SPORT AND PASTIME.

Evening Post, Volume LXX, Issue 61, 9 September 1905, Page 14

SPORT AND PASTIME.

The Turf. [ByJLochiel.]" RACING FIXTURES. September 9, 11, 13, and 16 — Austral. Spring Meeting , *"* "SepfeihlSifr~* 14" ' "and ■ 15— -Ashburton Spring Meeting. September 16, 17, and 23— Avondale Spring Meeting. September. 20 and 21— Rangitikei Spring Meeting. September 28 and 29 — Wanganui . Spring 3leeting\ ; Of the seventy horses originally handicapped for the New^Ze>land'jGup-thirty-nine have survived the first acceptance fee. The withdrawals include Vladimir, * Gladstone, Orloff, Patronus, St. Michael, Roseajj Mehvood, Sir Tristram, and a number of others whose chances, even ''under the most favourable circumstances, '„ ■were" flecide'dly. remote.' 1 'The Porirua -> ittable holds a very strong hand in 1 ' Achilles, Ghoorka, Maniapoto, Gold Cnnru, and Flamen— the property of four ■"' different owners — and , the Yaldhurst *' stable is still represented by Nightfall, ' JSfpctniform," and Sungod. The public will have an opportunity during the next few weeks of judging a number of the , candidates, but even in the absence of any recent form to go upon backers have ■ speculated fairly freely during the last week or two. Achilles ,and Alahutonga nre quoted at the" shortest odds— ten to one. The best price about Maniapoto is twelve to one; then follow Scotty and .tQuarryman (fourteen to one), and Nightfall, Paritutu, Melodeon, and Golden 1 Knight (sixteen to one). If there' was any certainty regarding Nightfall, I-im-agine the prices oiiered -concerning her '•would shorten somewhat. A fairly big ' commission has 'been worked on Flamen, -' ■who -was quoted at 100 to 1 a couple of weeks- «go, and is now on the market at ZiTd I. " ]['. .^To-day the Australian Jofckey , Club's 1 Spring Meeting will be commenced- at 1 Bandwick. The chief attraction will "be ','the Epsom Handicap, .in which. Maniapoto. and Machine Gun are engaged. • Last year, Contest, .under 8.12, won -the. prize , fronv- &u«aalf--lli™and— Sunderlahd, .the, L,"2istance being cut out in lmin 39£ sec. £The cable during the last feiy^ days has_ "made it very plain that the New Zealand»ers have registered some splendid track, and it is not surprising to £tind that they head the betting list. A writer states thai New Zealand *\ money must be mainly responsible foe demand for ~Maniapoto,T ajdding :"— £"The New Zealanders do, put the money for any representatives they_ "fancy." .This afternoon's Randwick Effort should to some extent set at rest "the , much-discussed % question as to Maniapoto is. all that .his backers *'-claun 'for "Him. Although the race will ~foe over by the time these 'notes are pub^ "lished; the " f ollbwing comments by the 'well-known Sydney writer "Milroy'' will ;-lje read with interest: — "Grand Rapids *iind Medallist have appeared on the scene, «land both, bear* outward evidence of havring done plenty ' of work. The former a trifle lighter than when Mason iad him here last year, but he goes with .all his 1 old-time "dashy "and ~ it' may' be" .taken for 'granted .^hafc the very astute *:pSrtyJjjehind -him -has something ' good .'•to go on, or, the -horse would not be "here. Respecting--'Maniapoto, there can ~oe no two" opinions about his speed, and "thjs.cirtKtorrun a mile right out 1 In appearance he •rfavours- his -Sfe^ Simon descent, and re■ymindsTone of Gameboy in shape, but is l^bniltT 6n, v a;vety"mvich > larger scale than Ji^h^ic^rilliatit .little;"h'orse. Maniapoto -of- Harry Hales, bet~ter kn6wh^mong horsemen as 'Yankee' ,^HaieC"a mah^of large experience, and thoroughly "understands "his business", In times gone by, when Hales f^l;rapied"-Mr. J.~ P. 'Jost's horses in he often anilised and aston"Tishe3"the"''tou'ts" by timing ii gallop withCout the aid of a watch, -and nine times lilin ,ten,..hjs. l record would tally with the held by those ground ham. By -•some - intuitive method he could count Tjiseconds with ' marvellous accuracy. If liMachine Gun starts in the Epsom, New j^ZeaJand.interests trill certainly be represented by" • two ' brilliant horses, which, £in company with the Queensland and Viehorses, will impart widespread in:~ters§t*. tshich, .so far as the Epsom is -"concerned,- 1 is without parallel." Since i—the above was written news has' been deceived, of. . the withdrawal of Grand ' ~ Tim. improved totalisator now being £j**hown in Wellington by (Messrs. G. H. an^G.-Gabriel, on behalf of a syndicate, is worth Careful C«)J<spection.. One of its many advantages His that brandies of it may be "worked on paTts-of -the racecourse. While JJeacK"ds'a"coni^l-etfe. teeord in itself, the £total business of each branch is re-r-ooided .-at-* the ~chie£ -iotalisatoT also. "iEvery. ticket sold is checked by an autoJ^jpatic* recorder, and a -further check is provided by a system of using aluminium -iballsV each one of which represents a lC*ickef. " The . offshoot totalisatora are "eacjv connected^ with the main one by Ctneans of a long metal .tube, from -wiiich »<»thsr tubes. jadiate -to the branch totali-~»i(df-^one"tabe-foT>every*ihoTse in the racfj 'Ih* r * i 6"i 6 " * reservoir oi metal *UallS"{b "Ta'ch horse's tube, and when a - ticket is issued. a ball is liberated by the ■operator pouching -a-^rojecting arm. All "the ballsTt'hus liberated Tun by gravitation intfi^the big tube_and thence 'toj. the main totalisatbr, where they are checked in ,t«E6 ly a rapid .and simple- process which K cannot posaibly err, the itiethod iei^g i an'agp'i CEt ''' 011 of the -measurement principle in shot flasks, where iwo'itietal discs"-piTe'"jvo"rked; .'on Ta pivot."V It is undersfe*]-that the stewards of jflie Wel"Ungton'^Bacing Glub 'mayKpossibly have one of the .'machines Tn* operation at the initial meetfafg on .the Trentham couree next January. English papers -to hand speak in'warm iterms..of a two-year-old named Spear- • mint,- by Carbine from Maid of the Mint, and who coet 300gs. at Sir Tatton Sytes's saTe at Doncaster laet'September. Spearmint, -who ,-is a stable companion of the champion Pretty Polly, made has debut in the Great Foal Stakes irf 1000 «ovs,. at .Lingfield, on, the 15fh July. The tace was five furlongs, andSpearmint, carrying Bst 6lb, ran the distance in 59 l-sth 6e6. ,The youngeber is built on massive lines, and it is said resembles hia sire, Carbine, -to an extraordinary degree, not only in colour, markings, and general conformation (except that he is slightly taller), but also in his action and., the jhahner." in which he ran his race. English writers stato *h*t he is a most promising colt.- His engagements Include .the Breeders' Foal Plates at D^rby, Kempton Park, and Manchester, thia month, and the Derby, next May. Though he had never run , previously to the jaco he won, he was made -favourite of the ten -runners,/ow- • ing to the faot of his having done a very, smart trial leaking out. Local transactions on the New Zealand Cup are -reported -as, follows by Mr. A. • Lirw:— 7oo to 32 Noctuiform, 200 to 16 Paritutu, 300 to 3 Blyihemaid, 500 to 10 Filamen, 250 to 25 Achilles, 1000 to 10 Ability, 100 to 12 MaTiubonga. Both from a sporting and financial point of view the MjirtfiS jne.eMijg ecbj?-

