Cup are due on. August 7. — From the season of 1852-3 to that oi 1902-3 lit G. G. Slead has won £62,351 on. the New Zealand tuif in stakes.

— Oanuie Chiel has b^en scratched for the "Winter Clip at the Canterbury Jockey Club's Grand Nat. anal meeting. -r-Ksliance, tha half-brolher to Repulse, figures amongst ths entrants for the hunters' iiurdle races at' tlio Natioaa 1 .

— Wingatui-trained horses won cose- on £700!) last season, and horses trained «t the Forbury Park won shout £1300. — At Epsom (England) a- man nanned "William Jackson was sentenced to 12 months' ini.prisonmemt for welshing on Oaks Day.

— Th« stock of our local stallions Lord Eosaiyn and Casket won £530 and £205 respectively during the past season. — A Christchurch message states that S&ss Peur was scratched for the New Zealand Cup *t $.20 on Tuesday morning-, 21efc. — Weights for the C J.C. Mad«n Hurdles, Hunters' Hurdlea, acd Ecfield Steeplechase *Te due to appear oa Friday next. — From Eng-land comes word tihat a biU for tho registration of bookmakers is shortly to come before the House of Commons.

— Grafnell, the winner of the Maiden Steeplechase and tie Y.R.C. Grand National Steeplechzse, was sold ea a yearling- for s&gs. — OUgo (has two hoists in the Grand National Steeplechase, sis in the Winter Cnp, •cd one in the- Grand National Hurdle?.

— Todi Sloan is suing the French Jockey Club, who recently warned him off all courses nn^t-r their jurisdlctioa. for 125,0031 damages.

— Stepdancer, ■th.a hill-aister to Meusckikoft, has been nominated for the Ladies' Bracelet, •which is to be run for at the National meeting.

— Carbine had ore winner on the turf m the land oi hi 3 birth last season. This wa3 Mongonui, who captured £313 during the sei•on.

— Adricea from Helbourue s.tat»that Wfjite-'y his returned to Caulfield, and is still suffering froiu tlio effects of aa ace.dent tv the National Curdles.

— Cruciform and Oi'off leave for Sydney at the' end of the present -week. R. J. Mason end F. Jones, the Yaldhurst light-weight, accompany the pair. — The Wa-nganui correspondent of the Auckland Weekly New* states that Halberdier now pressuts a sounder appearance Vhaii he d-d this time last yeat. — Although steoplechasir.g in New South "Wale* is at low wa-ter at pissent ihe last two V.R.C. Gr?jid Natioral Slrepkchases have been ■won by Syduey-traiiiod horses. — A hand3oni3ly-pr_uted copy ia white, blue, «nd gold, of the Australian Jockey Club's piogranur>» for the forthcoming eeison is to hasd, and is acknowledged with thanks. — Stepniak first figured on the 'ist of winning sire 9 six year o a^o, when he had £3tl opposite his came. Inc'nd'n^ that amount his stock have won £27,374 up to date. — Staton Dda-val's (whose sire Me'ton stands pt 400 guineas) first winners appeared u axing the seaioa of 1593-9. and S!Dce theT they have won i"27,21C in priz»-mouev.

— • Stravbird ha 3 the same weight in tiwv forthcomuig- Grand National Steeplechase a? he i.a* Bent out favourite with two years ago, \\lku he ran th.rd to Gobo a;.J 'Ihe Gua'd — The Americana have take l lo sprinklng •their tracks with oil, and finds it acts splendidly in doing away with the dust evil. In additio.i 3t makes a splendid surface for the horses to Vac© on.

— Three of the wmi'srs on the second day of Ihe V.X.C. National meeting wcie got by Hova (Tngomar— H^ppv Lainl), Fireloj.lt (Ei.f>lade — Rustle), ard Zalinski iXoidcnleld'. — I'iailtv).

— The Perkin Wa:b?ck gclui-p Wonderfu', who- won at Akaroa, Waimate, ancl Oriord l?.ot scaaou, figiire3 amongst tha er.tne3 for the Jmnr<»r ovouts to be decided at the 2v*aUo..al ni'-'etin^, — The see-saw of success sa represented by tho Hon. Geo. SfLean's bearers of the Zetland epots during the papfc e'glit ppasons — £tGS, £632. £52, £620, £541, JE2153, £1320, £1468,total, srms. From \&te»l sw?coun'rs there in nothing neriously amiss with the New Zealand Clip fsnourite, W'airiki, aad he has been pleasing the touts osx the tw.o or three moruiupa which hi lina bee^ worked recently at Elleislie.

