THE C.J.C. SUMMER MEETING.

Otago Witness, Issue 2400, 1 March 1900, Page 39

THE C.J.C. SUMMER MEETING.

S This meeting was inaugurated in 1883, and I the first race, the Welter Handicap, wns won I by Mr Webb's Blue Jacket, the brother to ' Ruby beating the more-fancied Whitbacb. . rather easily. The Two-year-old Handicap, ■ voted a j?ood thing for the top weight, the Hon. W. Robinson's Fair Agnes colt ; (afterwards named Master A^nep), 1 found , the favourite getting liome i half a length in * front of Helena, i but Londonelly, rider of Helena, protested that Derrett had crossed him, and the stewards upheld the objection, awarding the race to Helena, who was one of Trarlucer's fast foals. The Christchuvch Cup, as the principal race I was then called, went to Messrs Mason and Vallace by the agency of the Victorian-bred Bundoora, who carried 8.3, and outstayed Tasman 7.11, winning easily by a couple of^ lengths. Of all the horsps running at the' meeting, the ones that have since made a. name for themselves are Vanguard and Sou'wester, and it may be noted that on that day in question Vanguard got beaten out of a place in the race for which he started favourite ; whilst Sou'^weater, then a three-year-old, put xip with the humble company of tha Selling Race, and 'after winning it was sold' by such a good judge as Mr E. Cutts for the moderate price of £155 — a figure probably, reckoned satisfactory, since the colt was entered to be sold at £100, but in the light of after history, knowing Sou-wester as the sir© of Boreas and a score of useful racers, he was one of" the bargains of his day. In 1881- the programme was reconstructed, the Middle Park Plate being established and tha Midsummer Handicap and Craven Plate receiving the titles which are preserved even. ■ to the present day. As everybody knows, the Middle Park Plate went to "that elegant, lengthy, and short-legged filly, Lady Evelyn, who, ridden by Sharp at 6.13, won easily by, three lengths from the favourite, Liverpool^ the latter trying in vain to concede 131b to the Hon. 6. M'Lean's flyer. She paid £3 17s. Cheviot, then a four-year-old, won tha Midsummer Handicap by a couple of lengtha from Taiaroa, Jhe latter being in receipt of 181b from the winner ; and the brother to Sip. Modred put up his 71b penalty later in the afternoon, and won the Craven Stakes like a racehorse, as he undoubtedly was, though not the soundest one in the world. He had earlier in the season made a bad fist of it in Tasman's New Zealand Cup, and the Midsummer victories were the events of his fourx year-old season ; indeed, he never raced again. For the Middle Park Plate of 1885 the Yald* hurst stable brought out a real aristocrat in. R-ussley, one of the truest-shaped thoroughbreds we have ever seen, and backers refused to look at anything eke in the race. The confidence wa3 not misplaced, for Russley won, but it may be lie was a bit luekv. foi* % whereas he beat Dime by only a neck, Spad© Guinea bolted of? the course. Tasman. top weight in the Handicap, started favourite and got a thorough beating, the race being won by Wapiti 6.7 by half a length from Ike 7.4-, with Taiaroa 7.12 third. Wapiti paid £3 7s 6d. It was noted at the time as acoincidence that the placings were exactly -the same as in the Flying Handicap at the Spring meeting. On the strength of this win Wapiti was backed for the Dunedin Cup, but he got fever in the feel, and had to be eased up. and though he started, he had no show with Vanguard. Trenton, and Minerva. There was a splendid field for the Middle Park Plate in 1886 — one of the strongest that,, ever contested the race, as will be admitted when -I remind my readers that Mr Lyons' 9 handsome Fallacy colt, afterwards known as First Lord, won by a couple of lengths from his stable companion Apropos, and that such, fast colts as Ruby and Artillery were amongst the starters. First Lord took some driving along, but he was a splendid youngster, one of the most powerful and speediest colts we have ever produced in the colony. The Midsummer Handicap that year went to the one-eyed Leon after a punishing finish with Captain Webster, and Maligner created a sensation by running clean away from his orponents in the. Craven Stakes, doing tho seven furlongs in the then record time of lmirt 28seo. and paying • £12 15s.- Mr Stead that year .made a special effort to down the Fallacy colt in the Nursery Handicap. The latter was burdened with the. heavy weight of 9.0, and Mr Stead started Sierra 7.8, Securus 8.5, -and Vinaigrette 7.0. Sierra got the best of a bad start, the luck being thus with the Yaldj .hurst team, bvt Fallacy's son wore her down j in a splendid finish, and though he himself: got „pipped on the post by Tarantalus 6.5, . the honours of the race wore all with the i Otago representative. I had alrrost forgotten [ to mention that it was in this year that the ' Midaunomer meeting was first extended to tw.g

