IN A NUTSHELL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2006, 4 August 1892, Page 27

IN A NUTSHELL.

— Highborn arrived safely in India. — Good accounts from Sydney of Little Bernic. — The Victorian Trotting Club is L 4456 to the good.

— The Hawke's Bay Trotting Club has a surplus of L2OO odd.

— Rewi has won another race in Victoria. Will he ever stop ? — Meteorite and Warwick have been scratched for the Caullield Cup. — My fancy, Flintstone, has arrived at Christchurch for the National.

— Traducer's stock won Lfi2,500 in the seven seasons ending with 1882-83.

— Brigand was scratched for the New Zealand Cup at 2 o'clock on Monday. — Gresford has earned a 71b penalty in the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups. — Redleap won L 1659 in the V.R.C. National Hurdles and LISBO in the Steeplechase. — There were enquiries this week as to Clanranald's price for the New Zealand Cup. — The pony Winter.'by Julyl from Spiuaker, was recently sold in Melbourne at 33gs. — A charity race meeting is being got up in Sydney in aid of the Little Sisters of the Poor.

— The protest against Newman as winner of they. 14. C. Winter Handicap has been dismissed. — The Queen's stud at Hampton Court comprises five stallions, 41 brood mares, and 21 yearlings.

—Mr Evett's salary as haudicapper to the Hawke's Bay Jockey Club is raised to Ll5O per annum.

— " Spurned," engaged at the Grand National Meeting, is the gelding by Holderness from Bribery.

— The V.R.C. received L9O last season for registering charges of horses' names. The fee is L 5 each.

— The gross value of Jem Goater's personal estate has been sworn at L 1364, and the net value at L 934.

— The largest individual wager recorded at Ascot was L6OOO to L4OOO on Milford for the Coventry Stakes. — M'Cormick is training Prestige, who is said to be going in good style, and W. Butler has Fraternite in hand.

— There is some talk of sending Redleap to England, but well-informed writers question the truth of the report.

— The death is announced of the French-bred stallion Farf adet, by Nougat out of La Farandole, who was foaled iv 1880.

— "Vigilant" has put iv a lot of work compiling a New Zealand sporting calendar which is published in sheet form.

— A London cablegram gives the following as the result of the Goodwood Cup : — Martagon 1, Blue-green 2, Colorado 3. — Red Cross had a good win in the Oakleigh Park Handicap, beating 15 others. She carried 6.13 and started at 3 to 1.

— The Sydney horse Surprise is disqualified for three years for contradictory lunning at Moorefield and Warwick.

— From the South it is reported that Dialyteria, by Hornby, has been sold by Mr Enwright to Messrs M'lntyre and Kane.

— Loughlin, Allan, and Poole leave for Christchurch next Monday with the Dunedin horses for the Grand National meeting. — The Auckland Club is so well satisfied with the experiment of the September meeting that it is now to be made a regular fixture. —Mr R. Howie, of Victoria, has named his chestnut colt, bred in New Zealand, and got by Ascot from Bay Bess, " Northcote." — I understand, though I have not seen the official announcement, that acceptances for the New Zealand Cup close to-morrow.

— George Frederick, the Derby winner of 1874, who has recently gone blind, was sold at the Marden Park stud sale to Mr Bevill for 65gs. — It is proposed that representatives of trotting clubs shall meet at the commencement of a racintr year and fix dates. A capital idea. — Kimberley, in the Open Hurdle Race at Flemington, struck a hurdle, with the result that he is suffering from an enlarged knee-joint. — Several persons owing money to the Canterbury Trotting Club are to be posted as defaulters. The club's assets are valued at L 30 8: liabilities, nix.

— " Freelance " expresses his opinion that not more than eight out of the fifteen runners in the V R.C. Maiden Hurdle Race on the 9th ult , were triers.

— Mr J. T. Boult, of Mandeville, writes me contradicting the statement that he applied to the Lumsden Club to remove the disqualification from Assassin.

