SPORT AND PASTIME. The Turf.

Evening Post, Volume LXXV, Issue 27, 1 February 1908, Page 14

SPORT AND PASTIME.

The Turf.

•7 RACING FIXTURES. ]T£b 1. — lakapuna; J.C Summer. F^b. 6 and 7.— Gisborne R.C- Summer. Feb. 6 and' B. — Canterbury J.C. Summer F|b. 12 and 13. — Egmont R.C. Summer. F£b. 13 arid' 14.— Poverty Bay T.C. An- ?• nual. Fsb. 19 and 20.— Woodville J.C. *' Autumn. FSb. 19, 20, and 22.— Dunedin J.C. ''Z. Autump. • M£rch 5 and 7.— Wanganui J.C. t Autumn. , MSrch 6 and 7. — Westporfc J.C. Autumn. Ik^rch 11 and 12.— -]Dannevirke J.C. •• Annual. March 17 and 18.— Greymouth J.C. Au--72 tumn. , t I^.rch 17 ,and ,18.— Napier Park E.C. «•, Autumn? -,--' - - ' idtrch 25 arid-' 26.*— Taranaki J.C. Au--2 tumn "f 2£n spite of the fact that the weights for the Newmarket Handicap and tho Austrian gnp *wcr« published- in- Melbourne l<(gt Tuesday, wo must Wit with resignation for a few mo T e days before we know hi&r the horses .from the Dominion have JaSfcd in these two; gMat autumn events. i!Se cable humorist however', with a fine ■ perception of ou. prescience, informed us tlmt "Collarit 9st 101r>, heads the list for tbe JNeTntta^rketV ; anil for that small niere;yvwe A *ar&'*6nly 'grateful. For one tfijng it means that'^MiVMenzies, the ■\ftR.C. handicapper, -Oias; niade a comparatively light handicap on this occasV9H. „•-"»-■•■ o ~ ; ■^ast yea^'lro commenced with Solution 9gt~l2lb, and that great mare was set to gwe CollaTit seven pounds, and the wini^r Ebullition the n^jdest allowance of t#enty-nine pounds. _* In the previous ySar a great New Zealand sprinter, in Afechine Gun, had the honour and glory oj^ being allotted the steadier of list 31b, perhaps the biggest^ weight < a horsQj-'has e?er been expectecT^to- carry in a. nrsLc|£es handicap, Collarit is now a four-yeav-old, but his owner, Mr. W. I*. (sjek, .has >not -won the rapuey he-should have with the undoubtedly brilliant horse. Wheir Collarit might have- won" over his jfavourite distances lie was scratched and 6tarfed in long-djstanco J handicaps; such as the Metropolitan, 'in which he had no chance. .TholNfiw Zealand' 'contingent' 'in -'the 1 JNewmarket will find a bTacc of doughty opponents in North Head by Projectile — LooV'Mea.~dnd Scotland" by Wallace 'from the Flying Key. North Head carried 8.2 when he ran Pendant to a length in this race in 1906, and -last year with 8.9 he was only half a length away from Ebullition 7.13. North Head is a big horse in every way and his owner is vei7 Keen* "on winning' the great Flemington iprint. The horse has had a very easy time of -it since • last March and is receiving a special preparation for the trying test up the "straight six," a distance most judges aver that is equal to a mile on a circular course in its demands upon a horse's endurance and stamina. Scotland was a remarkably smart two-year-oid, _ and upon one occasion, when conceding SJb, dead-heated with Charles Stuart, then at his best. R.* O'Connor, who has- Scotland, trained Pendant when &ho won, and the same stable shelters Isfcria, whose victory in the Newmarket last year >vould havo dealt the ring a tremendous iacer. Scotland's best performances were his running Gladsome to a head in the Flying Stakes, seven furlongs, and his second receiving two pounds to Istria in the Bourke Handicap. It is rather significant that O'Connor bought Scotland after his latter performance; the. merit of which was considerably enhanced when Istria carrying nearly a stone more romped home a. month later with the Doncaster mile. The connections of Scotland and North Head have already shown their confidence in these horses by backing thsm to win a, very largo stake. ( Last year the West Australian champion, May King, headed +'ie Australian Cup handicap with 3st 71b, but this year Apologue and Taitan divide the jionour with 9st 111 b each. This is a great weight to tarry to the front over such a long journey as 2imiles, and in the fortyfour years' history of the race such an impost has, never been successful. The heaviest handicapped horse to win the Australian Cup was Malua 9st 91b, whilst Tartan, with three pounds less, put up, a sterling performance when he won two years ago. ---Ih&t autumn racing is rapidly approaching is evidenced by the publication of nominations for tho Wanganui •Cup, and in a fortnight's time the weights are due. Tho nomination list numbers twenty-two, and it includes many of our best horses. Maniapoto has been entered, so- his trainer apparently does not despair of getting JtpotlieiLraQe out of the brilliant brown. 'No doubt the softer tracks which dhe«kl~be--avflikble-4n- the autumn/ will assist EEiß*"~gfeax; galloper. Frisco, a genuine, stayer, has been reserved for this- race; 'and- Tilley is now keeping the New Zealand Cup winner up to the collar. . There are quito a numljef" of recent good winnexs , entered. Moloch, Tangimoana, Gold Crest) represent Trentham form. The Lark and Riflemaid Manawatu, and Signor Foxton. Auckland, which usually has a «andU3ile, has- Master Delaval and Pohutu; and the latter threo year old is 3t rare sticker. The Eand is A decidedly 'promising colt, and there is no heouer pedigreed horse in the~ land than Mr. G. P. Donnelly's stalwart black. Hawkes. Bay has Zimmerman, and if iWaddell can get the Auckland Cup winner to 'the post in his Ellorslie form the Birkenhead horse , will bo a treniehddusly hard nut to crack. In the •whole list there are only three moderates, so llr. Alorse ought to be able to frame 4 handicap which will give the Vtalent" soinethmg to exercise iheir .wits on. Ono of the prominent features of re-ccnt-racing'. has been. the good showing made by tho Stepniaks. Not very long . ago the progeny of the Nordenfeldt — Steppe horso appeared to be degenerating into little better "than platers. But- recently there has been a , turn for the better.' >' At both the Dunedin and Wellington meetings Stepniak headed the winning sires' list, and if his stock continue in this form the' old horse will not be far off heading the list, Avhen the time comes round for "the statistics to be compiled. It is to be hoped that the negotiations which aro now takine place for the repatriation of Mrnchikoif will result -successfully. The deeds of Armlet have drawn attention to the merits of Menchikoff. Mr. Harvey Patterson, who now owns the son of Stepniak and Pibroch, a daughter of Locbiel and Fallacy, has been very unlucky in his purchases of New Zealand racing stock up to the present, but it will bo his own fault if he does not make a handsome profit out of Menchikoff that will to some extent compensate him for his looses over Cuneiform, Delaware, and others. A Christchurch enthusiast is paid to be the prime rnov.er in the project, and it would scarcely be surprising if the doughty brown horse, after aJlj returned t</the land of his bMhi

