THE WORLD OF SPORT.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVII, Issue 17327, 16 November 1916, Page 3

THE WORLD OF SPORT.

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LONDON, September 14. THE TURF.

Of much significance is the official announcement now made that tho Government will approve of a series of meetings under National Hunt rules during the winter months. Thus much anxiety ou the part of owners and trainers is- removed. The concession may even be said to have been more than was hoped for, since it scarcely seemed logical that the authorities would approve of steeplechasing and hurdling at Gatwick, Lingfield Park and Windsor when they hud declined to give any more flat races at those places after the beginning of August. We may accept more than ono inference from tho fact. One is that the Government do now appreciate that there is a distinct and very vital link between horse breeding and tho racecourse. Another inference is_ of interest to the general community, for the act of concession amounts to an assurance that the war is proceeding on a satisfactory course so far as we are concerned. At any rate, we 7nay be sure that the idea of another Na* tional Hunt season would have been turned down had thero been the anxiety that prevailed throughout the nation only a few months ago. Owners, breeders, trainers and others may like to know that tho President of the Board of Trade, Mr Eunciman, is to bo thanked for the concession. He received representatives of tho National Hunt Committee, and at once took a sympathetic view of the position. One recalls also that ho did a great deal, so far as the Treasury would allow him, for horse breeding when he was President of the Board of Agriculture. Regarding tho arrangements for the 1916-17 "jumping'' season, Mr F. Oathcart, of Messrs Pratt and Co., tells us that no dates have yet been arranged by the National Hunt Committee, but we hear unofficially that a start will be made in November. Last season a start was not made until New Year's Day of 1916, so that the coming season looks like being a decidedly longer one.

Important racing and sales of yearlings are taking place at Newmarket this week. A beginning was mado on Monday with the sales, and naturally business was found dull. Mr Hulton only sold seven of his nineteen yearlings, tho unsold ones failing to roach their reserves. Ono of them was the chestnut colt, by Lonawand from Silver Fowl, the dam of Silver Tag, Fifinella and Silver Wand. An interesting race on the opening day of the meeting was tho Middle Miles Handicap, of two miles. It was won in gootl stylo by that greatly improved horse Aboukir, who had won tho Newbury Cup only a month ago. This horse is owned by Mr Walter Raphael, who may be destined to play an important part ill connection with the Cesarewitch. Tho weights for that race are due next week, and tho official responsible for them, Mr T. F. Dankins, watched the running Jn this raco with very keen attention. Capital, who ran second to Aboukir, •will no doubt be a public fancy, anfd so will Mr Hulton's Nisus, who Was not asked to keep his engagement in this race. Nisus will be ono of the favourites for the important handicap next month. Pollen also is spoken of. He was favourite for this particular race but did not get a place. It is doubtful whether he quite two miles on the flat, though ho could easily get the distance in hurdle, races or steeplechases.

One of the winners on the opening day was the Duke of Port hind's Canre bio. a beautifully bred'son of Polymehls. He had shown up well in a race at Newbury, and with Donoghue as his pilot he won the Histon Threo-year-okl Plate in good style.. Then Lord Londonderry, who has been ou active service iu Franco, won the chief sprint handicap with Polyphonic, but it may be that this son of Polymelus owed his success to getting a flying start while several others were practically left. Sir William Cooke, with an unnamed son of Bayanlo and Helvia, won tho ltcdmere' Nursery, and both,for this and the Selling Nursery huge fields went to the post, showing hotv desperately anxious owners are to seize every possible chance of winning a race. Tho Helvia colt won at very long odds against, which suggests that his' success astonished those associated with him. Mr Bibby's Sun Queen, a daughter of the .'ill Derby winner, Suustar, was only beaten a head, and another head away was the much fancied All Silk, trained by Mr Persse, and a son of Primer, who, after running second in Signorinetta's Derby, won the Mardwicke Stakes at Ascot for the Duke of Portland.

