IN A NUTSHELL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2856, 9 December 1908, Page 55

IN A NUTSHELL.

— The next Wellington Cup is to "be endowed with a stake of lOOOsovs.

— Nominations fox the Wuirio J.C. annual meeting are due on Thursday, December 17. — Nominations for the Gore Trotting Club's •nnuai meeting are due on Saturday night. — The North Otago Trotting Club will hold their inaugural meeting on the N.O.J.C. racecourse.

— Kelly was meking his debut in harness when he went hitched to a sulky in his recent races.

— The newly-formed South Canterbury Trotting Club hold then inaugural meeting on January 21. — Royal Sbult, who has recently been performing very creditably, is saifl to be under the pony standard. —M. Allan bjid no luck at the Tahuna meeting, but his present team is not a particularly strong one. — The well-known and popular rider J. Beale was married last week, to Miss M.

Thomson, of InvercargilL — Thirteen two-year-olds remain in the next D.J.C. Champagne Stakes after the declaration of second forfeits for the race.

—Of the 55 youngsters which realised 500gs or over at the Doncaster sales, 23 were grandsons or granddaughters of St. Simon. — The Maeterton Trotting Club will probably become defunct as a result of Nolicense being gained in that district.

— Nominations for the Waikouaiti and Southland meetings ere due ctl Thursday of this week, and Tuapeka on Monday next. — Handicaps fax the first day of the D.J.C. summer meeting are due on December 14. and acceptances must be declared on the 18th.

— The AllendaJe Stock Farm's speedy imported mare Myrtle Dean, who won several races in this country, has produced a colt to Abbey Bells.

— Mr W. James, the well-known totalisator proprietor, wQI have charge of the investments at the annual meeting of the Wairio Jockey Club. — It is reported from Australia that L. !H. Hewitt is coming out to Sydney, and is going to marry a Miss M. Wood prior to going to Austria. — The New Zealand horse Birkenhead headed the list of winning sires at the recent Cud meeting of the Queensland Turf Club with three winners.

— The Multiform mare Nightfall has been showing- poor form in England this season, and, according to latest advices, she is to be retired to the ?tud.

— The Canterbury Jc-ckey Club have increased the disqualification imposed on Mi Malley by the Marlborough. Jockey Club from six months to one year.

— The nominations received for the ILanawatu Racing Club's summer meeting total 855, which represents* a falling-off of 186 as compared with last year's figures.

— They go to some trouble to get good handicappers in India, where a recentlyappointed weight-adjuster was engaged to go out from England to Calcutta.

— Starters in England have been empowered by a new jockey club rule to inflict a fine not exceeding £10 en any jockey misconducting himself at the post. — Nominations for the Tuapeka County Jockey Club's annual meeting are due on Monday. December 14. The two principal events are worth 40sovs and 35sovs each.

— The Lake County Jockey Club's annual meeting takes place on Thursday and Friday of this week, and promises to be the best held in the district for several years past. —G. Latimar generally has something fairly good at Tahuna Park meetings, and he recently produced two winners in Separator and Lizzie G. Both were got by Geo. M. Patchen.

— The Austraiian-bred hcVse Hautvilliers is evidently getting good looking stock in South America, as at a recent sale there cwo yearlings by him sold at 875 guineas and 831 guinea* each.

— Glenculloch, Sister Anne, Kilwinning, Applegarth, Fasn«kyle. Heorthen and Cute are the South Island horses which claim engagements at the Manawatu Racing Club's summer meeting. — The English horse Linacre, for which Mr J. Brennan paid 2000 guineas, goes into training at Randwiek on arrival in Sydney. Lin acre wa-s a good performer at Home, and won several races.

—Mr M. H. Dawson h*s a nice two-year-old half-sister by Geo. M. Patchen to First Pet the winner of the James Memorial, and a few weeks back Liberia dropped a colt to the Rothschild horse.

