IN A NUTSHELL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2400, 1 March 1900, Page 41

IN A NUTSHELL.

— Dunedin Cup, 21st March. — Dewey lias safely arrivod at Singapore. Derrett has had eight winning mounts in the Middle Park Plate. — Weights for the Dunedin Cup are duo tomorrow, the 2nd March. ' — Strowan, born in 1890, by Lochiel — Marion, won a race at Poverty Bay last week. — Charlie Newman has passed all the preliminary tests for the fourth contingent. — Roller, Renown, St. Brigid, and Temeraire are striding along well at Hawke's Bay. — Mr Stead has won the Middle Park Plate nine times; other owners eight times between them. — Cheap railway fares to Dunedin for the Cup meeting to be held on the 21st, 23rd, and 24th March. — No less a sum than £850 is to be trotted for at Tahuna Park on the 22nd and 28th March. — Collelo haa got Waterstone going again, Waterfall's handsome son being schooled over hurdles. — Country residents can see the Dunedin Cup and get back to their homes before the end of the -week. — Veneda has incurred a 10lb penalty in the Newmarket Handicap, which brings his weight up_ to 9.10. . . . -— Formosan, winner of the Lyttelton Plate, is by St. Leger out of Forme, the half sister to Multiform. ,— Mr S. Solomon has purchased a colt by Beadonwell — Britomart, and named the youngster Battler. — Mr.J. Clare, of Blacks, has turned Quickshot out, and brought Felina to Wingatui to be trained by M'Giness. — -Mars (Ingomar — Lyre), who has been having a lengthened spell, has bee» taken in hand again by Stewart Waddell. — Bob Ray,. the Sydney Derby winner, won the Flying Handicap at Albion Park (W. A.) races recently, carrying only 7.10. — Jadoo will have to carry 7.0 in the Newmarket Handicap, having incurred a 7lb penalty for winning the Oakleigh Purse. — War God, who injured one of his round' bones whilst being conveyed to Warwick Farm races, is reported to be almost right again. — Better engage hotel accommodation beforehand if yon desire to enjoy the Dunedin Cup meeting. The town will "be full and lively. — Amourette has been backed to win the Newmarket_for between £4000 and £5000 at 100 to 5. About Sequence 2000 to 100 was taken. — Alborak was retired fxom the Launceston Cup owing to splitting his hoof a few days previously. He was expected to start favourite. — Kridisdale occupied 2sec longer in negotiating the Launceston Cup distance than did 'P.lintlock last year, when the time was the record. , — The Tasmanian jockey, H. Roles, had four •winning mounts at Launceston. He steered Nikola and The Seaman in each of their double successes. — The Y.R.C's patriotic race meeting on the 14th February brought to the fund about £1500. Model, by Carbine, won the Loyalty Handicap. — The Tahuna Park Trotting Club's meeting is to commence on the 32nd March, the day after the Dunedin Cup. The second day is the 28th March. " — Wanganui Jockey Club is suggesting a uniform system ol hurdles. I should like to tnow particulars before expressing an opinion on. the proposal. — Waitio, -who is full sister to Mangaohane ' (the winner of the New Zeland Grand National in 188S), won the Hurdles and Woodthorpe Handicap at Rissington. — Eiridsdale is St. Albans-bred, and is remembered in Victoria chiefly because he was the horse who blundered against Auruni in the V.R.C. Derby of 1897. — Our old friend " Hotspur " is purposing, I believe, to leave for South Africa. If he does so he will carry with him the good wishes of all the sporting fraternity. — The Carbine gelding Cohort very easily accounted for the Gormanston Stakes on the first day of ihe Launceston meeting, but was twice unsuccessful on tho concluding day. — The Midsummer Handicap, the Middle Park Plate, and the Craven Stakes were established the same season as the New Zealand Cup. Please Uiink twice before you contradict me. —Mr W. A. Phillips, who commenced the promoting of sweeps on turf events in South Africa, and was known 'in that part of the world as the " sweep king," died recently in England. — The Treasury benefited to the extent of £13,694 19s 4d through totalisator commission last season. One hundred and forty-four permits were granted for races, which extended over 250 days. — Melbourne Sportsman says that the New Zealand-bred sire, Osculator, has filled out into a very fine horse. His foals at the Prestonville stud are remarkable for their size anibone, and are highly spoken of. ' — At a committee meeting of the Manawatu Racing Club, the question of a new racecourse was further discussed, and it was decided to call a special general meeting of the club to consider the question. — Yoxi can got your money put on to the Dunedin Cup or any other event at the meeting if you send it in time to the club's office in town, and if you strike a winner the dividend is sure and to the full