IN A NUTSHELL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2623, 22 June 1904, Page 50

IN A NUTSHELL.

— T'ne Viclonan trotter Austeihtz has !>cea sold to go to India.

— St. Amant and Pretty Polly are boh members of the No. 14 family.

— The Victorian hght-woight r:dei E. Turner recently loft for Amcric?. — H«ijdn ha 3 been scratched lor both the Melbourne National Steeples anel Hurdles.

— The Southland &poxtsmsn Mi J. Tenrant, who recently left ior Auotialia, took a couple of hunters across with him.

— The hurdilc-raccr Maimoiit hes been suppoiteel to win the two Clips docideel during th-j Victorian spnng campaign.

—Mr S. H. Gollau's Tiraillerie produced a colt to Bill o' Portland at the Cobham shid on April 22, anel visited Cellar. — The well-known gelding St. Denis changed OTMiorsiiip l?sb week, but will continue to be an mmate of R. Elhs's stable.

— Haphazard, a three-yeai-old gelding by Bloodshot, was amongst the winners at the Aspendale meeting on June 1.

--The crsck Irish-bred filly Pretty Pcliy was oonside.red 101b better than St. Arnant, when the pair were racing as two-yeaT-olds.

— Canteen is once more in activs commission, and has thickened out and freshened \\p a good deal as the result of his lespite from track work.

—At the Portsmouth Park (Eng.) meeting on May 4 a Trenton gelrjlmg name:! Federation scored in a three-mile steeplechase from, four others.

- - The one-time well-known 'chaser Domiiio, who included in his victories a win in the Car Ifie.d G.N. Steeplechase with 13.5 an his back, was recently elestroyed owing to meeting with an accident.

— A name has been sought throughout the colony for the Medallion — Patrie filly, and perhaps Emblem, Reminder, or Reminiscence would fill the bill.

— Pallas was sent south to his owner's station at Tapanui last week. He i3to be jogged E-bout the road=, and will probably spoit silk again in the spring. — A Paris cable message states that in the Grand Prix race on Sunday 13 horses started. Ajax winning easily by ha.t a length. Governant finished fourth.

— At the Auckland Racing Club's meetings thi3 season the sum of £156,593 has been handled by the totalisator people, or an average of £12^045 for each day's racing. — Elgin, the two-year-old filly taken to Australia by Mr F. Leslie, won a Maiden Plate at the Aspendale meeting on June 1. She went out second favourite at 2's to 1, and beat nine others.

— One of the lines' laid by Mr J. Loughlin last week in connection with the New Zealand Cup was 900 to 22 Halberdier. It is understood that the commission was worked on behalf of the stable.

— Nominations for the C.J.C. Grand National Steeplechase, the Grand National Htirdle Eace, the Winter Cup, and other events on Riccarton National programme close on Friday, June 24

— The well-known Victorian trainer Jas. Scobie has no less than 13 of his stiing engaged in the Melbourne Cup, amongst them being Emir, F. J. A., and Sweet Nell. Is James superstitious?

— In givmg a hst of the Eon-performers engaged i n the New Zealand Cup a northern papei: makes the slight cisror of including Mc-rry-go-round, who was amongst tho starters at the last Oamaru meeting. — Ostry, a five-year-old gelding by Osterley out of the Huon mare Daphne, arrived from Melbourne last week, and goes into E. M'Kewen's stable. The newcomer looks a gocd sort, and won a couple of small races in slow time when racing across the pond.

— A Melbourne cable sitates that Haydn has been allotted 12 5 in the V.R.C Grand National Steeplechase, Colonel Shilinski heau!* g the adjustment with 12.10. In the Grand Nationa.l Hurdles Haydn's impost is 10.9, Colonel Shilinski being again at top with 12.5.

— Prior to his win in the Derby the London Field referred to St. Araant as a "thorough rcgue," and discarded him for the blue ribbon on principle, even though the race was to ho run on the Epsom course, "where man rogues have run so well in the past."

--The W.A.T.C.'s (West AusteaJia) gross receipts last year amounted io £34,387, and the profits totalled £14,626, which was nearly £1500 more than the previous year. The sum of £27,087 was expended: on improvements to the course and buildings during the yeaa\

— Since -Ayrdale has been in Indira lie has ca.rner3 distinction in the show ring by taking a first prize as a weight-carrying hunter. Covenant Maid, who was taken to the lancll of Rujahs s.nd rice in tha same boat as Ayrdale, ran second in a race shortly after her arrival.