— Sam Darling is £0 have 16 horses of Mr James R. Keene's to train at Beckhampton, including the famous Colin, who has won a great deal of money in stakes on the other side of the Atlantic. — Amongst those who successfully applied for a trainer's license at the monthly meeting held by the C.J.C. committee last week was P. M'Grath, who will probably have charge of Mr J. F. Buchanan's horses.

— The Victorian ownei Mr J. B. Zander has had the ill-luck to lose the imported pacing mare Cariola, who died from biood poisoning after dropping a colt foal to imported Mauritious. The foal is being brought up on the bottle.

— Maranui, the winner of the Caulfield Cup, is not to be raced at the summer meetings in Australia, his owner having decided to give him a. spell. A similar policy is being followed with Lord Nolan, who" won the Melbourne Cup. — • One of the most painful things a racing man has to put np with is backing a non-trier, and whils* recognising that fact too late to save bis money, hear others who don't know "what's doing"" proclaiming the dead 'un as a likely winner.

— Snowfoot. the winner of both the two-year-old events p.t the Takapuna meeting, was bred by Mr W. Walters, and was got by Soult from Helen M'Gregor, by Captivator from Hannah, by T^ducer. Snowfoot was sold at 75gs as a yearling. — A punter who was 1 at Tahuna Park last week went one belter than striking the usual double He struck a "quartet" during his b e -ting operations — two alleged stoomera and two that smashed their gear. Some people have all the luck.

— Prior to Wilkie reduciig the mi'e record at Tahuna. Park to 2min 16 l-s.=ee, Myosotis held the honour at 2min 16 2-ssec. Othsr Tahuna track records are- — One and a-half miles Verax, 3iiiin 36 2-ssec; and two miles Sir Hector. 4min 46 l-ssec.

— Anyone contemplating an assault on the Australian turf should bear in mind that nominations for the Doncaster Handicap of lOOOsovs and a 20sovs sweepstakes, and Sydney Cup. of SOOOsovs and a 20sovs sweepstakes. c'o=e on January 5. — Messrs W. G. and G. L. Stead wil! probably be represented at the Auckland Racing Club's summer meeting by Nautiform and Aobel, the present intention being to ship them north at the conclusion of the Christchurch Racing Club'g meeting. —C. Pi»er brought jjown Vitella and a well-bred filly in Alpha H. for the T.P.T.C. meeting, but failed to gain a win. Vitella's strong tendency to mix her gait doe 3 not C3eist her chances of success, and but for her Mightiness would have at least won one race.

— The declaration of second forfeits is to hand for the C.J.C. Middle Park Plate, Champagne Stakes, and Challenge Slakes. In the first-named 27 have had their engagements continued, 42 youngsters remain in the Champagne Stakes, and 55 in the Challenge Stakes. j.

— The stewards of the Tahur.a Park Trotting Club dispensed a great deal of muchappreciated hospitality at their spring meeting. The Licencing Committee refuse to grant a license to ecU liquor at the perk, but, as the song says, it "gets there just the same."

— After witnessing the racing at the TakaPuna Jockey Club's meeting, an American "isitor, who* bad been given, to understand