— The New Zealand-bred hurdle racer Captain Abram, changed hands after the Selling Hurdle Race at Aspendale, and is now trained by I. T. Carslake.

— That popular horseman M. Carey, who got an arm broken when Osric fell and broke his neck at Flemington on the 21th May, is now nearly all right again.

— The winner of the Royal Hunt Cup and his dam were bought by Captain Machell for 230gs, Suspender being afterwards disposed of to Mr 11. M'Oalmont.

— Redleap is handicapped at 13.0 in the V.A.T.C. Grand National Hurdle Race, and at 13.12 in the Steeplechase. The meeting takes place on the 13th. — The Duke of Westminster has decided to establish a new stud farm, near Churton, a village about five miles from Eaton Hall. The farm is to cover 70 acres.

— Nuts, the five-year-old son of Early Bird that won the Trial Steeplechase at Wellington on Saturday week, carried a stone over weight. We shall hear of this horoe again.

— The many friends of the popular Australian tipster, " Yorkshireman " (Mr W. G. Franks), will be sorry to hear that his death took place on July 22 after a lingering illness. —At the North Otago Club's meeting on October 20 and 21 the races previously limited to horses owned and trained in the district will be thrown open. The stakes amount to L 175.

—T. Cotton and Dad Kiugan returned from Melbourne this week after theii unsuccessful trip with Cocksfoot. The horse has been sold. Sir W. W. Finlinson is expected back next week.

— After a great deal of talk over the relative merits of Valentine and Yum Yum, the two wellknown Sydney trotters, the match arranged between the pair for LIOO aside has fallen through. — The A.J.C. Metropolitan Stakes distance is reduced from two miles to a mile and a-half, in order to obtain more entries. The experiment is a failure, only 10 more entres having been sent in. — Cocksfoot, ridden by F. Kingan, started in the Trial Stakes at Caulfield on July 12, but ran nowhere. Orangeman 11.3 was one of the competitors in the Steeplechase, but did not get a place.

— The rumour that Daydream was really purchased for Lady Onslow seems to be somewhat confirmed by the fact that the filly was cared for on her Home voyage by the stud groom to Lord Onslow. — Apremont's stock began to race in ISSS-SO, when Apropos was a two-year-old, and since then this sire's get have won L.31,312 in New Zealand, lh is French horse has been a roally serviceable one to the colony.

— Satyr, who had several ribs broken by falling in the V.R.C Grand National Hurdle Race, is progressing satisfactorily toward recovery; but it is more than doubtful if he will ever carry a racing jacket again. — Mr Labouchere says : — "Though I rarely bet I can see no sin in betting. Why A should not agree to put some of his money into B's pocket on the happening of a future event over which he has no control I cannot see."

— The iDeniliquin Jockey Club have decided that bookmakers shall not be allowed to ply their calling at the coming meeting of the club without first depositing the sum of LSO with the secretary as a guarantee of their bona fides. —Mr W. Cooper, the Australian sportsman, won the Durdans Plate of 175sovs, w.f.a., six furlongs, on Oaks day with his two-year-old filly Lucky Devil by Hawkestone— Lucky Shot, who beat three opponents very easily. — Auckland has had a big season with the totalisator. Tho _ Racing Club passed L 67.191 through the machine for the season, an increase of L 16.623 over the previous season— thanks to some extent to the extra meeting. — From Grafton (N.S.W) a correspondent writes me that Mr A. N. Barnier has refused L2OOO for his mare Tridentine, who won the double event at the Clarence River Jockey Club meeting for the third yoar in succession. — The death of the well-known South Australian sportsman, Mr P. B. Coghlan, is reported. Amongst tho many horses that the deceased owned and imported was Proto-Martyr by St. Albans— a son of Stockwell — from Laura.

