THE TURE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 13518, 15 February 1906, Page 4

THE TURE.

| By Sentinel.

RACING CALENDAR. iocs; February 15—Egmont E..C. Summer. February 15—Lumsden Hack Meeting. Fobruary 15, Bay T.c. Annual. February 21, 22—Woodville J.C. Autumn. February 31, 22, 24—D.J.C. Cum Meeting. February 23, 28—Talmna Park Trotting Club's Meeting, March 1, 2—Wnngonui Autumn Meeting. March 14,. lii-Napicr Park Autumn. March 15—Ndrth Canterbury Meeting. March 22—Waimatc Annual Meeting. March 29, 30--Masterton B.C. Autumn. March 23, 30—Taranaki J.C. Autumn. April 14, 1(5, 18, 21—A.J.0 Autumn Meeting. April 10, 17—C.J.C. Autumn Meeting, April 10, 17—Feilding J.C. Autumn. j The appearance of tho handicaps for the first day of tho Duuedin Cup meeting unmistakably ovidonens tho proximity of tho principal gathering of our season. Timo was when tho Duncdin Cup was tnc medium of a largo amount of ante-post bcrtiiig, and tho leading metallicians made largo "volumes" on tho race, but nowadays ilio publio aro partial to getting- a run for their, money, anil arc perfectly satisfied to make thoir bets after tho horses Itnvo been sont to tho post. Tho Dunodin Jockey Club have had some troublous tiroes during roccnt years, ami liavo liatl an uphill battlo to •kill tho prejudice which tho public took against Wingutui, but thero is no mistaking tho fact that the club's courso lias been rapidly gaining in popularity. With a- couple of successful seasons to tho club's credit tho Dunodin Cup would soon regain its lost prestige, and bo as worthy of winning as any other raco in tho colony. The lengthy list of nominations which tho club received for tho forthcoming Cup. meeting suggests that the gathering looks like being onu of tho very best over hold on tho course, as in looltiua; through tho handicaps it strikes mo that there is a fair pcrcentago of good sound horses engaged, and consequently likely to bo scon out under silk. The handicaps boar the imprint of being compiled in tho manner which has mado Mr flenrys tho loading weight adjuster in tho colony, and on paper looks like providing interesting sport, in tho Clip Vladimir has deservedly boon awarded Ihe post of honour, at tho head of tho list, and his olianco and that of Convoy aro tho two which most appeal to t-lio writer at the present, stage. The Publican's Handicap lield has some smart sprinters engaged in it, and Master Alix, Cross Hal lory, amPCriohtoit are a trio who may provide tho winner. A final selection as to probablo results will bo made after the appearance of acceptances and it has been noted how tho training operations aro being earied out. Tlio Tahuna Park Trotting Club is to bo congratulated .in having successfully made arrangements with Mr Buekland to have that gentleman's celebrated trotter Fritz on exhibition at its forthcoming meeting. Frit/, is a justly famed horse, and one of the finest-gajted trotters that has over raced in Australasia, The majority of our I rotters pull their sulkies on their mouths, and one requires to be a bit of a Sandow. to hold them iogether whilst they aro going at fpp. In addition to this it is customary to s oe them armoured from ears to heels jritll gear, and by contrast it is a genuine treat to lovers of horses to see one like Fritz stepping out at about a 2.15 gait without a. strap on him; whilst it also appeai-s that the son of Vanclevo could bo driven with a thread When Frit/, met Ribbohwood in tho match which attracted_ such a vast attendance at tie Metropolitan track at Christchurch, the only gear he woro was a pair of bell boots, and lie stepped ajong with his opponent at a 2.10 gait, whilst Mr Lucklaud drove with looso reins in one hand and patted his horse on tho quarters with the oilier. At that time Fritz was not quite himself, hut even then ho wis only a. little over a length away from Itibbonwood when tho latter won the second heat in 2.13. Fritz mado his record of 2.13 against time on the Riccarton racecourse in 1899, and has since been the undisputed champion trotter of Australasia. Fritz has an Australian record of 2.13 2-5, and also went 2.14- 4-5 when he won a raco at Moonee Valley in 1685. His popularity with racegoers was <:Yidencc<l