amount. — Ben Trovato, the horse popularly supposed to be the sire of Ben Farley, won the Tahuna Park High-weight Handicap at Dunedin in 1890 — the race for which Miss George was favourite — and paid £13 7s. — It is stated that on his deathbed "%he late Duke of Westminster signalled for paper and pencil. He wrote that he wished a cheque for £1000 to be sent to the Officers' Families Fund, and that desire was carried out. —In the Woodthorpe Handicap at Rissington Te Ngaio, on whom George Collelo had the mount, collided with a post with such force that the rider was thrown heavily. Fortunately, however, he sustained but slight injury. — Argyle's win at Caulfield with 12.12 was a veryifine performance on the part of the Sydney horse, who has won six successive hurdle races, and the Indian buyer who secured him for SOOsovs before he started may be considered to have got a bargain. — The Melbourne Age of February lp writes : Merriwee continues in his work at Queenscliff to show signs of soreness, and those who fancy him for his engagement in the Australian Cup would be well advised if they delayed their investments on his behalf. — Sydney Mail says that the first Australian harvest was reaped in New South Wales on the site of tha Rosehill racecourse in December, 1798. History lias been ofter repeated since the first farm wjas turned into a racecourse, but the harvests were in gold, not in kind. — In -reference to a statement that Fleet Admiral had been backed for the Newmarket Handicap to win £2000, it is stated that this money was not taken for the owner, who, however, continues to receive satisfactory reports from Flemington as to the way hia horse is doing. — Sporting Review's corespondent writes: Though Daunt has beeni entered for the Autumn meeting of the Hawke's Bay Jockey Club, he ~has been having such an easy time of it lately that I do not expect him to show out in his old form should he be a participant in the racing at Hastings. r- Writing figm, Calcutta |q a friend in Mel-

bourne, Bob Piper says that he made a bold bid for the Viceroy's Cup on Vedette, but was beaten by a length. He states, however, that the same horse scored a win in the Turf Club . Cup, but finishing a bit wide, the judge gave it against him. — Sir William Ingram has resolved to retire from racing while the war lasts. His racing expenses, or, to be more correct, an amount equal to his racing expenses, will be handed over to the war funds. Sir William's best was probably Comfrey, with whom he won the Cambridgeshire of 1E97. — The V.R.C. general entries exceed last year's by 50. Seahorse is in the Essendon Stakes (w.f.a., one mile and a-half), the Australian Cup (8.10, two miles and a-quartei) L the All-aged Stakes (w.f.a., one mile), and the Loch Plate (w.f.a., one mile and three-quarters), be-.' sides the Bourke, AwUirnn, and Faiewell Handicaps, i — The Champion Plate was established in 1898, when Gold Medallist beat Mountebank, Mr Goodman's colt being knocked out over the • 30b. The distance was then one mile and aquarter. Last year, the course being reduced to seven furlongs, Blazer won, beating Dundas and Boreas for places. This year Screw Gun beats Blazer. — Psyche, dam of Ben Farley, is by Anteros out of the Towton mare Atalanta. She produced, amongst others, Vo^engang to Burlington in I&S9, Alcestis to Master George in 1892, Bogengang to Burlington in 1893, and Ben Farley to Burlington or Ben Trovato in 1895. Ben Trovato, probably the sire of Ben Farley, is by Apremont out of Flattery, therefore brother io Cajolery and half brother to Musketry. — Referring to .the Launceston Cup, " Martindala " says : The best of all the winners, in my opinion, was the winner of 1882, Stockwell, by St. Albans. What a beautiful colt he was, to be sure, and to see such a pair as he and Malua do a gallop at Randwick, I would be down at the tracks every morning at daybreak, no matter what the weather. Except the unlucky Sovereign, who went overboard from the City of Melbourne, I have never seen a colt that took my fancy so much as Stockwell. — At the first annual meeting of members of the Spoiting League of South Australia it was reported that the league is now well established throughout the colony, members of all registeied clubs having been enrolled. The committee in their report stated that the influence of the league at the last general elections for the House of Assembly was very marked, and in almost every instance the candidates who received its support were elected, with the result that there is now a substantial majority favourable to sport in both Houses of Parliament. — Rothwell, winner of the V.A.T.C. Alma Stakes, cost loOgs as a yearling, and is b3' 2<Teckersgai from Miss Mostyn, the dam of Mortyn. At the break-up of the Morphettville Stud there was some very sphited bidding for