— Count Batthyany's horse, Gaga, who recently won the Austrian Derby, is going to run in England. Gaga is a well-bred horse, being by Galopin out of Red Hot, by Isonomy. An English gentleman has made an offer of SOOOgs for the colt. — The Hawke's Bay Jockey Club has had a prosperous season. There is an increase of revenue from all sources, enabling the club to pay off its overdraught of nearly LIOOO besides showing a credit in hand of over L 230, and spending nearly L 350 in improvements.

— A great improvement is, it appears, about to be made in the system of shoeing horses. Recently the Parisian Tramway Company has had its horses shod with a shoe made of Bessemer steel, which can be fitted to the hoof cold in a few minutes without a single nail. — The stewards of the English Jockey Club on Derby Day received the following telegram :— " Kindly postpone Derby until 4 o clock. Have missed train. Prince Alexis." The Derby was not postponed. The Grand Duke Alexis is brother to the Emperor of Russia. — When Duke fell in the V.R.O. Grand National he sustained a severe concussion and was apparently dead-. He was removed from the course in a cart, but although ho lay quite inanimate all through Saturday night he was found to be still alive in the morning. He has since died.

— From English files we learn that, up to the date of the last mail leaving, St. Simon headed the list of_ winning stallions on the flat for the season, his stock having won 14 races worth L 19.30 7; Wisdom was next with 15 wins, value L 12.42 7; Bend Or third with 18 wins, aggregating L 8395 3s.

— Mr H. Ellison, of Auckland, announces the publication of a "New Zealand Centaur." There should be plenty of room in New Zealand for such a publication, and if the compiler takes care to have nothing but reliable information, as I have no doubt he will, he should soon command a large circulation.

— Mr Easton, the well-known American purchaser of bloodstock, cables to London Sportsman to the effect that since his return to the land of the Stars and Stripes he has sold 474 yearlings for an average of 220gs, and 53 Belle Meacle yearlings for L 22.000. This, as Mr Easton adds, is " creeping up to our own prices." — Mr W. Blackler, the studmaster of Fulham Park (S.A.) has sustained a loss by the death of Ruby, the dam of Sardius. The latter was her best son. She has been an unfortunate mare for Mr Blackler, as she slipped twins on no less than three occasions. At the time of her death the mare was in foal to the Musket horse Thunderbolt.

— The Queensland horse Elsinore fell dead recently after doing a gallop. Elsinore was by Fenman, and in his time was a real good horse, but he went wrong in his pins and retired to the stud, at which, however, he was not a brilliant success. lie was a handsome stallion, and his owner had hopes of . getting another race or two out of him.

— It looks as if Kingsclere has been entertaining an angel unawares. They never dreamt of Watercress winning the Prince of Wales Stakes on the Ascot Heath. In fact, Lord Alingtou actually offered to bet his son LIOOO to LlO against the chance of Watercress for the big three-year-old race. This looks as if somebody made mistakes in the Kingsclere stables. — Says "Ribbleden": "As we enter Malvolio's box we feel that we are in the presence of an aristocrat, which his stable name is "Jimmy." A horse that can carry off LIO.OOO in one fell swoop is an enviable possession. Outrivalling a picture^ Malvolio is a horse to look at and admire, lie has improved in every respect, and I was surprised to find him so hard .and muscular."

— The financial statement of the Victoria Racing Club for the year ending 30th June shows that the Spring meeting has a profit of L 8770 19s Id. The Grand National Steeplechase meeting, New Year's Day meeting, Autumn meeting and Queen's Birthday meeting all resulted in loss. The total excess of liabilities over assets, however, only amounts to L2OJO IOs sd. — Mr Fraser has been re-elected president and Mr Jeffevy hon. secretary of the Central Otago Jockey Club. There is a balance of LI in hand. Votes of thanks were passed to the handicapper, to the secretary, and to Mr Fache for his donation of the cost of printing and advertising for the past season. A sub-committee is to inquire as to the most suitable day for the annual lace meeting. —At the annual meeting of the Manawatu Racing Club, Mr J. E. Henry was appointed handicapper and Mr R. Stevens starter. The report showed the receipts from all sources to be L 274 7; stakes paid L 945, and L9flG was expended in the erection of a new grand stand and appointments. The new committee received a lecommendation that a two days' meeting be held at Christmas.

