NOTES AND COMMENTS.

Press, Volume LIV, Issue 9835, 18 September 1897, Page 4

NOTES AND COMMENTS.

Bγ " Hotspur." From the traioer of Telemeter I have received particulars in regard to the injury sustained by the colt, and which led to bis withdrawal from the New Zealand Cap. The seat of the trouble is his uear fore leg, the sheath of the back tendou being sprung' Mr Wynn-WJJ'ants can only suppose that tho colt slipped while executing his gallop and strained- teg in making a recovery. The trade aftCgMwe was in capital ord£. Although ia slisht, it wee deemed witff ftflhrow the colt oat of work, and instructions were at once sent to cancel j ■ blg m en sagemont. On Mr (Jharlton's k advice Telemeter will be bUeUred and apetted for tfcfio* JOoo&fe {Qμ

tery unfortunate as the colt was regarded as much improved fr«m last season, and his trainer was particularly sweet on hisTiraaru Cup chance. By hia connections he was well backed for the New Zealand Cup.

Mr D. Rutherford is having half-a-dozen youug Ahuas and C'haiushots pat iv hand, and by the time the u&xt jumping season comes round hopes to have a team that, despite a defection or two, will leave him with something to carry his colours in the important cross country events. Highlander, who was sent to Leslie Hills at National time, is quite hirnscif agaiu. He will do duty as his owner's hack until next winter. Undesirable Bill, the possessor of a big leg, is being relegated to hurness work, but the honest son of Oh&inshot may be given another opportunity of distinguishing himself between the {lags. Mr Rutherford, who had Power simply taken up to have something to represent him at Ambcrley, intended, that meeting over, that the horse should resume his stallion duty. He ha 3, however, now decided to put keep in training with a view to the Curragh Steeplechase.

Wait-a-Bit, who was one of the earliest fancies for the Melbourne Cup, won the Victorian Club Handicap, one mile, at Caullielcl on August 28th. He went out favourite at 2 to 1 against, and cantered in. Consequent on the display i>e made, Wait-a-Bit immediately came into favour again for the bic Flemington race ; he was, indeed, at the head of the quotations on September Ist at 100 to 8. Trent ran in Wait-ii-Bit's race, carrying Bat 12lb. Eleusive was another winner at Caulfield ou August 28th, the Wolter Handicap falling to her. The race marked Ekusive's third consecutive victory ; her running showed her to be much better in public than iv private. Bayonet, a geldiDg by Carbine, won the Selling Race. At the Roaehill meeting, on August 28th, Metford secured the Flying Handicap very easily and incurred a 7ib penalty for the Hawkeabury Handicap, so that in that event he carried 7st 31b. The principal event, the August Handicap, one mile and three furlongs, fell to Aursa, a mare by Abercorn horn the Musket mare Aurelia. She started at 12 to 1. Projectile and Old Glo, the favomite?, " both failed to gain a place. Hopscotch and Fucile Mere among the field, which numbered twenty-two. Cherry, by Lochiel, won the six-furlongs event. Backers were well on the mark iri most of the events at tho Duuedin Hunt Meeting. It was of course not expected that M'Ginnis's stable would have a double representation in the Kensington Handicap, but most people thought that Maremma would be the one to do battle. Lord Rosslyn, however, was the selected and had no difficulty in pulling through. The victory, however, will hardly be looked upon as enhancing his Cup prospects to any great extent, inasmuch as the composition of the field was such that if he had not prevailed he would have been voted to have small chance at Riccarton. True, he had the Tasmanian maro Venus, who has the Cup engagement, behind him, but I don't think anyone has seriously considered her in connection with the big handicap. Venus may be said to have made a creditable display, both behind Lord Rosslyn and in her other race, and may be found capable of paying her way here. Venus is being looked after by young Campbell, who was formerly attached to a Dunedin stable, and used to ride over fences. Campbell has been some years in Tasmania. It is for the reason that his people live at Riverton that he selected the little seaside town in the far south for his training centre. Arline and Jane Eyre won their races with something to spare, and the betting correctly foreshadowed the result in both cases. So it did in the two hurdle races, which were very soft things for the respective winners. The only turn up of the day was in the Hunt Cup, in which Nat, who waa au odds on favourite, fell quite early in the contest and proceeded no furthei , . The winner, Masterpiece, was the only one that negotiated the country in safety. Except that Fulmen elicited keen competition between Messrs J. McKewan and J. Loughlin before he fell to the bid of the former at 218gs, the rest of the thoroughbred stook sold at Dunedin on Saturday changed hands at give-away prices. Miss Madge, it was announced, had been sold to Mr Grigg, Longheach, privately, and old Stockfish went back to his former owner, J. Loughlin, at £25. Besides Mr Jowitt's stock Casket, a Dunedin Cup winner, was sold, and at 20ga he now belongs to Mr W. Ruthven.

