SPORTING NOTES.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LXXVI, Issue 9465, 14 July 1891, Page 6

SPORTING NOTES.

, (CANTERBURY TIMES.) Captain Abram in Stewart’s stable is an accomplished jumper oyer hurdles. It is reported that The Idler is doing good work at Leeston. . The ; well-known, racehorse Honeydew recently changed hands at 170 gs. Glen has joined Mr G. Murray-Aynaley’s team at Methven. A writer in the Field considers too many horses are .trained .at Newmarket. * Audacity has been purchased by Mr J. Gardner for 200 gs. A writer in -the Sporting Standard says Sultan has turned rogue. The Hawke's Bay Jockey Club had a net surplus of j£39£ Is 8d over its last meeting. The Queen has sent two Arab sires for the use of the New Forest Commoners. 1 Notice has been given in the Victorian Parliament of a Bill to legalise the totalisator. . . Moraine started in the Welter Handicap at Warwick Farm on June 20, but did not get a place. C. Boyle’; who went to Sydney along with Mr Stead’s horses, returned to Eiccartpn this week. W. Clifford has also returned from Australia. The roan hack Morok, entered for the Grand National, is being trained in North Canterbury. News comes from London that Mr Blake, the accomplished editor of the Sporting Life, is dead. The Kurow (Otago) Club has a credit balance of ,£227. The annual race meeting is fixed for October 1, when .£2OO will be given in stakes. It is reported that Mr H. M’Hwfaith is likely to be chosen as successor to Mr J. S. Williams in. the Presidency of the New Zealand Trotting Association. An offer of JSIOO was lately refused for the mare Lyndoora, now in training for the Hunt Club Meeting. Lyndoora was wanted for Australia. Several' of the Masbam hunters and O’Conor’s, National Hurdle Pace candidate Cbeshunt, were out with the hounds on Saturday, and all fenced well.

It has been calculated that at the time the weights were issued the double for the Melbourne and Caulfield Cups could be taken in 25,092 different ways. The tracks at Flemington are in such a slushy state that Hickenbotham has returned to Queenscliff with Carbine and his stable companions. Two Australian jockeys, M'Caualand and Woods, left Sydney for America, where they intend to try their luck, by the last mail steamer. According to the New York Sportsman overtures have been made by Australian parties to secure the services of Iroquois for several mares by Musket. Chemist, Jupiter, Montrose 11., The Peer and Kapo were all landed in Sydney in first-class condition, and were sent on to Melbourne by rail. Forty years ago Eohert Bonner, the owner of Maud S., began driving fast horses to improve hia health. He is still at it, and he likes the medicine. At a sale of racing stock at Sydney on June 21 a bay gelding by Captivator, from Atalanta, five years old, changed hands at ten guineas. In the Melbourne Cup Carbine has twenty pounds over his weight-for-age to carry, one Escort has forty-one pounds under. “ Nemo,” in the Sydney Mail, likes the chances of Carbine, Vengeance, Malvolio and Sir William in the heavier-weighted division of the Melbourne Cup. It is thought that the question of legalising the totalisator in Victoria will he again brought forward during the present session of Parliament. Pursestring, who was far from well when started in the Hawke’s Bay Steeplechase, knocked herself about in the race, and it is doubtful whether she can be brought to the post again for some time to come. • - ■ The income received for training fees by the Australian Jockey Club amounted last year to £I2OO, the charge for each horse being £4. In future the fee is to be £8 for each horse. A calculation has been made by Mr Hutchison (member for Dunedin) of the amount passed through the totalisators during the last two years. He makes the total £1,070,895. Mr Joe Thompson has failed in hia endeavour to purchase land fer a race- 1 course at San Francisco. When people heard Mr Thompson was very rich, suitable and available properties rose to prohibitive values; hence the failure. A mistake occurred in the cabled list of the Caulfield Cup Handicap which appeared last week, the name Senator appearing instead of Benata. Benata belongs to Mr Gollan, and is weighted at 7sfc 51b. At the special meeting of TsttersaU’s Club held last week, it was resolved to disassociate the Club with sport, and the name was changed to that of the Union Club. The will of Pondragon (Mr Sampson), of the London Referee, has been sworn as under £37,000. I would venture to make a similar declaration in respect to the will of any sporting editor of my acquaintance. Mr S. G. Cook, the well-known Victorian