• that New Zealand took" the lead in racing, : expressed the opinion that the Dominion is like the Duke of Plaza Toro, who led his ■ field from behind. — Motorist, who ran two seconds on the first day of the Tahuna meeting, was un- , *ucky enough to break his hobbles when he had a fairly good chance of winning the Electric Handicap. The southern pony would only require to pull out a 2min 30sec gait to have just about landed the stake, and this he proved he could do on the first day. ; — Little George maintained a 2min 36sec gait for a three-mile journey in the Waverley Handicap for trotters only. This is not a , I bad performance for a pony. He had the j horses behind him on the stretch throughout, 1 and his performance shows th«t kick of size does not necessarily mean lack of stamina. — At a committee paeeting of the New Zealand Trotting Associa<tion held last week it was decided to have a list prepared showing I the number of clubs giving less than £100 per day in stakes, and to inform such clubs Hhat the association was of opinion the amount mentioned should be the minimum. 1 — The Christchurch Racing Club commence ' their annual meeting on Saturday, and it will be continued on the following Wednesday. The English-bled fi'Jy Ownoluv by Orme (son of Ormonde) from. Hey Presto, by Sanfoin (winfiei Epsom Derby) is carded to make her debut a.t the meeting-. Ormolu cost 1550gs at the dispersal sale of the late Mr G. G. Stead's stud. — R-acing is not all cake an# honey in parts of Northern Australia, as it is* reported that £5363 passed " through the totalisator at the Queensland Turf Club's spring meeting, which wshs not a profitable one to the club, as after handing over £908 8s Id i as payment of the tax on the nva chine, they lost about £300 over the meeting. I —In England "permission may be obtained '• to saddle up horses at the post, and The j White Knight, who had lOst to carry in the j Cesarewitch Stakes, was saddled up at the post foj that event. The " cense of this is apparent when it is pointed out that it is quite a joiirney from saddling paddeck to starting-post on some of the EcgliVh courses. — The Sydney Referee reports that preparatory to reappearing- on the training track at Randwick. the New Zealand gelding Mahutonga, who is still in M. M'Grath's charge, has been doing road work. The foot which brought about his retirement, and had to be operated on. has grown splendidly, and it now seem* fairly certain the -jhestnnt will stand another preparation. He has not raced since lie ran third, in a welter mile at Gisborne (N.Z.; in July. 1906. —On the second day df the Tahuna Park Trotting Club's meeting the King Harold gelding, Punch, was put under the standard in the writer's presence, irnd proved to be considerably over the 14.2 mark. Punch has been racing for years as a pony, and as it is safe to say he has not grown anything of late, there appears at leasi. to have been sores good-natured laxity in previous measurings. On Wednesday last Punch had his shoes off and his feet well pared. It has been remarked times without number that there is a great deal of luck attached to buying thoroughbreds. At the Doncaster (England) yearling sales, in 1906, Captain Hopkins t>aid but 200gs for Wise ' Ethel, a 12-year-old mare by Hampton. She ' ihad been covered by Desmond, whose refutation as* a sire has increased considerably since then. The result of the union was .. Wise Mason, a good performer. At the sales I held the following year, the yearling from Wise Ethel brought 1400gs. — A new kind of tube for insertion in a horse's throat has been patented in England. It is the invention of Mr G. E. Gibson. M.X C.V.S., «nd is called "The Regulator." The principal point claimed in its favour is that it