— Mannoat, th.2 winner of the V.R.C Grand National HurdJs Race, followed up his success in that race by annexing the Dcutta G?.i!a Hurdles, two miles and a-quarter, run on the last day of tho Flemmgton .National ruec'-icg. — The Australas-ian in a recent issus characterises tho N«w Zcala-nd Racirg Conference as "a.a unwieldy Ijody, but no doubt racing in Australia- would not Jose prestige if a s.milar body w»rs formed m that part of the worl-i

— The "annual report of the Victoria Racing Club show 3 the prcfiis of th« last spring meei■ir.g to have been £SGOJ, acd th.a io.s on the autuain meeting £3300. The stakes paid away totalled' over £'16,0!>D, ths added incae7 being £38,«». — In the Jatest betting on tho A.J.C. Epsom and Mi3trc^ohtan Handicaps- Pendant is favoiinte, for the former ra..i at 10*s and Air Motor coaiss next a-t 12's, while Bev^ifeher is Mv-ourite for the Metropolitan at 10' a and Putxottßge- ccioes next at 12's. Neither CruciTorm cor Oiloff is mentioned in the betting. — Sou" t, the imported soa of St. Simcn, who was foaled in ISOO, and landed here in

1596, had his first winning representatives on the New Zealand turf during- tho season or 1809-1900, when they won £156. Inc.uding that amount and the totals won during the three succeeding years, his stock have captursd £8034.

— Hipstone, who is m the Grand National Sfceeuleehasa vritß 3.7, is a hali-bfoth">r by St. Hippo to Explosion. Being by St. Hippj (St. Lsger— Hippo^a) out of Jaiiestoue (Sword Danee — Onyx), he has a pedigres that would not disgrace a. Cup candidate, but his dispkya over timber and walls have- up tc date "been very poor.

— la the Grand Pni de Paris, in which M.

Edmoad Blanc's cells, Quo Vachs, Cau:s, and ViniciU3 finished first, second, and -bird, Hip betting wsl-5 3 -to 1 Vinic.u?, 7 to 2 Canis, and

litol Quo Vadis, so that the horses finished in reverse order to what the betting indicated. M. Blav>o may be said to have deserved his success in the race, us he dominated no less than 21 "horses da- the event.

— Sir Pet»r Teazel, a. fbur-ye*rold gelding by Firelock (son of Musket), oat of Lady Teazel (» -daughter of Angler and the Traducer more Calumny) was ar^ongst the. winners at the V.R.C. Notional mftaiitig, and scored in a two-mile hurdle event, -with 9.4 up, in 3xnin 51i«ec. Sir Peter Teazel went out at 20 to 1 and defeated 11 others.

— Westguard created a favourable imprs«sion amongst the critics on the occasion of her first appearance under 8:1k in Sydney, and pleased all who took the trouble to look her over. If she strikes form Westguard will para those who back something or other to beat her in some of her races.

— Sceptre won the- Hardwicke Stakes, of 2000hovs, and a. sweepstakes of lOsovs each added, one mile and a-ha!i, at Ascct (England) on June 19, for her new owner, Mr W. A. Han?a? Ba-ss. la a field of seven she Bturted at LI to 10 on, ard. won by five- lengths fiom Gay Gordon, with the Carbine colt Fowling Piece three lengths away third. — ALniont was recently sent after the world's three-mile record, aad succeeded m getting to tiio end of the trip in Cmin 50sec. The first half ntile was covered in lmin 5 2-63 ec, on« mile in 2min 16sec, the twa miles- in 4min 34* ec, the last, mihi in 2mm 16sec, and th» concluding half mile m lmin 6Jsec. The previous record for the tatn-e jouruoy was 6rnin 55iscc, made by th; American horse Nightingale in 1593.

j —An attractive" y-goi-uu and well-printed ■ copy of the Avonda!« Jock°y Club's pTograumia for the- season X903-4'i9 to hand, and ig acknowledged with thanks. The club cam* into e\ist-

