RACING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18380, 21 April 1923, Page 13

RACING.

;.,-.., SEASON'S FIXTURES. _ji Q3--South Canterbury. Jockey Club. ',• Wf Bay Jockey Club. mst--'l ' 6—Marlborough Racing Club. ' IW$, 9 ' 10— Egmont Racing Club. ** y {n ij_Waoganui Jockey Club. . I ■'* V* 3 i' 4 Auckland Racing Club. . <~* J° n ' g 4' 6-Uunedin Jockey Club. ' ' jSy 9 li» i*-^ ellinfftoll Eaoin * Club. 131 DATES OF COMING EVENTS. j:K'*'V';' " New Zealand. t -Ho-il 27--Hawke'B Baj Cup. . wfv.V 9—Etrmont Steepleohase. -■•. % f f "i7_-Wanganui Steeplechase. »2li-Century Hurdle Race. 'I £„» 3--Otaco Steeplechase. ' *"* 9, Gre»t Northern Hurdle Race. :'":' i«. I—Great Northern Steeplechase. JUEG * ;■'■>'. :£■■'" ■■■■■'■ Australia.. ' ■ »f« 9-Adelaide Cup. '. jaß» 2. Australian Jockey Club. • I July V ll, victoria Racing Club. England. ,' «., 2-Two Thousand Guineas. / *}»» ♦— One Thousand Guineas. i . jm, g-The Oaks. -AJJSWEES TO CORRESPONDENTS. | ■■■■,-. "Sport-" Taumarunui. — Last season ! v-:. joMnerdat won stakes to the value of £8060. ;•';, pjjoboro won £3175 during the same period. f,: Manchester," Remuera—The Eager— jS' ifjmnps mare Light was foaled in 1907, and }:■■■:; i, produced Gloaming to The Welkin in f/ j££ Mersey (by Knowsley—Clemence) was * foaled in 1874. and she produced Carbine to Huaiet in 1885. b*.;-.'/..;t«Wagiw"7-The value of the respective $ ■',•': r«ce»;mentioned is as follows during the I • • present i ! season.Auckland Cup. ' £3000; ■ Vgcklsnd Trotting Cup, £2000, and 100 idnea gold cup; New Zealand Cup, £2450, ';■ ' '":'uJ £50 cup; New Zealand Trotting Cup, ■ /2150 and £50 cup. In 1921 the value of *-'" -'"ft» Auckland Cup' was ' £8500. "Jfaximus." —The rule bearing on the ques- , lion at issue reads as follows:—"The decision of the judge declaring a horse to have won, or. to be entitled to a place, shall be final as determining the order in which the % .';•• '■'. horses have passed the winning-post, pros Tided that the judge may correct any mis- |;; ,' Uifl within 10 minutes." ? ; NOTES BY PHAETON. »il;, ''".■'■ ' ' -■: -: ; "-.. .:'•■■■.■..'■' ■-~.': ... THESPIAN v. TAMATETE. "".'i ■■ ;■-■.' •'."";','■ ■', , . .. ■ .'■■'•. .',. sJie two doughty sons of Absurd have had {heir meeting in the Manawatu Stakes on equal terms, and in a true-run race honours . rested with Thespian by a neck. The fact that Thespian was only found oapable of making a dead-heat of it with Tamatete i; t when in receipt of 101b. from his relative //in the. Avondale All-aged Stakes run over k- a like course ,to that of the Awapuni race, solid reason could be adduced for favouring the chance of Tamatete rather than that of K ;r Thespian. The fact of "Thespian having J .'y silenced the respective oppositions with "V which ho was confronted m the North '{■;'■: Island Challenge Stakes and Awapuni Gold ;'.: Cup furnished striking evidence that he had * : not remained stationary since 'he ran at rj. Avondale 'ion the 7th instant; but at six ;' : \ furlongs Tamatete seemed to have the )-. ':., greater brilliancy. Probably 'iter© is not ,?'.'V great deal between Thespian and Tama-' 11;« tete over a six furlongs' course but the i'..;,-little difference is now to be accounted to * the credit of the former. Thespian having .-. wound up his four-year-old career so brilliantly ; his owner, Mr. George Currie, may f: be encouraged to give his fine horse an op- ' ' portunity to earn distinction in weight-for-age races in Australia next spring, and. the Craven Plate run over a mile.and a-quarter, ['/ ur.der standard conditions, is an event that '..;■ may confidently be expected . to claim the * ..attention"; of . the Wanganui. sportsman should he decide on making an attempt on Randwick with Thespian. • "f FILLIES OF THE SEASON.

