NURSERY RACES.

New Zealand Mail, 8 February 1900, Page 43

NURSERY RACES.

The two-year-old racing question is one c that is constantly; being mentioned in the press,* and it- is without- doubt a ( subject deserving great consideration. : 8 Oho aspect of the matter, so far as some* £ colonies .are concerned, is 'thht-the -au- •: I thorities permit juveniles to be raced* too ( early in the season. This practice •is £ strongly condemned by expert turf critics, ( while on the other hand it is supported 1 on the ground that owners, who have ) paid good prices for yearlings, are.desir- \ ous of being afforded an opportunity of ] souring a return of their outlay as soon ( as possible.' This is all very well from 1 their view point, but it has a deteriorat- I mg effect on the youngster, who has to' 1 be prepared 1 early for his engagements, * and is consequently given very little, chance of maturing. Also, two-year-olds, who are raced off their legs so 1 early in their career, are not likelv to : have a very king life oil the turf. Con- 1 tests of this character are greatly en- ] couraged in England, the events, or. the majority of them, beinor richly endowed, 1 and the same may be said of America, where there is at present an agitation on foot in the direction of curtailing this class of sport. The public are being surfeited: witli it ; and an effort, it is reported, is to be made by the big turf as-, sociations to l'educe the number of two-year-old races. To bring this about the added money will probably be reduced to small amounts. It is claimed that excessive racing of juveniles has been the bane of the turf .in. the United States. °.ne of the advocates of a changed condition of affairs said recently that more money was devoted to this branch of recing than any other. Real horse racing should bo contests between three and four-year-olds over a distance of ground. In two-year-oid racing speed is the distinctive characteristic. Of course, speed is a desirable quantity in a racehorse, but when a breeder is tempted to sacrifice everything to obtain speed in his youngsters, then comes the real harm. This is what has left racing in America with a weedy wasted-out set of horses, practically of no account after their two-year-old careers. When breeders begin to realise that the two-year-old’s earnin° r capacity is being reduced, and that pros” pective buyers will look for more than mere speed qualities in a two-year-old, then there will be a change in methods now in vogue at breeding establishments.