NOTES BY AMATEUR.

Otago Witness, Issue 2808, 8 January 1908, Page 58

NOTES BY AMATEUR.

The series of ' evening 1 athletic meetings promoted by the Dunedin Amateur Athletic dub, which N bave been interrupted by the holidays, will be resumed on Friday evening- 'next, when an interesting number of events will be decided. The fifth of the series of evening athletic iaeetings will be held on Friday, January ' 17, with the following programme of events? — 75yds Flat Handicap" (D.A.A.C.), .Two-mil© Flat • Handicap, (open), Putting - the- Weight Handicap (open), One-mile •Walk Handicap (D.A.A.C.): The Presbterian -Bible Class "Summer School at Invercargill had a sports gathering under .amateur "'association rulee. First Ohuroh (Invercargill) Young Men's Bible .Class won' the trophy for the most po : nts 'during the day. The Slimmer School championship was won by J. E. Strachan, of t tawrence, with J. Davie, of Dipton, second. ] (Messrs Croker and Wallace had made excellent arrangements. 'It is hoped to arrange a. good contest at Masterton next ■Christmas. To hand from the secretary, copy of the iprogramme issued for the second annual sports meeting of- the Civil Service Harrier and 'Amateur Athletic Club, to be held^ot /the Caledonian Ground on. Saturday, January 25. ' An interesting list of events 'has been . arranged, including: — 100 yds Championship, first prize £3, second prize ' '£!', 100 yds Handicap. £2, £1; 220 yds Handicap, £2, £1; 440 yds Handicap (Bracelet), '£2, £l*j Half-mile Handicap, £2, £1 ; Oneamile Handicap, £2, £1 ; Two-mile Handicap, £2, £1 ; High Junro Handicap, £1 10s, ■15s; I«ong Jump, £1 ids, 15s; Pole Vault, £1 10s, 15s; Putting Shot Handicap, £1 10a, 15s; 120 yds Hurdles Handicap, £1 10s, 15s; Half-mile Walk, £1 10s, 15s. Entries close on Friday, January 17, with Mr W. G. Brown, hon. secretary, Telegraph Office, 'Dunedin. With the compliments of the hon. secretary of the Wellington Centre comes to ttiand the preliminary programme of the New Zealand championship meeting, to be held at Wellington on February 1. In teddition to the usual championship events, there will be three handicap races— 7syds, 800 yds, and one mile and a-half, — as well •»s a Centre Relay Bace of one mile. There .will also be a special attraction at Hio meeting in the shape of the All-round Championship', which will he contested for the first time. All entries for the meeting must be in by Saturday, January 18. addressed to the assistant honorary secretary, Mr B.»A. Guise, 80x^.89, Wellington. - Several amateurs performed well during 'the holidays. One noteworthy performance was that of W. F. Trembath, the Gore sprinter-, who has just :laim3 for inclusion in, the New Zealand team for the Australasian championships. Trembath won the 220 r-ds from scratch at the Caledonian meeting in 25 4-ssec, an<? the half, easing up, in 2min 4- 3-ssec. The latter performance sfampa him as a sonnc* ha-lf-miler. T should like to see Trembath measure strides with Hector Burk over the "half." ProtaHv we shall see sucT> a contest .it the Civil Service moetrn;; on .Ta'iupry ?5. Hector Burk rvipetrd .it t'^e Milton amateur sports on New Year*? Day, bnt did not perform un to "vnc^tatioiis. Thonsli - *unniner well in Vat Half.* he lacked titc

sprint necessary to beat, Foster in that event, who won in 2min 9 4-ssec. The D.A.A.C. purpose holding their 6ports meeting this season on a date to suit the New Zealand champion team as ifc passes through Dunedin en route to Hobart. It has not yet been decided which route the champions will take, but no doubt the council will see to it that the route will be via the Bluff.

Now that the holidays are over, athletes are setting down to steady "training in view of the Civil Service sports meeting on the 25th -inst. Great, interest is being taken in this popular club'fe second meeting, and a big attendance may be expected, seeing that it will afford the first opportunity of seeing all ' the Otago and Southland cracks competing this season. Large entries are al- ; ready assured, and competitors are expected i from all the country clubs, while in addition Southland will send up a big contingent. The 100 Yards Championship Race will be one of the star items of the programme, a big field being assured for this valuable race. Exceptional interest —'11 be"" given the meeting by the fact that we public fliave the opportunity of witj nessing the first meeting .of Trembath, the 1 Oore champion, arid Hector Burk. Tne Southland runner has definitely to, ' be a competitor at the meeting, while Burk is in steady training with a view of- meeting the champion from the south. Burk'a performances over a quarter and half mile are too well" known to require repetition- . has proved* niinself a champion indeed i wnc ajid again. Trembath,' on the other , haijj., has just within the last tw_o seasons come ir.ro prominence. His times show him to be a topnotcher over 220 yards, 440 yards, and a half-mile, and there is no gainsaying the fact that in him Burk has a worthy opponent. The races between the pair will be watched with greater interest than any other athletic contest since the memorable race between Shrubb and Burk over the mile what time the Dunedin athlete defeated England's champion. Altogether the meeting on the 25th promises to be a memorable one in the history of amateurism in Otago. The members of the 'Civil Service Club may be relied on to see that nothing is wanting on their part to ensure its success.