• euea in IS9M, when £495 was d c bursed in i prize-piouey, and during the forthconiirg sea- | sen the prize-money wil' to'a! £4875. In fact, a Übl-3 given in the book shows that the cub have be*n gradually lncreosjig thcr prize-

mos^ey ssn.ce its inauguration, i —MrJ\ B. Reid's mare Novus, by Neckorsgal—Tjioprau, slipped twin foals to Stepniak !on Sunday last. The- niaxe wa& in a bad way I after tie mishap, but is now well on Iho way towards complete reouvs-rv. JLr Reid has ha-d | lus lull share of bad luck with liia yonnfr stock | lately, sud it is to b& hoped the tide will turn j low. I ta-cl great h«pes of the result of the j mUiEg of Tyrcpean with Stepuvak, as the i Ncrdenicldt nick ga\e such good results with | Nihilist, whose dfcn was a daughter of Neckers- ; gat. — Pro~res3, the son of Angler, who was a well-known perioiiner on the Amtraliar" turf j i x the r-ighh^s, wo 3 ".hot rpce"tly on ace ;i"t oT the infumrie-s of old ago. The hoi&e was 2G i years, old -,tt the tini-3 of his desth, and was o -o of tlie hoises v;ho nearly brojee Grand K.anenr's , unbroken recjrd, a« he r:t.u second (o thr.t , fiimou3 hnrse on woie I'mii r; c occj^ on, bp- , Side 3 register.ng several inrco.-t&nt wir.s on hi 3 , oiwu accou.it At the stud Pir-j>rcs^ uas oply ' r n.cd;ratc &ucccsj, anti ae\ cr u:i\ thmg of LCt? I — According to "Pcitagraol-iV s'atist os Dunediii ointrs won the fo'lowuig amounts | dunnjj the past season — Hoa. G. li'Len ',

iJIUJO: P. Gn£tf-i, £1145, A. Hi "5, £550, , J- Jeffs. £347, J. Brett, £465, L. KuUk-dge, '; £i3T, T. Godfrey. £Vo , A. C. VTsvid, £371, ! J. 51'Kay, £Z2<), M'K.iy :>i.cl Jenkins, £:G5 . }O- Kutlncn, £190: J. ITKeweu. flCi. <"i. H""tlcrson, £157, R. E'jh, £J3 , Ell's I'ro- , J&&5; H. &tf: 5L Litcff, £38, U. Ruiherfo.d, £f-G , I;. C. HH;!, £SO , G

Magoimn, £50, ami S So'.omoa £^'1 J — A. tsw> lecoid am>s )>»tt up iii ib ■> f'r.iiil 1 NahonrJ S;> t'p'echas? th ; -) y>-ai, w'-i.ch ia net t^ h" vondciccl at, seeing that a horss yc--se <J.smc the p^^e of CiAfre!:! \..', t! c- «mp cr. lli«

first round, "tcord.ig to Mi F II Iloatb, look i 3miu 20sec to run, but. \wih Fieedoai out k>

[ make h.s strongest pace ihe concluding round [ was- iut m oirnn ll|>cc. I'he la3t sis furlorgs j tcok lm.n SSJfec, ri:d the last hali-mile 57i-cc. ! Last year the fir3t rouud was run in 3iniu

ISisec, the co .chiding round in 3min 15sec, the 1 i list sis furlongs m lmin 33sec, and Hie last j ha-lf-nnle iv lmin. When Frec-icm won in • 1301 h\s t.mj was 6min 3-2?3c, find allowing [oc j ths chstajnee by which Grafr.e'l boat him, his I record this year was almost identical. j — The difference between breeding and bnyi ing b'ood stock may be said to be furnished by the winning totals of Sir George Cl fford a-i.d Mi G. G. Stead over the past eight >ear-. Ihe former gentleman ha 3 generaWy raced horses of his own breeding, whilst the latter goes into the open market aad buys what hi? judgment or luck may direct. Sir George ha=> wen a total of £13,667 m eight years, whist • Mr G. G. Stead has captured £52,769 ia tho same period, and m the st-ason of 1901-2 tlis lattcT gentleman won £12,023, dr £1512 s'lort ot vhat the bluoairl-gold chequers captured in eight years. However, if Sir George Clifcrl could bs^ed a few Treadmills the djfiereuce