Galtee More has fulfilled his destiny by winning the St. Leger ; and in so doing takes his place among the triple crown heroes, his more immediate predecessors in the ranks of which are Isinglass, Common, and Ormonde. Although there are grounds for asserting that Galtee More has taken his honours in a bad year, he is so far ahead of all his con temporaries that it is unquestionable he is a colt of the highest class. Indeed, his prestige is so great that it is safe to speculate that the Doncaster race was made all the more easy for him by the opposition being frightened out. The fact that Lord Roseberry was content to rely on his second string, Chelandry, suggests that instead of asking Velasquez to again essay the futile task of meeting the Irishman, the Derby second is being held in reserve for the rich Jockey Club Stakes at Newmarket. That race, run for on the 30th inst. with neither Persimmon nor Galtee More engaged, reads well for Velasquez, but a stern chase after his thrice conqueror over the Doncaster Town Moor would almost without doubt be prejudical to his chance in the Newmarket race. And as it has turned out Cbelandry served Lord Rosebery's purpose in the Leger quite as well as the colt could have been expected to do ; for he could scarcely have hoped to get nearer than second. St. Cloud 11., who followed Galtee More and Chelandry home, is American bred. He ran in both the Derby and Grand Prix, but is not without winning credentials, inasmuch as he secured a Welter handicap at the Newmarket First July Meeting.

The nominations for the events at the Hawke's Bay Spring Meeting that closed last week are about eqnal in number to the engagements made for the like races la3t season. There are quite a lot of New Zealand Cup candidates in the lists, and the running of these will be watched with much interest. The South Island has no representatives ; the far North, however, has what must be considered a strong contingent in Miss Emmy, Haria, Acone and Woodstock. The first mentioned of these is doubtless intended to fulfil her Guineas engagement, and in that race we shall learn something of the pretensions of the Cuirassier filly for further classic honours. The Hon. Mr Ormond has, besides others, all three of his New Zealand Cup candidates engaged. Melinite's name is to be noticed in the Hurdle Race.

All the events at the Geraldine Meeting, bar the two chief races, have filled well; and it is really matter for wonderment that the Cup and Racing Club Handicap have not drawn equal patronage to the rest of the card. It is not as if the prizes for the events quoted were so rich as to anticipate that anything of extra high class would be engaged and so dominate the situation ; while the races are run over distances that might be supposed to induce wide competition. However, it is to be hoped that neither the Cup nor the secondary handicap will be reduced to a walk over, but that all now engaged will be found at the post when the flag falls.

When the programme for the Canterbury Jockey Club's Summer Meeting was drawn up, no definite dates were fixed on for the gathering. The days originally set down, February 11th and 12th, were, however, those named in the book programme. The dates mentioned having beenifound to clash with those of the Egmont Racing Club, it has been resolved that the gathering takes place on February 18th and 19th, which, besides not interfering with the Northern fixture, brings the meeting somewhat closer to the big gathering of the Dunedin Jockey Club, which should be a consideration to visitors from afar. The conditions for the Middle Park Plate and Champion Plate, the leading features at the meeting, and for which entries are required next week, on the 24 th inst., are advertised in the Calendar. lam hopeful that -the new race, the weight-for-age Champion Plate, will receive good patronage; the penalty conditions should induce those with candidates who may be considered not quite in the top class to take out an engagement. The C.J. C. Derby winner will have, at all events, 101b extra to pat up, and all winners of any importance something or other to help to bring them back to less fortunate runners.