Says. Tho next season the club collared Boxing Day and New Year's Day as the dates of the meeting, and once more a splendid lot of horses gathered. Maxim and Gipsy King, ,ivho fought out tho Plate, were top-notehera, and the company generally was exceedingly good, though, strange to say, the Midsummer Handicap that time lay between two very moderate horses whose light weights brought them home. I refer to Patrician 6.3 and ■perwenter 6.0, who ran a dead heat. Patrician winning by a length in the decider. ,Titbit, a very fast horse up to, say, a mile, .pulled off tho Craven Plate, and paid £18 13s 6d. Going back to January in the following season, "and bemg contented with one day, the club had the luck to get a splendid race in the Middle Park Plate, since Carbine was left at the po3t, and had to show some of his wonderful galloping power in order to catch that smart little" filly Ravenswing. He did it, but in winning by half a length Carbine was compelled to cut the record to lmin ls£sec. Mr Webb started both Rithy 7.10 and Spi'ingston 6.0 in the Midsummer Handicap in tho hope of beating Russley 9.6, who was voted a good thing, and Bush Inn triumphed most decisively over Yaldlvurst, for at the finish Mr Webb's chestnuts had the race to themselves, and a genuine go between the stable companions ended in Springston heating Ruby half a length, and paying £47 •17s 6d. The most memorable race of the day, however, was the Craven Stakes. St. Ives 6.10 ought to have won, but T. Budclicomb, then a young fellow, incautiously let Buby 7.13 get up on the inside, and this resulted in Ruby winning by a head in a race the time for .which siands as the seven furlonffs' record even to this day. The Hon. G. M'Leaji is one of the best losers we have ever had in the colony, but he was a, little vexed at getting dished in this particular race, as he realised that the advertisement of the record, which his horse had earned, so far as the galloping went, would have been of great value to the Warring ton stud at the yoai'lix-g sales. Buddicomb freely confesses that he was ont-generalled by Derrett. He can well afford to make the admission, for at the liTAG he was only a boy, and since then he has had many revenges. In 1889 the Middle Park Plate was won by that slashing colt Dunlreld, who was thought such a lot of by Dan O'Brien that Derrett was put up v.t exactly a stone overweight, despite which feofc he played with Wolverine. Chudleigh, and Adulation at the finish. The Midsummer Handicap, generally regarded as an open race between R.ivenswing 7.3, Wolverine 7.9, and Ruby 7.6, found th& whole three rather badly beaten, for Dudu 7.5 won and paid £16 iOe, and the member that gave her most trouble was little Vandal 6.0. Dudu was ihe outsider of the whole par&y. The Craven Stakes that year also resulted in a surprise. Sir G. Clifford securing a popular win with Golden Crest 6.12, who won by a length and a-half from Ruby 7.15 in the fast time of lmin 23sec. This brings us to a comparatively recent period, and it will be a sufficient reminder of intervening wins and losses if I simply tabulate the winners of the two leading races. The following table shows what horses have in recent years won

'.I he Midhle Park Plate.

In Rose Argent's year Moraine started favourite. Both belonged to Mr Stead. They ran out tho finish independently, however, and the Musket filly beat the fast but xihreliable sou of Miss Fiat by a neck. Flonie, carrying 31b overweicrht to secure the services of White, was favourite in her year, and she beat Pallissr by a nsck. Jt was a weak field. The 1892 race was le.^arded as an open one as between four of them, though Wakawatea 7.9 was decidedly favourite. Vogengang 7.7 won by a head from Slcpniak 8.0, and the favourite was a poor third. Strowan, starting in his year at little better than level money, got home only a nsck in front of the outsider .Persuasion, and Response was a good third. Beadonwell ran that year and finished fifth. In 1894 backers selected that erratic colt Wolf's Crag as favourite, and in an indifferent field he ended fourth, Lakeshell winning by a neck from Neroli. Mr Stead had that splendid colt Bloodshot available in 1895, and as he was in a class by himself he made a onehorse raoe of it. Golden _Vale and Nautilus Shell filling the places. Next year Bloodshot .won again, beating Belle Glair three lengths. ..It was owincr to the opposition of the " black , and red " filly that backers of the favourite .■got a dividend of £2 us. Gold Medallist