sportsman is retiring from tke turf, and his entire stud will be sold by auction on July 20. Probably the best horse Mr Cook has owned is The Admiral, winner of the last Y.R.C. Derby. “ Phaeton ” in the Auckland Neivs, selects Tirailleur, Cissy, Straphon, Sfcernchaser, and The Workman as the five with the best chance in the New Zealand Cup, The present owner of the flying Mimi (winner of the Oaks and One Thousand Guineas) was anxious to part with the filly last year, but luckily for him no one was found ready to give the reserve—ssoogs. The South Australian hurdle horse, Dillon, a gray gelding by Savanaka, in his younger days carried a butcher’s basket. His price has risen from £25 to something like £SOO. In accepting the position of a delegate from the Canterbury Trotting Club to the New Zealand Trotting Association, Mr H, M'llwraith remarked he did so with the feeling that be was undertaking a great responsibility. At a meeting of the North Canterbury Jockey Club held last week it was decided to hold the Spring Meeting of the Club towards the end of September. The proposal to hold a trotting meeting was abandoned. The Wellington trainer, T. H. Hill, has removed his horses from Island Bay (the lease of the racecourse there _ haying expired) to the Hutt. Mr Hill is breaking in the St George—Red Rose yearling oolt. In Russia trotting races are very popular and good stakes are given. At a recent meeting, a race of two miles 1165 yards was won in 7min 4sec, which shows there are some flyers in the land. A half-sister to Mimi, Priestess, by Barcaldine out of a mare by Lord Lyon from Sadie, won the Somerville Stakes, at the Newmarket May Meeting, of .£BOS, five furlongs, in a canter. She oost Me Maple ■iOOOgs as a yearling last autumn. Mr C. J. Cunningham, who had just recovered from a serious fall he had in the Liverpool National, met with an accident on May 19. He was riding past a traction engine when his horse reared and fell on him, Mr Cunningham being badly bruised. The totalisator is now in extensive use in Queensland. At the last Townsville meeting the sum of .84.000 was passed through the machine. Messrs Hobbs and Goodwin, of this city, have just had constructed an improved machine, which is to be sent to Brisbane. Sunrise, who is a full brother to the defunct Sextant, is making bis name at the stud in New South Wales, although so far he has had few chances. Sunbeam, by Sunrise, won a good race at Burke last month, and. is said to be particularly smart. -

The sum of 400 gs was given a few days ago by a Queensland sportsman for the brood mare Girofle, full sister to Ouida (dam of Artillery, &c.). The mare had a filly foal at foot by a young untried sire, which had been christened D—— It. The present owner, so the Sydney Referet states, is going to perpetuate the suggestive name by calling the yougster D——d If I Don’t. Lord Onslow writes in the Badminton Library that only eleven of the thoroughbred sires imported from England to New Zealand have been decided successes at the stud. They are Musket, Riddlesworth, Ravensworth, The Peer, Traducer. Albany, Anteros, Apremont, Cadogan, Leolinus and Pacific.

At Newmarket there is a flourishing institution known as the Stablemen’s Institute. It was started to provide a regular place of evening recreation for the stable hands at the training head-quarters. Some such institute would be a boon at Riccarton.

Quite recently a number of horsemen have been rather badly hurt through horses falling with them while schooling at Flemington. No provision is made at the training headquarters for the unfortunate victims of mishaps, and the Argus is urging that at least an ambulance stretcher should be kept at band. The steeplechase meeting of the Adelaide Racing Club is to take place on August 15 and 22. The Hurdle Race, worth 250 Bovs, ia run for on the first day. The Grand National Steeplechase, which is included in the bill of fare for the second day, is a handicap of 350 sots, and is over three miles of country. The following fixtures for trotting meetings have been adopted by the various Clubs New Brighton Racing Club : Sept. 3, Dec. 16, and Feb. 14, 1892. Lancaster Park Trotting Club: Nov. 7, and Jan. 23, 1892, and April 16,1892. Lower Heathcote Racing Club: Dec. 25 and 26, March 17, 1892, and May 24 and 25, 1802. The programme for the Spring Meeting of the South Canterbury Jockey Club has been drawn up. It is proposed to give away in prize money £690, which shows an increase of £75 over last year. The stake for the Guineas has been increased by £2O, which amount goes to the second horse. At the last Newmarket sales, Mr Daniel Cooper, the Australian sportsman, purchased a yearling colt by Barcaldine, from Catherina, for 1400 guineas. Flyaway, whose victory in the July Stakes at Newmarket has been recorded, made her first appearance at the Leicester Spring Meeting in the Portland Stakes, which she won from a good field. She is described as a very handsome filly, with beautiful action. Flyaway’s engagements as a three-year-old include the Derby and Oaks. A member of the House of Representatives, in advocating the recognition of consultations, said that from £60,000 to £70,000 were yearly sent from New Zealand to Australia for *•' sweeps,” and on an average only £IOOO were returned. It was, he added, in a moment of pious indignation that consultations were suppressed by the New Zealand Parliament.

There are thirty-four sites represented in the New Zealand Cup, as against thirtyone last year. In 1800 Apremont claimed more than any other sire with eight; this year Norden£eldt,with nine, heads the list. In this year’s Cup, Musket has three direct representatives, as against five in the previous year. St George has six of his get engaged this year, Regarding the ages of the horses engaged in the New Zealand Cup, it will he seen from the subjoined table that there is this year a slightly greater proportion of three-years-old than appeared in the nominations for 1890, The figures read

