IN A NUTSHELL.

Otago Witness, 1 June 1910, Page 55

IN A NUTSHELL.

—M. Edwards has abandoned his intention of taking Dillon Bell to Australia. Tho South Canterbury Jockey Club had a profit of £320 on its autumn meeting.

The Canterbury Jockey Ciub received £6220 in license fees from bookmakers last season.

Nominations for the Ashbxrrton Trotting Club's meeting are due on Saturday, June 4.

The C.J.C. spent £303 8s Id on their race ball. This amount should keep the ball a-rolling. Both Capitol and Le Beau are reported to be somewhat backward in condition just at present. Master Soult is doing good work at Auckland, and on Saturday last shaped well in a seven-furlong gallop.

Maku over-re?cred whilst running in the Century Hurdles, s>nd' is likely to be an absentee from the A.R.C. meeting. Penates was warmly supported on the second day at "Wanganui, but he had to .put up with fourth place at the finish. This week's gathering at Wingatui bears every indication of proving the beat winter meeting ever held on the course. .' A Perth message says : —"A cable from : Singapore reports that the local Derby was • won by the Australian horse Rosemead." ■ —The Silkworm gelding Seagar was made n good favourite for the Waiareka Handicap, ,but had to split winning honours with Shindy.

Nyland, Aorangi, and Lovell go to Auckland in charge of G. Price, on whom Dame Fortune has latterly been smiling most graciously. A Brisbane cablegram states that the Cup winner Curve, after exercising on Thursday morning-, died from internal hemorrhage.

—According to reports more than one horse that raced at Wanganui was coughing, and it is feared that a gocd deal of influenza was about.

The Obligado mare. Liza was landed in Dunedin last week, but, having sprung a tendon, it will be some time .before she will be able to race.

The New Zealand Cup winner 'Frisco pulled up sound- after running at Wanganui, and is expected to train on all right for future engagements. Applications for licenses to bet at the Ashburton County Racing Club's meeting are due or. June 19. The fee per day is £ls 15s, including clerk. A rod in pickle for the Oama.ru meeting has evidently been in the brine a- shade too- long, and the result must have been a bit unpalatable in some quarters. Cute racing men make hay whilst the racing sun is shining, but some are too cute, and when they want to make hay they find someone else gets there first. Cardiff iroas made favourite for the first day's hurdles at Oamaru, but whatever chance he held was extinguished by a bad jump which nearly brought him down. Rifle Range made his debut over hurdles at Oamaru, and, for a green horse, shaped well. In his second race he gave a greatly improved display of fencing. When Obsono scored at Oamiaru he paid a. good dividend, but some of the fielders quoted him (to their sorrow) at about double the price paid on the totalisator.

Pony and gal'oway racing would appear to be booming at Johannesburg. At a meeting there on the 9th ult. there were six races, and to each one £l5O was given. signs cf lameness after racing at Wanganui. Bullworth is also under a cloud, but, nevertheless,, both may be seen out at Auckland. Perm, the two-year-old brother to Armlet, showed a little pace in one of his races at Oamaru, but three furlongs appears to be about the length of his tether at piesent.

Wimmera and Jack Pot is the favourite combination for Auckland, and the pair are reported at a very short price, considering that the money goes up in the air a good deal.

Kadtere is held by some good judges to be back to form 1 , and should have won on the second day at Wanganui, but his rider delayed his run too long, with the result that he was beaten by his stable- companion Bull worth.

—ln the Newmarket Biennial Stake's at Newmarket last month Bayardo scored his twelfth successive win. During his career he has won 19 of the 21 races in which he has started.

Maori King is to be sent to Sydney, and will join H. Raynor'a stable at Randwick. Maori King gave a very attractive display when he scored on the second day at Wanganui. W»ijtt ran a good race when he scored in the Tokarahi Welter, but was one of the also started in the Victoria Handicap, in which, on form, he should have been fairly close to Silkweb. Applications for licenses to bet at the Ashburton Trotting Club's meeting will be received up to Mob day, June 13. The fee 3 (12gs inside and 10gs outside) include payment for. clerks. .

—J. M'Combe was in the saddle at O'amaru, but it is not likely he will do any wasting in. the future. In any case he catt give away a few pounds to most of those that don silk.