Fleet Admiral did take part in the South Australian Derby, but although the three placed finished within a length of one .another, to and tin only other ■tarter were

some distance away. Fleet Admiral, despite that he was very "sore on leaving the paddock, was a level money favourite. The hopes centred on the colt distinguishing himself this season would seem doomed to disappointment. Acmena won her second race in England at Gatwiek on July 24th. Tliis was tho Summer Handicap, one mile and a quarter, and that her chance was highly esteemed can be gathered from the fact that she started at 11 to 8 on. Acmena carried Bst 121b and led from end to end, winning in a canter. Writing of her victory, the " Speoiaj Commissioner - ' of the London Sportsman says:—We can, by the way, get some idea through Acmena of what good Australian form really amounts to, for Acmena's best performance of last season was when, on January 4th, 1896, she ran Trenton's daughter, Quiver, to a head for the Tattersall's Clnb Cup, two miles, Quiver conceding her 161b. Later on she was unplaced, with Bst 41b, for the Sydney Cup, which was won by the then three-year-old Wallace, who carried B;=t 121b, and thus gave her 81b and a year, as well as a thorough beating. Ido not know of a mare in England whose owner would back her to give Acmena 161b over two miles.

It can be taken for granted that the last has been seen of Gillie on a racecourse. After the National Meeting Mr Dalgety presented the geldiug to his breeder, Mr J. C. N. Grigg, and he is to be pensioned off at Longbeach. There is no doubt, that but for infirmities, Gillie would have proved himself a vastly better horse than the book makes him out to be. Ex'en when running his last race, for which he had the very lightest of preparations, he was going as well as anything until he broke down, and hat! his leg not given way his rider is confident he would have been up with the leaders at the finish. Gillie will likely become sound enough to do some hunting, and if so will provide the Longbeach stable with a safe conveyance. For the second year a colt by Carbine lias secured the A.J.C. Derby. This time, indeed, the progeny of the champion completely dominated the situation, and if it may be said that the family had only one to beat to gain the several situations, it can be urged that the prestige they enjoyed kept opposition away. Amburite was looked upon as a sure thing, and he would seem to have beaten his relatives pointless, and there would appear to be grounds for supposing he is a worthy descendant of Old Jack. Of the other events ou the opening day of the proceedings at Randwisk the runaway victory of the imported Englishman, Positano, is the most startling item. Unlike other members of the St. Simon tribe, who are all fire and dash, Positano is one of the most indolent workers ever seen at Randwick, and nothing in regard to his abilities could be gauged from his track work. With colours up he seems to be an altogether different customer to what he is in private ; and his very easy overthrow of True Blue, Coil and company at weight-for-age portends that he must be a very hard nut to crack in the big handicaps in which he is favourably weighted. Robin Hood, the unexpected victor in the Epsoni Handicap, has had but a poor record, for out of twenty starts last season he only secured a couple of unimportant events. Although under his weight Survivor ran a meritorious race in the .i£psom Handicap on Satux*day, his second to Robin Hood would not prepare peoplo for his victory iv the big handicap of the meeting decided yesterday ; the more so id that he was reckoned much more formidable at the Epsom distance than for a journey longer than a mile. Lochiel's son, indeed, had come to be regarded as among the bestsprinteraiu New South Wales. Like others of his sire's stock, however, he is showing that with age the possession of staying ability comes. The triumph of the Lochiels in the race did not end with the winner of the Metropolitan, for the runnerup also claims the bonnie Prince Charlie horse as his sire. Holbrook, who is now in his second season, was looked upon as a fairly good two-year-old, but his eight ventures only resulted in one success. The position Coil occupied in the race will probably cause him to be fancied somewhat for later engagements.