NOTES AND COMMENTS

New Zealand Times, Volume XLIII, Issue 10063, 30 August 1918, Page 8

NOTES AND COMMENTS

(By “Tohunga.”) The Marten Jockey Club has received excellent acceptances for its spring meeting, which takes place next Wednesday. Every race has filled up really well even the Steeplechase, whioh has a field of nine. The Trial Plate will keep the totalisator hands and the seeing that, it has a field of thirty-six. Another large field is engaged in the Electric Hack Handicap, no less than twenty-seven being engaged. Mr W B. Clarkson, who purchased Oxenhope after the Canterbury meeting, has placed the gelding in the charge of J. Bryce, the trainer of trotters.

Margorine is being galloped on the tracks. She has wintered well, and displays a lot of condition.

Vascular has been put into work again, and will probably contest some of the cross-country events at Kurow and Gore. The statement by the Minister for Internal Affairs that supplementary inspectors- of totalisators would ho appointed from the Internal Affairs Department is rather a curious one. In the first place the men to be appointed can know nothing of the internal workings of a l-.lalisator, which, although not complicated to an excessive degree, still has its pitfalls for the uninitiated. It would seem that the proposed system would load to chaos, specially where the totalizator staff is not too efficient in itself. Already there is sufficient delay, and bungliusr on the part of somo of tho staffs \t smaller- race meetings, and tho new regime will . add ■ further to it. If the Department of Internal Affairs wishes to be efficient in regard to tho inspection of totalisator receipts, it must, most assuredly resort to somo different method to that proposed. There are any amount of people about, "who could be accepted for the positions, who know the complications of the machine, and it would seem to border on the ridiculous to contend that no one was capable of checkinjr amounts but a member of the of the Internal Affairs Department. What will happen to clubs on days like Boxing Day the day after it. New Year s Day, and the subsequent day and Easter Monday and its follower, when some ten to twelve meetings are held, is hard to imagine.

Tho Auckland Racing Cluib appears to bo determined to lead the way m the matter of stakes. For some tune there was a certain amount of rivalry between the A-B.C. and the C.J.C. regarding the New Zealand Cup and the Auckland Cnp, Then the Trotting Cup. run at Christchurch, loomed up and made a third in the bid .for tho best stake. The Trotting Cup beat the others for ft irhilo, and tuen uj© A'.R*C. baug* ed up the stake to -£3650. After the last meeting of the club the prize was raised by> .£IOO. making it £2750, s o that Auckland now leads the way. . An entry of. sixteen can be considered quite satisfactory for the. New Zealand Trotting Cup, as it includes practically every eligible horse now in commission. Last year s, place fillers, Adelaide Direct. Cathedral Chimes, and Author Dillon, again figure in the list, as do those great pacers Admiral Wood, Agathos. Oinafco, Matchlight, and J°h n Dillon. Tho only trotter engaged is Hardy Wilkes, who put up such a great race at Addington at the, recent ’mg. The handicaps are due on September Pth. s

The’largest amount ever earned by a single horse in any race in the Dominion is J 85339 10s, which was invested on Estland in tho last Great Northern Derby.

The Auckland mare. Lady Heater, by St. Leger—Musket Maid, foaled to Elysian on August Ist, -but the youngster -was smothered at birth. Lady. Hester will be mated again with Blysian this season. ’ (

Tho Julius electric totalisator has found much favour amongst the heads of New Zealand racing clubs and a rumour is afloat to the effect that a 'syndicate of clubs is busy negotiating for the purchase of the rights of the machine.

The craqk Australian rider, W. H. •MoLachlaud, had five winning mounts ■at the Brisbane Exhibition meeting.

’ The Canterbury owner. Mr G. D. Greenwood, is at present in Queensland, where he owns considerable quantities of terra firma. He is due in Sydney a,bout the time the A.J.C. fixture comca along in the spring. The Australian-owned Honofious (Isinglass—Debt of Honour, by Orme) has gone to the stud. Apparently it does not pay to indulge in promiscuous betting in Sydney, A jian was recently fined there for using a, room for betting, and he was relieved of A 36 5s which he had in his possession, and fined .660 to boot. Bunting (All Black—Bed Plume) was unable to start for the Metropolitan Handicap at /the Q.T.O. , (Brisbane) meeting, owing to one of his legs having filled. He was - favourite aftof ho won the National Plato the previous Saturday. After winning the Brisbane Cup last year Bunting had to be given a lengthy .holiday owing to a bad leg, and probably the same one has gone ‘again.

There appears to ‘ be no shortage or cash in Sydney, as the following paragraph. culled from a Sydney journal in. dicatee:—Money for racing is particularly plentiful just now. some of our bookmakers stating that speculation at Sydney registered meetings is much heavier than prior to the commencement of the war. This specially applies to cosh investments. and at Warwick Farms the volume of this class of business done bv somo of the layers was an eye-opener. Totalisator opposition is certainly not giving bookmakers who operate in the paddock at Sydney mootings any • cause for concern.

S. Mordan. at one time -a prominent ioofcey, died in England in June. H" never rode a Derby winner, but went very close to it on Bruce in 1882, being defeated bv Shotover ridden by T. Can. non, whose version of the race was as follows: ~Sammv Mordan though I Braco was a certainty, for the Derby, and he promised his wife a sewing machine if he won. A sowing machine in those days was like a motor-ca- now. Bruce always had the Derby won, and Mordan. halfwav up tho straight, began to sing out i "The husband of Sammy Mordan’s wife ha a won the Derby. The husband of Sammy Mordan's wife has given her a sewing machine. Tile husband of Samav Mordan’s wife has won the Derby; the husband of Sammy Morgan's wife ’ Bruce, while this was going on. was close to me. and X could hear Sammy talking, ami could guesz what would happen. Mordan. let his reins go and Bruce swerved away fronthe rails. 1 had been waiting for this. »nd shot mv mare through, and before Mordan on B-nce knew where they wer' Shotover Ih.ad won the race.” Tom Gannon added: "I was sorry for Mrs Sammy Mordan’s husband, for he was b’tterlw disappointed,and never got over it. and I was also sorry for Mrs Sammy herself, because she did not got her sowing machine."