When competing in the Hauturu Hurdles on the second day of the Takapuna Jockey Club's meeting, Hoauga and Luscombe fell, and the former's rider, W. Wilson, had in 3 collarbone fractured.

—An Auckland message states that Lady Patricia has been scratched for the Great Northern Hurdles. Bourrasque and Flingot have been scratched for all engagements at the Auckland meeting. The Canterbury Jockey Club intend to consider whether they will continue the practice of imposing penalties automatically on horses in subsequent events after they had won weight-for-age events. Owing to the inconvenience caused to the general public by bookmakers' stools and umbrellas at Newmarket racecourse, the English Jockey Club bas issued an order barring them from future use. —ln America, when a racing owner has •fchij mischance to have a good horse claimed in a selling race, his bcon companions who used to play marbles with him say: "My! He's lost bis china alley now!"

Balaclava did rot meet the strongest opposition in the world in the Parkside Welter, but he won comfortably at the finish, and bis gallop with 9.11 in imin 30 2-ssec •was much too good for the opposition. Oblong, who paid the sensational dividend at'Oamaru, is trained by W. BudJicomb. The filly was sent to the post at Timaru, but got left, and that was her public form prior to winning last week. At the last Commonwealth reckoning there were 1.927,731 horses in Australia, with 12,311,617 cattle. Of the latter North Australia owns 68 per cent., New South Wales claiming 28 per cent., and Queensland 40 per cent. Tho chestnut mare Red Morn, by Obligado—Red Riding Hood, is advertised for sate. She is a winner of several races, and hear dam was got by Le Loup (son. of

Traducer) from Lass of the Hills, by Talk of the Hills. Jack Pot struck on© of the fences m Wanganui Steeplechase so heavily that the mishap cost him several lengths. Otherwise it is surmised he would have won with a great deal more in hand than what was actually the case. I The late Mr G. Dowse once asked; who i was riding a certain horse, and on being told replied with, " Ah, wee-1, if ,«*«»* * ; geod chance of him losing it, he 11 tak t Some of the riding at Oamaru recalled the old handicapper's wit. i —An Adelaide message states that at aie ! Birthday meeting the City Handicap, (seven furlongs) provided a great finishTiercel beating Slippery by half a head; i Malmsley third, a ncse behind. Sixteen started. Time, lmin 30seo. According to reports, Tui Ca.kob>ui should have won the Hauturu Hurdles on the second day of the Takapuna meeting only for his rider thinking there was another round to go. For this carelessness, Jones was fined £5 by the stewards. j Sorhe riders have a poor idea of things ! in general when they are in the saddle. One in particular who rode at Oamaru lets . sluggish horses go to sleep and a keen | galloper run. itself out. Consequently he 1 with both barrels, as it were, j The error which crept into the Ash- ! burton Racing Club's programme has been 1 rectified, and the distance of the June ; Handicso, the principal flat event on the I second day of the meeting,, has been increased from seven furlongs to a mile. I —After Mr W. T, Hszlett purchased the ! Can Robert colt Darlingdale last week at 305 gs he refused an advance of 200sovs on his bargain-. The would-be buyer first , offered an increase of lOOsovs, and on its [ rejection mode a fuither offer of double ' that sum.

i—Some excellent sport was witnessed at the Nor'ih Otago Jockey Club's meeting which took plac» last week. Several races ware climaxed by close, and exciting finishes, and two dead heats (in on© of which the third was, a short head away) took place. —Despite Oiyoi's poor display in the Oumiaru Cup, ho was being fairly well supported for the Birthday Handicap and Tradesmen's Handicap in conjunction with Balaclava. The non-acceptance of the former must have been an unpleasant surprise to some punters. A message from Brisbane states that the Morton Handicap was won by Blunderbuss, with Dummy second. Mountain Oak and Olgu were a dead heat for third place. There were 16 starters. Blunderbuss won by half a length in 2min B&ec. Dams Rumour has been stating through the mouths of one or two trainers that some of our rider 3 now receive their riding orders fircm the wrong person. A colour of truth is lent to this by the fact that riders give occasional displays that should get them stood down on the score of incompetence. —H. Randall has taken the place temporarily vacated by Frank Wootton as "first mount" for Lord Derby's horses; but it is understood that when Wootton's term of suspension expires the Sydney boy will resume his place on Lord Derby's list. Randall is a well-known rider, and claims a gocd record. The Australian-bred two-year-old colt in J. Ruttledge's stable is a smart looking bay of medium height, and is of the type that looks like ooming early to hand. He was got by the imported horse Ladurlad (son of Ladas) From Ozone, by Navigator from Zephyr (imp.), from Typhoon (imp.), by Wild Dayrell. The Southland Racing Club has practically decided to make improvements to the course, including a new grand stand, tea house, totalisator buildings, and stewards' stand. The cost of the work will run into about four figures, and it is expected that the work will be finished by November 3.0.