The horses that have been backed for the New Zealand Cup in Christchurch are Blizzard, Tirailleur, Merrie England, Cruchfield, Cynisca, Cissy, St Andrew, Crackshofc, Freedom, Flinders, Whisper, ClanranaldjKecluse, Cretonne and Mariner 100 to 8 to 100 to 4 being accepted about their chances. Carbine is nominally first favourite for the Melbourne Cup at 100 to 10 taken. “ Augur ” favours the chances of Carbine, Dreadnought, Melos, Cuirassier, Vengeance, Correze, Qreygown, Whimbrel, Malvolio, and The Spot among those over Bst, in the Melbourne Cup. “ Asmodeus,” in the Leader, thinks the winner will come from the following: Carbine, Melos, Vengeance, Sir William, Greygown, Malvolio, Tantallon, Muriel, Whakawai, Spokesman, Strom boli. The Tyler, and of the dozen he likes Vengeance, Sir William, and Malvolio best. There is an Australian trotter in England called Commander, who has a record of 2min 49sec. Writing of the horse the London correspondent of the Turf, Field and Farm (Now York) says:—“While this spirit of emulation is very commendable, it shows conclusively that the Australians are just as far behind America as the Englishmen are." Our American cousins are evidently unaware that in this Colony trotting has taken such strides of late years that if future progress be made at the same rate we shall soon beat them at their own sport. Apparently no weight can shake the loyalty of the multitude to a good horse. The sporting public get infatuated with a horse, and no matter how the handicapper piles the weight on, the people’s con* fidence in the ability of their idol re* mains unshaken. Carbine has ever proved;

himself a worthy servant. It is not too much to say that no better horse has beenl . seen on a racecourse, bat even the best' horse can be stopped with weight, and with 10st 121 b on his back it seems preposterous to suppose he can achieve victory la the Melbourne Cup. Last year he accomplished a feat unequalled in the history; of handicaps in winning with 10st 61m 1 The most astute racing men scarcely thought it possible for a horse to _ succeed' with such a burden; but Carbine is a phenomenal performer, and proved that when really fit it is hard to stop him.! But even when a horse is fit he will runj better one day than another, and it is very unlikely that Carbine will again strip quite; so well as he was on last Melbourne Cup day. Under all the circumstances, it most be considered great folly for people -to! accept the present price about the-champ-ion for the big handicap. The issue of the weights for the Free Handicap Sweepstakes which will be run at. the Newmarket Houghton Meeting on Oct.! 29, gives an idea of what is thought of the relative merits of the English three-year-: olds. The handicap (which came to hand by the last mail) was framed before, the decision of the Derby or Oaks,'and, as. will be seen, the winners of these events are at the head of the list and would, doubtless, havebeen further removed from those immediately following had the issue of the handicap been delayed a few weeks. In all, ninety-three horses are engaged. A start is made with Common 9st, then come Mimi Sat 121 b, Haute Saone Bst 101 b, Coratophine Sat 91b, The Deemster and Melody Sat 71b, Orion, Reverend and the French colt Clarion Bst 61b, each. Gouverneur and Peter Flower, who, at the opening of the season, were such favourites for the classic events, are allotted Bst 51b and Sat 41b respectively. The Australian filly, Mona Meg, Sat 21b, is on the same mark as Orvieto, a colt who was very highly appraised until running in the Two Thousand Guineas. The lowest weight is 6at 121 b, two French horses being given the minimum. Common’s weight will be raised 21b, on account of his Derby victory, and Peter Flower has incurred a 61b penalty. Mr Wanklyn, the Secretary of the Canterbury Jockey Club, has addressed the following circular letter to the various Metropolitan Clubs:—l have a suggestion to make with regard to the publication, of our future programmes, which, if it can be. carried out, will be of great value to Secretaries and racehorse owners, besides being a considerable reduction in expenses. It is as follows, viz.:—The Auckland, bury, Dunedin, Napier Park,. Wanganui (and Wellington most likely in; the future) Clubs issue their programmes for the season’s racing about July or August, and my suggestion is that one' Secretary of those Clubs should undertake the editing of the programmes in one volume. The manner in which I would propose it should be carried oat, is that each Secretary should supply the editor with a draft copy of his ensuing season’s programme by, say, June 1; that as soon after as possible, correct proofs should be forwarded to the Secretary for correction and approval; and on being returned, the editor would classify them under the different headings of programmes, dates of nominations, accepttances, &c., weights, winners of previous races, entries of stakes already closed, registered colours, assumed names, &c. The cost to be borne by the Clubs according to the space they utilise for their particular programmes; and the balance of general matter, postage, cost of editing, &c., to be paid on a basis of value of stake. The editor to be supplied with a list of persons Secretaries wish, the programmes sent to, such lists to be amalgamated in one book for distribution of programmes. The saving in expense I think will be apparent, as I anticipate that neither of the Clubs mentioned sends out less than 500 copies each, totalling 3500, when under this arrangement 1500 would be ample. Even if the expense was the same, or a little more, it would be well repaid by the convenience to both Secretaries and owners. I would ask you, therefore, to give the matter your earnest consideration, with a view of adopting it in the future. I would have liked to see it carried out this season, hut unfortunately my programme is in type, and I have ho doubt others are. /

1890. 1891. Three years .. 29 88 Pour years .. 13 17 Five years .. 11 10 Six and aged , .. 7 10 60 75