THE CULT OF THE THOROUGHBRED

Press, Volume LXIX, Issue 21034, 9 December 1933, Page 19

THE CULT OF THE THOROUGHBRED

Stature of Horses Has Increased THE PRESERVATION OF BROOD MARES Bruce Lowe Family No. 2 (SPICItILT WRITTEN FOR THE PRESS.) [By KEN. AUSTIN.] (VII.)

The two diminutive three-year-old champions of the present season in both England and Australia—Hyperion, and Hall Mark—are good examples of the fact that small or medium-sized horses continue their merits or abilities into future generations in greater proportions than the bigger ones. For the last 50 years or more there have been marked efforts to increase the size of horses of all breeds from the racehorse and Shire down to the pony. Whether results have in all cases proved satisfactory in maintaining true type and constitution is open to doubt. The thoroughbred increased in stature by a hand according to the opinion of the late Admiral Rous, in 100 years, and the evidence of this is well in his favour, although there are many exceptions to his view. The object which breeders of the past had in mind in getting size is not quite clear, but it has served the purpose of moderating the stature and substance of horses, for if the weed had been confined to small ones, there would have been degeneration; and if there had been nothing but giants, like Melbourne, there would have been a race of great, unsound helpless horses, and possibly consequent disease. It is perhaps interesting to know that all thoroughbreds have not the same number of lumbar vertebrae. The skeleton of the famous Eclipse in the Royal Veterinary College shows him to have six of these bones, while St. Simon and Galopin had five each. The former sired a majority of shortbacked high horses, especially noticeable in the imported sons of St. Frusquin, like St., Alwyne, St. Anton, etc., and again in their sons, like Poitrel and others. "Big Little Ones." Some of the greatest mares of all time have been low in stature —"big little ones"—the ideal type for the good brood mare, and Hall Mark's third dam, the imported mare Teppo, was a very small mare—in fact a big pony. Selene, the dam of Hyperion, stood barely 15.2, while her half-sister. Tranquil, stood over 16.3—somewhat of a contrast for two daughters of the same mare, who were both high class. Mention of Selene makes me think what a pity it is that more of our breeders and racing men have not the Lord Derby outlook about their possessions. The Hon. George Lambton, in writing about Hyperion's family in 1926, has some interesting things to say about them. Mr Walter Alston, who died recently, must have derived a lot of satisfaction from the splendid lot of horses he bred for Lord Derby

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abercorn. One of the best horses of his time in' ™ than £12,800. A member of the Bruce i<t j

from the ex-plater, Gondoiette, who •was bought by him m *912 at. Colonel Hall Walker's sale. Mr Alston bought this mare to breed to Swynford or Chaucer in order to get the Pilgrimage inbreeding, and how successful it nas been is answered for by such horse as Sansovino, Ferry, Selene, Tranquil, €tc, * Mr Lambton writes: ''Gondoiette s first produce for Lord Derby was Sere nissima. Like her dam, and her granadam, Serenissima was a strong, lengthy filly, who could So a bit and won races, but was not of mucn class. She went to the stud at four years old, and at once began breeding Winners, • her first three foals being Venetia, Selene, and Tranquil. SereBlssima was rather a headstrong mare to training, and wanted very good ria-

ing, and Selene, game as she was and much as she really loved racing, at times wanted a good deal of management. She ran in 22 races during two seasons, winning 16 and being second four times, and only once out of a place. She went out of training as sound and full of confidence as when she began racing. I tried hard to persuade Lord Derby to race her as a four-year-old, as I believe she would have won the Ascot Cup, but I could not .prevail." If George Lambton had kept Selene going and subjected her to the hard training necessary to win an Ascot Gold Cup, in all probability there would have been no super three-year-old in Hyperion this year. How many owners on this side of the water, if they were told by their trainers that a good three-year-old mare they might have in training would win one of the principal two-mile races as a four-year-old would retire her? Not many I am afraid, and this is one of the principal reasons why England maintains its superiority in breeding. Their good mares are not done to death, and run in long-distance handicaps as ours are here. The principal racing clubs south of the line should follow the lead given them by the Victoria Racing Club, thanks to the great wisdom of their chairman, Mr L. K. S. Mackinnon, in giving good races to three-year-old fillies so that they will not be asked to compete against seasoned old stagers. Take the case of the New Zealand filly, Golden Hair, who performed so well at the recent Melbourne Cup meeting. This good daughter of Limond won the Wakeful Stakes and Oaks against her own age and sex, and was beaten by Blixten in the Batman Stakes, also for three-year-olds. She did not compete against older horses at the meeting. The Influence of Marchioness. I have to thank Mr D. J. Scott for his letter last week to "The Press" pointing out the wonderful influence the imported mare Marchioness has exerted on the thoroughbred here and in Australia. Although Marchioness is now represented in our Stud Book by comparatively few first-class brood mares, it is quite possible, as Mr Scott points out so clearly, for a revival of this particular branch of the Number 2 Family to take place. There is nothing more curious in racing history than the quick' disappearance of certain lines of blood, which at one time appeared to be so strong that their continuance was almost a matter of certainty. Every now and then a great horse becomes a great stallion, and the highest expectations are naturally formed as to the future of his descendants, when suddenly the line begins to show signs of weakness, and quickly becomes faint or disappears altogether. St. Simon, although he established a strong sire line which dominated things for years in Eng-

land, is now almost extinct there in Marchioness family here in female tail may ®be waiting for the chance to prove itself again, winch only opportunity will give it. Should n f its well-bred members have thp luck to get into a good stud, be mated with a successful stallion and the orogeny properly reared, it would not be long before a revival would be brought about, but the line being out of fashion for the time being, this is not a likely contingency. Wp have to take off our nais the No. 2 Family for its having given _ : sTpaland in both Carbine and Phar Lap, possibly the two greatest horses ever bred here. The family is on top of the world at the present time, with Gainsborough as the lead-

ing stallion in England. There.are not many stallions of the family heic at the present time. Messrs J. and Ij. W. Storry have the Phalaris horse Robespierre, and Elderslie has the young Swynford stallion, Iliad, who are both members of the line founded by the Burton Barb mare and classified by Bruce Lowe as his No. 2 family.