The'North Otago meetings are amongst the most popular in the South Island, and could be made more so by a stricter supervision of the running. Last weak it would have given racing men more confidence in the management if one or two questions had been asked about the form and riding, of a horse or two.

Eistori broke down whilst running at Camaru, and in all probability she has made her last appearance on the turf. She was got by Royal Artillery from Helen Faucit, the mare who found the weak spot in Achilles' heel when t'ie jgffii of Medallion made his debut on the turf, and just missed landing a big coup.

The Australian-bred horse Woolloomooloo was sent out favourite for his race on the second day of the Wanganui meeting, and was beaten half a head by Maharanui. On the first day Woolloo (etc.) finished fourth in the Century Hurdles, and when he is acclimatised, as it were, he should join the winning list. - —Pai3ano, for whom 600 gs was recently refused, is, according to a gentleman whom the writer met during the currency of the l Oamaru meeting, a better hurdlsr thani Wimmera. Paisano was got by Strowan (sire of Pink 'Un) from Booby, by Castor (sire of Record Reign and Kiatere) from Gannet, by Anteros from Albatross, the dam of Merganser.

Beau Brocade, a two-year-old black gelding by M.artian from Cuiralba, was made favourite for the Trial Plate at Oamaru, but he had to play second fiddle to Oblong, who paid well over half a century to each of five supporters on the machine. Two of the tickets were held by a well-known boniface, who. from all accounts, got one ticket by accident.

—H. Donovan, who is one of the best riders we have, but who never appears to get full credit for his horsemanship, was in good form at Oamaru. He won twice on Palette, once on A]\ Guns, and dead-heated with Merrieboek. Donovan was once recognised as a good rider over fences, but in recent years he has abandoned that branch of the business.

Armaments was running fairly well in the Tokarahi Welter, and was up with Waiju and Fisticuff when he swerved and lost ground. He finally finished a failthird, and is evidently coming back to form. Many old-tinno sports would like to see Armamento win, in order to give W. Brown, who now trains him, a smile from Dame Fortune.

A couple of Carterbury trainers at present at Wingatui for the D.J.C. winter mooting have assured the writer that Sir George Clifford has " as fine a lot of yearlings as one could wish to see." If they are not lacking in quality they are also good numerically as Chokebcre has about a dozen young equines destined to carry the " blue and gold chequers." El Dorado is to be sent to Victoria within the next few days, and will probably try conclusions with the cracks at Flemington. The Gold Reef gelding, it will be remembered, finished secend to Nadador in the last National Steeples, .and subsequently won tho Be.iufort Steeplechase and Lincoln Steeplechase. He row races in Mr G. P. Donnelly's nomination. Last -season the Canterbury Jockey Club gave away £30,240 in stakes, which represented an increase of £2440 over the previousl year. At the time £7500 was