The favouritism displayed for Queen - March's prospects of extending, her -winning . record in the " decision "of the Manawatu .. V Sires' Produce. Stakes appeared to •be in .-■ every way justified, '''but '1 "•• the t > daughter 4 of Lucullus had to be content with third place in the race at Awapuni on Wednesday last. Judging from the account of the race telegraphed, the luck was against . Queen March, and, if that be well grounded, it may logically be concluded that Tukia had good luck to win. Queen March having previously asserted her ; superiority over Tukia. there d'3d not appear to bo much hope of the daughter of Absurd turning the ; tables on her black rival at Awapuni,'.where she was required to meet the Auckland-bred filly at even weights, but, having succeeded in her task, the , Question as to which, is entitled to the leading position as the best two-year-old of the season will be reopened. ;;• Tukia and ' Queen ■ March had their first meeting „in the Wellesley Stakes, run at Trentham in October last, when Queen March won by a length. The two fillies nest met at Elleralie in the Great Northern Foal Stakes,; when honours were completely on the side-.- of Tukia. Queen 'March running unplaced. The Boyal Stakes, run on the same ground a week later,over a like distance, however, saw ' Queen March home in front, while Tukia finished unplaced. In the Great Northern Champagne Stakes, run at Ellerslie on the ' 81st ■ ult., honours were again on the side ot Queen March, bo that the position between the bay daughter of Absurd and the black daughter of Lucullus is that each has scored two victories when opposing each other.' -

EN6LISH.BEED THE ACB. terW*S l,^ Ceme,lt ***comes from. CanOS Ace *£ Bb » UA importation m» • r^ i^w rtUn .l ty , to earn distinction 3»*iSFL£ N ZeaUnd *» interesting. Old Cour.r~ M. 6 *° **»'* **» *» the cany Jnk & #*•>° Was only *«&** *° hisMrfh °n two occasions in the land of two ,£« S* *?* he ™" onl » trained at quarter ™f It Pn ? r . to *» ■"»»«* to this PowibT, »l th glob l' no ■*■■* importance I foSS •'£ he l to w » faUujea - The fault on th?-4 Wlth Ac * when viewing him fl , teame i, by , Which ho mad the long lacK i" Eneland to Auckland was his meL~ bono below the knee. and. if my of X? ?*^ ,0e aright - there was evidence 11, o°" v ring °P«»«on on both his forefor m. ° n feeding lines a lot can be said Jor Tho Ace, the leading lines of whose pediereo reads as follows:— Sir *^«,J^£ ardo, J by ? a * Ronald (son of Hampton and grandson of Lord Clifden) «rom Gahcia, by ■ Galopin (son of of Sterli m lßoletta ' by Lwnomy (son Dam: Ua ; aa ' by Knight of Malta (eon of tj- S?TTr*?, *»adaon of Vedette) from . to* Walker, by Panserschiff (son of Wenlock) , from Red Sceptre, by Carnelion, by Lecturer (son of Colsterdale). It _ may be doubted if anything is known at this stage in regard to The Ace's capabilities a B a galloper, but the fact of the English horse having been placed in training would at least : seem to point conclusively to his owner being well convinced that the English horse is likely to stand a preparation. It is for time to reveal whether the action taken will add any lustre to The Ace's name. DEATH TOLL OP RACING. No game was ever yet worth a rap For rational man to play Into which no accident, no mishap Could possibly find a way. So wrote the poet Adam Lindsay Gordon, but when, as we heard recently by cable of the respective deaths of two splendid horsemen. Clyde Aylin in Ireland and George Parfrement in France as the result of accidents while riding in cross-country events, the lines give ris« to very serious thoughts. Gordon, indeed, loved the joys of the chase, and that he was without fear when stiff fences had to be negotiated is well authenticated, _so that 'he knew all about the risks attendant on eteeplechasing when he penned the oft'-quoted lines above. The risks to be taken,'in crosscountry riding are indeed great. Both Aylin and Parfrement, the recent victims, had won marked prominence in their profession. Parfrement's riding especially was made the subject of much enthusiastic comment both in France and England, and the victory which he gained on M. Jean Hennessy's Lutteur XII. in . the Liverpool Grand National Steeplechase of 1909 was, it is held, in no small means due to his masterly handling of the French-bred horse. The history of racing in Australia and New Zealand, it may be remarked, contains several sad pages recounting the death of celebrated cross-country horsemen due to falls. T. Corrigan. after a great career in riding over the stiff est fences at Flemington and other places, met his death. by his horse falling at a fence at Caulfield: and several other riders of almost equal note to " the ever-remembered Tom." notably Martin Burke, are numbered among the men who met their death while : following their profession. New Zealand has also her sad list, and W. Hankens. W. Edgecombe. S. Fergus, and the brothers .J. and W. O'Connell. all of whom had won a.place as first-class horsemen, died from the effects of falls when clad in a racing jacket. It does not. however, require a cross-oountryl Icontest to bring about a fatal result when riding, and what can happen when on horseback is forcibly , related in the case of the dashing Whyte Melville, who, after riding to hounds for years, met his death on the roadside by his horse stumbling while leisurely ambling homeward-