The Tokomairiro Harrier and Amateur Athletic Ohib had a splendid meeting on New Year's Day at Milton. The -weather was good, fields large, racing excellent, and the attendance of the public was highly satisI factory. The officials .got through the long programme without a hitch, and everyone t went away well content with the 'sport | provided. Too much credit cannot be | given to Messrs E. Moore *(hon. secretary) 'and A. Parlane (superintendent), both of whom worked hard for the success of , the meeting. It is gratifying to know that the financial success is good, and it will do much to .hearten up. the supporters of amateurism in the province. A feature of the" meeting, and it is, a growing one, is ,the fact that Milton is becoming the-mefet-ing ground of all 'the town and country athletes. On New Year's Day there were present athletes- from" Invercargill, - Gore, Clinton, Balclutha, f l<awrenee, and Dunedin. The latter cpntingenfr\was a-very large one, and comprised menibejs "of- nearly all the clubs affiliated to'- the - centre. * Naturally, with such- a preponderance the Dunedin men scored heavily in 'the prizes. Nevertheless the Milton athletes aare not discouraged "and hope -by the time the next meeting comes round they will have some mettle heavy enough for any visiting cracks. ■ ' " The most successful -athlete at the meeting was Mitchell, of the Civil Service Club, who annexed the 120 Hurdles, the High Jump, and the 100 Yards, besides being second in- the Long Jump and third in tne 220 Yards. Evidently the wearer of the amber and white will have a chance for the all-round championship medal one of these days. .

.D. M'Farlane, of the D.A.A.C., was also in- good nick, and scored in 'the Shot ( and Xiong" Jump. In the; latter the Dunedin lejpper jumped 21ft 7in. \ Of the local runners Curran, who ran second in the 100 Yards, showed out well, and looks - like making a sprinter of some note. In the Maiden Race several promising runners made their debut. The winner turned 'up in Tretheway, of the Civil Ser-vice-Club, who won the final by a small margin. Stewart, who dead-heated for first in his heat, looks the^ makings of, a runner, ■but was __ untrained, a remark that would , perhaps apply to some, of the others. I In- the Half-mile Foster (St. "Andrew | Olub) had an easy win. He could not, | however, repeat the performance* in the I Mile;- which was won cleverly by N. B. 1 Edwards' (Dunedin Harriers), Burk, who made a great effort, too long delayed, being ,una.ble to get up. v In the 220 Yards final Noel Smith had an .easy win. Smith is in good form at I present, and should catch the judge's eye again shortly. " | lam pleased to hear of the reappearance I of Gerald Keddell, in Dunedin (says "Sprinter"), especially as I had been given to | understand that his athletic career had been j compulsorily ended. Should this fine jum- ; per's knee hold out in training, New Zea- | land's chances of -winning the Australasian State championship will be greatly improved, as he is no* only facile princeps in the long jump, but is also very useful over the sticks. Speaking of" the Australasian team, it will be ft great pity if Hector Burk cannot be induced to make the trip to Hobart. I trust our Otago friends will leave no stone unturned to I persuade Burk to change his mind, for he 1 i is undoubtedly our best miler and halfi miler. and at present there seems no one ' else likely to displace him this season. | The Pole Vault at the recent Wellington meeting was remarkable for a* particularly fine effort on the part of L. M'Kay. Though he had not had a pole in his hands for more than nine months, he cleared the bar at 10ft, and just failed when ifc was raised to 10ft 6in. He was using oneof the bamboo poles imported by the council. He was greatly pleased with the bamboo, and considers it gives much more assistance tban-4he old ash noles. w K. F. M'Crae won the 220 Yards Handicap held the othsr week in Melbourne under the auspices of the V.A.A.A. in connection with their series of "summer sprints."" The New South Wales veteran had 12 yards start, and won by three yards in 22sec. He retains his form in surprising manner.