at the rceent Christchurch meeting, where he was greeted with cheers from tho spectators, and it is to he honed that he will be landed fit and well at tho Tahuna Park meeting. The majority of our old-time breeders and many of their later-day pupils aro strong believers in tho Fisherman and Panic blood, and have a partiality for getting horses with a dash of both or either of tho above-named strains into their stock. Fisherman iva6 a great, performer in England, where lie started in 120 races and won 70. A writer in tho Australasian, in dealing ! with old-time sport, recently made tho following allusion to both the aliovc-namcd j horses:—Considering the short time ho was at the stud, Fisherman accomplished wonders. Foaled in 1853. he was imported to South Australia in 1860. No use was • made of him Unit year, but in 1861 he served a. few mares at the Keedbeds, where i Mr Hurtlo Fisher then had his stud. In 1863 ho was brought over to Marihyrnong. ; He did not have more than 20 marcs outside his owner's that year, but in 1864 ho ] served 40 mares besides Mr Fisher's. Mr Fisher was out of luck just at this time. 1 Lantern had died, as the result of an < accident in the Ballarat Cup, Shortly after Fisherman died it was announced (.luly 15, i 1865) that Phil Dowling had gono across ' the Straits to fetch Panic, who had been bought, it w.'l 1 ; believed, for a Western ' District breeder (Mr Henry Phillips). Pre- ' viousiy Mr Farris, of Ballarat, had offered £1200 for Panic, hut Mr S. Blackweil j would not take tho price. It was stated 1 that the Victorian gjavo £1500 for the horse, or just half what Fisherman cost Mr Fisher ! in England. Dowling had some difficulty 1 about getting Panic. It seems the agreement was that so much was to be paid down ' and the balance within 14- days of the horse being delivered to Dowling at the Brisbane Hotel, Launcoston, After five days had j elapsed Mr Blackweil took possession of ( Panic on tho ground that the balance of tho purchase money was not' forthcoming, j Tho law wa3 invoked by Dowling. and ( Panic recovered. Mr Blackweil apologised , for his action, and explained that be had forgotten the terms of the agreement. s

The plunging cva about as oxtinefc as the moa, but it is interesting to recall' ! the doings of some of the best-known jugglers of fortunes who flashed like meteors on tho turf. The majority of racing men can call to mind the deeds of the youthful plunger, Ernest Bonzon, who toured Australia and New Zealand, and whose erratic conduct had a very short life, and enriched the 'ring considerably. Wales, at one timo a confectioner, was wonderfully lucky in his turf investments during tho early stages of his turf career, but ho wont out of the business a wiser but sadder man. Walton, American, was another that at one time peppered the ring, but luck turned, till one day his settling account was missing. In all the above instances betting was earned 011 from day lo day while, the. ;gqino lasted,- but earlier cn most sensational plunging was indulged in by wealthy patrons of tho turf. Charles .Tames Fox on one occasion netted £16,000 by laying against a favourite at Newmarket, and at a subsequent meeting at headquarters won £30,000 in three days. His racing partner, Lord Foley, commenced his turf career with £100,000 in ready money, and an estate worth. £18.000 a year, but when he die<] in 1793 he was absolutely bankrupt. During the closing stages of the eighteenth century an inveterate gambler was Lord Darlington. Two matches were arranged between his lordship's Pavilion a,ntl Mr Mcllish's Sancho, each of which was for 3000 guineas aside, There was probably more betting on these affairs than was- tho case in the great match between Flying Dutchman and Voltigcur. The first ma.tch was won easily by Sancho, but in the second, after appearing to..be Winning easily, the last-named broke down, and Lord Darlington netted nearly. £20,000 as tho result of the accident. 