CAP and JACKET

By Boz.

RACING FIXTURES. March 30 and April I— Wellington R.C. Autumn. April 5 and 81— Avondale J.C. Autumn. April 5 and fr-^Manawatu R.C. Autumn. April 12 and 13— South Canterbury J.C. Autumn. April 13 and 14— Masterton R.C. Autumn. April 22 and 24— >Wairarapa R.C. Autumn. April 22. 24 and 25— Auckland R. C. Autumn. April 22. 24, 26 and 29— Australian Jockey Club's Autumn (Doncaster Handicap and Sydney Cup). April 24 and 25 — Canterbury J.C. Autumn, April 24 — Waipukurau J.C. Annual. April 24 and 25— Feilding J.C. Autumn. May 3 and 4 — Hawkes Bay J.C. Autumn. May 6^-Christchurch R.C. Autumn. May 10 and 11— Egmont R.C. Winter. May 20 and 24— Takapuna J.C. Winter. April 24 and 25 — North Otago J.C. Winter. June 2 and 3— Dunedin J.C. Winter. June 3, 7 and 10— Auckland R.C. Great Northern Steeplechase. June 21 and 22 — Hawkes Bay J.C. Winter. June 28 and 29 — Napier Park R.C. Winter. July 6 and ,7— Gisborne R.C. Winter. July 11 and 14— Wellington R.C. Winter. AVONDALE JOOKEY CLUB'S AUTUMN MEETING. THIS Meeting opens on Wednesday next, April sth, and the second day is set down for the following Saturday, April Bth. Everything is in train for a most successful meeting and only fine weather is required to make that success almost certain. For Wednesday's racing there are exceptionally good lists of candidates in nearly all the eight events. The Avondale Handicap is a fine field, and so also is the Railway Handicap. The Juvenile Handicap proanises to be a smart contest. The Maiden has some eighteen maiden performers engaged, nearly all of whom ma" be expected to start. The Hurdles Race should prove a capital race, nearly all engaged being good jumpers. If the present dry weather continues the course should be very fast, though a little rain before the day would be beneficial. My anticipations are : — Maiden Plate— Lycia or Lillymea. Handicap Hurdles— lrish. Hakaria, Lingard. Juvenile Handicap I—Horsa1 — Horsa or Foremost. Avondale Handicap. — There is a strong field of thirteen horses and a good race shoiuld result. I like Ak - arana. Strathavan and Delania. First Pony Handicap— Girton Girl, Orange and Blue, Storyteller. Chevalier Handicap— Air Gun or Seatonia. Railway Handicap;— Lady Annie, Full Cry, General Average. Avalanche is to be spelled Easter Handicap weights out. Avondale Autumn Meeting opens next Wednesday. Halberdier is to be taken up for the Winter racing. Romeo is top weight with 9st. 21b in Easter Handicap. Gladsome will run only in the w.f.a. events at Randwick next month. Taggart was to leave Christcliurch last week for Sydney, with Oblivion and four yearlings. After Stratford Meeting, an offer of £358 for the St. Clements three-year-old, St. Bill, was refused. Beau Seaton got in a half-head victory in the Welter Handicap at Waimate Meeting. He carried 9st. 3tt>, At Napier, says a Southern writer, " some of the veriest rutybish that ever carried racing colours were saddled up for battle." Mr Evitt had big lots of horses to handicap in some of the Avondale events. .In the Maiden no less than twenty-eight entries ■ had to be dealt with, and in the Cheltenham Handicap over a score,

Slow Tom remains at Riccarton, Waipuna finished, up very lame at Paeroa. The Wellington Autrnnn Meeting opens to-day (Thursday). IJaniapoto will not be seen out at the Hutt to-day. Thirteen horses leanain in for the Avondale Handicap. There are good acceptances for the Avondale Autumn Meeting, Those who have seen St, Bill running speak well of his prospects. MalakQff ran nowhere in the Welter Handicap at the Waimate Meeting. Another attempt is to be- made to train the veteran sprinter, Goldspur. . Starshoot has been scratched for the treat Easter and Great Autumn Handicaps. Nightfall is popularly thought a specially good thing for the N Z St Leger. At Dannevirke Meeting the investments for the two days were £14,651, an increase of £3,707. In the Wairarapa district, one of the best looking colts bred there is a two-year-old by Lethe-Noisette. Rebel Boy, the trotter, who was sent to Canterbury recently, fell and broke his leg the other day whilst running loose in the paddock. State agriculture in America has benefited during the past ten years to the extent of nearly a quarter of a million as a result of the racing tax. It is said that (Jladsome's prospective trip to England was subject to her winning the Newmarket Handicap. She now remains in Australia for the present. ■W. J. Taggart- has purchased Slow Tom from P. A. Herman, and last year's Grand National winner will not now be taken to Sydney, as previously arranged. Ajmong the most promising young trotters in the Ashburton district is a yearling colt, full brother . to CocoaHe looks like being a good deal bigger than his well performed sister. Heroism won the St. Patrick's Handicap on the second day of the Stratford Meeting. His owner is said to have backed him for the Cup on the first day, but let him go for the stake alone on the second day. According to a Soutnern exchange there were some good judges present at the Waimate Meeting who consider the running of some of the competitors as " hot." In one race the layers all over the colony got a very hard knock. A Wellington bookmaker who had been negotiating for the purchase of Prelude was disgusted, on his return to town after a short absence, to find that his clerk had laid something like seventy chances against that horse at Dannevirke, the div. being £4 15s. Amongst other doubles laid at Christchurch on the Great Easter and Great Autumn Handicaps are — 500 to 2, and 500 to 4, Cathron and Convoy ; 500 to 6, Stronghold and Quarryman ; 500 to 10, Achilles and Lady Hayward ; and 400 to 2, Quagga and Convoy. Some of the Southern, clubs are very conservative as regards their treatment of pencillers. At Napier Mr J. McLaughlin was only allowed to be present to see his horses run on his depositing a cheqiue for £100 as a guarantee that he would not ply his vocation on the ground. Much disappointment has been expressed (says a Wellington writer) at Maniapoto being 1 scratched for all our handicaps, but considering the treatment he experienced this was only to be expected. To handicap a horse purely on his purchase price is distinctly a novelty. It is anticipated by English pressmen that the time is not far distant when the Prince of Wales's colours will be seen on the turf. The heir apparent has a few mares at the Royal stud, and they have had a successful season. His Luscious and Gold Paster, bearing tribute to Persipxanon, are to be put to that horse again. Luscious (1894) is by Harpenden or Royal Hampton — Alverlef, and Gold Paster (1896) was got by Al-thotas-Maccaronea.—Exchange. The French jockey, George Stern, put up a " classic " record last year. A few of the bftg events wbn by him were the Grand Prix and the French Derby on Ajax, the French Oaks on Profane, the Austrian and German Derbies on Con Amore, the Baden Badep. Prix on Caius, the Grand Prix of Baden on Exema, the big two-year-old race at Deauville on Val dOr, Prix dv President de la Republique on Gouvernant, Baden Futurity on Champ dOr, and Middle Park Plate, Newmarket, on Jardy.

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