SPORTING.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 8 November 1924, Page 3

SPORTING.

TURF FIXTURES. Nov. 8, 10—Hamilton R.C. Nov. 8, 10, 12, 15 —Canterbury J.C. Nov. 19—Aehhum-Bohaiigina R.C. Nov. 21, 2-2—South Canterbury J.C. Nov. 22 —Levin R.C. Nov. 26, 27—Winton J.C. Nov. 26, 29 —Takapuna J.C. Nov. 29, Dec. I—Feildingl—Feilding J.C. Dec. 6 —Met’hven R.C. Dec. 6 —Taumarunui R.C. Dec. 10, 11 —Woodville District J.C. Dec. 13—Waipa R.C. •s£, Dee. 26 —Waipukurau^’J.C. Dee. 26, 27—Dunedin J.C. Dec. 26, 27—Westland R.C. Dec. 26, 27—Taranaki J.C. Dec. 26, 27, 29 —ManaWalu R.C. Dec. 26. 30, Jan. 1, 2--Ahcklahcl R.C. Dec. 30, Jan. 1, 3—Greyfnouth J.C. Jan. I—Waikduaiti R.C. vJan. I—Wyndha'm R.C. J : ah. 1, 2—'Stratford R.C. s Jan. 1, 2—Hawke’s Bay j. ! C. Jan. 1, 2—Marton J.C. Jan. 1, 2—Wairarapa R.C. Jan. 2, 3—Southland R.C. TAKAPUNA PLATE. (by telegraph—press association. - AUCKLAND, Nov. 7. . Final payments for the Takapuna Plate, of 600 sovs; seven furlongs Drawbridge, Arch Arnie, Greetings, Constellation, Areheen, Diamond Moon, Siaosi, Ballymoy 11., Exactly, Muscari. Yyhefcmuii, Transformer, Ring the Bell’ Desert Clow, General Pryde.Cawnpore, Phoenix Park, Drolatique? Kaniehameha, Lord Thurham, Doriuda, Tnctician, Ur-alla, , Florent. Qningardia Quincoma. Son.o’. Mine, Miss Vera’. Lilac Domino, Ruby JRing, Lapidary. DOES A RACEHORSE KNOW. (Australasian.) .It i s a question frequently asked on the racecourse at this time of the year-' “Do they know?”— do the horses know they have a strenuous task to perform and. must strike their utmost to win? The experienced/trainer or jockey, the lover of the hoTse who has been a close, observer, will not hesitate to answer emphatically in the affirmative. From the moment they enter the racecourse and hear the dull roar from the ring, they are-fully alive to the. situation. And they are very much like their masters. Some, are phlegmatic, and betray no outward signs of emotion; some—the nervous, high-strung ones—are “on their toes” all the time; others have little mannerisms peculiar to themselves. But they all know. Those of us who went racing in the late ’eighties and early ’nineties well remember how Carbine used to stand and gape, at the : Crowd, or at some, object in the distance, refusing'to budge until he was quite ready, despite Walter Hickelibotham’s remonstrances. It was not that he ‘did not love the game; he was simply obeying some instinct which moved him to look before he leaped. You will recall Gordon’s lines (and I hope you will hot forget to send in a contribution to the fund now being formed to erect an equestrian statue of the poet) in which -he refers to another great racehorse:— There’s The may talk of your flyers and stayers, All bosh—when he strips you can see his eye range Round his rivals with much the same look as Tom Sayers Once wore when he faced the big novice, Bill Baihge.

If you look 'closely enough and have the horse sense, von will see that determined to do 'or die look in every game racehorse’s eve, and—iilas! —you will occasionally note the. shifty look of tlie “quitter. ’ ’ But brave or cowardly, they all know. Some two or three year's ago I came across the, following admirable verses in an English sporting weekly, the Horse and Hound:— Do they know? At the. turn to the : straight . Where the favourites fail, And 'every atom of*weight Is telling 'its tale; Ab some, grim old stayer, hard pressed, Runs Hue to his breed. And with head just in front of the rest, Fights on in the lead; When the jockeys are out with their whips, , With a furlong to go And the backers grow white to the lips, Do you think they don’t know ? Do they know? As they come back to weigh In a whirlwind of cheers, Though the spurs have left -marks of the fray, Though the. sweat on the earn Gathers cold and they sob with distress As they roll up the track; They know just as well their success As the man on their back ! As they walk through a dense human lane, That sways to and fro, And cheers them again and again. Do yon think they don’t know?