Sporting Mems.

-». . By* Pegasus. The Gore Racing Club have received very satisfactory entries for their spring meeting on November 2nd, viz — Hurdles — May Boy, Billy, Dandenong, Clinker, Young Talisman, Dunmore, Moonlight and Cherry. Spring Handicap — May, Omimi, Milord, Reflection, Bay Bill, Dialetcra, Galtee, Sir Julius and Finetta. Trot — Ida, Joss, Minnie, Banshee, Billy t-utschiag. Larry, Native, Virgin, Young Rangi, Benmore, Martha, Regain, Waxy and Caber Feidh. Flying Handicap— May, Omimi, Mokoia, Dandenong, Reflection, Gentle Dove, Napier, Dialetera, Galtee, Finetta, and Sir Julius. District Handicap — Jack, Mokoia, Mi.'ord, Gentle Dove, Comeaway, Annie Laurie, Primrose and Dandenong. The Winton Jockey Club have decided to hold $nly one race meeting in the year since the new rules regulating the use of the totalisator have come into force. A gentleman who recently saw Dandenong and Reflection at Wyndham tells me they are both training on well for their coming engagements at Gore. He thinks Dandenong the best of the two at any weight or distance up to a mile and a quarter and that this horse is likely to win a good stake or two for his owners this season. His performance at the Amateur T.C. meeting proves he is a much better stayer than the pubhc thought he was previous to his wiu there. I know that some of the northern sports have expressed surprise that he was allowed to start for his race at that meeting with such long odds against him as were paid out on the totalisator. Aparima hurt one of his legs badly at the late Hunt Cup Steeplechase and is to be turned out to grass this summer. Telford sent Clifton back to his owner's station at Balfour directly after the Amateur meeting, but Kangaroo is still in his stable, and is for sale at a price which offers a rare chance for securing a pleasant hack for the summer and a good and safe hunter for next winter. The only thoroughbred Telford now has in active training is Dialeteria. His colt by Boolka is growing so fast that he has decided not to race him until the liutumn. The Southland Racing Club are doing all they can to make a good course on their

newly acquired 'property on the East road. The formation work, draining, and ploughing are now about finished, and durinp the last few days the disc harrows have been kept at work making a seed bed for the grass which will be sown this week. The length of the course will he about a mile and three chains, with a straight run of about ten chains. The heavy rainfall in Canterbury last week made the Riccarton training tracks so heavy that all work on the course had to be suspended for a morning or two. The great Metropolitan meeting ia so near at hand that trainers do not want to have difficulties of this kind to contend with. Clanranald, who wag a hot favourite for the New Zealand Oup a few days ago, slipped on the track the other morning and strained himself so badly that he has since dropped out of the betting quotations altogether. Prince Warden ia now firat favourite at 100 to 18 ; Crackshot and Lebel are next in demand at about 100 to 12, then comes Vogengang, Dilemma, Stepniak, Morion, Hippomenes, St. Hippo, and a host of others at about 100 to 7. St. Hippo's win at Hawkes Bay yesterday will no doubt increase his price in the betting market. Mr Stead's youngsters Reynard and Hybrid are reported to be a pair of very good ones, and with these, Lebel and Stepniak he will hold a strong hand at the Metropolitan meeting next li.ontb. At the annual mepting of the Waimea Jockey Club last week the resignations of Mr H. Howells as handicapper and Mr Jas. Kelly as secretary were accepted. All present admitted that the present flourishing condition of the club was greatly due to Mr Kelly's energy and tack in the management of itsaffairs, and members generally referred to the many good services Mr Howells had rendered the club and expressed a desire to unite with other clubs for whom Mr Howells had acted as handicapper in tendering him a substantial and suitable testimonial in recognition of past services. Mr Kelly strongly advised the new committee to fix in future the day of their race meeting a few days before or a few days after the Gore meeting, and to reduce the distances of all the races. The Geraldine Racing Club at their two days' meeting last week were successful in putting a stop to the laying of totalisator odds on the course, and I notice the Christchurch Jockey Club announce by advertisement that they intend doing the same at their November meeting. In one of the races at the Geraldine meeting nine horses ran, and L 237 invested in the totalisator, but not a single ticket on the winner. The result was that the money was returned to investors less the usual commission. Tbis, I think, is the first time such a case has happened in this colony. The Sydney Bulletin says, referring to " Tattersall's " sweep. : — " Tattersall " issued his first sweep — 1000 subscribers at Ll each — on the Melbourne Cup of 1878. Since then the business has grown so prodigiously that four sweeps were issued on last year's Melbourne Cvp — viz , a 1.100,000 sweep at Ll per ticket, two L50,0C0 sweeps at 10s, and a fourth sweep at 10s, which closed with 36,000 subscribers. In all 236,000 subscribers, representing a sum of L 168,000 ! The largest syndicate application was for 600 Ll tickets ; over 2000 applications came in one morning's mail. Since October, 1890, over L 300.000 have been paid to prize winners for placed horses alone. " Tattersall's " commission is 10 per cent, of the total. Get a world-wide reputation for honesty and business capacity and start as a sweep -promo ter. The Dunedin Jockey Ciub has issued its programmes in neat pamphlet form for the coming season. The Spring Meeting h.fi L3IOO added money, the Autumn L 3410, Anniversary L4BO, and May Meeting L 1350. The total sum given by the Club will be L 9040, which includes L7OO paid in Btakes at the late Hunt Club Meeting. The Spring Meeting is only three days, the fourth, formerly devoted to trotting.does not appear this season, and the Anniversary Meeting it. reduced to one day, instead of two, as for several years passed. Mr P. Campbell, who for many years occupied a prominent position in New Zealand racing circles, and who took to England the thoroughbred mare Engagement, returned to New Zealand laat week and has been interviewed by " Castor " of the Lyttelton Times and the following are some of his expressed views about the English thoroughbreds and race horses: — "They are, as a rule, much lighter in tbe bone, and very few of them can stay. I should very much like to match some of our best stayers against their cracks over a distance. I think we should always win. Speaking to a leading English breeder, I remarked on the lightness of bone in their horses as compared with ours. He suggested that colonial bred horses had perhaps too much bone, and thereby quality was sacrificed to quantity. They think Carbine must be an exceptional horse, and .tha. reminds me that Australia — not New Zealand — always gets the credit for having bred him." " Breeders are now very anxious to obtain as much Mnsket blood as they possibly can. There being so few stayers at Home now, I think that it is high time that they made attempts to improve in this respect. Ragimunde's victory in the Cesarwitch last year brought the Musket blood still further into prominence." "Do they run their races from end to end ?" I asked. " No. They have so few stayers that it is impossible. The races are pretty nearly all won or lost by the time the rails are reached. They train their horses rather big as compared with the condition in which we send ours to the post. You very rarely see a horse badly punished, and never bleeding from spur marks when he returns to the enclosure. A stroke or two of the whip or a prick with the spurs, and all the rest done with the hands. I saw F. Webb take off his spurs when asked to do so by the owner of the horse he was goiag to ride, and beard him remark that he preferred nearly always to do without them. " As far as the best English horses are concerned, I think Sheen was the greatest stayer I saw. He is rather lightly built though, and L fancy that horses such as Carbine or Maxim would not have much difficulty in defeating him over two miles. " Laat season's three-year-olds were a rather moderate lot. Common is not altogether a taking animal to look at. He is a narrow horse, carrying no lumber, and reminded me rather of old Backbiter. He is one of the gamest horses I ever saw, and has _. beautiful sweeping action. He was fortunate in coming in a bad-year, or otherwise 1 do not think he could possibly have won the * Triple Crown.' " Putting Orme on one side, this season's three-year-olds are also not up to the average of good years. La Fleche, however, is a beautiful little mare, though v< ry much on the light side. After she had won her first race as a two-year-old, I heard Lord Marcus Beresford say that he had offered Baron Hirsch LIO.OOO for her. She is full of quality, and is much after the style — excepting of course in colour — of Lady Evelyn. She was not herself when she ran in the Derby, otherwise I think she would have won. I fully expected her to win the St. Leger. Sir Hugo is not a first-class Derby horse, but he is a very finely made animal, and St. Angelo is very fast, but neither stays nor is game. " I do not think Orme was poisoned, nor in'fact does anyone else, except the Duke of Westminster. In carriage and style generally he takes a good deal after Recluse. He looked miserably poor when he ran in the Eclipse Stakes. His coat was staring and you could positively count his ribs, but he is very game and a wonderfully easy horse to ride.