.. spoilt the ra6e in 1897. C4oldleaf and Argon .were the only cues that started against him, and their only chance was that he might drop dead. He didn't. Jn 1898 the race was - even n. worse one. being completely paralysed •by the presence of Conqueror. The moderate , Falka was the only one to oppose Mr Stead's , fine colt, and the £2 invested on Conqueror was duly shorn of the 10 per cent., and handed back to those persons who had vainly hoped that someone would put £1 on Falka. Last year lcoked also like a good thing for Mr Stead's candidate, Courtier, but, his temper being somewhat uncertain, backers were content to go slow, and his price was £1 11s 6d — or rather that would have been his price -if he had won. What happened was that thte equally-uncertain Dundas took it into his head to gallop, and Avon somewhat easily ,by a length and a-quarter. This year Mr Stead had his compensation in the easy victory that Screw Gun obtained over hip solitary opponent. This makes the ninth win for the Yaldhurst stable. Nine out of 17 is not a bad record. I now show the winners of-

Thf, Midsustmhe. Handicap.

'As already hinted, this summer meeting has been somewhat of a movable feast, dodging about in several places in the raohig calendar. . The 1894- meeting Avas the last of the January . celebrations. Then it was held at the beginning of February, and that arrangement lasted <until 1898, when the meeting was again enlarged to two days, and held on February 18 and 19. Even yet the club has not quite succeeded in its object of bringing large fields ■together: still, there was some excellent facing this year, and the hoTses were all found as near an. approach to first-class as could be mustered in any part of the colony. "';'?Tfie nresenee of Screw Gun and Blazer would

lift any meeting lo importonce, and the handicap horses were a representative lot. On public form Ben Farley was hardly the horse to pick for the Midsummer Handicap. Last season this doubly-sired horse ran a dead heat •with Battery at five furlongs on the Ohoka course, and won two seven-furlong welters at Riccarton, and in tho earlier stages of the current season Tom Sheenan has been satisfied to keep to the secondary handicaps. In these, however, Ben Farley has evidently improved his condition, and now this iiseful gelding promises to follow in the example of his relative Vogengang. From all that I can learn it was on condition that Ben Farley won the Midsummer. The others may have been well, but he stripped "cherry ripe," as the paying goes, and I compliment my old friend Sheenan on the result, wishing him the luck to find in Ben Farle3>- a worthy successor to Vogenga/ng. who, as most persons remember, won the Middle Park Plate, the C.J.C. Champagne, and tiie Wellington Cup, and was certainly a good horse. Blazer represented Dunedin worthily on each day. It was distinctly & creditable performance on his part to^win the Craven Stakes under the burden of 10.2, and backers were fully warranted in fancying him for the Champion Plate in spite of the opposition of Screw Gun. Mr Stead's crack beat him, and so far as I can learn beat him on their merits— there being no suggestion of a fluke; but Blazer ran a good race, and it is no dif credit to him to be downed after making the best horse in the colony stretcn himself. What sort of a race would the Champion Plate have been without the Otago champion ?

!890— Itnse Ardent, 3.yrj... 9 2 iS9l— Florrie. 2>ws ... 7 10 1892 — Vog-r.ean;.', 2yrtS ... 7 7 i893-Rfcm«a'i, 2vrs 7 5 S94— L>kesh(.-lj, '3yig ..' 8 4 1595-3)iootishnt, 2yrs . 712 189?;— B!oo ishnt, Syrs .'97 IBS7— G-jM Medallist, 2yrs * 3 IB9S— Conquerov, 2vts ..8 3 1899— 3Jiu:da-, 3yvt.' ... S 11 1900— Screw Cm, Sy fB ... 9 7 1 17S £11 30 0 1 IJi 2 S 6 1 303 4 2 0 3 ](SJ 2 3 6 1 m 3is 0 I ICJ 18 0 1 3fi* 211 0 1 15 14 0 ] 21 0 18 0 1 lift, 3=B 6 1 2(te 1 1 0

JB9l>-SnHan,syrs ... 9 2 1891— Piiroe Warden. Syr. 712 JBfl2-Cruchfi6ld,affed ... 713 3893— LauncestoB, 3yra ... 8 3 189<— Reynovd. 4yrs . 7 0 1895-Ladv Zetland, agefl 9 0 1896— Lady 2>.tland, ai?ed 812 1897— 11. of Zetland, 3yrs 7 12 1898— Mountebank, 3yrs.. 7 5 1899— Altair, 3yrs 8 6 1900— Ben Farley, 4yrs ... 7 1 240 £4 7 2 3S 5 13 2 39 4 5 2 40 2 38 2 44J 610 2 37i 214 2 38 3 17 2 37g 4_B 2 39g X 0 2 37? 2 7 2 368 10 0 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 0