— Mr J. Samuels, the one-time Dunedin penciller, won the principal sprint event at the A.J.C. Birthday meeting with Regio, a four-year-old gelding by Medallion — Welcome Queenie. Regio apparently can hurry over a short course, as he won easily by six lengths after casting the sis furlongs behind in 1.14|.

— The Relic, one of the last of Grand Flaneur's stock, put up an attractive performance on the second day of the A.J.C. Birthday meeting by easily beating 12 others over a, mile and three furlongs in 2.22£. The Relic is out of the Trenton mare Little Widow, and claims an engagement in the Melbourne Cup. —In looking over the results of a recent Randwick meeting the writer noticed that a new fa&hion in equine nornencla,turrei has been created by a.v owner named Mr T. Dri&coll. whoso horse Driscoll annexed one of the races on the card. We shall ne^t be treated to Mr Jones's b h Jones, Mr Smith's b h Smith, etc.

— The imported G-allinule horse Condor, •who was doing good work at Randwick recently, burst one of Ms hoofs, and is to be retired to the stud. Condor had greatly impressed the touts by his galloping, and as he is by the same sire as the crack Pretty Polly, his appearance under silk would have been fraught with a great deal of interest

— An Auckland wire states that the Auckland Racing Club stewards, after exhaustively inquiring into the protest against Kaiteie, winner of the Pakurangi Steeplechase at last Saturday's meeting, on the ground of not being qualified uwder the conditions for hunters' races, declared the race off and oidered a refund of all money invested. — The Australian fielder Mr E. Heppel, who recently visited this colony with some clever "long tails" in the shape of The Hermit atnd Nai-row Escape, stated on his letiiTii to Australia that, judging by what he saw of tho totalisator in- New Zealand, he would like to s*e it introduced into Australia, provided the fielders were allowed to compete with the machine.

— The Soutli Canterbury Jockey Club has reapnointed M.r Henrys handicapper to the club Tit a salary of £30 per meeting, and has also decided to -pny the starter £7 79 per meeting-. Surely this latter figure rcacta small, unless the chib can procure a competent man locally, but a, seven-guinea main woulcß probably" only be capable of nullifying the £30 nißin's adjustments

— The Flying Fox colt Gouvenrat, pnor io leaving Ftpucp to compete in, the Derby, yon a mile racs fcr throe-year-olds in lmin 38 2-ssec and had a gcor.ll bit to sparo at the finish Ths race was worth 3539soves, and it was paobably the form in this race, taken 111 conjunction with his eerher disx^lays. that caused the colt to ccrjie high favour ffir the IJlue Pubbon, iv