OBITUARY: MR. ALEC ALISON. The death of Mr. Aleo Alison, the sad announcement of which camo on Thursday last, marks the passing of a much-liked Auckland citizen. The deceased gentleman had more to do with ship said sea-water than racehorses and racecourses; but at one period he had : a very close connection with the turf and he continuously was a member of : the Takapuna Jockey Club committee from the institution of i that body, k For; several months past it was '<■■; sorrowfully recognised that- the-"""close of -an active life was rapidly - approaching. ''".■ Having been born in Auckland, and having resided at Devonport nearly 5 the whole |; time, the late Mr. Alison i could - recite many oldtime stories of life in the early days, and it can be said that his love,for "dear old Auckland" was ever of that bright order which made him a citizen in the fullest senna of the. word',-.

LEAVES FROM MY NOTEBOOK. . The Hawke's Bay Autumn Meeting, which is fixed to be held on- Friday and Saturday • next, is the . next important fixture. The Cup, which is! run over at mile and a-half, finds the four-year-old Kick Off in the post of honour' with 9.5, and he is followed by Sunart (9.2). In the decision of the Egmont Cup (li miles) in February Kick Off won under 9.0, "while Sunart ran unplaced under 0.2, and their meeting at Hastings ■ on Friday should be interesting. The Hawke's ; Bay Stakes, which ,is also set 'down' for decision on Friday, may be expected to see Queen March on the scene, but the absence of Bazzle Dazzle robs the race of considerable interest. Queen March will have to carry the maximum penalty, which raises her impost to 7.18. It is stated that there is a good prospect of Mr. £.. B. Williams sending * team of racers across ;to compete in Australia next spring.. "; We* are, however, still to April, and .. it is a fairly long cry -to September, and quite * lot of things may happen in the interval. The form displayed by Rapine this season no doubt offers encouragement to embrace the view that he might prove equal to winning weight-for-age honours in Australia. Bathos, who figures in the A.J.C. Derby in Mr. A. B. Williams' name, does not, it must be said, afford much room for enthusiasm. .'.■:.:■'..■■':'. . Mr- Martin Stainforth, whose drawings and pictures of racehorses and racing contests were the feature of the book " Racehorses in Australia," .has just completed a painting of the finish of the A.J.C. Spring Stakes, in which Beauford defeated Gloaming. In referring to the subject . of this masterly production. " Pilot," oil the Sydney Referee, remarks:—" Few of the 85,000 who witnessed the struggle will forget the dash up the straight at Randwiok and the wild excitement when the numbers went up. The Eicture is twice as large as any the artist as previously painted, .The action of each horse has been carefully studied, and there is no doubt the artist Has depicted speed m line and expression, an aspect not obtainable by the camera. The two ohampions are seen passing the winning-post, and are painted in different attitudes, all feet being off the ground. Equally studied are. the portraits of the other horses. Specialty, David, Wirraway, Furious, and Violoncello. These five horses have been included to give full credit to this wonderful pair. Highland was credited with winning the Thompson Handicap at Trentham so attractively that he was given an opportunity of earning weight-for-age honours in the Awapuni Gold Cup at the Manawatu Meeting on Thursday last. The class encountered there was, however, too good for him, and he failed to get closer than fifth. Highland figures among the entrants for the Hawke's Bay Cup (li miles), and in awarding the chestnut gelding to carry a pound over weight-for-age, Mr. Coyle has chanced nothing; with the chestnut gelding. Dainty Sten who was numbered among the defunct on Thursday last as the result of having a fetlock broken while contesting the Longburn Handicap at Awa•Duni had won several good races in the colours of her breeder, Mr. W. Fenwick. She was a highly-bred daughter of Lucullus and the Elevation mare Adoption; and as she traced to the celebrated Flora Mclvor her loss to the stud book is to be muoh gretted.h The Taranaki Jockey Club will celebrate its jubilee next year, and it may be anticipated with a. large measure of certainty that the meeting next February will have as a feature a Jubilee Cup. AUCKLAND KAdtfG OLItB. GREAT NORTHERN MEETING. Another winter meeting! at Ellerslie commences to loom up boldly, and with it, of course, is associated the Great Northern Hurdle Race and Great Northern Steeplechase, a brace of jumping events that always command wide attention, and_ which have played a strong part in extending the popularity of the A.RC. ground. The prizemoney allotted in connection with the approaching gathering amounts to £15,400, and of this sum £2000 figures as the prize for the Great Northern Hurdle Race, £2500 for the Great Northern Steeplechase, and £1000 for the Winter Steeplechase- The principal flat racethe Cornwall Handicap tone mile and a-quarter)— worth £1000, while the two other leading flat races—King George Handicap (seven furlongs) and the York Handicap (one mile)—each carry a prize of £850. Nominations for the abovenamed races close on Friday next, at five p.nj.. with the. BDoretaiy, Mr. W. 8- Spence.