— Count Lahens, the French .sportsman, who was " warned off" some time since at the request of the Pan stewards, and who commenced an action against them, has come off with flying colours. Steeplechase Society has reinstated him at the request of the Pau stewards, who admit that their judgment was formed too hastily, and that tho evidence Count Lahens produced has led them to alter their decision.

— A person recently tried to smuggle the racehorse Belisarius into Victoria from South Australia at a point where he was not under the eye of a Customs officer, and was finally run to earth at Branxholme. The Minister's decision on the subject is to the effect thatßelis?rius shall be handed over in good order and condition on the payment of duty, L 2 10s, together with expenses, which are estimated at L 5. — Autonomy heads the list of winning two-year-olds in Australia. During his career he has scored seven firsts, one second, and one third, his total winnings being L 2995. Camoola has won t\\ o races, been second once, and third once, and has won L 1775, the most of which he got credit for by his autumn win at Flemington, viz., L 1065. Trieste's winning account amounts to L 1925, made up of four wins and two seconds.

—In Paris recently, King Milan of Servia backed several horses to win all their respective races, and was rather surprised to find that the horse he depended upon to win the last race had been claimed out of a selling event by a person acting for the layer of the LSOOO he stood to win. He resented this, and refused to pay, but the layer, Mr Matheyseus, has been ordered to pay his Majesty L 1320. which he has accepted in settlement.

— The annual meeting of the Tapanui Racing Club was held on Saturday week, when the balance sheet showed a gross profit of LIOO on the year's transactions. The profit has been expended

in paying off loans, in improving the course, and painting tho grand stand. The club is now in a strong position, and several new members are being enrolled. Mr M'lntyre was re-elected president, Mr Grant vice-president, and Mr W. Quiu secretary and treasurer.

r,~, A } As 3 e «! ldalc lark < Vir > on tlie IMh » ] t Cocksfoot 8.2 was unplaced in the Second-class Handicap won by Julian Thomas 6.13. Roselcaf was second and when she won the 1 leach Handicap later on the public hooted. Captain Abrnm 10.!), ridden by Goclnano, was second to Stewpan 11.0 in the Selling Hurdle Race, and Alcinous 7.0 and Pecrswick 7.5 were among the unplaced contingent in the Aspendale Park Handicap won by Moss Rose (daughter of Sunrise). — A London paper recently remarked that tho man who had witnessed the most Derbies was Mr James Weatherby. Immediately a correspondent wrote to bay that there was ah old fellow aged !)1 years living at Walham Green, London, who had seen no less than 70, and was present on Epsom Downs in 1822— only seven years after tho battle of Waterloo. The old chap had walked to Epsom and back for over 50 years, and he intended to be present this year. — Sporting Standard has it that a letter has been received from Mr Joe Thompson, in which the " Leviathan " states that he is still jogging along, but not getting very much tho best of it in the competition that now rules on the English turf. Backers are getting very keen in the old country, and a man must have his wits about him to make money at tho game. However, life in England suits him, and Joe has no intention a.t present of returning to Australia. — Says John Corlett :— "The French Derby has an inner history, M. E. Blanc is not popular on this side of the Channel, and is not exactly loved in France. It came to the knowledge of Baron Sehieklerthat he had taken a bet of L 16.000 to L4OOO about Fra Angelico ; so he at once decided on trying to win the race with Chene Royal, and succeeded. This must have been gall and wormwood for M. Blanc, as it was clear that Fra Angefico could have won in a canter."