spent in impTOverner.t&, and the oash balance was onJy £650 less than a year ago. The increased taxation is expected to cost the club £2300 next season, and assets aro valued at £4I,SSS Os Gd. Since Mr Donnelly wired to England asking Major-general Babbington to accept Gold' Seal as a present he has received a. cable to say that the gelding's injury is not so serious as was at first anticipated, aad there i 9 every prospect of him standing a. preparation. Mr Donnelly still wishes Major Babbington to accept his gift. Gold Seal is being trained at Newmarket. A northern exchange states that Wcolloomooloo was a quiet paddock tip for the Century Hurdles, and the advice was not far SEteay, as this Australian-bred jumper finished fourth. Mr Douglas's hurdler was one of the outsiders on the machine, and he would have paid a substantial dividend. T. Pine rode Woolloomoolco, and lie handled his mount remarkably well. Agitation is on fcot to adopt at Adelaide the New Zealand rule with regard to grouping for totalisator purposes all horses rurning in the one interest. The committee of ons race club in South Australia is satisfied that a change is desirable, but cannot quite decide as to whether only one owner's horses shall be grouped, or all the horses representing the stable. The northern critics apparently differ as to Woolloomooloo's appearance. Some said ,ho was very light when he landed from Australia, but evidently he has built up in a remarkable manner, as he is reported to have been somewhat "' jolly" when running at Wanganui. Perhaps the fact that his name..- ia spelt principally with holes makes the horse apparently lack substance in some people's eyes. Entered to be sold for £SO, a two-year-old named Marecbal Strozzi (Strozzi — Equinoxe) went to lOlOgs before his- owner was. able to buy him in subsequent to winring a two-year-old selling race at Newbury (England) last month. This reminds one of NautLform, who as a two-year-old commenced at 50gs, and after hanging fire for a bit bidding suddenly livened up, and he made 1050 gs. Oiyoi was the ruling favourite for' the Oamaru Cup, and in double, business was a favourite selection, but on the day of the race My Lawyer became the chief selection on the totalisator. Paragon ruled aa second choice,, and then came Silkweb, Oiyoi, Genius, Tikitere, and St. Aidan in ihe order named. The outsiders of the party were Cronstadt. White Cockade, Rose Noble, and Lovelorn.

The Winton Trotting Club's annual meeting is reported to' have been a successful gathering, and some fair-sized fields and interesting sport were provided by the day's card. Darwin won the principal event from scratch, and went the mile and a-half in 3min 55soc. Another scratch horse in Duncan Miacgregor won in 2min 28 4-ssec, and Musician landed a double in which 4min 3sec was the winning time of the second leg. Though Wimmera bore a very "tttckedup " appearance at Wanganui, his decisive win in the Certury Hurdles there will have the effect of causing a considerable thinning out of the Great Northern Hurdles field (says " Giencoe"), and Mr Watt's gelding will assuredly start a very strong favourite. Little attention need .be paid to his reported unsoundness, as he is now no worse than when he prevailed at Wanganui.

Stayboy, who injured himself whilst racing -at the Dunedin Cup meeting, was put into easy work during the past week. His off hind leg sports an enlarged fetlock, but the joint is apparently sound, if somewhat unsightly. It is rot at all strange that J. M'Comb did not relish the cares of ownership when his best horses went amisa, and would require time before they could. face the starter. Tawhaki is doing useful work, and is apparently all right again.

—T. Pine, the rider of Bullwortli in the Wanganui Steeplechase, had a, very uncomfortable ride in that event. After covering abjut a mile the saddle commenced to a lip back, and by the time the three miles was covered Pine had nearly reached Bullwortli's tail. But for this incident Bullworth must have played aii important part in the decision of the event, judging by his splendid jumping under adverse circumstances. Ballworth won on the second day of the meeting.

The Pallas gelding Palette demonstrated at Oamaru that he has inherited some of his sire's brilliancy. On the first day he won with 8.5 in lmin 2sec. and on the second ran half a mild on the collar with 9.9 in -19 l-ssec. Pallas had another winning representative in All Guns, who downed a strong order in Cute in the principal sprint event on the first day. The writer has always had a good word for Pallas, and his stock prove he is well worthy of patronage. The method of dividing the prize-money at Oamaru has a good deal to recommend it, as it gives the second and third horses a chance to pay expenses when they run good races but fail to catch the- judge's eye as winners. For instance, in a stake 20eovs goes to the second and lOsovs to the third horse. This means that even a couple of thirds will help a, poor man, and the monetary solatium must help to soften the sting of defeat and incidentally help to keep up the fields. King Edward's death recalls the fact that two royal personages in George IV and William IV were as Princes of Wales both active- patrons of thv British turf. Previous to his accession George IV manifested an intense interest in racing, and won in all 313 events, including 30 King's Plates. He also captured the Derby in 1788, with Sir Thomas. In stake' Georg® IV won £60,050. His colours —crimson, purple sleeves, black cap—were identical with the racing livery originally used by King Edward. Mr G. P. Donnelly, the Hawke's Bay sportsman, was informed that last week he made an offer of £6OO for Paisano, which, however, was refused by the gelding's owner. Mr G. P. Donnelly said that he has long had an idea of taking a team of jumpers to Victoria to compete in the principal cross-country events at Flemington. There is every probability of the scarlet and white stripes of the Hawke's Bay sportsman being l seen out in jumping events in the " Cabbage Garden."

