TURF NOTES.

Auckland Star, Volume XLVII, Issue 61, 11 March 1916, Page 16

TURF NOTES.

(By WEALEBOXE.) The veteran 'chaser and muchtravelled BuUawarra has resumed training. One who' saw the old campaigner recently says that he has not altered, except that his coat, is darker, and, considering the voyage and period of quarantine, Bullatrarra looks well. It will be interesting to see whether Bullavrarra gets a return to his form. Among the English trainers who commenced this year with a big team was W. T. Robinson. He has nearly .sixty horses in work, most of the number being two-year-olds, and owing to the scarcity of stable lads in England at the present time he has to send them out in three batches daily. Most of the prominent trainers in England are shorthanded, owing to the large number of stable employees that have enlisted.

If is expected that ere long most of the eligible jockeys in England will have joined His Majesty's forces. It is requested, remarks the English Racing Calendar, that any jockey of military age who intends to apply for a license to ride under the rules of racing will forvard with his application a certificate to show that he has already joined His Majesty's forces, has attested under the group system, or has been rejected as unfit or ineligible.

Bnt for the war Cyklon, which won the St. George Stakes recently, would probably never have come to Australia. Oyklon raced there as the property of V. H. Lewis, and was afterwards sold to his present owner for 2000gns. Before coining to Australia Cyklon won four Maiden Plates in Eu:rlanu. and walked ■over for another, at three yeans old. At four years he was third in Durdans Plate, one and a-quarter miles and 66yds, with 6.13, and second in Water beach Handicap, six furlongs, with 7.7, and unplaced on half a dozen occasions, so that his English, form was not very extravagant.

The death is Teported of that great etayer of her time. La Carabine, and though only recently announced the event is eaid to have occurred about three month 3 ago. La Carabine was bred by the late ilr. 1L O'Shanassy, and at his death was sold to the late >lr. W. R. Wilson for 210gns. When 51 r. Wilson died Lα Carabine passed to the possession of Sir Rupert Clarke for I'iOOgns, and for the two last-named owners she proved a profitable investment. In Mr. W. R. Wflson"s colours La Carabine won Australian Cnp, Sydney Cup. aad other races, while her successes in Sir Rupert Ciarke's colours included Champion Stakes, in 1901 and 1902. La Carabine raced until she was seven years old, and must have been very sound and of fine constitution, but at the etud she was a iailuxe.

Bookmafciiig on the race tracks is forbidden by the New York State laws, which also bar the pari-mutuel machines and "all other gambling devices. , ' But the gambling element winks at the laws (says the New York correspondent of the "Yonkers Herald"), and gambles under the "paum garden" system. The system operates thus: A ' - bookie" and a stakeholder are stationed alongside each of the numerous palm trees that abound in the "Ijetting rinsr' at the track. Suppose you wanted to bet on Hotfoot. You approach the "bookie" and ask him the odds. If the odds are not satisfactory, you more along to the next "bookie," and keep moving until you find one who oifers you bargain rates. You accept the odds quoted by the '"bookie,' , produce the amount, you want to wager, and the

"bookie^ , loosens up his share of the wager. Both bets are turned over to the bonded stakeholder. The stakeholder places all the money in an envelope, writes the bets on the outside, places thereon the '"'bookie's" number and your own identification number, which is given to you as a sort of receipt for admission ticket when you enter the grounds.

It is certainly a very ill wind that blows nobody any good, and the curtailment of racing in England has been Ireland's gain, where the most marked advance in racing has been with two-year-olds, of which 274 ran in 1915. No greater' number has ever run. and the policy of catering for the juveniles has been attended with good results. All the important meetings now make a feature of events for two-year-olds; and in 1916 there will be a still larger number in training than hereofore. That such will be the case is apparent, as many breeders reserved their yearlings i instead of allowing them to change hands at the small prices which ruled during the autumn. The record figures in Ireland were obtained substantially through the instrumentality of owners who came over to race when the campaign in England was interrupted, and it is a reasonable expectation that next season there will be a still greater number of cross-Channel owners participating in the proceedings in the F.merald Isle. Already, indeed, Lords Zetland. Derby. Savile, and others have sent over horses for the jumping, which goes on briskly throughout March, April and May until fiat raving gets into swing. And even then the jumping runs along side by side with it. so that many owners keep in training throughout the year both classes of horses.

In the colonies quite a number of joe-1 keve and stable employees have en- j listed, and it is the 6ame in England,! concerning which the London " Sportstnan's"' Newmarket correspondent writes as follows: "The edict of the stewards of the Jockey Club that no jockeys who have not presented themselves for attestation will be granted licenses to ride has caused no surprise, and as far as ooix Newmarket riders are concerned there are very few -who did not attest under Lord Derby'e 6cheme, though naiuraily several of them could not pass the medical test. Those that did ore ready waiting tie call to arms, and although not •up to the normal standard in physique, they will make good soldiers, for what they lack in bone amd muscle they make up lor in grit and " go." It is also raid tra-iners will not be found wanting. Nearly all of them within" the ajre limit have been at-le-V-t and during the -week two of-them in John E. WatkTand Claud HaJsey have ireofive<i coamiiesiens. There axe same <nhers I know of who are expecting them every day and already our trainers an.l their eons, a≤ well as our jockeye •with the colours, make up quite a goodly ■nuniboT. It is a well known fact that there is not an eligible stableman over '.eft Li the town, oor, indeed, has rt-liore been for many months past, so tha-t no charge of "sla-clcing' can be bmiie-ht against tie Newmarket Racing Oummittee,"

