THE TURF

Evening Post, Volume CIV, Issue 7, 8 July 1922, Page 15

THE TURF

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July I, 12, 15—Wet__et_. R.O. Winter. Jnly li—Waimato District Hunt Club. July 23—Sooth Canterbury Hunt Club. July 27 and 29—Gisborne Kacing Club,

NfiXES AND COMMENTS

(II "SB MfIWLOT.")

Several horses engaged at the present meeting at Trentham competed successfully at previous winter gatherings. One of the first was Sir Agnes, who scored in the Te Axo Hack Handicap in 1916. He was ridden by W. ftPrice, and paid a big dividend when he defeated Perrier, ridden by 0. Price. Kilkee and Master Strowan won on the concluding day ofj, the Winter Meeting, 1917. Master Strowga, Bagdad, Master Boris, and Sir Agnes were among the successful ones iit the 1918 meeting. Three years ago Kilkee won again. First Line and Printenrps won two years ago, when Gold Kip and Arch Salute dead heated. The latter was ridden by J. Olsen, who was patching the work yesterday morning. Ashley and Roy Reed were riding at the RosehilJ Meeting on 24th June. The latter was on Sea Risk (second in the Ji-laideD Stakes), also Tigrinia (unplaced in the Rydalmere" Mile). Mr. W. G. Stead's Poet was unplaced in the Flying JWelter. The accommodation booked for Tigerland at"' Trentham was cancelled.

The services of the stipendiary stewards last season cost the New Zealand Racing J Conference £4433 12s 7d, and the racecourse detectives £2378 8s 6d. Toward the latter amount the trotting clubs contributed £640 4s Bd. Both funds are in credit.

A motion tp increase the Accident Fund from 10s to £1 will come before delegates at the Racing Conference on Thursday. During the present season the claims paid out of the Accident Fund amounted to £6379 15s lOd. It cost £831 5s 7d to administer the Accident Fund during the past year. An interesting t_ble prepared by the Racing Conference shows that during the present eeasop 35 clubs provided trophies in connection with their meetings, in addition to the cash prizes. The Canterbury Jockey Club headed the list in this department, with trophies valued at £550. '

When Araythaa is t_ken up again he will join Master Strowan in M. Williams's Otaki Stable.

I. regret to have to record the death of Mr. W. J. Philips, which occurred! at Palmerston North recently. The deceased gentleman was a steward of the Rangitikei and Fedlding' Clubs, with which he had been associated) for many years. The late Mr. Phillips generally had. a horse or two in training. Probably the best performer that carried his colours was the Sir Laddo gelding, Nobleman, who placed two Manawatu Cups and a Wellington Oup to his owner's credit. Tlie late Mr. Phillips, whose health had not been good for some time, was very popular, and leaves hosts of friends in the racing and fanning world, who will regret to hear of his death.

A table of figures to be submitted at the conference of delegates of racing clubs to be held on Thursday next shows a substantial falling off in totalisator investments. They show that 138 meetings, extending over 227 days, were held during the season, and that £497,955 in stakes was distributed in connection with 1700 races on the flat and over fences, _nd that trotting, events. on flat racing programmes earned £11,185 in stakes. During the season trophies valued at £2549 15s were attached to some of the principal events run under the Rules of Racing, and the total turnover on the totafisfttor amounted to £5,803,457 10s. Last year the grand total amounted to £7,475,098, so that approximately there is a shortage of £1,671,640. The above figures do not include the returns at the Hawkes Bay, Jackey Club'a June Meeting, nor the Hawkes Bay Hunt Meeting. The season's figures will not be complete until tlie Wellington .Winter Meeting, Waimate Hunt Sleeting, South Canterbury Hunt, and Gisborne Racing Club's Meeting, which, all take pl_ce this month, become things of the past. During the season the Auckland Racing Club held eleven days' racing, comprised by 86 races, carrying 73,550 soys in stakes and betting investments totalling £954,600 10s. The Canterbury Jockey Clnb held ten days' racing, made up of 80 races, carrying 48,250 soys in stakes, and a totalisator turnover of £601,347. Tlie Dunedin Jockey Club held nine days' racing, made up by 72 races, carrying 27,800 soys in stakes and. a totalisator . turnover of £278,703 10s. The Wellington Racing Club will hold ter days' racing this season, and will distribute 45,150 sow in stakes. There has been a totaliator turnover at Trentham so far this season of £432,823.

A Carterton enthusiast writes as follows : —"ln view of the prominence given in a Southern journal re the best ten horses in Australia, a few remarks concerning one of the racehorses mentioned by your contemporary may be of interest. Much has been made of the defeat by Wakeful in the Spring Stakes of 1903 by Cruciform. I think everybody is prepared to admit that the latter was a highclass performer, but it should b^ borne in mind that Wakeful was at the end of her career, and hardly, if ever, raced again after that historic event. That is, aftpr the meeting concluded. I am, of course, aware they both met again in the Craven Stakes, when Ibex defeated both of them, and Wakeful was third to Cruciform. Apropos of this, I do not think it has been stated that in the following year Gladsome won the Spring Stakes. She easily defeated Cruciform and Martian. One could just as fairly write Cruciform out and proclaim Gladsome as her superior, as has been done in Wakeful's case, because she failed against Cruciform. The latter may have been a better 'performer than her races showed, but he y record.over long courses over a number of years could hardly be compared with Wakeful's. For one thing, the quantity of races were - not available for her to race in in New Zealand except in handi caps, and her late owner did not often race any of his horses in such' races True, she won the Great Easter over seven furlongs, a- great performance for al three-year-old, but it was not over a. long course. She, however, won the Canterbury Cup,- one of the few bona fide weight-for-age events in New Zealand, but the opposition was nothing like what it would be in Australia, where Wakeful scooped the pool for years. Taking our great racing mares of recent years in New Zealand, I think for actual performances over a journey, Warstep must be considered paramount. Warstop not only contested big handicaps, but successfully, and her run of performances—Dunedin Cup, Great Autumn (both mile and a-half races), and then the Trentham Gold Cup (two .fniles) —will take some equalling by any mare in the future. Desert GoicKfailed when opposing Kilboy in the latter event. Warstep was not "kept" for sprint weight-for-age races, but was » great and reliable slayer, who won her races from behind. Hei New Zc.ilhik! Cup (dead heat), Auckland (ftp win, mid Canterbury Cup success w.re other examples of her greatness. She was unexpectedly defeated in the Awn.puni Gold Cup by Chortle and others, but would i! br> fair to discount her worth because of this one defeat?"