between the totals wou'd not be so marked. 1 - Dr Lcuis Robinson condceis that s'n irq is "m-oel d'stmctiy a reiic cf a valuable ancestral m c *.i'ict." liie wild horse, s^vift of foeS and clear of vision, feared few enemies when out on the naked plains, but every bush o- tu f t of long grass might, and often did, con-

tain a fierce k>2 Iyi"s; in ambu&h. Majy crd 1 m«ay a t:n^e must the wild horse have saved his life by a sudden swerve and leapt in the opposite direction the moment he heaid tho ru3t:e of leavos or descried seme strange and dimly-outlined object among the underwood. Tha wild horses of Arabia wi!l not adcut a t*me hcr.ae among thpni, while the wild hevses of South America endeavour to decoy domesticated horses from their masters, and seem eager 1o we-lcom-e them. — For its size the field which started i*> ths Eclipse Stskes, won by Ard Patrick, probab'y ' represents the most vsiluab'e field of horses that has ever s-tartad in a race in any part of tha world. Ard Patrick, the winner, was '■o.d ifcr 20,000 guineas, Duke of Westminster cot 21,000 guineas, and Sceptre, 20.000 guineas, and as a Two Thousand Guineas:, 1 Derby, and piospeetiva- St. Leger winner, Rock Sand may hi set down <-t 20 000. when it is remembered that he is corsidered one of the best bred hors?s thit ha ,

ever won the English l>erby. Oriole, who , mad-a up the five which started in th? race, { is a daughter of Ladas and Orle, owned b/ Lord Kossb-.ry; but le?vin» her out the value of the remaining four totals the respecfrib'e

sum of 81,005 guineas. — The following busivps? has been doje in llelboum-e over tha Caulfield Ciin • — 2000 to 60 • each Nothos, Kinghke, St. Ambro3e, F'onn, ! and Lieutenant Bill, 2000 to 80 Bright Bsauty, [ 1000 to 40 each Sojourner and Rapid Pilgrim. , Melbourne Cvp — 5000 to 150 Ossian, 1000 to SO [ Emir. 1000 to 30 each Wakeful, The Vic'ory, , and Strata Florida. Caulfiald and Melbourne i Cups— lo,ooo each Mullard- pnd Ossim, Ee- { witcher and Patromia. Kothos ar.d Patroi:us, ■ Strata Florida and Sojonrr-er, Ban Ceo.itha j and Abundance, Ban Ceor tha ar.d Postilion ; 5000 each The LJier and. Postilion. Rapi I ; Pilgrim an-2 I'ostilion, Sitir.ang and Em'r, , F. J. A. and Emir, Eapid Pilgrim and Bzuntwood. St. Ambrose and Sojouvner, M'Donov3n i and Thp Victory, Flagship a^d Patronus, Kircl like and Bowitcher. Kinglikc ar.d ~i3 run twcoJ. War Chief and TTar Chief, Po-jt:llou a^d Postilion. J — Ac(.ordin; to a bookmaker. P. Nolan was vpry doubtful about start ; ng Gmfnell in the V.R.C. Grandi National Streoulechase, and the bookmaker* who had not laid the double. Marmont and Grafn/4! laid Nolan £600 to nothic^ , abooit the gre-y for thp sake of g-etting a- start wth hiui. as they thought he was a hkelv