Elevation is not to be sent over to compete at Flemington. Mr. Bidwill is wise not to rush the colt across undeT the circumstancps Ho may, " however, have a cut at Mountain King at the Australian Jockey Club meeting, which does not begin until 18th April, and Iho extra time will allow Fanner to R«t Elevation in pretty good nick, as tho Derby winner runs into form "\uickly. Elevation's withdrawal from, -the Newniirrket means a blow to the ' Wanganui syndicato that got in early and backed him to win them several thousands. The early birds did not catch the worm on that occasion ; on the contrary, they provided a juicy morsel for a couple of Melbourne peucillers who laid the wagers, and at pretty short odds, too. The incident at Pahiatua, where a bookmaker was so hard hit ovor Splendid Idea's race on the- first day that he was unable to pay all his liabilities, should help to bring the existing unsatisfactory system to an end. Iho clubs no doubt hold the view that as they provide the totalisator their, responsibility is linrrowed" down to that form of wagering, and if the public will bet with the bookmakers, well — it does so at its own risk. 11l tho Jong run, the clubs will be compelled by forcp of public opinion to insist on some adequate financial guarantee forthcoming before a licerse is issueJ. Probably tHe booknuJccr ,a. Piihinlua. dots iiqL think so much of bookmaking 1 now as a get -rich -quickly dodge; and a few of',the inside bookies at Trentham who fielded so resolutely against Taitoke in the- last raco of tho. meeting wish they had what they lost over that event. One big punter from a thriving' inland town took over five hundred of the best from the bag-wearera on the race. There aro bookmakers ,and I bookmakers, aud the fittest only can survive. The £20 per day fee, plus losses, will thin the ranks of the fraternity ero this season has run its" course. ' Lupulite with 10.12 was a rod in pickle for the half-mile dash, at Gore on the second 'day. The son of Lupin was an oven money chance, and he gave hjs opponents no chance, running tho four furlongs in "'the smart timo of 49 3-ssec. Although these South Island sprinters, do some wonderful things at home they do not often shine" when brought up North. Witness Petrovna's two failures at Trentham after 1 tho Stepniak maro had mad? her rivals atDunedin look very small potatoes indeed. Munjeet , was an exc?ption, ' and old Goldspur, too, could fly on any course.. The old chap used to run the middle two furlongs' of a h'alf-milo go in twenty seconds, and probably he was the fastest horse up to seven furlongs New Zealand has had, for he was neAer properly wound up. Nominations for the Great Easter and Great Autumn Handicaps closed yesterday Each of these popular events is now wo.rth ,£IOOO. Loiret who won the Pahiatua Cup is a maTo by Seaton Delaval from St. Loire and was expected to win the Foxton Cup last week, in which she got third to Signor and Waipaku. Loiret was the outsider -of the field at Pahiatua, and her victory gave the bookmakers a great turn-up.