't.Vlli {lie criVo inicunel v^ Lc firishcd sccon3 hst. — The following nre diaweis of placed holies iii latt"i '.ail's Xo 1 co'isultn''rn 01 tho Pi nice of Waif"? Stakes, urn ?t Rsindwick O'i June 6, in. which there ■vve/e 50,000 tickets ai> o-j e?ch, fully — The Rehc, core 11. Tc v.nsend, 330.x Balhurst s'reet, SyJucy, £JO00; S'r Lconaid, S Hcinsen, C.'lecVma. Hotel. High street. Yea. Victoria. £1240, Refuge Bay, A. R. Tenipleton, travelling shceiJ, St. George, Queensland 1 , JE7SO. These amounts aie net. — The well-known sportsman "Mr J. Tustum." left for Melbourne by this week's boat with a shipment of draught stallions for tha Victorian market, and hopes to be back again in time for tkf> National mesti g. Two ot his siring m Phaelo'.lis pud Trentbridge have been sent to Riccaiton io go in D. MoTagiian'rf slab'e, ard the balance have been thrown oufe of commission. Mr Tristram inform^ the writer that all 'his h0r903 are in tue private sale h*t. — The New Zea'and Metropolitan Trotting Club's tot.il receipts last year amounted to £13,963, and the expenditure (including stakes, £8676) totals £13,9?9. Included in this is tho cost of the people's staiid £1127, cost of furniture and impro%ements to grouxd £500. The p mount expended to date on permanent buildirgp, etc , amounts to £3970 The assets (after writing down bvuldmgs, etc., £2435) total £8217 ; including a bank balance of £1232, and a fixed deposit of £500. — The following are the drawers of placed horses in Tattersall's No. 1 Consultation on. the Brighton Plate, run at Brighton, Tasmania, on June 6. 25,000 tickets of os each, fully subscribed: — First, Southern Cross Victoria Syrdicate. care of Mr Halloran, 113 Swan street, Richmond, Victoria, £1600; second, Winchester Belfast Company, care of J. Senior, Wood's Point, Victoria, £000; third, MerseyIca, John Peters T. Foley, Matin gaturoto, Auckland, New Zealand, £400. These amount 3 aro net. — In the House of Commons recently Mr George Montague asked the Postmaster-general whether his attention had been called to tha fact that recently a Marconi instrument hact been set up on Newmarket heath for the purpose of distribution of news; and, if so, what Steps he proposed to take to put a stop to similar action m ihe future. Lord Stanley, in reply, said that his attention had been called to the fact that endeavours have been made to distribute raring results by means of wireless telegraphy, and he was in communication with persons concerned. — The master of Mill Park revels in his little joke, and says "Javelin," he played one off the other day on another well-known owner, who has the reputation of being a bit of a wag. Mr Miller had won a race with Pin, at Bendigo, by a head. "Well," he said, "I've urn a few dead heatg, but I think that's the closest thing that was e^er won straight out!" "Not a bit of it," said the other. "Why, haven't you seen races won by half heads, and noses' The judge gave this a head!" "Yes," replied Mr Miller; "but it was only a Pin's head!" The joke has been kept up, acd now, whenever they meat, if Mr Miller refers to Pin the other fellow sets the needle! — At" Chester races (.England) one day recently a curious sight was seen. A brougham was observed being dragged across the Roodee without a horse, by a mob of 500 people. The brougham was hoisted over trie rails on to the course, turning a somersault, righted on to its wheels again, dragged on across the course, hoisted over the other rails, righted on to its wheels again, and sent helter skelter down the banks of the Deen into the river. It was said to have been occupied by bookmakers who had not liquidated their liabilities, and, be this as it may, it, is a fact that there was an individual in the carriage throughout the wla>le of its exciting transit from the ring to the river. By the time the vehicle had got into midstream this individual, apparently none the worse, managed to get out, swim ashore, snd escape. —Sines his return to Australia Mr E. Heppel, the well-known member of Tattersall's Club, Sydney, has been giving a lew opinions to the Australian press about our land, and tha Town and Country Journal states: While in the Land of the Moa Mr Heppel attended several race meetings, and was enabled, therefore, to see the action of the totalisator. While the machine has many opponents among the ranks ox the ringmen, Mr Heppel, as a bookmaker, would welcome its introduction here, provided, of course, that the fielders were allowed to compete with it. That it cannot affect the layers of the odds is shown by the fact that there are a number in New Zealand, and all have plenty of money. The returned visitor attended tho trotting meetings, and was much struck with the volume of betting transacted in connection with them.

— The Manchester Sporting Chronicle, of April 29, says: — For some time past the competition between telegraphic agencies concerned in the quick despatch of result messages from race meetings has been wonderfully keen, to the extent that telephones, telescopes, bicycles, and even an adaptation of the Marconi apparatus have been introduced in the services. The various systems have been utilised at Newmarket this spring, and the stewards of tho Jockey Club quickly realised the possible danger which threatened their meetings from a financial point of view. Consequently tho strenuous efforts to improve upon the arrangements of the postal telegraph authorities is viewed with the greatest disfavour by the Jockey Club, whose officials will put down with a strong hpnd attempts to forestall the legitimate use of the public wires.

— One ofsthe interesting papers read at ths recent meeting of the National Academy of Sciences, in Washington, was a description of researches made by exploring parties sent out by the American Museum, of New York, as the result of a gift of ]5,000d0l made by the late William C. Whitney, for the purpose of learning the prehistoric atory of the horse 011 tho American Continent (says the Breeder ar>cl Sportsman). The paper was read by Professor Henry F. Oaborn, of Columbia University. The explorations have been carried on for three, years, and have resulted in a number of discoveries of great interest and value to zoologists and palaeontologists. It is clearly demonstrated! that the horse was siot, as claimed by horse historian Wallace, a natue of Arabia, but was on the American Continent before the birth of history as the companion of the prehistoric man.