11l 1834 tie same owner, together with the- rest of the stable connections, believed that they- bed a good thing for the Derby in Shillelagh. Their lielicf in the ability of the horse to annex iho event was so strolls, that tliey would not. hedge a penny. Shillelagh was, however, beaten, and easily, too, by Plenipotentiary. By this defeat .the owner lost £18,000. Messrs Bland and Halliday dropped £60.000. Stevens (the sportinsr fish salesman) Buffered to the extent of £20.000, and the brothers Chifney—Sam and Will— were fairlr broke by the result of the race. Richard, Earl of Bnrrymore, started to bet heavily when only 19 years old, and after four seasons,at the business lost $100,000. After travelling round country race-meet-ings for several years' nast, the writer is strongly of opinion tliat thorn is a crrat.,' deal to be desired in the method of official supervision which is exercised nt these gatherings, and that the purely local i steward, who sees racing onco a year, 1 and sits in judgment on matters requiring only a partially expert opinion/but who olearly displays a sometimes painful j ignorance, is an official who should at, once . be denrived of tho power which he so ' supinely exercises. Speaking without ox- 1 accretion,.ft is not too much to ga,r that if . some of them were challenged to give an ( account of their stewardship tliey would > • have a hard row to hoe in order to provide a ratipnal answer," because,'after witnessing j some of their judicial work one can only j arrive at the conclusion that their racing | knowledge is either nil or that they w

5 t blind men (ono does not liko to suggest anything elso), and consequently not at all fitted to hold tho positions which thoy aro distinctly unqualified for. And some of our metropolitan and Ecmi-metropolilan stewards aro not ono whit hotter than their country cousins in their official behaviour. 0110 doe? not liko to be continually writing in a fatill-finding spirit but 0110 conversant willi the subject cannot but agreo that tlioro is room for a world of improvement in tho supervision of our racing, as in many oases it appears to bo honest only bocauso somo of ~ tlioso idoulificd with tho sport aro inclined to bo in that frame of mind or morals, When thoy aro olhorwiso thoy almost invariably oscape tho punißhmont which should bo meted out, and these matters go from J>ad to worso bocauso tho evildoers act with the conrago bornn of bhcccsh, and also beoause precedent allows them to 5. practically do as thoy pleaso on cerlain courses. Country stewards, bo it said in their favour, err in (heir duty in the majority of casos, simply because (hey aro e loth to hayo any unploasant business lo transact in commotion with their 0 own particular meetings. It is l 0 consequently easy to understand that ,i if all our stewards were imbued with j this idea racing would ' soon dogcncralo 0 to such an oxtc-nt that no honest, person g could be identified with it, and the only rides obiorvahlo would Ijo thoso commonly 0 known as the eateli-as-catch-ean style. At n certain country meetings which tho writer j has attended at no greatly remote date, .. tho happenings which have occurred would || put a Pcnl ridge patient to tho blush, ao 0 i.liey jiave been colossally impudent in their ; s roguish nature, and ii would bo mom 0 gentlemanly and honest to publicly rob a 1 person than it- is to filch in the manner s which has been done with the blind conn nivaiien of racing stewards, and which has been responsible for this note, ltaeing e nowadays is more of a business than any[j thing else, and, liko any olher business, ? a certain amount of finesse will always be t inseparable from it; fouf nf; krcsfc tho npq poaranco of honesty should bo insisted on, s for that appears to bo all m en.ll raped, 3 in these grab-thc-money days. The writer yields lo no one in his admiration of racing as a paslime, and even continual f rnvellinc; from meeting to meeting Jias not ' yet killed the pleasure of participating in ,' it—perhaps because of its infinite variety,— ! r but it is clearly recognisable that honest j owners wilMieeomo tired of being associated with rp'estionahlo sport, because some of j the mud which :s thrown mav slick to the I; wrong colours. When an evil is in recognised existence if is only rational lo search j for a remedy, and the remedy in tliie ease ' e appears lo bo tho stipendiary steward or t an honorary sleward. which a metropolitan club could relatively delegate from ils