SPORTING.

Mataura Ensign, 14 May 1912, Page 7

SPORTING.

Notes by "Starter." ! i The nominations received by the Dunham Jockey Club for its winter meeting jire excellent all the way through, and, gathering should prove a powerful magnet to attract patrons from all parts. As usual Southland supplies its fair share of horses, and it goes without saying that their owners will not come home emptv-handed. It is to be hoped that the D.J.C. can make arrangements to have the expresses stopped at the course on both the Saturday and Monday and that due notice will be given of the concession if granted. If both north and south expresses are stopped it will mean that a very much larger number of Southlanders will be present than if the trains run rightthrough. , The winter meeting of the D.J.C. is generally the most interesting of any; held at Wingatui, and there is every reason for anticipating like success this year. In the hurdles, steeplechases and the principal flat races exceptionally fine nominations have been received, and whatever the handicaps it may be taken for granted that good fields will be oni brtnd. I It will be interesting to note how MiHenrys will weight Soldiers' Chorus and Palisade in the Tradesman's Handicap, run over six furlongs. The former will of course be giving away weight, but bow much is a puzzle for amateur ad-, justers to figure out. i A mistake was made in last week*s notes in crediting the Fc-bury Park Club with holding the totalisator record for a two days' meeting. This is held bv the Riverton Club, which handled £24,479 at its recent Easter fixture. | An interesting fact in connection with the leading handicaps at the autumn j meeting of the South Australian Jockey Club is that Musket Belle, who won the Goodwpod Handicap, and Eyeglass, who wctfj-Ltbfe Adelaide Cup, were successful in taV same races a year ago. i In answer to a correspondent, "Terlings," of the 'Australasian,' named the following as the best 12 mares that have raced in Australia—Wakeful, La Carabine, Lurline, Gladsome, Cruciform, Quiver, Brisois, Auraria. Lady Wallace, Maltine. Petrea and Sweet Nell. j The New Zealand Cup winner Bridge, who has been a failure on the flat since he went to Australia, is shaping well in schooling work over hurdles under the direction of D. J. Price at Caulfield. j A Balclutha sport a few weeks ago had a dream in which a horse named Biverina appeared prominent. On the strength of the dream he backed Riverina at Forbury though he had never seen the trotter perform before, and as' a result he made a profit of over £3O. A very.fortunate "nightmare" indeed. The bay colt by Martian from Greek! Maid, which claims Byron as an elder j brother, sold by his breeder, T. han, to Mr J. Hymer, owner of Soldiers' Chorus, is reported to have cost 350 guineas. | One of the most promising two-year-old trotters seen out for a long time was Don Caesar, a winner at Ashburton. He is by Prince Imperial from Maritana and cut out a mile and three-: quarters in 3.23 4-5. | "Comet" says that Go Soon was the only Southland horse competing at Ash- 1 burton, but overlooked the fact that ths successful sire Harold Rothschild was also started and filled a place. ; It is pointed out as a somewhat extraordinary happening at the recent Manawatai meeting that horses with names commencing with "M" won eight races and got eight seconds in 16 events. I Anyone, supporting them would have recesJßl? dividends of well over the cenSporting men seemed to be agreed that one of the very few English customs that might be adopted by race clubs here with good effect is that which compels the top weight starting in a handicap on the flat to be not less than, 9st (states the Sydney 'Daily Telegraph'). At Warwick Farm the other day the top weight in the long race was Kyloe, 8.4, Myra Bluan, 9.5, being struck out. Had the English system been in operation here Kyloe's weight would have been raised to 9st and the other in proportion, and that arrangement would have given owners of horses the opportunity to secure the services of older and heavier, and, in some cases at least, more competent jockeys. It is reported that S. Smith, who has been riding across hurdles lately in Otago and Southland, is applying for a trainer's license, and will become private trainer for "Mr C. Machell" in the near future. Owing to the bad weather experienced in Southland during the past couple of weeks Dr Robertson has sent Palisade to Oamaru for preparation for that meeting. L. H. Hewitt- was among the jockeys riding at the Lincoln and Liverpool meetings at the end of March, but though he had several mounts* he failed to score a win, three thirds being his record for three days' riding. It is doubtful if Hewitt will remain in England, it being more than probable that lie will return to Australia, where hjs services are in great demand. All the work the newly-appointed Tasmanian stipendiaries perform does not come to light (says "Nimrod" in the 'Launeeston Courier'). The riders in a race do not- know at what point of a course they will bob up'. According to report, one boy when rounding the home tujrn heard such a shout of "Let him poit that he took it that the stipendiary was not far away. / The horse won. Taking this as a moral, it might not; be a plan if the stipendiaries gave loud voice to similar instructions in every race at this critical part of the contest. The manner in which horses have been ridden in some races lately is a matter which might have legitimately been called into question. There seems to be a New Zealander everywhere. No less than two New Zealand parties were passengers by the Channel steamer which was run down the other day, and now Mr John Gulland has found another travelling by train to the Lincoln races and trying to persuade his fellow-passengers that the totalisator as a means of betting possesses some "beauty." "No one seemed to lose," says Mr Gulland, "and therefore, I suppose, no one in New Zealand leaves a race meeting with that heart-sick, , greenery-yellow feeling which oppresses one on finding oneself -dead broke and beat to the' world." The New Zealander told his j travelling companions that he intended to back at Lincoln anything that had a name similar to names he had known in New Zealand.

