TURE TOPICS

Free Lance, Volume II, Issue 74, 30 November 1901, Page 21

TURE TOPICS

By Silverspur

h vei \ hocK was pleased at t lie success ot tliat good .spoitsman Sn George Clifford at the Hutt races Last week. He appiopnated tlnee races, and collai«d tlio biggest cheque at bhe gathering C anmt ( lnel, who walked off with the Wellington Handicap m hue style, is a son of Clanranald, himself a .speedy one m his da\ . out of Weathereye. He just managed to get home from the New Zealand Cup winner, Tortul la, who was conceding him a good deal ot weight The Hawke's Bay maie, Kahuwai, was a good thud and Battleaxe, who did not seem to be (juite himself, fourth In the Pearce Handicap, on the second day, Oanme Cluel came with a late run and beat The Shannon and Fashion in the last foit\ \ ardfe rather comforta,bh The two last-named dead-heated for" second place. The public appeared to think that Battleaxe was, due for a win and the-v sent him out la\ounte, but Tortulla and The Shaiuion were very st rough suppoited. and so w a*, the winner, who had the measure of the field when the, straight was leached It was a good betting race, and three dividends were paid Sir George Clifford's third win wa<= with Goldenmere in the Hutt Park Spring Handicap. This gelding ran third in a iace on the day previously He is a nice cut of a horse, and should prove a good stake winner for his enterprising owner Imperatoi. who scored in the juvenile race at the Hutt on opening day the first of the Gipsy Grands to win That he is a sterling good colt is undoubted He nevei flinched when the whip was put on him and dashed to the front in the last few ards when Rajah looked like w inning. Sunfish, who paid a good dmdend m the Juvenile Handicap on the second day is a speech bay filly bv Far Niente out of Cuttlefish and belongs to the Wanganui lady who races under the norn de plume of "Mr Launcefcton Mr Rathbones colt Optimist was well supported b\ Hawke's Ba,v people and Drakensburg, who finished third, was paving the same dividend as the winner Mi Jamet, Bennett possesses a good hor<>e in RpelaimPi who appropriated both hack races His victory in the first one wa& not generally anticipated and he returned a dividend of £1.5 His connections had a good win Reclaimer was sired bv Recluse, who won many a good race when on the turf. Ringlet, who is trained at the Hutt, scored a race for Mr R. W. Patterson, getting home \ erv easily from Muscowte and Torow ai who dead-heated for second place. Muscovite was in capital form and annexed the Flying on the first day He comes from Dunedin and is h-s Stepniak, who is siring some first-class- horses Clanranald'.s stock also appear to be doing much better this rear than hitherto. The Pomua stable furnished onl> one winner at the la-te meeting — Hokio, in the Hack Watler. This horse belongs to Mr J E McDonald, who has, not had the best of luck Latterly, and whose colours it is a pleasure to see in front. Hokio is one of the Te Mahaaiga breed being bv Strephon (Ingomar — Elphin), from Pihanga He is a four-year-old and possesses a good turn of foot Another country trainer to have a bit of luck was G Hope who recently took charee of the mare Regret She got home in the Second Welter, in which she beat that good mare Calceolaria The Hutt, meeting was a great sucoess. The arrangements of Mr. J F. Clark, secretary, were perfect, and the only growling that was Ward eaine from tho^ei who failed to win money

Andromeda is no^\ being hacked about on her owner's station. Dan OBrien has made a present ot that beautiful frost Peerage to H Goodman. The foal ings at Sylvia Park this season total fourteen colts and eleven fillies. Tasmaruan horse-owners are not satisfied with the system of paying out on the first and second horses. Trenton is so far second in the list of successful stallions on the "other side '' Gozo heads the list, but there is yen little between them. Mr. C. Stanley, a Napier sport., has purchased the three-year-old son of Captain Webb and Lady Florin, and has placed him in Geo Collelo's hands to train

