NOTES AND COMMENTS

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 6, 8 January 1930, Page 6

NOTES AND COMMENTS

(BY "VEDETTE.")-

RACING FIXTORES.

Jan. 9, 11.—Thames J.C. Jan. 11. 13.—Vincent J.C. Jan. 18.—Bay of Islands It.C. Jan. 18, 20, 22.—Wellington K.C. Jan. 22.—Ashhurst-Pohangina B.C. Reminders. Nominations for the Pahiatua Meeting ■ :are due on Friday at 9 p.m. ~.: Acceptances for the Foxton Meeting close to-morrow at 9 p.m. ';" Handicaps for the Ashhurst Meeting ■ are due on Thursday. Gesture, Lady Pam, Cylinder. ".• The leading juvenile of the season, Gesture, figures amongst the entries for the . handicaps at Trentham. She will have to be assessed fairly highly, and this will put some of the improving juveniles in at a reasonable weight. Probably Mr. Coyle would wish her out of the race, for, -like all racing folk, he will not relish r seeing a good juvenile loaded with big weights. That other good filly Lady Pam c is engaged only in the Wellington Stakes, .in which, she will be hard to beat. She wiiases a penalty in this event, and al- :' though she has won three races, gets in the race as well as Cylinder, who is yet a maiden two-year-old. This pair look like disputing the issue of this classic •race, for 'which unfortunately Gesture was not nominated. /.The Duoro Cup. - ".' Several hacks who have been in the public eye for that most interesting race, the ■ Cup, are not now eligible, but there ~; ~ are a few amongst the entries who strike one as above ordinary hack class, and ■" some of them have not been disgraced in •*• open company. Jaloux, on his second in '-' the Great Northern Derby, is one who ■ comes readily to mind. Disorder, who -finished second to Meadow Lark in the Members' Handicap at Riccarton, seems to be above hack status, while Head Serang and Rational 11. are a pair who .have great possibilities. Disorder probably •will be seen out on the opening day at .. Trentham in the Apprentices' Plate> in which she will have to carry only- 7.6. , She will not' be ' overlooked if a decent .lad is secured to ride her. Thtmes To-morrow. The hacks and second-class horses in the < Auckland province will have their turn •at the Thames Meeting to-morrow. One or two horses who 'showed decent form at Elleralie should appreciate the reduced standard of the class of the opposition. Quite a fair field is engaged in the • GOLDIIELDS CUP HANDICAP, of SOO sore; ■'-■; one mile and a auarter. ' et lb 'st Ib ..Hlfh Pitch ...8 0 Flying Juliet . 7 10 Transformer ,» 8.6 Taneriri „... 7 8 . Sir Kussell ..8 2 Good Boy ..7 0 Marble Klne 712 Glenstar .... 7 o Lo Cnoucas .. 7 11 Ellerslie form points to Taneriri and Hying Juliet. The former is very well at present, and Flying Juliet is just corri.ihg to her best form. The sprint eve.nt is the IXTOIG HANDICAP, of 150 sots; six furlongs. -■•:•■ st lb st lb ...Nancy Lee .. 9 0 Bright Knight 7 4 Branson .... 812 Envoy 7 1 3 WJilt* Wings .81 Crimestor .. 70 >■ Halunoa .... 8 0 Abbess ..... 7 0 v-Taku Tama .. ■7' 6 Joy Girl ... 7 0 , ;;Billlktas .... 7 5 '.."_.- White Wings may need the race, and ..this ia just the type of event to suit Ha,'fcanoa and Taku Tama, both of whom showed very creditable form last week. ' ■ Horses who appear well placed in minor events are:—Tuku, Master Roley, Voliittdnd, Eed Lion, Archieval, Prince of 1 Orange, and Unoco. Auckland Notes. ..-. Ellerslio is very quiet after the Summer ■Meeting, and there has been very little '-. doing on the tracks in the past few days. , Some of the locals are expected to race .at Thames this week, and among those 'booked to compete at that meeting are Measurer, Lillton, War Officer, Taneriri, '■ Brampton, Currajong, and Good Boy. ■-■"■ Biding engagements announced for the Thames Meeting include .H. Wiggins, (Transformer, Trig, Orchus, and ■■ Crime•■Utor; E. Ludlow, Howick, Welcome Boy, , diamond Queen, Bizarro, Marble King, and Glenstar; and W. H. Jones, Lillton, /Some Lady, and Good Boy. t ,'■% Bright Land, who has been'on the easy list since returning from Sydney; has been "noticed pottering about in the middle of the course at Ellerslie lately, and he will probably resume serious work shortly. '■The imported gelding is in fine, healthy .- condition' to start another preparation. ' 'The Government's Share. ..■_ Some idea of the amount of money the Government receives in taxation from " racing is shown by the fact that at the i ■ last Auckland Cup Meeting, the sum paid over was £26,908 18s sd. Although racing clubs make a considerable noise about . itheir paying this tax, it is quite obvious Jhat the public pays the piper in the /main, while owners also do their part. •iThe sum named was made up as follows: '■ r■ .. , £ 8. d. /Totalisator tax 8,810 18 0 Dividend duty 15,860 6.0 .Amusement tax 995 14 5 gtakes tax 1,242 0 0 'l Total £26,908 18 5 /Another Night march? ,A. M'Aulay, who had a very profitable trip to Australia in the spring as a .result of Nightmarch's. Epsom Handicap and Melbourne Cup victories, has pur■'chased a two-year-old chestnut gelding by Night Raid—Killiney from Mr. O. Wise, Oamaru. The youngster is reported to be 'exceptionally well grown, and in many ways resembles the. A.J.C. and Victoria Derbies winner Phar Lap. His dam is a . half-sister (by Kilbroney) to Charleville, who produced th"at brilliant galloper Windbag, winner of the Melbourne Cup and many other notable events in Australia. As the two-year-old is stoutly bred, his career will be followed with much interest. Southland Starting. Mr. A. D. M'lvor has frequently laid himself open to a charge of unduly favouring fractious horses to the detriment .of others standing up quietly at the barrier, writes "Sentinel." He went to extremes at Invereargill by placing I'ran'eolin behind the field on the first clay and fon the second day when he had more grounds for acting in the same manner with Lucky Light, Coomassie and Eed Boa bb failed to exercise his authority even though they caused a delay of about 20 minutes at the post. A Peculiar Affair. ■ : Highland Mystery, owned and trained by Mr. Harry Monteith, of Waipukurau, was the subject of a brutal and unscrupulous attack by some person or persons during last week. On entering the horse's stall on Thursday morning Mr. Monteith. : noticed that the animal was very nervous and frightened, and he then made the discovery that it had a deep cut in the neck, apparently made by a knife. There was nothing in the loose box that could ■have caused the injury, the contents being only bedding material. The police have the matter in hand. A Real Worker. 'z.-io have been attending race meetings for twenty years without ever having - made a wager is a record which is some:what unique. This is the case, however, •■-■witn Mrs. J. Drake, •who for the period mentioned has been associated with the 'ambulance room- at the Omoto racerecourse (says the "Grey River Argus"). While others on the course are engaged in putting their knowledge of horses into .--Operation, Mrs. Drake waits in the room ready to use her knowledge o£ first-aid, should one of the jockeys meet with an 1 accident while pursuing his hazardous ' calling. .-Imported v. Colonial-bred Sires. ■'. In an interesting article on this iniich'diseiissed question, "Wnrrawee," .writing 'in the Sydney "Referee," remark's:—With a few exceptions the whole of the champions of the past twenty years or so have been by imported sires. The whole of the high-class horses of the day are by " imported sires—including Limerick, I'har