Dope has been mentioned in connec-' tion with several well-known ponies in Sydney of late, and although the majority of trainers believe in giving their charges a stimulant—mostly whisky—beiore racing, the Associated Rating Clubs have determined to completely wipe out that practice in future. With that, end in view all clubs have had notices posted conspicuously on their racecourses forbidding tiie use of stimulants of any son, under pain of instant disqualiiicauon. Sir William Cooper is not in luck's way with iliis recent purchase, Redfern. After the horse lauded in Melbourne from England he was brought over to Sydney by train, and wiiie en route got cast in his box, with the result that he skinned his off liip to the size of a saucer, and a big white spot on which the hair has refused to grow tells the tale. On Saturday, while on his way from Klemington to Caulfield, he got down again, and cut one of hie fore and hind legs. But the mishap was not very serious, as Kedfern started in the Futurity Stakes. He was naturally out of sorte. and finished tenth.

The totalisator was discussed in i caucus recently, says a Sydney writer, i and several members are understood to have been anxious that the proposed bill for its legislation should be int-rodTiced before the end of the present sitting of tie House. Reference was made to the fact that rumours detrimental to some politicians weTe going the rounds in ■ connection with the totalizator, the in- , ference being that they were interested in preventing legislation favourable to . it. It is said that the possible outcome of the discussion will be Mr. Cusack will be given every opportunity to preceed ] with the bill, but unless it comes forward as a Government measure the odds would appear against its getting , through. j Consideration is being given by the j Chief Secretary of Victoria to the ques- | tion of the restrictions placed on the \ number of race meetings held during war time. Mr. McLeod has been approached lately by representatives of the hunt clubs and the Victoria Club, both of | which bodies sought the restoration of at j least one of the two meetings which had . been cut off from each of them. Tlie ex-Chief Secretary decided last year on a 25 per cent reduction in the number of meetings, and arrangements were made accordingly. Mr. McLeod is obtaining from his Department information on the general question of the restrictions, and is fulfilling his promise to the clubs named that he would consider the possibility of restoring to each of them one meeting each year. It has been reported that the Cabinet is to give consideration to the whole question of ' the number of meetings to be permitted, but there has been no definite move in that direction up to the present.

The __mer in which some traineis get up in the stirrups after a win or two is most atrrusmg, but' the-i—ci*s_" mains that the proportion who turn out sufficient winnens each year to cover expenses in connection with horses in their charge is comparatively small, says :an exchange. Unfortunately some trainers run owners into needless expense by either counselling or countenancing the starting of horses in races they have no chance of winning. The unexpected often happens in racing, but miracles do not. and they would have been necessary to have brought abont the success of many horses I .have seen competing in important events. "What on earth are you running it for?" is a question I have heard more than once put to an owner of one of the "no chancer* division, and r>he reply has often been: "Well, to tell the truth, I can't see it has a possible chance, but my trainer thinks it has. He 6ays it has been galloping wonderfully well during the post fortnight." In training, a3 in everything else, luck is a great factor, but some trainers—and not little ones, either —require a much greater share of it than others.

A good deal of surprise was expresed in Melbourne at the announcement that the Y.R.C., at a special meeting of the committee, had decided to reject the entry of the imported horse Sydian for the Newmarket Handicap and other events at the Autumn Meeting at Flemington. No official statement was made as to the reason for the action taken by the ruling body, but it is generally knewn that it rested era the question of ownership. Sydian. which is a finelooking brown horse by Symington from Nydian, by Martagon from St. Nydia, by St. Simon, appears in the list of nominations as being owned and trained by F. H. Lewis, a brother to the wellknown jockey at C'aulfield. It is not suggested that R. Lewis had any interest in the horse, but another well-known horseman. F. Bullock, was. it is understood, questioned by the committee as to his being connected in some way with his purchase in England. The matter, however, was not regarded as satisfactory by the V.R.C. committee, which, acting under rule 03, which provides for the rejection of any entry at any time without a reason for so doing, arrived at the decision stated. F. U. Lewis declared that he was the absolute owner of the horse, which had been purchased in England privately on his be- | half by his relative, Frank Bullock. He j had produced his bank book and receipts, I and was prepared to make a sworn dejclaration as to the facts. First of all he J had bought Cyklon, which had been resold at a good fignre to Mr. R. M. Hawker, and with the money received had instructed Bullock to buy Sydian and Shepherd King. The latter" had been passed on to Messrs. J. Mills and J. Widdis, and Sydian was under offer to a well-known sportsman, who had an' option for a few days. Sydian was a short-priced candidate for the Newmarket Handicap, and had been coupled in doubles with prominent horses in the Australian Cup. but the committee have decided that backers of the horse do not lose their money. Lewis states that he had not backed Sydian for the Newmarket Handicap, nor had he advised any of his friends to. It is understood that Lacidas and Lutea were also included in the rejection, but it is pointed out by Lewis that Lutea had not been entered for any event at the Autumn Meeting. As a three-year-old Sydian was successful in the Biennial Stakes at Newmarket (Eng.), and was weighted at 8.0 in the Newmarket. His other engagements were in the Bourke Handicap, C. M. Lloyd Stakes and Farewell Handicap. Rule 10TE provides that a jockey, rider 1 or apprentice may be suspended, fined, or disqualified "if he shall be the owner or ' has any interest in any horse or pony _be;Dg trained or raced."