It i 3 time something' definite was done with re-ard to g-etHng- together a Victorian t°am )o oomr^te -at the Australasian championships (write-s "Harrier," in the Australasian), but so far the sub-epmmittee appointed to deal with tfie matter seem to have been sleeping. I hear that George Blake has gone into work again with a

view to the Australasian ohampionships, and if possible the "Marathon" Race at the Olympic Games in London next June. L. Davis, the 44-0 yards hurdles world-record holder, is also training, and, I understand, shaping very well, his knee not giving him any trouble. Should it not be possible to obtain a ground to hold a championship meeting in February, test races will be held at such times as can be conveniently arranged, so that "champions" will have either a sports meeting or eliminating tests to train for. The Victorian team for the Australasian championship meeting, to be held in Hobart, will be considerably weakened by the absence of F. Brown, the quarter-mile champion of Australia, and of G. A. Wheatley, holder of the *half-mile and mile titles. With Hector Burk also missing the distance events will lose much of their interest^ At Ottawa, early in November, Tom Longboat, the Canadian Indian who won the Marathon Race at Boston, was the victor 'in the King's Birthday Road Race, organised -by the Montreal Star. Seventyfive of the best long-distance runners in the Dominion took part in the race, which was over a distance of 15 miles. The winner's time was lhr 26min 55sec. At the end of the race. Mr Graham, the proprietor of the Montreal Star, sent a letter to Longboat, in which he said : "If at the end of five years you are still in the athletic field, and it can be truthfully said that you have resieied 'temptation, kept 7 temperate, and ranged yourself always on the side of clean sport, I shall be pleased to hand you a cheque for 2000dol (£400). Should you be selected to represent Canada at the Olympio Games in England next year you may, if you choose, go at the expense of the Montreal Star." Longboat has sent a characteristic reply thanking Mr Graham' for his offer. "I know how you feel," he writes; "you- want Canada's name kept good. I feel the same, and I will do my best. In five years from to-day I will ,send you a little bill for 2000dol and will" buy a nice little -wigwam for my best girl." In next year's Marathon Race from Windsor to Shepherd's Bush), it is laid downi as a condition that every competitor must send a medical certificate of his fitness to take part in the race along with his ..entry form, and must further undergo a medical examination prior to the start. It is also laid down that the receiving of a drug either before the start or during the progress of the race will bring about prompt disqualification. Each competitor will be allowed two attendants, but these attendants are bound down by a number of hard-and-fast, rules as to pacing, etc. At next year's Olympian Games in London the 161b hammer will be thrown from a 7ft circle. The head of the hammer, and! also the handle, may be of any size, shape, and material, provided the complete implement shall, not be more than 4ft (1.219 metres) in length, and its weight not less than 161b (7."258 kilos).> The javelin to be used at next year's Olympiad in London, will be B.lft (2.6 metres) long, and 1.61b (800 grammes) in weight.- It will be of wood, with a sharp iron point. About the centre' of gravity will be a grip formed by biriYling of whipcord without knots. Competitors may thrctw with either hand, and' with or without a run. In the 400 Metres Hurdle Race at the Olympian Games in London next year, the hurdles will be 3ft (.914 metres) high. The first hurdle will be placed 50yds (45.719 metres) from the scratch, and the remaining hurdles will be 40yds (36.575 metres) apart, while the distance from the last hurdle to the finish will be 27.44 yds (25.105 metres). There will thus be 10 flights. Mr Edmund Charles Burton, of "The Lodge," Daventry, Northants, solicitor, for 30 years Town Olerk of Daventry, and in his younger days «reputed to have been the finest all-round athlete and sportsman in, the country, formerly the fastest amateur sprinter in England, winner of the National Hunt Club Steeplechase in 1861 and 1862, five times a member of the Oxford crew, and winner of 16 trophies at Oxford and Henley, who died on August 20 last, aged80 years, eldest son of the late Mr Edmund Singer Burton, of Churchill House, Northants, left estate of the gross value of £14,419 Os 6d, of which the net personalty has been .sworn at £1168 18s Id. The testator, among his bequests, left to his son Edmund GeraM Burton his oil paintings of the horses Bridegroom and Queensferry, his 16 medals won in rowing, and his gold watch. Particulars are to hand of a 15 miles | match between Alfred Shrubb, the famous ■ English distance runner, and J. D._ Marsh, a Canadian ped., which* was decided at Winnipeg on October 25. Marsh, who is a farmer, and), bet ween 30 and 40 years of j age, was allowed a start of 2 minutes, but ' going away at a rare pace Shrubb had knocked off his handicap before half the distance had been-covered. In the thirteenth mile, however, Shrubb's ankle gave . way, and he limped off the track. The Canadian newspapers, although expressing pleasure at the consequent victory of their countryman, are unanimous in their sympathy for Shrubb in his misfortune and in their praise of his magnificent running. Shrubb ran his first mile in 4min 56sec, his second" in 9min 32seo, and 10 in 51min 18sec ; while his thirteenth, when he stopped, was run in lhr 2min 16sec, Marsh at this juncture occupying l'hr smin 49sec, which condistance in lhr 22min 26 4-SS-30, which constitutes a new_ Canadian record. Shrubb's running, particularly in the first 10 miles, is described as the best ever seen in that country.