is fitted with regulating v*lves, which open when the horse inhales and closes when he exhales, so that th« breath passes out through the larynx and nostrils in the natural' way. Moreover, it regulate 3 the amount of eir admitted to the lung?, and is claimed to ■ be a great improvement on all other tubes. ! — Durbar is to attack the Australasian j two-mile record at the Ashburton Trotting ' Club meeting to be held this week. The meeting takes place on the Ashburton course, s which is one of the fastest grass tracks in the Dominion, and if the Vr.ncleve gelding , 13 in good shape he is sure to be successful. Another point in his favour is that as no doubt he wi!l b? assisted by a runner (a I coupe would be better), the latter will have { a better chance of providing material assis-fun-A than is usually the case on a small track. — The Xew Zealand Trotting Association have voted £10 10s to the widow of the late }M. E. Albaugh. The amount voted reads decidedly insignificant, but is perhaps merely j a preliminary donation. As far as Lhe writer knew, Albaugh was a steady and conscientious worker at his business, but just as the continual dropping of water will wear away a stone, so will a protracted run of bad luck undermine a man's courage. Men with half Albauah s capability, but 50 times the poor fellow's luck, are regarded a3 very cap- , able men with horses because they manage j to win a race or two. ! — A movement is on foot in Sydney with ihe objpet of starting another trotting club. j The project is for a certain numbsr of en- ' thusiasts to throw in £100 each, and give the j many fast horses bred 1 in New South Wales j s- chance to race for decent prize-money in , tbeii native State. The New South Wales Trotting Club no doubt acts with the best intentions, but (says a Sydney paper) there must be a screw loe«e somewhere when it is found necessary for New South Wales owners to seek pastures new for their racers. It would be idle to combat the statement that the sport- of trotting is getting worse and worse in his Sla^e. — It is reported that the connections behind Tuous intend to apoeal to the N.Z Racing 1 Conference against the decision of the Dun- | edin Jockey Club in the Loftu3 case. The ' trainer of Loftus CHogan) informed a southern I writer that at all times he was very confident of success in the anpeal against the Winton Club's decision in the Flying Handicap the first day of the local meeting. He asked that the mark? of the hoof prints on the inside of the post it was alleged Loftus ran inside bs measured ar.d compered with the horse's hoof*. This was not asreed to by the club, and at once provided Hogan with his best grounds for an appeal. — Althoivgh New Zealanders seldom hear much about racing in Canada, the sport it lin a flourishing condition in the Eastern provinces, and no effoits are being spared in those parts to increase the stakes, and thus induce good class owners to take up the =;poit. Recently, at Woodbine Park, near Toronto. a meeting of representative? of the jirincipal jockey cJubs throughout Ontario and Quebec was held with the object of forming- a Board of Control for the supervision of all turf affairs in Canada As a result of the meeting it is probab'e that a nevr body, called the Canadian Racing Association, will assume control of the iurf in the Dominion on and after January 1, 1909. — Says th-e Sporting- Times, in commenting on the decline of batting in England: — "Some time ago, in speaking to a large bookmaker concerning the short odds that were on offer in connection with a big handicap, and contrasting them with the '20 monkeys' that we -have before now heard offered against a prominent candidate that bad four sound legs, his reply was that things are very