Lap, Nightmarch, Chide, Eapier, Star Stranger, Winalot, and High Syce. The best middle-distance horses, Kuch as Amounts and Mollison, are also by imported sires. In a later period champion after champion was by imported sires— Spearfclt. Heroic, Manfred, Windbag, Poitrel, Kennaquhair, Rivoli, Artilleryman, Strephon. AVallace (the best horse of his day) was, like La Carbine, by Carbine, but he was a grandson o£ imported Musket. On his dam's side, it has to be admitted, Wallace came of good Australian stock, as Melodious was by Goldsbrough from Melody by The Barb from Mermaid. One of the greatest stayers o£ a past generation was by an Australian sire, and this was' out of an Australian-bred clam. This was Abercorn, who was held to be very little, if anything, inferior to Carbine over a distance. -Of course, Aus-tralian-bred sires are not getting much opportunity these days. It is a case of nothing succeeding like success. The great success achieved by such imported horses as Sir Foote, Positano, Graf ton, etc., served to create a fashionable demand for imported horses, and for years quits a number of those introduced here rendered a distinct disservice to the thoroughbred industry. Later came Valais, who was such a sensational success at the'stud that the demand for the services of imported horses became keener than ever. A Great Record. George Price, who arrived in Wellington yesterday, had a great innings at the Summer Meeting at Enndwick, winning two races on each of the four days. M. M'Carten rode each winner for him. Most consistent of his team was Gesto. who, after finishing unplaced in the Villiers Stakes, won at his next three attempts. Veilmond won two races, including the December Stakes, and Carat, Peacemaker, and Kemora the remainder. Eemora is a sister to Eampion and Bamulus. Gesto, with over 10 stone on board in his third race, won well in a punishing finish. ... Farewells to J. Munro. "' At the conclusion of Tattersall's Meeting at Bandwick last week, J. Munro, the crack Australian jockey, who left on Saturday last to ride for Baron Oppenheim in Germany, was met by the Sydney trainers and presented with, a set of diamond sleeve links and studs. Mr. C, C. Stephen, chairman of the A.J.C., made the presentation. The A.J.C. chairman said that several Australian jockeys had made their mark abroad, but/ none had gone from Australia with better qualifications than Munro, who was leaving in the heydey of his success. He felt sure that if Munro was given a good chance abroad he would reach a very high place in his profession, notwithstanding that he was going'to a strange land, and among strange people, He hoped that Munro would have an opportunity in England, which was the ■ racing country of the world, and-.where the jockeys practically lived .in: trains and on the racecourses. There everyone was sure to find his level irrespective of his calling or profession in life. Munro would find that when he was abroad there would be a certain element which would endeavour to thrust friendship on him, but he strongly advised Munro to be cautious as to the friends he chose. If Munro received an offer to ride for a big stable in England, he would suggest that he should accept it, for he had the greatest confidence in him to make good. In the evening Munro was the guest of his fellow-jockeys at dinner. The toast of "Our Guest" was proposed by S. Cracknell, and.seconded by M. M'Carten, who said that although he had not known Munro. as long' as some of the other jockeys, hehad always found him a friend. Munro, 'he added,' always welcomed a rider from other parts, and was not satisfied until he had secured him a good mount. . The jockeys presented Munro with a gold wristlet watch. Gay Ballerina. : jGay Ballerina showed something of her quality when she won the Carrington Stakes in Sydney. , Greenline, despite his 10.6,: was favourite, but Gay Ballerina was backed down from double figures to a reasonable quote. Greenline was in front. a furlong from home, but Gay Ballerina, with 321b less to carry, finished too solidly and won by half a length from Baisin, who also beat Greenline. Gay Ballerina received an ovation on returning to weigh in. , She will probably race next in the Adian Knox Stakes at the A.J.C. Anniversary Meeting at the end ■of this month.