body 3 to attend the minor meetings in itsdislrict. . The weights for the Newmarket Ilandir cap and Australian Cup were duly pub- ' lislied in Sydney, but, (says Ihe Sydney ~ Hail) their, appearance did not excite very j much interest among regular followers ot ~ the turf. Mr Meiwics has begun his NowJ market allotments with welter-like imposts, and asks the Now Zealand crack Machine, j Gun to do that which has never j'ct been j done or attempted for this race—carry 11.3. j The highest weight yet carried to victory I for this, tho most difficult sprint race of , Australian fixtures, is 9.3, which that great ' sprinter, if not the grealcst sprinter Aus- ( tialia has known, Bungobah, won with 'in , 1891. However, despite his flattering weight, Machine Gun looks healthier than | very many of those down to tlio 8.0 mark. As public performers, Gladsome holds a lietter record than Machine Gun, but the [ "Victorian lwndicappcr is of opinion that lie | is 201b better. Bo this right or wrong, Gladsome is very leniently treated in com- , parison with several with her and below her in the weights. Sylvanito and Airloch I do not read well in at level weights with Gladsome, who should not cxpcricnce much 1 trouble in beating Maniapolo at 21b. Pen- | danfc is too close to Gladsome lo be well ! in, though,'of course, there may be a very ' different story to bo told before tile day of 1 running. Others that strike Ihe eye as being well treated aro Charles Stuart 8.10, 1 /Sylvan King 8.6, Condor 8,3, Istria 8.1, Grafton Lad 7.7, Gay Girl 7.3, Luciana 7:2, Duke of Melton 7.2, and Pompous 7.0; and of these none look so healthy as Luciana. Tartan beads the Australian Cup weights with 9.6, and on the Melbourne Cup running has none the" worst of the figures with Blue Spec, Scot Free, Elvo. and jVlaniapoto.' The trio named first may all bo depended upon to run well if in form; while Grama, Ossian, Roycroft, Auratc, and the two junipers, Marmont and Bellis, are let off lightly, Tho South Canterbury Jockey Clu'o is out with a programme for its autumn meeting, and has issued a prize-list that should will plenty of patronage from horse owners. Tile Timaru Cup is endowed with a stake of lOOsovs, and tho principal event on (to second day carries a stake of the same value. The events on the programme also have valuable prize-money attached to them, and a liberal nomination should be received when the lists aro made up on the sth of March. — Entries for the D.J.C. Trial Handicap are due 011 Friday. — Menschikoff's new owner is said to he a Sir Harvey Patterson. —A payment for tho Buiietlm Jockey Club's Champagne Stakes is due on Friday. —•Acceptances for tho first day of the Dmicdin Cup meeting arc due 011 Friday. — Since arriving at Kandwick Machine Gun has been responsible for some useful work. — A Melbourne cable advises that Maniopoto ha? been scratched for tho Newmarket Handicap. — A couple of Uniform's stock were amongst . (lie unsuccessful starters at, a recent Johannesburg meeting. ( — A Melbourne cable stales that the New , Zealand hurdler l'enakoe has been purchased by Mr E. Kelly. j — TIIO disqualification imposed by the , Christchurch Racing Club upon L, G. Iviug j has been removed. — The French sportsman M. "Blanc, who j paid 37,500gs for Flying Fox, has SP. liorses in work for the coming season. | — Sir Geo. Clifford has purchased the Slcp- | liiak colt Do Witte, who won a- race each day | of the C.J.C. Midsummer meeting. , — The critics of tho sporting press aro , unanimous that Machine Gun lias been j harshly dealt with in the Newmarket Ban- , dicap. ( —P. Mason, who is one of England's lead- , ing cross-country horsemen, rode 63 winners over fences out of the 251 mounts which ho ] received br-tivecn January 1 and December 22. | — Tho writer has heard one or two demon- ( strations on racecourses, and whilst listening lo 0110 recently it struck him that the ( public hoot with more vigour than thoy cxer- ( cise when cheering. ( — According to tho Australasian tho price rj paid for Mcnschikoff was 500gs. Menschikoff ( sold at 320gs at tile dispersal sale of the , Wellington Park stud. j —It is stated by Mr A. J. Morton, who ] recently returned to Sydney front Japan, that „ tho