different to what they used to be. Formerly each stable had its own candidate, and backed it, but now three or four stables galloped then horses together, and one carries the money. The bookmakers, therefore, have nothing on their books to be with. That this statement of the case is an exaggerated one is probable, but at the same time there xs a certain amount of truth in it."

— A representative of the London SportingTimes has on several occasions attended the committee meetings of the Turf Guardian Society, when the settlements of disputes between backers and layers have taken place, and we can testify to the careful, businesslike, and impartial manner in which these inquiries are held. It is now proposed to open a backers' section in connection with 1 this society, and backers' can avail themselves of its advantages by paying- an annual sub- | scription of one guinea If the Turf Guardian Society succeeds in stamping out mush- , room Bookmakers, and in exposing- fraudulent and defaulting backers, it will be of great service to the straightforward and honourable i sporting fraternity. It has already done much good work in this direction. — There has latterly been a decided improvement in the riding and driving attire worn at Tahnna Park meetings.. but there is still room for a further advance. The motley costumes worn even now frequently give rise to humorous -remarks; amongst the spectators. Some of the riders may not sport the " sabre of their sire" wher in the saddle, but not a few are adorned with jack-boots that may have gone through Balaclava, and l .he impression that any old thing will do should b e rigorously put down. It ir by no means pleasing t« the eye ttf see one rider « port ing rag-bag colours, whilst others again are equipped in « manner which beggars description. There would be no great hardship imposed by the club if they insisted on a reasonably correct costume, and it is to be hoped that the rule bearing on the point will be more strictly enforced in future. —Mr H. Goodman is desirous of sellings or making an exchange with his three-year-old filly Santa Nora, who has spiring a curb and requires a lengthy spell. Sant* Nora stands over 16hds, and is such a beautifulJybred filly that she should earn the distinction at the stud which has been denied her up to date on the turf. She was got by Sant Ilario from Novus, by Neckersgat from Tyropean. by Vespasian from the imported West Australian mare La Name. Novus is a sister to Quality, a good winner in Australia, where she won the Morphettville Plate, Onkaparings Cup, and several othe races. Sant Ilario, sire of Santa Nora, is a son of St. Leger and Cissy, % sister to the famous Trenton; so that the filly has a very attractive pedigree, and if bred to a suitable horse should certainly produce winners. If the filly cannot be sold privately she will; be put under the hammer. — It is not often that a racehorse encounters so many changes- of fortune as did Yorkshire Grey, winner of the Summer Handicap at tTewmarket in 1858. As a three-year-old, ha was a great favourite f cr the Chester Cup, but cut ap badly in that race, and his owner, Mr J. Osborne — not the good old " Pusher" — disgusted with his performance, sold him to po abroad. On the Continent he was first heard of in Italy, where Colonel Tevis, an American holding a commissin in the British, Army, came across him, and purchased him for £700. Under his ownership, Yorkshire Grey competed, with more or less success, in France, Belgium, Germany, and Italy, and was afterwards used, sometimes as a charger and sometimes as a hack, in the Crime*, actually taking part in the celebrated charge of the Light Brigade at Balaclava. i£e was subsequently sent to America, and thence returned to his native England, where he was again put into training under the charge of R. Boyce of Newmarket, and actually won two out of his three first engagements. —An amusing instance of «. well-laid scheme which wet " agley " is reported from a certain Lancashire town where the police are very energetic in their endeavours to suppress betting. A certain tradesman was suspected of being also a bookmaker, and the authorities plotted to traip him. On the Cesarewitch morning the said tradesman, on i going into his stable, heard a noise in the loft. He went up, but apparently nobody was there. However, there was unusual movements among the straw, and he soon uncovered two men in the garb of navvies, with " tommy tins " and other impedimenta of the trade The " victim " accordingly called to his wife to send for the police, as there were two tramp 3in the stable. But the " navvies " suddenly remembered that they had a pressing engagement elsewhere, and, without waiting to offer a long-.explanation, they suddenly stole aw-ay back to the policestation. Bui they had been recognised, and there were great rejoicirgs in the camp of the enemy at the foiling of the plotters.

— Criticising the remarks of the Victorian cleric who &aid that " those who back a hoi 39 they know will win are rogues, and that those who back horses that they are not sure will win *re fools," " Galtee More " say* • — " Well, if this is so, there are more fools than rogues in Tasmania, which is a sort of grim consolation. But let m« right here remark that I think the clergy should stick to theology, and leave ' turfology ' — if I might coin a word — to the sporting scribes, otherwise the latter might want to swap places with the former. Where there are two or more competitors for a race no one should know what's going to win. When the Pharisee and the publican had a spurt in the long «go, the latter was, by some, considered the rank outsider of the pair. But for all that the ' outsider ' won through putting in some good work while the Phari&ee was tunning wide with his head too high in the air. Had the Victorian cleric confined his remarks on racing to saying- " For the dead ye weep seven days, for c fool all the days of his life,' the horsey men in his congregation would have seen the point of the ' dead.' "

—On the score that it was injurious tb public morality the totalisator has been abolished in Japan, and racing is temporarily at a standstill in that country, all the big- meetings ha\ing been postponed. The step taken b> the Government is commended in some quarters, but in others it is considered too precipitate, seeing that all preparations had been made for the autumn meetings. It is also suggested that, as they have been deprived of their main source of revenue, the clubs should be compensated by the State. It would be pretty safe to bet. however, that this will not be done. It is not stated whether bookmaking is a.so prohibited, but. if so. racing will lose interest for the Japanese, who, according to those residing among them, are of a decidedly Fpeculatrve turn. According to a. Japanese paper, many of the foreign members of the Nippon Race Club were disposed to rebel against the new order of things, but the majority recognised that there could be no discrimination between^ foreigners and Japanese, and therefore there was nothing for the club to do but Ao respect the law. —By his form at the Tahuna Park spring meeting Wilkie has established a claim to be considered th« best of his inches- in Australasia. On the first day he went 2.17 2-5 in a race, and after making a -track record of 2.16 1-5, came out an hour later and won another race in 2.18. In both his races Wilkie went from scratch, and had to pass his opponents on the outside, consequently it will bo seen that, after making allowance for that fact, his record was by no means flukey in its