Miss Mostyn, and she Avas run to 750gs before she was knocked down to Mr S. Hordern, Mr C. L. M'Donald, who was acting for Mr W. R. Wilson, stopping at 650gs. Miss Mostyn was bred in England in 1885, pnd is by Uncas from Lady Mostyn, by Lord Clifden from Annette (bred' in America), by Scythian fiom Alice Carneal. Uncas, her sire, was a son of Stockwell. ! — '' Well, that is a nice jacket to go racing with," was the remark that greeted Richard. Chaloncr when the latter appeared in a shabby old cap ancl jacket that might have been any colour from crushed strawberry to chocolate, to weigh out for J3lythe and Tyne ior the Earlswood Hurdlo Handicap, at an English meeting recently. Chaloner's explanation was characteristic, and sent one's thoughts back a good many years. " I have only had the mare a few weeks," he said, " and they did not send ' any colours, but I remembered there was the guvnors Craig Millar jacket, so I routed it out, and this is it.'' — A correspondent of the Nelson Colonist gives particulars of the death of Pompom. The son of Legera was running out in a paddock at Spring Grove close to the railway line, and oru the approach of the special train from Nelsonconveying the country volunteers returning from Wellington after seeing the contingent off, the horse got excited, jumped an eight wire fence, and got on to tha railway line in front of the engine. After galloping, for a short distance, and coming to a culvert, which he hesitated to jump, the cowcatcher struck him with great force, and threw him across a fence into an adjoining paddock, death being instantaneoiis. —An old print referring to the first race meeting held m Sydney (on Hyde Park), says : Sydney races commenced October 15 (1810). All th 3 best horses in the colony were produced upon the occasion and some very good judges of horse racing pronounced that the horses were brought on in good style. It must here be lemarked that the breed of horses had become numerous, and both from the want of their general iitility and from the languishing state into which they had fallen, there were not then many good horses in the colony. The first race ball given by the gentlemen who were subscribers to the course took place on October ,15- — The Liverpool (England) Grand National cc-urse is admitted to be trying alike to horse and rider. When, therefore, it became known that W. Woodland, the trainer's youngest son, would ride Magpie in the Aintree contest some years ago, there were many people who prophesied the lad would be beaten long before the horse. Their prediction was not, however, verified. Though only 13 years and 8 months old, th 3 juvenile horseman not only negotiated the various obstacles, bttt contrived to have his mount placed fourth. Woodland, by this un- j doubtedly smart performance, gained the credit ! of being the youngest jockey that had ever i taken part in .the race mentioned, which is over a distance of nearly four miles and a-half. — " Tarquin " writes : Veneda's win in the Oakleigh Plate was apparently as big a sur- ' prise to those connected with hin: as to the general public. At least one can only infer such from the outside price at which he left the paddock. Certainly, he is said to have been backed by the stable at 100 to 4 and 100 to 5, but the commission executed in his fa-vour could not have been heavy. When oned looks back on a few of Veneda's early performances In is not surprised at his success, but he has "often failed on subsequent occasions when fancied, and this will account for his being, comparatively speaking, neglected on this occasion. Veneda, who is a full brother to that fraud Bridemark, gave us a taste of his quality when he beat Bobadil in the Oakleigh Purse two years ago. — Captain O'Kelly, the owner of Eclipse, -was an astute turfman and a desperate gambler, with a ready, biting tongue. Before he blossomed forth with the niighty Eclipse, he used to wager heavily on occasions, but was generally regarded by the English " swells " as a mere Irish adventurer. One of the leading turfmen of O'Keily's day once publicly offered a very large wager, which O'Kelly at once accepted, but before the bet was booked the "swell," after a "well-bred stare," shortly asked the buoyant Irishman " where his estates lay." "By the powers," replied the Irishman, " I hey the map of thim about me," and he produced a perfect roll of bank-notes to satisfy th 3 doubters. This story is on a par with one which is related of an old miser who lived near Doncaster, and went to a great land sale in his filthy rags and a hay band about his waist. He purchased in a large way, till the astounded auctioneers at last asked for security. "Here's tho cock; I've got the hen at home," replied the capitalist in rags, holding up a £100,000 Bank of England note— one of the few ever mndo t