— Nothing gives greater pleasure, says an English writer, than the tempering of justice with mercy, and turfites of all classes will ba delighted that the Jockey Club has seen fit to withdraw the "warning-off" ban so far as Rickaby and Lester Reiff are concerned. In the case of ths latter this is not, perhaps, a. matter of much moment, for, owing to nig weight, race-riding meant a life of severe deprivation, and. having settled down as a farmer m California, he is not in the least likely 10 wish to return to England even were it known that 3iis license would be restored to him. But with Rickaby the case is altogether different. During his period of "rus'iration" he has remained faithful to his beloved Newmarket, and the notification that he is at liberty to use the famous heath again doubtless means that at no very distant date he will be allowed once more to follow his vocation. All who admire good horsemanship will hope that such may be the case.

— The Government Prize, run at Vienna, is a race valued lOOOsovs, for four-year-old colt* and upwards, over n distance of a mile ar.ci a-half. Tljic Ausln.au Governmeutj by giving

the lOOOsovs of the prise, secure the first claim to the winner for another 500sovs, the second claim, under the same conditions, falling to the Hungarian Government, but the owner has the right to use his horse on the flat, if the winner is a four-year-old, till tho end of the next year ; but if the winner is a five-year-old or upwards, till the end of the season. The Government c'aims only horses of perfect constitution, without fault, to be used to breed halfbreds. A Government Prize, wi.h the savie conditions, but the first claim secured by the Hungarian Government, is to be found at the Budapest autumn meeting. The winner of the last Government Prize at Vienna was Monte Chris+o, a four-year-old son of Matchbox out of See Mee. He was claimed by the Austrian Government.

— In appearance, Pretty Polly suggests her Stockwell descent, though she is of the Oxford line of Birdcatcher in tail male. Still, she lias three crosses of Stockwell, and all the commanding size and power of the best of the family. She is on more massive lines than Sceptre, and is probably not quite so high at ihe withers or on the leg. Her quarters are much bigger, however, and she carries far more substance than Sceptre ever did. Both are such grand mares that it would bs invidious to make a comparison, but Pretty Polly has in many ways a masculine character, and anyone seeing her for the first time at some little distance would probably take her for a colt. .Her bone is immense, and for a filly of such great- substance she carries a considerable amount of quality. Major Loder's filly goes like a piece of machinery, and, curiously enough, she does not appear to be exerting herself much when she is beating a field of horses ■with consummate ease. Indeed, says the London Field, her gallop is most deceptive, as she is really going far faster than she appears to be.

— Germany has been added to the list of countries where betting is considered an essential factor of the welfare of the turf (says the London Sportsman's Continental correspondent). Racing is a national industry, and, notwithstanding the puritanical objections raised, against all kinds of gambling in the land of the Kaiser, the Imperial sign manual has been attached to a law which legalises financial operations in connection with sport. Certain grants have been made by the Government to race societies for the benefit of breeders, and conditions have been laid down which, with the_ influence of those who are interested in racing, will tend to revive a sport which, froze, statistics, appeared to be dying out in Germany. The heavy imposts of 20 per cent, on the receipts of the totalisator are maintained for the moment, but one-half of the amount — formerly paid to the collectors of the inland revenue — will be retained by the different race societies for the increase of the added money offered to owners. It was discovered that tho restrictions placed on betting had simply served to advance the interests of those who had opened offices for the alleged purpose of executing commissions. The new Betting Act endeavours to clos<» all these offices, and to restrict turf speculation to the racecourse, or rather to the totalisator, since the old prohibition against professional bookmaking still exists.