nature. - Private Linusts made the time as slow as 2.17, but thej were not in direct line with the post, and no doubt the pony got * fifth 01 two the worst of the go "from these watch-holders. It was- also believed that Wilkie got away before his time when he went 2.18. This was not actually the case, but apparently so because the starting deck appeared to get out of gear when he was leavingtne mark. Wilkie undoubtedly jet the be3i of the start owing to coming up last, but this 13 a common practice, as back-markers in * handicap invariably get a moving start as against the standing start of the limit horses. In each of his races Wilkie was rerv capably handled by E. M'Kewen, who ranss second to none as both a rider and reinsman. «i~, v at , k^se-racing »U round has benefited by the concentration on racecourses of what is frequently referred to as the gambling evil i not contended, but those with commercial interests in racecourse properties oi ilie present day might be forgiven for nigutly concluding their supplications with « word for the welfare of those responsible for the passing of the bill which gave them such a monopoly of right to benefit from the gambling instincts if others. That this compulsory visitation of the, racecourse bj those wishing to, indulge their speculative desires is c good one, there is scarcely any doubt; and (says the Sydney Referee), from the average investor's point of view, gives him at least a 50 pei cent, better opportunity of showing a .profit on his speculations iihan when he stayed in town and conducted his betting operations* in fhe dark. It would? probably be r difficuir to induce many of the old-tuae town bettors, who during- the past) couple of years haye been enforced attendants at «U race meetings, to again indulge iar shop-betting, even were the opportunity to present itself; and that race clubs have little or nothing else to thank But the Gaming Act foe their large and. weekly increasingattendances there is nt doubt whatever. —In writing o. the recent sale of the J\ew Zealand Cup winner of 1905, the Sportsman said Noctuiform afforded the only mildf excitement of the sales when he was offered* and sold to Mr Portman for 500gs, a price on which a profit has since been bid ineffectually. It was generally, thought that Mr Portmar bought the notorious son of Muitcform for Lord Carnarvon, who was by him at the time, but this was not so ; the 1 actual purchaser is Captain Fenwick, andf it has not been decided what will be done with the horse, but mere is an ide» o? sending him to Australia, where he wouldtj probably be appreciated as a stallion, fa»{ at the recent sale of the late Mr Stead'wj horses in New Zealand Multiform, the sire" of Noctuiform, made 3700g5. It appears that, ir reply to a cable from Australia, thai special commissioner of the London* Sportsman replied that the reserve placed* upon Noctuiform when tEat horse was recently offered at auction in England waa £1000. The pressman, however, has something to say in his paper on the matter in> the following extract: — "Mr Buchanan's draftf wound ap the day's sale, and he had unexpectedly reduced the reserve on Nbctuifornu from lOOOgs to SOOgs. In reply to a cable from Australia as to what was the lowest price, I had cabled lOOOgs. and, of course* there was no time to make known the reduction that had been decided on. Ifoctuiform'n selling price of 500gs is sure to be cabled! to Australia-, and I must appear there as one who- was not in a position to ascertain the bedrock price, or who was trying to ge£ 50Pg S profit. However, Mr Buchanan knows the facts, and it' is just as well to put the matter on record. Curioiisly enough. B found later on at the weighing-room a wire from France asking me to bid for Noctuiformt a sum considerably in excess of 500gs. for* which he was sold; and I am sure Mr Portman secured a very fine speculative bargain."