Australian-bred stallions purchased by the | Japaneso Government have given every eatis- c faction. — All attempt is to be made to galvanise ( some life into trotting in Wellington, and if .. those interested in tho movement arc sue- [ cessful in their efforts, a meeting will he held 0 on the Hutt track recently .deserted by tho 1. Wellington Raoing Club. j — At a recent Moonee Valley Trotting meeting a gelding named Chance, which raced in r ihe nomination of the Allandalo Stock Farm, j won two inilo raccs and each time registered j 2.26 for tho journey. Tho well-known come- ] dian W. Whitburn, drove Chance in eßc'n v of his races. —M. Bateau, one of the best amateur ; riders in Franct last year, was an officer m the army, but being of opinion ihat his pros- c )>?cts of advancement wore not bright, re- £ signed his commission and joined the ranks of ihe professional, jookeys, among whom he is holding his own. — A time was when Multiform could not v got outside marcs, hut it is stated that, as ]J Mr G. G. Stead has docidcd io discontinue ;t faking outside mares to Multiform, Mr'H. n Oxenham has arranged' for the Melbourne Cup r winner Acrasia- to visit the St. Simon stal- g lion St. Ambrose next season. , { — Hewitt's _ riding _ in Australia evidently left a strbng impression one some of the Aus- 7 tralian writors as in. icferring to C. O'Neill's v method of sitting on hia mounts the latter j 13 accused of "adopting Hewitt's seat." When t' an imitator is by inference credited with ? being »n-originator it sounds liko high praise. {] — Tho latest mail to hand brings particn- 7 Jars of the win of tho Hotchkiss—Queen Co'e gelding Tenakoe (late Tup'ara) at the Wil- tl liamstown meeting, where he defeated six others over' two miles, w'hich he comfortably cast behind in 3min 542 sec. Tenakoe j r started favourite "t 6 to 4 against, and tbo : r slake was worth SOsove. m —It is probablo that L. H. Hewitt will jour- K lley over to Australia and ride Machine Gun i. in the Newmarket Handicap. Should he make the trip he will arrive in Melbourne on the morning of the race, and leave again f, for New Zealand the same day. With .'his old pilot in the saddle, the con of Rubins c ' ( might feel his burden a bit lighter. '

t I — Some of the Randwick trainers have fairly | largo 'strings in their stables, as T. Payteu 0 has 23 in work. T. F. Scully 20, I. Earnf | shaw 18, and J! Burton and J. Alsopp 10 i, i uacli, Altogether there aro 215 in training at r ■ Randwick, or about the same number, in- { eluding visitors, which were using tho Itic- • carton tracks prior to tho last National meetf "' g ' . . • ' — Cuirosoitia, the lathy Cuirassow golding who has been a somewhat disappointing per--8 former since ho joined J. Ruttledge's stable, ■j managed to scote a double win over four furj longs ot the Tiuipeka meeting. He. huiv--1 ever, went down badly when a well-backed . fancy in iho six-furlong race, and did not • appear to hdvo a great deal in hand when ho l won his otlior races. ) The Australasian reports that au attempt | n 1* likely to be made to popularise trotting I in Victoria. A New Zealand gentleman, who i has had a good deal to do with bringing that i form of sport lo its present satisfactory con--1 dition in Mooriland, has been ill Victoria- for ; jonia days, and ho is looking round with a , view (o seeing what can be done to push i hotting along on ,New Zealand lines, f —.The well-known Australian owner-trainer, Mr 'it. Wootton, who has been very successt ful in liir, operations in tho racing' world, is hooked to leave for England in April with a tL'&m of ■ horses, which will probably consist of Fabric, who ran fourth ill the Melbourne Oup and recently won at Randwick. and three or four others, including Tho Pet, Simmerian, ' and Dromedary, a trio of winners at the ' anniversary mooting of the Australian Jockey ■ Uiib. — Ono of the picks for tho. V.R.C. Ncw- . market Handicap is Istria, a daughter of i Haut 13riou and Trieste, who ran Charles • Stuart to a head in the Champagne Stakes, i uud vua beaten in tho smart time of iniin i> 27J-sec by Lady Wallace in tho Easter Stakes. • Istria has been allotted 8.1, and Machine Gun . will not be able to hesitate at any part of i