— A shocking disaster took place at the Gin Gin races, Queensland, on the 15th ult. In the Farewell Handicap there were eight starters. Four of them bolted off the course at a furious pace into thick timber. William Yenck, aged 25, rider of Jaspor, was dashed against a tree and killed instantly. Eddie Dixon, aged 15, rider of Alice, was thrown against the timber and had his legs broken in two places. He is not expected to recover. The two other riders were less iniurcd. — Indian Planters' Gazette says :—": — " Irorty years ago tho New South Wales horse vas iv most_ instances a fiddle-headed, bad tempered, bucking, coarse beast, unfit for anything save dogs' meat, and he could no more hold his own with decent Arabs and countrybreds than ho could Hy. The first really consistent Walcr who stood the wear and tear of ludia's climate and courses for any length of time was Kingcraft ; and after him the best all-round one was Panic's game son, the bright bay Palmerston. — "Pakeha" tells the following story: — "Mr John Walker, of Aramoho, had a mare to be treated for lockjaw. After treating her for two or three days, the mate's mouth became quite loose, and she was enabled to feed with the greatest of ease, but one of her legs remained so stiff that the owner destroyed her with a bullet. She was then examined, and a piece of decomposed bone, about 2in long, was found below the stifle in the thick part of the thigh, which caused mortification to set in, and would have eventually resulted in tho mare's death."

— Sportsman's correspondent says that tho Queensland Carbine Realm, ridden by Archer, won the Rockhampton Handicap, of two miles, carrying 10.4. After waiting nearly the whole distance the champion got through at the turn, and won easily by three lengths from Boche-de-mer, 8.7 (Hill), and Sir Thomas, 7.0 (W. Smith). The official tinie was 3min 47seCj but private watches made it 3min 39sec, and this is said to be correct. The performance is perhaps not as good as it at first sight appears, for, bar the second horse, tho other starters were a poor lot. — The death is reported of the N.S.W. steeplechaser Blackall, who some two years ago was repurchased by his former owner and pensioned off. Blackall had many victories in the metropolitan district, including 'the A.J.C. Hurdle Race and Steeplechase, 18S2, and the Sydney Turf Club's Steeplechase of the same year; while in 188(5, when carrying the colours of the late Mr Morrisett, he was only beaten by a nose by Studley, in the fastest time on record for Tattersall's Club Grand National Steeplechase. It is surmised that snake bite was the cause of death.

— Newcourt, winnei of the Northumberland Plate, two miles, affords another instance of an ex-selling plater taking high handicap honours, foi^ he was claimed for his present owner and trainer after running second for the Londesborough Handicap at the Doncaster Spring meeting last year. The colt lias proved a profitable acquisition to William I'Anson, for of the three events in which he carried his colours afterwards he won two, and has now carried off a prize much coveted by northern stables. The time occupied by Newcourt in covering tho course was 3min 58sec.

— One of the most daring and original of turf godfathers was the Marquis of Waterford of a past generation, the hero of endless legions and " good" (as ■well as unpublishable) stories. On one occasion he had a colt entered for the Derby under the harum-scarum name of "Billy-go-rarely." On the morning of the race his trainer announced to him that the animal could not possibly get as much as a place. "All right," said the Marquis, "harness Billy to the drag. He shall take us down to Epsom, anyhow. No horse was ever foaled for nothing. The curiously named colt accordingly appeared on the hill, instead of on the course at Epsom.

— A new sporting prophet has recently come upon the scene. At an artistic supper party given in June by Mr Wyndham, at the Criterion Theatre, Planchette (says the Daily Telegraph) was introduced for the entertainment of the company assembled, and it was suggested that this instrument of revelation should be asked to furnish the winner of the Royal Hunt Park Cup. Planchette slowly but intelligibly wrote the name of " Suspender." Subsequently it was proposed that the winner of the Northumberland Plate should be revealed, and Planchette duly inscribed "Newcourt," which subsequently gained the coveted prize. Several gentlemen well known in dramatic circles were present, and can vouch for the correctness of this statement.