— No handicap has been more prolific of big performances than the Kemuton Jubilee Stakes, -wOiich lias been won six times in 17 years by horses carrying 9.0 and upwards. The greatest performance in the race -was that of Misting; who, as a five-yeax-cld, -won with 10.0 in. th» saddle. The aohievemeirt (says an Eqglislt paper) ranks with the very highest liaJwEeap TJerformscnces of inodccra times, andS pei&aps Vespasian's Chesterfield Cup victory under 10-4 is its only rival ; but the two per formsnees oocurred at such different dates that they cannot well b<3 compared. Sheen's CeGarewiteh under 9.2. Plaisanterie's Cambridgeshire, as a three-year-old, with 8.12; St. Gatira's Cesarewiteh, in which th& colt, t<hen a ihrec-year-old, carried 8.12; I»o, Fleche's Cambridgeshire a-nd Liverpool Aninnm Cvp — ehe won. the £rst as a lhree-yeo.r-old with 8.10 and the Aintree race as a four-year-old with 9.6: and Baroaldine's Northumberland Plate under 9.10 axe the biggest winning handicap performances we have seen -rway from Kempton Park. At the Suubury in closure, however, allowing that Minting' s record stands out by itself, there have been half a dozen notable performances in the Jubilee Stakes an 3 oka in the Duke of York Stakes, and the hc-roe3 hereof axe Bandrigo. Nuntho t -pe, Orvieto, Victor Wild, Sceptre (Duke of York Stakes, & i). and row Ypsilanli, who won gallantly v/ifh a 101b penalty. — Last yea,r Pretty Polly was quite 101b in front of St. Aniant — and, ergo, of ali the other colts — but her stamina has not been proved as yet. and (says sn English writer) it may be that she will not show smc-li marked superiority on a course o^a. mile a.nd six furlongs. Still, there seem 3to be no reason why she should not stay. Gallinule brs already been xesponsdb'.e for a St. Lager winner in Wildfowler, and Pretty Polly's dam, Admiration, owns somo fine strains of staying blood. Admiration was* by Saraband, a grsjidson of Doncaster, out of Gaze, by Thuringiaji Prince, who ■was a sprinter rather than & stayeT ; but Gaze's daon, Eye-Pleasear, w-as by Brown Bread, a. son of Weatherbit, and ihia b'ood is so partial to a long i-oursa that it will probably more than correct ihe softer strain of Thuringian Prince. Moreover, Wallflower, the dam of Eye-Pleaser,- was by Ra-taphm, iaa:d this bring 3 in another strain of very stout bleed!. Again, come of the 'GalLinules have been good stayers, thoogi it is Ihe- case that a majority of the bestof them seem to do best- at from a mile to a mile ami GaHinule was himself by Isonomy. out of a Hermit mare, whose dsin was of VoltigTur descent. Isoimmy was. of course, one of the greatest stayers of modern times, but his sire, Sterling, was a miler, and though c majority of his descendants are at home on long courses, they are not quite such natural gtayeirs* as the St. Simon family. --"R. H. C " writes ps follows to the London Sportme Times: — "You will find on reference thsit Moifa« is descended from the same mars as St. Amant. through his strp- Natatc-r, a horse I bred in New Zealand. Katator, by Traducer (by Tlhc Libel — Arethusa) out of Wnterwitch. Watcrwitoh, by Cn.mdTlan out of Mermaid, by King Tom out of Waterwitch, by The Flying Dtitohmaoi cut of Evening Star. by Touchstone, and so on. Mermaid was bred by Baron Rothwhild, and found her way out to New Zc-ala.nd, where slie threw some brilliant stock to Tradu<cer, though to other h cases eh? was no great succc-3*. I use the word brilliant, because, thoug'i fihey had great speed, they could not bo depsnc'ljd; on to give their full lunning if oollared. I owned or had to do with three of her produce by Traducer. and there were none of them quite dependable, though they took a lot o£ catcbing. On one occasion I saw Malice, one of them, when she was winning by lengths in a canter, stop inside the rails to kick a.nd walk in with the crowd. Lurline, 'another of her fillies, was probably Hip best mare that ever ran in New Zealand. She was sole) to pro to Australia, where she produced Carebin, by The Peer. Barebin was "the best horse of his ys'ar iv Australia. He was sold to the Unit-ed States, where he was lor several years at the top of the list of winning sires." Our stud books Mr S. Nosworthy with being the broecfar of Watator. —M. IT. yon Oertzen, the ciniable senior steward of the German Jockey Club, has (says tbe Sportsman's continental correspondent) nttemp+cd to give his colleagues in the Ec-ichstag a clear and concise definition of betting. He explained thab there was nothing inmioxal in the fact of betting on horse-rac-