the Newmarket if lie is to successfully con- . cwlo 80lb to such flyers. Besides, there are ; others. — A Sydney writer,,whilst finding something lo sp.y iii praise of Wniriki's yearling brother, who was purchased at HOOgs by a Melbourne buyer, stales that the youngster appears to bo well sold, The Soult—Lady Emmelino [ colt is a low set, plainish fellow, remarks (lie smno writer, that will probably begin oariy, lint it io safe lo say that there will be scores of better-looking.yearlings at the Sydney Eales ' that will rot fetch a third of tho sum given for this son of Soult-. — The well-known writer "Milroy," of the Sydney Mail, is recognised as one of the principal authorities on breeding in the world, and a par which appeared in the Witness in lcfereuce to Ropa's breeding, subsequent lo that horse's win in the Wellington Cup, was recently u.ral and credited by r. northern paper In the Sydney penman. Tho Witness scribe, who was Iho author of the par, does not know how lo feel on the matter. It may be flattery or it may bo (hat an apology is owed to '• Milroy." — Prior to tho running of a couple of races at Lawrence last week, some puuters who had backed horses evidently had ex- . ccllent reason for being dissatisfied with tho investments they had made, and were vary anxious to cancel them. In two or three eases the bookmakers accommodated their clients, and in one caso a punter paid 5s lo nave a £5 v/iger eauoelled. The result- of the races showed that the inspiration which prompted their desire to cancel bets came from a good source. — T'lio Tnapeku County Jockey Club were favoured with beaitiifully fine weather for their annual . meeting, and although there was a fairly large attendance each day it was evidently not of a very speculative turn of mind. At least, tlicy may have speculated iu their minds, but not with their money. For this, however, the public were not to blame, as tho form displayed at (ho meeting wa» of a very acrobatic nature, and was sufficiently interesting to follow without the extra stimulus of betting on iU probable isaie. — The imported horse Condoi, who is by Gallinule—Tragedy, and consequently closely relaled to the Hon. J. D. Orniond's horse Birkenhead, scored in a W«lter decided at Randwick Tecently, and cut out seven furlongs in lmin 28sec with 8.1'2 on his back. Condor lias always been regarded as a promising horse, and with Machine Gun lias been entered for the valuable Caulfield Futurity Stakes. The horses named wore the only two to make the payment of £10, which enables a horse to come in the race at the final payment. —An English writer states that Sir Rupert Clarice, who is in .England for a month, has purchased two fine young mares, one by Persimmon and the other by Ormc, to mate with his brother's horso Emir. Wallace is Caibino's he3t son, and in addition to being of direct Musket desccnt he has 110 fewer than five crosses of Fisherman. Wallace has done so well at the sind that lie is receiving extraordinary patronage. Among other celebrities which have been mated with him this season are Wakeful and La Carabine, the former by Trenton, (he latter by Carbine himself. Tiie result of such close inbreeding to Carbine will be awaited with interest, but it seems a- pity that both theso famous marcs were not put to a St. Simon horse. —In January of last year the Belmont Park (Perth) Club announced that the trainer responsible ior the preparation of those horses which gained the greatest number of places in events run on their course during the succeeding 12 months would bo presented with a gold chronograph, valued at 20gs, This has been won by D. Paul, who trains for Mr L. C. Maiming. A gold-mounted whip was also offered to the jockey riding the greatest number of placed horses during the same period. John Flynn managed io win this by a narrow margin. ■ He rode the winners of the first and third events at the meeting on January 20 last, which brought him level with J. Jamieson. He then rode Smith into second place behind Honcydew, and won the trophy. — The London Sporting Times has the following about what jockeys can tell us of a. race after it is over;—'We read somewhere of jockeys who could not only ride a winner, but couid tell