eed-.previous., recprds.. „The totalisator investments fxceedei those of last year by "£3527, "- and the racing, generally speaking,' was interesting. The stewards are to be congratulated on -the lesults. Marinella scored a double in convincing style at the Marton meeting. 'JLhe daughter of Handsome Jack, with 9.0 up, won the Flying Handicap without much exertion, and with an additional' 121bs in the saddle; put the Railway Handicap to her credit on the second day. She' was ridden on each occasion by Sv. Young. The Sou-Wester horse Ngatarua, who was seen out in public frequently last year, has commenced the season by winning the Marton Handicap. Mr. M'Taggart's representative was made a hot favourite, and he did not cause his .supporters jnuch suspense. Lass-o'-Gow-rie did^riot show to advantage on either day. Coxswain annexed third money in the Croft on Handicap at the first day of the Marton meeting, but failed to get a situation on the second day. The Ashburton Cup has attracted an entry of nine, including seven horses engaged in the New Zealand Cup— viz., Buluwayo, Calibre, Golden Knight, Clanbum, Ability, General Symons, and Beau Seaton. Another Cup horse is Veneer, who is also engaged at Ashburton, so that the meeting is likely to be more than usually interesting. Monoform, the four-year-old full brother to Multiform, is in steady exercise at Elleralie. Judging from the amount 'of condition he is carrying there is something like striking evidence' that he is a good-constitutioned horse. Maybe during the coming season Monoform will be able to win back some of .the 1300gs which he cos,fc as a. yearling in the summer of. 1903";' but (says Phaeton), further than that he is carrying himself well at present, and is in robust' condition to go into strong Avort. I ■do not know that there are strong- reasons to extol his prospects at four years \ old. Among the entries for the English Derby, 1907, are nine youngsters who claim Carbine as < sire, two sired by Aurura, one by Bill of Portland, and one by Trenton— a colt from Polly Eccles. In the Oaks, 1907 ; Carbine, has six representatives, Merman, four, and Bill of Portland, two. His Majesty the King is well represented in. both classic races, with five in the Derby, and three in the Oaks, among the latter being a three-parts sister to Mead 1 and Chatsworfch, ~and -a three-parts . sister to ' imported St. Ambrose. A good deal of i surprise was expressed j when" Sir -Tristram's name did not appear amongst the acceptors for the New Zealand Cup (writes a Napier correspondent). As the JSon. J. D. Ormond's team are privately trained it is not always an easy matter to obtain information^ about their doings. Lyrist, one of > Sir' Tristram's stable comrades, is also' an' absentee from the list. Old Halberdier has again broken .down, and the Cuirassier — Miss Stead gelding will not again face the starter, , as his , owner, Mr. Bennett, intends giving the New. Zealand Cup winner a final' holiday from 'the turf. Mr. T. H. Lowry's brood mares Madrigal and Lissadwin visited Soult at Auckland last week. Apologue's defection from the New Zealand Cup is due (says an Auckland writer) in a large measure to the .fact that his owner was forestalled in the betting market. Apologue is doing good .solid work, at Ellerslie, but up to ;the present he has not been tested. Had his owner been able -to have got a 'fair price about his colfc it is very probable he "would have been given a chance to distinguish himself in tho big two-mile race. Mr. W. H. Mackay, late of M'Kay Bros.) Dunedin, has been engaged to ride for Mr. G. F. Moore, of Wanganui, for the present season.