A ■ most amusing system of betting has just been discovered at the boys' college in Rostoy on the Don (says the St. Petersburg correspondent of the 'Daily Express'). A race used to take place at the luncheon hour, when at the ' first sound of the bell professors would be the first to pass the iron gate of the college. The result was that while some of the students feasted lavishly at the neighboring cake shop, others forfeited their modest luncheon money and remained hungry for the rest of the day. A misdemeanor on the part of one of the youths brought the practice to the ears of the authorities. He had tried to delay one of the "runners" by removing his hat and coat from its usual peg, and was being severely chastised for the deed when the headmaster arrived on the scene and forced from him i a full explanation. , Estate of the gross value of £713,2931 has been left by Major William James Joicey, 76, formerly a partner, in l Messrs James Joicey and Co., New- , castle, a director of the Lambton and 1 Hexham Collieries Company, chairman of the Kempton Park Racecourse Company, and owner of several racehorses. The duties on the property will amount i to almost £IOO,OOO. He left all his racing stock to "my friend and trainer, Christopher Waller," £2OOO to his sec--1 retary, Andrew Robinson, and if still in 1 his service. £250 each to his butler, Richard Calver. and his keeper, Robert Reay, £l5O to his keeper. John Sisterton, and £IOO to his shepherd, Thomas : Anderson. Bequests of £lO for each year of service were made to various servants. After making other bequests, 1 he left the residue of his property to his wife for life. GAMBLIN IN SUNBAY SCH.OOLS. [ BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH. —COPYRIGHT. PER UNITED PRESS ASSOCIATION. | f SYDNEY, May 13. At the Totalisator Comission Rov. Wools-Rutleilge, a Methodist minister, said that he did not think that the totalisator improved the breed of horses, and even if it did' it would not breed a better class of men. It made the State a participator in the vice of gambling, and it also was a danger in that it tended to increase gambling, because it gave an air of respectability to the vice which it did not possess today. He knew of a Sunday-school where subscriptions for Tattersall's sweeps were raised. John Whitworth and Thomas Cotter, New Zealanders, favored the bookmakers, the latter stating that he did so because under the totalisator a punter bet in the dark. It also bred betting in shops at totalisator odds. A WANGANUI SCRATCHING. PBB UNITED PRESS ASSOCIATION. WANGANUI, May 13. Undecided was scratched at one o'clock to-day for the Connolly Handicap, to be run at the Wanganui Jockey Club's Winter Meeting.