ii.a; than it was only natural that those who vele fond of liorsPs ard aaeiug should back their lespeotive opinions with money. Gamb'mg, wheie blind hazard prevailed, was totally different from turf speculation, wheTC a certain knowledge of the subject and the aptitudes of the horses was neceisai-y. Tho same opirnons were expressed by the Cabinet through General yon Poc"ibxelski, who gave some very important statistics respecting the decline not only of tie turf but also of an important branch of national industry sires tho intervention of the Inland Revenue authorises and the Lncreased taxation imposed on the "tota'.isator." The proposition to devote onehalf of the impost— 2o per cent.— to tho encouragement of racing was, of course, opposed by ike Radical party, for they ooasider the turf an aristocratic pastime. General yon Fodbielski ridiculed such an idea, and offered as an example the wonderful following of democracy racing in France h'!»s secured. He m-'e'l his colleagues in the. Reichstag to examine tiie question before them senc.us..y, so as to eixoiuage Ihe Government to take stiingent measures in the mtere&t of public morality for tna abolition, of all tho agencies where beitmg v\as carried on. . ' —Probably horseracing has been m existence ever since man undertook the management of horses, for it is the nature of a man to join in trials of strength with his associates , but scientific or planned racing— elaborately arranged contests with which we are now. so familiar— is a comparatively modern pastime. Hcrseraeing as we know it to-day, says an exchange has been elaborated from these simple trials' of strength between friends and neighbours many centuries ago. In Whyte's '"History of the Turf," it is stated that the earliest mention of running horses is of those in the ninth century, sent by the founder of the rcyal house of Capet m France as presents to King Athelstan, whose sister he was soliciting in marriage. King Athe'stan, who reigned in the ninth century, it is recorded, received as a gift several running horses of German breeding. The King is said to have shown a great love for the horse, and, in his time, running horses were much prized, so much so that none were allowed to be sent out of the kingdom except as royal presents. Athel3ta-n's liking for horses was so well known that he received many gifts of fine animals, therefore it is reasonable to presume that at the time of his death he was in jiossession of a numerous stud. Towards the close of the eleventh cecntury, during the reign of Henry 11, races for horses were established at Smitbfield marked wi*h a view of testing the capabilities of these animals liefore purchasing them. A holy monk named Fitz-Stephen, who acted as secretary to Archbishop A'Beckett in the time of Henry 11, ■*vro!.e florid descriptions of the racing at Sinithfi: d, and which go to prova that iac s organised" under constiiuted authority took place there.

— One point about the action of Sievier v. Duke which should not be allowed to pass unchallenged is the wholly misleading deaciintio.i of it as "Ihe Turf Slander Case." It wus so described in most of the papers, an.-l as it really had nothing to do witih the turf I (writes the "Special Commission ear" of the London Sportsman) think that all who are interested in recing have a very good' right to pretest against such an unwarrantable connection of the turf with these wretched ecanckla. the more so as Mr Sievier's lacing transactions were never i'npaacJied snd afforded the one bright spot amid the -otherwise sorclld gloom. Ptrsonally, I never knew him except in his capacity of owner, trainer, and breeder of his blood-stock. The rsst of his life was outside my ken ; but there was such grit in him as regaids his horses in gtmeral, and Sceptre in particular, that I cannot think the chorus of absolutely unmitigated conctemnatioji is quite justified. Far be it from me to siiggest one word of palliation for the dark and dismal details cf the story that was unfolded in court, but there is some soul of goodness in things evil, and do one who saw Robert Sievier standing by Sceptre in the weishing-room enclosure after she had won the Jockey Olub Stakes for Mr Bass can really believe tliat he is so utterly callous, so utterly vithout a redeeming feature as Mr Justice Giantham and tli2 le.ic3:ng articles agree m declaring him to bo. Anyhow, this much is plain — that so far from the turf leadiug directly cr indirectly to any slander or scandal in Ibis matter, the turf did, in fact, very nearly enable Mr Sievier to establish hirase.lf on a solid bHsis of capital legitimately ea.rned through slpkes won and horses sold for enormous sums. Let it be clea.rly understood?, then, that to call the recent action "The Turf Slarader Case" is a gross misnomer. Call it the "Raleigh Club Scandal," "The Monte Carlo Sla.nd.eT," ''Tho Ci'ids Slander," or anything else that is relevant, but a turf slander it was not.