, hors9 to down th-o favourites. Sir Harry and t Freedom. Probably Nolan: would have run I Grninell -even r-ithout ihis inducement, but no ; to Wed'c-sgday h,? bad cot bothered about en- ] eagimi a jockey, and 'it was only on Friday thai ' he as-k?d Mr S. Miller if h* con'd have Mooney. j Michael lFoor<?y had not been Tidin? rrinneTs ' for some tim.e, or his, followers would not have 1 been able to g-et 100 to 6 and 7 about Graitell.' j — Tha latest issue of ilessrs J. J. Miller's | Annual Sporting Paniuhlet. baa an acdit.onai [ intsrest this year to New ZeaUnders, bpcause ,' rt contam.i the full performances of j all the horses engaged in the New Zealand Cv? v.? to date of Ju!y 11. On that account a wide crculat on in ■ih : ."» colony should be assured. As umal. th? j full performances of those engaged in the Melbourne and Caulfield Cups aro complied in a compact and easily g?ttab"e manner. Al' records, bath racing and aUil-etic, have bee-i brought uu to date, and comc'x»to tables of tha rwst results of the pr.nciVJal races decided in a Australia are mc.uded in the pages. The i.lustration.% cons.st of nhotos. of tho cracks, j Abundance andi Tha Victory. Mr H. Huntor, j champion amateur runner; H. Dew, and F | .T. Auger, winner of the 1902 Austral Wheel I Race. The book, on the whole, contains a vast fund of usefu' information to racing nieii. i athletes, and sportsmen generally, nnd phou'« i furnish a. welcome addition to any sportsman* librarr. i — Grafnell put up a miv Tsooid in the ' V.R.C. Grand National S'eeplerhese. He is the firs'* horae own-;d and bred in New South "Wales to win tho bi? race. Since the race was | instituted m 18S1, Victorian-bred horses have I won 1? contests, and tho Tasiranmns have been successful on three occK-sious. Tl'.o firs?t Grand , Not:onal SteeDlcchwe was won by Sus-sex, who ' (says "Miirov"), with a tfiumning 13.1 on his back, badly lxwt six others. Sussps was bred in tlus State, at Neotsficld, on the Hunter. He was purchased as a two-year-old by Mr F. C. Goyder for a umall sum, and m Ibat »entlc- • man's colours he won two first-class huroVe | lacea wJion a thre.?-yea,r-o!d, and at four ho ' 3!iowc:l hi'fjh form on the flat. At six years | old, wheu he was at the tcp of his foim, he j v,on the Oratd Kfttio.ia! Kiglet, wlio vtnn both tha Wlrnan Grand National Sfceplechases. wits br»rl ci'l-or in Soutli Aastralw or ci the- Lower Disr'nv:. He -did sciup racing

oa the D.i.ii:;^ Uefora he c&ino under the notice oi P Be (no man with a slucwd eve for a ! iun>ijer, whn \,u clia.-.cc', the fc:i of Wild Englp. Eveniuj''y En,<rl, t was pvrchaserl by Mr S. Miller, m '.vl'o-i' colours he won boh Xationals, a fe.it v. h ''i h'? a.!-o b^n acromplishcd by darnc. K^lwp, ?rd Daiir.o. An:"nfj the 2"?

rirand X;i<ionnl v.-irur'-s .Si: = =ci, Red'oap, avA Daiinio p*.'nd out ip puV.c rrgsid a a three i guut crosveuntry charapvo.'s, and a= loii<r ni i w live, I sujjp°K!! R?d!e':p will lie looked upon n- ?n Ormonda nmrn? 'cliaporw No dcubt tho ad'iiiiers of tijn [rreat sot cf Dar>te ha\c ?re it fl^Hs to point to m favour of thfir argument, but cf all tho <-tcan!ech?rcrs 1 Ka'-? H°n, Redloap mc'iTicd. I like Ruby bast of

all She v. as a pcrv enmpaxed to the f.t-c'i^e »tMi)'i % r'"J c - i> r 1 cid t';» 1.2 7 b'i.-» enrri'"! in tho , 'S3 Xitio •."} »;emij a «»rrat ]rad or =nc'i a • little t'ni'cr, l>n* "-he liat'cl 1 "'-! ,*• nn:cli better t'.i>n Ihfi fiont P<'^l lUk r'sd hi- 12 0 M«ny

rood Vi-iO'i.m st.H> ; )ip«-h^'><»r J'as fi''en r.

\it'ini to the- trcae'u on-, R.\k< j i»vicU said, but Uridwifk aoid F''m.'.j',j*oa ivcu the same i-d Ki.'ov.

Xev;s h~i? hc-n rcr- ived f' Polne (Vicioiici) tb it .lc -ph C'(ii!'.i^, ; s«'d 20, c-ai-luiUvtl simile :i f i>ni'«vr.lc>v. 12 iihi<m from W mchflspa, in oidor to a\(-id beiag arre-tcd on a charge- of &h(.cp-steahag.