von all that had taken place in the course of tlie running. Fordkani and Archer were mentioned as examples. The writer of those lines surely never had to report n race from a. description given of it by Fonlham! We have, and it generally was expressed in this manner—' Well, doji't you eee, there was that thing Tom French was on, and me and thingnmy, and there wo were, don't you see till we got to the hill, when thing-a-bo'b came 1 up, and then I had my go, and won, don't you see!' ilorbcy missed nothing, nor did . Archer, but perhaps the keenest judge of all was Cusiancc. Fordham's knowledge was , confined to his own horse, and in that he never made a mistake." — Professor Ridgeway, in his " Origin and Influence of the Thoroughbred Horse," refers to the practice among various peoples of attaching talismans to their horses to ward ' off ills. 'The modern Italian fastens a piece 1 of badger's hair or a- tooth to his bridle in I order to guard the horse against evil. Tho 1 Greek tics an elaborate amulet about its neck, i The Kabyles of Kairfan hang round the necks ' of their asses a thick woollen cord (purplo ] and white), to which are altaclfcil two triangu- ( lar amulets covered with purple velvet em- ' broidered with imitation Arabic writing in i gold thread, and having a small round button j between them. Tho Coringas of the Madras i coast, it may be added, will neyer allow the \ shell which they tie about (heir ponies' necks j to be taken off lest the evil the shell is sup- ] posed to avert should befall them. It is . thought by some authorities that the brass . ornaments on the blinkers of our own dray > horses may be survivals of similar "protec- i tive charms." !

— Speaking of the handicap for tho Newmarket, "Ribbleden," of the Australasian, said that in allotting Machine Gun 11.3 Mi Menzies is asking the gigantic New Zcalander to break all records in connection with tba race, but, as he is meeting Airloch on Olb bolter terras than when he beat her into third place at Randwick, Machine Gun is not badly off as far an Airloch is concerned. Sylvanite, at his best, would be my pick of the top weights. If he comes to the post as he'was on Derby Day 9,11 will not prove prohibitive; if he is 110 fitter than he was last spring lis could not win a Newmarket nnder any weight. Charles Stuart is not badly off at 8.10, but lie is in tho same boat us Sylvanite; It is a question of well-being, not weight. Last April he carried 9.G, and ran six furlongs in lmin Usee. Then ho gave Istria 121b nn-1 a bead beating. Now there is only 9lb between them. I have an idea that tho imported Duko of Melton, at 7.2. limy be dangerous. This is the kind of weight n, horse can move with. Duko of Melton, who is in Earnshaw's stable, has run three times, Allsop, who won with Playaway, has a mare named Luciana, by Locliiel, that may co'mo into the market. She ,has 7.2, and she won her last race.

— Amongst tlie runners at Lawrence was the Occident gelding Last Eloign, who came into prominence by winning three consecutive rnce3 and getting beaten by a narrow margin in the fourth at the recent Clutlia, Hack meeting. Judging. by ' Last ■ Ensign's form at Tuapclw he should be heard of again as a. winner, as his condition looked susceptible to considerable. improvement. . Last Ensign's feat of form at the Clulh* meeting was, by the. way, eclipsed in merit by his well-per-formed- relative Red Lancer, who, although by no means a too sound horse, raced with conspicuous sucooss in the south a few years ago, At the summer meeting of the Gora Racing Club in 1898 Red Lancer was beaten a head in the Gore Clip. Oil the following dajr he came out and won the Cr.E.C. Handicap, liino furlongs, from four others, with 9.1 on his back. Then, with the intermission of p, race, Red Lancet again raccd with success

in a furlong Welter Handicap, which he won with 11.6 from three others in 1.37 1-5. With an intermission of another race. Red Lancer came out again, and won the Shorts Handicap, four furlongs, from three others. The Red Ensign tribe have always been a fairly successful family, whose prsstige has been kept up by such horses as Chancellor, Black rtofe, Roseal, Royal Rose, Dlazer, Warrington," and others.

