SPORT AND PASTIME.

Evening Post, Volume LXXVI, Issue 106, 31 October 1908, Page 14

SPORT AND PASTIME.

TJw Turf. RACING FIXTURES. SEASON 1908-9. fiot. 7, 9, and 11 — Auckland R.O. Spring. Nov. /, 9, 11, M — Canterbury J.C. Metropolitan Nov. 9— Waipawa County R.C. Birthday. Nov. 9 — Waverley-Waitotara R.C. Hack. Nov. 9 and 10 — Taratahi-Carterton R.C. Annual. Nov. 19 and 20 — Marlborough R.C. Spring. Nov. 24 and Dec. 2— Takapuna J.C. Spring. Nov. 25, 26— South Canterbury J.C. Spring. Nov. 30, Dec. I—Feilding1 — Feilding J.C. Spring. Dec. 9 and 10 — Woodvillo District J.C. Summer. Dec. 26 and 28— Dunedin J.C. Summer. Dec. 26 and 28 — Taranaki J.C. Christmas. Dec. 26, 30, Jan. 1 and 2 — Auckland R.C. Summer. - Next Wednesday the forty-eighth race for the Melbourne Cup will eventuate, and a field of about twenty-six look like going to the post. Mooltanand Maranui have each incurred 101b penalties for their victories in the Metropolitan Handicap and Caulfield Cup respectively, and the former promises to start one of the hottest favourites m the history of the race. Mooltan would have to prove another Carbine to win under such a crushing weight as 9.12, and it demonstrates how loyal the public are to a great horse, that they are accepting freely the cramped prices on offer .. About Mooltan, the colossal nature of 'jphose task may be gathered from the tremendous concession in weight he has to make Parsee and Alawa. These colts are considered on all hands to be two of the swiftest and gamest that were ever saddled up, yet Mooltan has to present '.Llie one with 341b and the other with 351b, and in November a good three-year-old is just about as good as he is ever likely to be. In the last nine years, the Melbourne Cup has been won by horses of that age on four occasions, Merriwee, Clean Sweep, Lord Cardigan, and Poseidon, being colts that gave the older horses no chance. Merriwee and Poseidon" each carried 7.6, which was a weight-for-age impost, earned because of their success in the V.R.C. Derby, Alawa and ParBee, it is confidently expected, will provide a great contest in the same classical event run at Flemington to-day. J Parsee's stable shelters the English ,bred Sir Aymer, who has been backed to win nearly £40,000, and if the coup is successful, the ring will not forget this year's Cup an a hurry. Sir Aymer •has not done much since arriving in Melijourne, but Earnsliaw has the horse very well, and he is too astute a mentor to have him knocked about. Sir Aymer is a slashing galloper, possesses perfect action, and like Newhaven, and other good horses, he gallops with his head well down. Earnshaw tried nim collaterally to be a shade superior to Apologue, and if Sir -Aymer escapes the bumping, which invariably falls to the 'ofc of those Cup horses that are hcav3uy backed, Earnshaw may establish a new record in the great Flemington event, by training the winner in three consecutive years, his previous victories eeing, of course, through the agency of Apologue and Poseidon. Sir Frisco, by winning the Pearce Handicap and the Masterton Cup, nas confirmed ,the high opinion formed of the son of Sain Francisco after his success in the Parliamentary Handicap at Trentham last June. It now looks as i£ a splendid chance of landing a big stake was thrown away when Sir Frisco was not taken across to Randwick to run in the A. J.C. Metropolitan, in which his weight, inclusive of penalty, was only 7st 81b. It is not generally known that the Wellington Winter Meeting Mr. Moore declined a very good offer for the colt, an Australian buyer being prepared to go to a thousand for him, with a view to a dash at the Sydney long distance handicap and its big betting possibilities. Sir Frisco's owner may have contemplated the same big prize, but perhaps the feeling that the Bard tracks at Handwiok might bring about the colt's downfall decided him against taking on tne contract. Sir Frisco looked a perfect picture of the high-class racehorse when he went out to do his preliminary at Masterton. His shoulders and quarters are of a size and power rarely seen. Lowe has been wonderfully successful in keeping the handsome son of San Francisco in racing trim ever since he won the Maiden at the Wairarapa meeting last Easier, and the little horse will now be treated" to a iwell-earned spell. Merganser by Nordenfeldt — Albatross, who was a great performer in her day, died last week when on a visit to Elevation. Merganser was nearly twenty years old, but in her long career at the stud never produced a toal that e.ven remotely promised to emulate his dam's prowess on the turf. Merganser's greatest performance was accomplished in the C.J.C. Great Autumn Handicap of 1693, when at four years old she carried the thumping weignt of 9st 81b to victory. A very likely marc to win a long-dis-tance handicap is Blue Ribbon. In the Masterton Cup she was going beautifully five furlongs from home, being just on Skye's girths, but must have been interfered with at this point, for she suddenly lost her place and dropped back fifth or sixth. Carroll got her going again, and the half-sister to Paritutu was making up her lost ground in rare style, and entering the straight was galloping so freely that her chance looked good. The scrimmage thattookpla.ee at the distance settled her ; nevertheless, she ran a most encouraging fourth. Blue Ribbon iooks as if she was capable of a great deal of improvement yet, and with a light weight up and over a course of a mile and a half, she would take a lot of beating. Of the horses seen out on the first day at Masterton, Merrie Rose had been pleasing her _ trainer, and the Merrie England mare is now pretty well. There, is not much of her, but when the track suits, Merrie Rose can gallop very nicely. The gallop at Masterton should just string her up nicely. Irish Rifle is showing signs of the racing he has nad, and until he warmed up moved very scratchfly. Roseal is as big as a bullock, and looks more fitted for the siud than for the track. Skye, on the other hand, is as well as she is ever likely to be, and led the field a merry dance for quite a -mile in the Cup, in fact did not crack until the distance. The Btablemates, Hiro and King Post are each other's opposites, Hiro being just as burly as the Seaton Delaval is cadaverous. Silken Rein bore out her Trentham trackwork, and in another stride or so would have caught and beaten Irish Rifle. Silken Rein's condition should help her to annex a stake before long. William Day, England's oldest train§r, died on Saturday, 29th August^ §

