SPORTING NOTES FROM AUSTRALIA.

Otago Witness, Issue 2286, 23 December 1897, Page 37

SPORTING NOTES FROM AUSTRALIA.

By Hori Poenb.

Mr.LBOURNF, December 8. THE 'lURF.

After the storm— the calm. After the roping and lamping— the wipinge-out. That the recent action of the general committee of the V.R.C. with regard to the principals in the pulling of Parthenor ecus, for the Spring* Handicap will have some sort of a salutary efftct cannot be doubted ; but until we have the totalizator ieg-dised in Vie toria under proper control such salutary effect will only be spasmodic. You see, the general public are fully' seized of the fact that although some of the "desperadoes" received condign punishment, equally as grave delinquents escaped "-unwhipt of justice"; a feeling being likewise abroad that after waking up so effectually the powcra that be ma.y indulge in auoLher snooze. Some of the wire-pullera are evidently of this opiuion, the consequence being that of late there have been some veiy remarkable reversals ,, of form on provincial and suburban courses. One of the most successful sires in Australia, so far as begetting winneis is concerned, is the aris-tocratically-bred Sunrise, a full brother to the New Zealand celebrity Sextant (by Robinson Crusoe from the Marit>v:nonj — Nigh Might mare Sunshine). Foaled in ISSO, he has been located for a number of year 3 in the Wagga rti-trict of New South Wales, where, from all sorts and conditions of mares, he has produced stock which have acquitted themselvetf equally as creditably round about the metropolis (at times even at headquarters) as they have done in the piovinces. The very brighicst of these gems, though, have unfortunately dimmed their escutcheons on quite a number of occasions, albeit, it must be confessed, in nearly every instance xbe villainous woikhas been so deftly executed that chastisement has been compelled to hide its head. The latest exponent of these how-notto-do-it tactic-, is an aged brown gelding named Sonny by Sunrise— dam unknown, whose last five performances kave been so " uusati.-factory " (?) and "contradictory" that, as the pporticg editor of the Age naively reinaik". " The parties who have charge of the horse will be naturally glad that an inquiry has been opened, bo that an explanationmay be tendered. The week before lasr, at Bendlgo, he was a hot favourite on the first day, and vms badly beaten in the Miners' Flat Race by Carrick and Flintlock. On tbe following day he was the outsider of a field of five in the Kpiom Handicap, and won a 1 ! the way ; whilst *t Aspendale Paik, on Wednesday last, he opened favourite in the* Welter Handicap, receded from 5 to 4 to 3 1o 3, and, fiuinbii.g fast, got fourth place. At Epsom (MordiaHoc) on Saturday he was favourite in the Welter Handicap, and although hestruggl d into second place lie was one of the first hordes beaten. Three races later (with R. Lewis.substituted for A. Guffiths as the rider— ihe course pursued at Beudigo) he won the mile race in a common cauter in'-the fast time ife suburban company of lmiu 4313ec. FlintUck, to whom Sonny was conceding 131b on Satuulay, and who started favourite at 5 to 2, failed to g-et closer than fourth ; whereas at Beudifio when flintlock defeated Sonny the brother to Ambetite was only in receipt of lib. Despite the fact that the " reversal " took place in the last event of the day the Epsom stewards stuck manfully to their posts and prosecuted the inquiry as far as the available evidence would allow, the investigation being thtn adjourned until to-morrow (Thursday). The four top weights in the Perth Cup, of two miles, to be run at the New Year's Day meeting of the Western Australian Turf Club— Battalion, Aurario, The Merry Boy, and Music— w^re all entered by Mr " Charles Somnier," but neither of them is likely to journey to the land of the west. A Perth sportsman is credited with having offered Mr S. G. Cook 4Cogs for The Merry Boy ; but the tale goes that the Pytchlc-y Lodge squire asked 500gs. For my own part I should be extremely surprised to find your old ftund of tbe West Coast accepting any such sum for the strapping ton of Trenton arfd Mara. If The Merry Boy doeßn't capture a big handicap over a distance of ground yet it will not be thiough want of ability I can assure you. Possibly Mr Cook may have been a trifle too severe on him during his spring preparation. At all eventß he failed to display a scintilla of his true form then.

When over in Perth last year I was greatly impressed with the excellence of Mr George A." Towton's two-year-old Taiquin, full brother to Scarpia (by Neckersgat — Tarpeia). When a long way fiom being wound up I clocked him five furlongs in lmin 3Jsec on the Bayswater course, and as Mr Towton subsequently info:med me he had 9.4 in the sadd'e you may rely unon it I kept the circumstance in remembrance. He is a magnifi-cent'y-framed colt, and (dead antithesis to Scarpia !) as quiet as a sheep. I notice that at the Canning Park meeting on Saturday, he carried 9.0 to Kilt's 9.4 in the Spring Stakes, of five furlongs, and won easily by a length in lmin s?3ec. He is now favourite for the W.A. Derby at a shade of odds on, Kilt being at 7 to 2 and Brayleigh (another New South Wales importation) at 4 to 1. Le Var and Tarquin are equal favourites for the Perth Cup at 7 to 1, The Black Rock being at SV, Snapshot (last year's winner) and On-low (brother to Trent) at 10's, Dryden at ll's, and TellusAt 12's. I am thoroughly satisfied Tarquin is much on the same plane as Aurum and Amberite.

Paddy Piggott is over in Perth acting as coachman for a gentleman. My latest advices were to the effect that Patroclus was in excellent health »ad "as happy as Larcg. 1 -'