— Horse racing is a great story of "give and take" (remarks a. London paper). The King lcjde a bad bargain when he gave a very high price for Moifaa; but, on the other hand, lie niade an .extremely good one when he pavo i'iOO for Ambush 11. Th# horics

y of his Majesty last season failed miserable 11 and now wo near, as something more , than' i- a. set-off, (hat he lies sold Diamond Jubilo® 0 for, it is said, 30,000gs to go to South t Araenca. As several subscriptions had peon i- • token (or tlic horse for next season, ho will i- not bo delivered nn(i! June, and thus hq may havo two seasons in ono year, as wo believe Ormonde had. That Diamond Jubilee 5 is ft loss to the country wo do not for one . moment believe, and though ho can boast of.. , having won tho triple crown, it can equally - bo said that ho is iho worst horse that over - achieved that great distinction. Epsom 1 Lad, who wna wit nnd soid for IOQOzs, fc beat him when 'he was two years old, ) They did not meet again until they woro • four years old, when in three races Epsom t Lsel iiftnin asserted the superiority. Diamond > Jubiieo had tho luck to bo born in u bad s year, and, being very heavily engaged, mode- ■ t rate as ho was, bo wa« able to win in stakes - closo oi\ £30,01)0. As ho has now been sold r for another j630,000.' this means £60,000 for • i one horse alone, nnd tho money may almost i be taken as net, seeing that his three seasons at the stud would for more than pay for tho , forfeits and training expenses. — The striking feature of tho handicaps for 3 tlin Oakleigh Plato and Notrroarkot Handicap i is the extraordinary weight allotted by both t liandicappors to the New Zealand crack • a sprintor Machine Gun. When Mr. Moitland . ■ camc out with 11.1 for the five and a^half , furlong race it seemed as if he was politely > asking tho owner of tho Maoriiander to koop t away; but now Mr Menzies has dealt ovon'• more harshly wilh tho Ilotchkies horse, and • has given him 21b more, with the journey [ half .i furlong further. Both of the weig'at- • i adjusters. have evidently laid spcoial stress , mioit Machine Gun's win at Randwick in • i The Shorts with 10,13; but (rays "Mostyn" . in tho Adelaide Observer) ho did not have a i Newmarket Handicap field against him that f day or a. weight-for-age lwrsn In the Ncw->. • market Handicap Sir Afenzies has called upon i Mechine Gun to concede Gladsome 20lb over fix furlongs. If tho pair met singlehandod • at tlmso weialitfl over this distanco long odds i would bo laid on the mare winning, and ovon - i if illry were matched at weiflht-for-ago over i the Newmarket Handicap journey it in just > possible that the niaro would end up favourite ! with backers. Machine Gun is undoubtedly • i an exceptional sprinter, and he is, practically i speakiuK, indifferent to weight; but in award- • I ing liiin 11.3 in a Newmarket Handicap Mr , Menzies has asked tho horso what reasonaVy Eeems to be an impossible task. —-A nice cut of a (wo-ycar-n!d by the imnorted Govornmenf stallion Lupin out of Mabellp, (lie dan', of Brighton, has joined the . M'Jsav Brothers' stable. Tmnin is bred on stout, if somewhat unfashionable, lines, and was got by Peter Flower, a son of the Lord fllifden horso Petrarch, who was sold at the then fabulous sum of 10,000?s, and resold at H.OWtyi to Lord Lonsda'f. Petrarch won tho St, Lcger of 187 G. and also rail fourth in Kisber's Derby, but ho turned the tables on tho latter when the uair met.in the St.Leger. Through his dam Lupin claims relationship ' to Seaton Delaval, as the latter's sire is out of Violet Melrose, a sister to Miss Middlewick, ; the third dam of Lupin. The dam of (he cnlt is one of tlTe Tangi tribe, to which the- 1 Now Zealand Cim winner Wolverine, .Tupiter, Master Agnen, the famous Mata, and other members of the Woodstock family ore allied.