A GREAT HITTER. Kenneth L. Hutching*, who has been knocked out by a shell, in Franco, delighted the cricket world as a Kent aiid England batsman. In sending the sad news a fellow-officer says he had a presentiment that he was about to be killed, and from what one knows of him he was just the man to hove 1 forebodings of a disaster. He was known for his gaiety, but his mercurial temperament was apt to drop low and cloud, his boyish happiness. Even during his time of great success on the cricket field he was apprehensive. No batsman has ever created a bigger sensation than Hutchings when ho first played for Kent in 1906 as a 'boy of nineteen. He scored • runs with the case and freedom of Ranjitsinhji or Trnmper, and though lie did not resemble either of these famous players in stylo ho had all their great, scoring talents. He could hit with the fierceness of Jessop', and when he came in you would see the fieldsmen on thei off side of the wicket step back a yard or so out of their .customary positions. That was their only chance of pi eventing the ball reaching the boundary. In his fust season for Kent ho scored over 1500 runs, and ho commanded his place in the England Eleven to go.to Australia, in the following year. But in that disastrous tour 'Hutchings did not enhance his reputation. Ho was too impatient, in too much of a. .hurry to get runs. And when he 7'eturned he never quito reached the excellence of his first season. But he remained a first-class batsman for Kent until, in despair of ever getting back to his best form, he dropped out of the county eleven. JACK KING. Perhaps the most popular Rugby footballer Yorkshire has produced since the days before, the " split" on the question of broken time, Jack King, is officially reported missing since August 9. On the outbreak'of war he joined a Yeomanry regiment, but when th© operations in France settled down to underground warfare he was transferred to an infantry battalion at his own. request. One recalls King's first appearance for England in 1911. A stocky little fellow,, of great muscular .strength, he was hailed as the successor of Bradshaw and other Yorkshire forwards who have made football history. Though the smallest man on the side, he was perhaps the most conspicuous. Ho was ever in the thick of the fray, and his white jorsey wa's soon the colour of the brown earth. When King left school he decided to become a farmer, and in partnership with his brother took over many acres on the moors near Ilkley. On the outbieak of war' both, ho and bis brothel"

enlisted, and the farm wag left in ■ e-harge of two young sisters, who received the willing help of fobtba*?ft?!> in the county in "carrying on." I*ast summer, as well aa this, tho haymaking was all done by these old friends of King, as many as twenty de-voting their whole time to the -work until the big crop was stacked. For a fortnight, too, whilst a, woman was being trained to the work, an old player went round with the milk part. No* man ever had a greater tribute paid to him by his friends, and the news that King is missing has been received with sorrow throughout the circles of football. From his first match for England he never lost his place in the national fifteen. STILL TINDER BOGEY.

There is a little hospital on the outskirts of London where they make maimed men whole again, where they provido now limbs for old. A soldier came stepping jauntily across the lawn, and a visitor was asked which of his legs was artificial. Hazarding a guess ho chose tho right, and then was told that neither was the man's own. It is extraordinary how these maimed soldiera regain their activity even before thoy have artificial limbs fitted. There is the ca«e of Corporal Ernest Jones, the golf professional attached to the Chisolhurst Club, who had a leg shot away in Flanders. Ho has fast returned homo from hospital, and, although still waiting for a new leg, ho has already begun to play golf again. His first round was an amazing one. Using neither crutch nor stick as a support, he balanced himself on one leg, and went round the eighteen holes in the splendid score of seventv. It was just steady golf without luck to reduce the figures at any single hole; ho did no hole in fewor than three and none in more than five. Jones's record for the course is sixtyone. FOOTBALL. The football prophet had a bad time in attempts to forecast tho results of last Saturday's matches. Perhaps the strangest happening of all was at Sheffield, where the Bradford Club arrived a man short to play the Wednesday*. The latter very generously provided T. E. Crawley to make up the eleven, and this young player scored two goals against his own club. In these circumstances it was not surprising that Bradford won. This Yorkshire club, by the way, have the distinction of being the only ono iu the Midland Leaguo to secure the maximum number of points during the first fortnight of the season. Such a state of affairs is most unusual, and 1 it indicates the uneven form which is likely to mark tho programme. Another surprising result in this competition was the overthrow of the strong Notts Forest side by Rotherham County. Notts County, too, could only draw at homo with Barnsley. The best win of the day was that achieved by Leeds City in beating Grimsby on the latter's ground by six goals to one. Undoubtedly the strongest sides are in the Lancashire group, and here Blackburn Rovers and Burnley are tho only teams with two victories each to their credit. The Everton machine was sadly out of gear in allowing Stoke to share tho points at Gc-odison Park, where there were 20,000 spectators. Arthur Bridgott, tho Sunderland veteran forward, appeared for Stoke, and registered, the goal which drew the match. One point out of a possible four is not good enough for Manchester City. But it will not be long before they show better form than against Southport Central. On this occasion thoy could not got a, solitary goal to give them the victory. Last year tho Crystal Palaco Club had their ground commandeered by the Admiralty for a training ground for tho Naval Brigade. This year the Tottenham Hotspur enclosure has been taken ovor by the War Office, and the North London club are left without a homo. Hub the Arsenal and Clapham Orient Clubs have come to iho rescue. For the remainder of the season the Hotspur will play alternately on these neighbouring grounds. So far West Ham are sticking to Chelsea, who are recognised to bo the strongest team in the London League, but Fulhnni, with all their arrav of talent, lost to Milwall.