fortnight after his eighty-fifth birthday. He was at the business in the forties, when he commenced as a stableboy in the famous Danbury stable. Two of the greatest horses the> deceased was first associated with were Crucifix, trained by Day's father, "Honest John," as he was familiarly called, and Virago. The first-named is credited with having won Lord George Bentinck £100,000, and amongst the races which she took were the Two Thousand, One Thousand, and Oaks. Virago achieved tho great performance of winning the City and Suburban and Great Metropolitan Stakes on the same afternoon. His line was long-distance handicap coups, and his motto "two and a half stone in hand when you bet." With Fred. Swindells doing the betting in London and "young" William preparing tho horses at Woodyeates, matters were often made uncomfortable for the ring when heavy betting was fashionable on long-distance' handicaps. Mr. Day wrote two interesting books, "Reminiscences of the Turf" and "The Racehorse in Training," both of which bear the stamp of literary merit and commonsense. Mr. Day was a member of a large family of horsemen who, from "Grandfather" Day down, figure prominently in English racing history. Since his prominent running at Treutham, Zimmerman, despite the steadier of 9.9, has received plenty of support and the big Birkenhead horse rules a good third favourite at odds very little longer than, those quoted Frisco and Master Delaval. Reports from the South speak favourably of the work being done by the lightly weighed' Heorthen, a five year old mare by Phoebus Apollo, from Hilda, by Musket. This is a rare stayer's pedigree, and it may, combined with heaps of condition, help Heorthen to make a bolder show in the race than 'might be inferred from her meagre record to date. Heoithen has not raced since the C.J.C. Winter meeting, at which ehe won the Sumner Handicap (a welter event, with a 9.0 minimum), cutting out the mile with 10.4 up, in the decent time of ltnin 46 3-ssec, but it must be admitted that she beat a very poor lot. Of the Steward's acceptors, Bobrikoff, if all goes well, promises to start favourably. It has not yet been decided ivho is to have the mount, and it will be no surprise to 6ee I". Davis himself undertaking the task. The track work trill begin to be more interesting next week, and Bobrikoff may be allowed to stride along at his best pace to show the southern touts, who still believe him a boom horse, what his action is like.