SPORTING NOTES FROM AUSTRALIA.

Otago Witness, Issue 2428, 26 September 1900, Page 41

SPORTING NOTES FROM AUSTRALIA.

Br Ravenswoeth. MELBOURNE, September 11. T am dropping j-ou a short lettei this time, taking in the first day of the important A.J.C. Spring meetifig, leaving the other thiee dayi oi the fixtuie to be dealt with in mv next^

There has been nothing startling in the betting line since 1 last wiote, except, iijat Axaltsxer is now a 2 to 1 favourite ior the V.R.C. Derby, and Hautboy has been backed for the CaulVeld Cup ay 100 to 3. A.J.C. MEETING (FIRST DAY). The teature oi tne racing on tne opening day oi tne A..J.C meeting at xianawick on bd.uuaay last was me tuoceoo oi noibes nailing i:om Victoria, no lower ui-i.il uouj.* oi tne s^\. laces coming to Melbourne. xnib was a gieni •triumph ior tho ViCo, as it is usually the odier ,-vvr.y aooivD. x\'ol, omy ao isyewey uaiiiei'o, as a .uue, hold tneir own au^ a oit nioie at ■itanuwick, but tnsy leguiariy capture a jmmsfoer ot lmporcaiu e\enta ac Ciulneicl ana I'ltmingcon. V\ c only sent nuie ho±bes ovex ior i'tfie meeting, but as .taut .fiy, Jlaitsier, LaniCaster, Ampier, and bagauity were lncmueti, xhe team, it, will oe seen, was a good owe. U'iiougli -one chiei betting event v<as tuts jiipsom 'Jdancueap, tne race in winch most; interest centres outsiae oi Australia, is, i take it, the 'Derby, and 1 shall tnvjreicre aeai whii it nisi. As you iiave no cioubs learnt by cable, the AJeroy was won by xYU Kobeit Uir's xvUmfctuv, framed at Banarai, by Jitmeo Scooie, v/iio.na& a, wonderiully goott team tins season. M^itster is by the ai. oinion noiae Jiill ot x J orl.lcHKl '(imp.;, from Parley (imp.;, by Barcaldine, and ;-vvas ored by ills late Air xttauhew U'Shanassy, who sold mm as a yeaning to Snix Urr ioi SlOgs. He was, I fai-cy, me highest-priced yeaumg ot i^iat season, aud lie has turned oxit tne cheapest. Hi& loim as a xwo-year-old was not quite consistent, but it he did not win he rail well in eacli oi^ ins racet.. Jt±e "was not believed to be quite wound up tor the A.J.C Derby, as the V.il.U. Derby and Melbourne Cup were supposed to be the paiUctuar races xhat Ins owner nad his eye on. Xt la quite possible that J&alicuer rui^s Dotter when a bit above hiiuseii, ss v/ucji iw wjji ! ins rirst race last year ne v/a» not at aii | ifanc^ed, not beh-a wound up. i. ha\ T e an idea | 'i-hat all the Bill ot .toithuicLs have (.his cliarao--(.enstic. Though Hautboy's norm Vvfas_bo bad at the back enu ox the season, ac starred at 5 to 4 on for the A.J.O. Derby, Maltster oemg at tne nice price ot 3to 1. Hautboy is leporced to have had all tne famous, poush tor .-which 'x'om Payteu is famous, ana that, no tloubt, impiessed backers, but jMaitsier | played witn him at the finish, llauteasd, v/ho | linished tliird, was well backed at o to 1. She, like the other two, boasts the St. toimon oicod. l'aei-e were seven starters, and thieo *oi them, Lord Rudolph, Philhbeg, and Y.ar'labee, lell. Neither ever had a cnance oi | winning. j The Epsom Handicap, liin over a mile, I "brought out a big field. Ampler and Dandy 'had been pronounced favourites up to within a week ot the race, when Ampler, who Had been, backed by his reputed owner, .barney 'Allen, a bookmaker, to win £15,000 or JS2O.UOO, passed right out, and a couple oi days betore ,xh.3 race Dandy broke a blood vessel in his 'ihead while galloping. He also eased in one ibettmg, but at the finish came again and started favourite at 7 to 1, but/ Ampler kept 'at 20 to 1. As it turned out, both ran weii, Ampier 7.4 being the actual winner, with ICyauide 8.2 second and Dandy 9.4 and A\tld ■Lang Syne 7.13 a dead heat for third place. Tiie fWinner is by Far Niente (imp.), who looks 'like making a very successful sire, and is 'trained at Caulfield by J. Williams, rider of [Grace Darling in that memorable Catilfield ICup. Williams never has many horses, but '•he is a very successful trainer. ■'• The other two races that came to Victoria 'were "the Trial Stakes, won by Lancaster, and 'the Spring Stakes, won by Paul Pry. Bach 'started at even, money. Lancaster had very Uittle to beat, but the New Zealander did what Avas expected of him in. business-like style, 'San Fran and Barbarossa (the latter greatly -fancied) following him home. The only horses [backed against .Paul Pry tor the Spring Stakes ]{one mile and a-half, w.f.a.) were Tarqum and '^Vocalist. The others included Eiridsdale and The Chief, so the field was not a bad one. PTarquin got -second, so this confirmed the Adelaide form in the autumn. The other races 'on the first day were' the First Hurdle Race, by Oberon 9.3, who went out at 6 to 1, and the Kensington' Handicap, seven furlongs, ■won by Lord Clieveden 8.6, a son of •Xiochiel, who in a big field was second favourite ,to Butternut 7.10. The latter was never in it, and Lord Clieveden only beat Stellene 7.2 by a neck. S.A.J.C. RACES. The South Australian Jockey Club Spring meeting was finished last Saturday. The principal race was the Spring Handicap, one '.mile and a-half, which enabled Dirk. Hamimerhand 9.7 to score a comfortable win from 'Sunny Morn 7.10 and Fair Sex 8.10. Dirk ■Hammerhand was a great fancy of mine for the Melbourne Cup, but he has now incurred a slb penalty. Even with 8.5, he should run well, though some people think he will not stay out the journey. I still think he will. Trapper 10.2, by St. Swithin, took the Welter Handicap, and Otaheity, who won the Hurdle •Eace on the first day, was successful in the Second' Hurdle Race, carrying 11.13, The Steeplechase went to Suppl/ Jack 10.11, Sleight-of-Hand '10.9, who ifell at the last fence when heading, being remounted and finishing third. JChe two-year-old handicap, the Brighton Stakes, four and a-hali furlongs, was •won by Ritualist, who is a bay 'colt, by The Englishman from Convent, by Pretor. Stuart King was a starter, but with 10.2 up he ran nowhere. Princess Louise 6.7, winner of the concluding event, the Plympton Handicap, paid the fine dividend in the totalisator of £48 14s. She is by Clonard (son of Newminster), who once ran third in a Caulfield Cup.