The Auckland hoist' The- Dootoi is stiid to he unsound Mp.u lvhng Watei is (i(dit((l with being possessed of <l leJTipel .111(1 I.KCS 011K w lien she likes \ Melboui ne untei sa\ s it is geneidlh best to limm' tin odds on ohances se\erol\ alone I should say so The\ go (low n as often .is not Stated that tin \\e<k befoie the Melbourne Cup :\ Geoigo-vtroot Svdntn bankn passed L 80().()()() McUwmnc tor flu'uts dow n foi the la< es A Melbouine spoitmg untci a\eis that Beanbie is about the best thiee-\c«\i-old ol the season ,\nd would ha\e about won the Melbourne Cup nuclei weight for age Beanbie is b\ the Caibme hoist' Wallace James Wilson, the Fleinington tramci is .1 Yorkshireman woll over se\ ent\ \oais (>f age, and w <is -it ono tune \ ictona's best tiamei Now-a-da-ss he onl\ amuses himself with a few lioises of lus own bieedmg. He has raced at Flemiiigton foi o^ ci hft-\ \ears, without ciiteniig a piotest and is justly pioiul of such a record He is fathei of \ouna; Jim Wilson of Mcrnnee fame and ti amed Eeapei when Cneke+ei Stoddart had tlie gre\ gelding lunnmg to win linn Tattei sail's big sweep in Amiable's Newmaiket Aglaungcase of ringing in" waispeipetrated at the White. Cliffs laces the other da^ , when a Bioken HiJJ horse, Smithereens was entered a>s Stiugglei. and won an event Five participants in the ringing in" weie pioved guilty, and were disqualified foi a a nous terms up to two \ears Ringing in' is becoming lare, though once it wais fairly common Turf lumoui even ha.s it that the' wmuei pf an old-time Melbouine Cup was not the hoise he was lepresented to be Not generalh known that H.unettus in addition to the Caulfield Cup the other da\ won a cabhorse race at Biokeu Hill. Or, lather, lie was awarded the race on a protect A nag handicapped bv the awful name of Mind Your Own Business, came first, but H-s mettus owner (a cabman) claimed that he was not a genuine cabhorse The stew aids (the incident took place a.t the local pony laces) speedily upheld the protest They said that tho fact that the hoise won was sufficient evidence against it No genuine Broken Hill cabhorse could possibh win anything' It is precious time, m in\ opinion, that club stewards took notice of the practice of some, people of tiaining their horses in public — running them when the> are hog fat. It is \ cry frequently the' case that horses are .seen toiling hopelessh in the reai not on account of a bad start, but because they are illconditioned, and have only just been taken out of the paddock Stewards should take note and in future cases carpeb those concerned and ask them what the> mean by it People often back these lioises without seeing them, not knowing how they aie, and it is feimplv money wasted, as they ha\e no chance, of winning unless the others fall down an earthquake chasm. Backers in other centres, too, often send money for investment on well-known, though mud fat horses on the assumption that they a.re in fair racing fettle The practice should be stopped At a New York meeting held latch, that once great mare Imp ma-dc what was probably her last appearance, on the turf. The public was still loyal enough to hei to give het a ha,nd," but, aftei showing speed for about a mile, she dropped clean out of it, and finished a bad last. It appears to be a common opunon among trainers that Imp was doped" m the hands of the man who formerly had her, which would account for hci inability to sho-w her form since she has been m Wimmer's stable Her record is a wonderful one for the last three \ears. In 1898 she started thirtj -five times won twenty-one, second six, third three In 1899, thirtyone laces thirteen win.s, three seconds, and five thuds, and m 1900 she started m twenty-seven races won eight second font teen times, third in five iace« In all lunety-three races, forty-two wins twenty-three seconds, thirteen thirds unplaced m fifteen races Here where she should have retired with her honours thick upon her There aie anj number of people who d\ er that they are able to swear to a horse some time after they have firs>t seen them, and, no doubt, some aie particularly gifted that waj , but others, often fall m badly. Down South, the other da^ , after a horse had been led out of a sale ring a well-known trotting traaner saad that the animal was not Rimu the pacer Now- , as he used to train Ramu he should have known the horse A wager of £n was made, and, after a very careful examination, he came, to the conclusion that he had made a mistake Which reminds me of the ease of a well-known merchant, who is supposed to know something about a horse He got taken down once, however a purchase he made proving to be a weed The merchant soon parted with him, and one morning, a few weeks afterwards, he met a friend with rathei .i stvhsh turn-out and commented on

tlu The mend said the lioise waMit too had, but was a bit too fresh for linn lie would let the merchant ha\e Inm toi 110 The bargain A\as nailed on the spot. Next morning, the new o\\ nei a.sked Ins giooni what he thought oi the ,inimal 'Well, sn," was- the repl\ my opinion has not changed Miue the last time \ou bought him '