The Ashburton Trotting Club have issued a liberally-endoved programme for their winter meeting to be. held on June 16 and 17. The chief events are the Longbeach Handicap, of lOOscvs; Laghmor Handicap, of 65sovs; A.J.C. Handicap, of lOOsovs; Autumn Handicap, or 70sovs; Mitch an Handicap], of 61sovs; and the Steward'.? Handicap, of 90sovs. Several other events carry prize money to the extent of 50sovs or more, and some minor races also find >a place on the programme. Nominations are due on Saturday, June 4. Wangianui "Sir Bedevere" said: "The form of Audax leaves no sort of doubt as to what a first-class horse he must ba at his own game—namely, cross country. Aorangi ran 'a fine race in the Century, but just as those who saw him at Feilding anticipated, he looked short of a gallop or two in public. He is, however., to cai.ch, the

judge's eye in the near tvJt*«xe if he train* on. Woolloomooloo is another that will win races this season, as he, toe, looked a bit jolly on Tuesday last." Tresstidy. who rsn third to Neil Go*and Whisk Brcom in the Craven Slakes, has bean well .backed lor the "English Derby, and so has Brcasino, who boat Lonawind iu the Greenham Stakes. One account of Hie Craven Stakes says that rising out of the dip Tressady looked like winning easily, but he" swerved to the right, and went nearly over the rails, which enabled the favourite (Neil Gov.') to head him and win by three lengths. According to a London writer Sam Darling said after the Craven Stakes that Tressady was the best horse he aver had. At" the Kurrajong Trotting Club's recent meeting the trotting stallion Belmont. M. put up one of the finest performances yet seen in Australia (says the Sydney Morning Herald). Going against the record for the track, Belmont M. put the mile behind in 2min 13 3-ssec. Belmont M. is by the great New Zealand sire Rothschild, who is also sire of Sal Tasker, 2min 20s«c as a two-year-old; Australian Dan Patch, 2min & 3-ssec; and Aim out, who holds the three miles pacing championship of the world, to say nothing of Revenue, 2min 11 4-ssec. —An electrical invention that should be of interest to racing men has been devised by Mr E. J. Walsh, of Blenheim. As described in the patent specifications it is "an improved means for anf"mi»' Jioally operating semaphore or like signals, and signal bells, at will, or 'at. ajij pitdetermined time." Aluminium arms, on which are represented the weighing, saddling, and starting times of each race are automatically released, and displayed at the required time, and an electric bell rings with each signal. —Mr John Craig, who was one of the best-known sportsmen in England, died a few weeks ago from apoplexy, while bound for the Cape on board the Kenilworth Castle. He and his brother, Robert, were practically the first patrons of R. Marsh, his late Majesty's trainer. Mr John Craig won any number of races with his own horses, and was also a race rider of more than ordinary note. But though best remembered aa a racehorse owner and gentleman rider, the deceased had been one of the best cricketers in Scotland, and may be said to have introduced slow bowling into that country. —An excellent acceptance of 15 has been received for the O'tago Steeplechase, and it is generally expected that all those engaged will go to the post. It should be a race well worth witnesing, and prove a big draw for the first day of the meeting. It is to be hoped thai the club will keep speetatorp. from crowdinsr at of tK» ium'-s as they did la.t year, and somewhat selfishly exciuo-ed the view of the horses jumping. This was particularly noticeable at the water jump last year, and if some of the people are keen on getting a close view they should station themselves on the far side' of the " lep." Wimmera put up a particularly smart gallop in comfortably winning the Century Hurdles, two and a-quarter miles, in 4min 15sec. The time is smarter than that of some Canterbury Cups, notably Multifo'rm's 4min 25sec and Martian's 4inin 22 4-sssc; whilst it compare favourably with Elevation's 4min Usee The Canterbury Cup, however, is not infrequently a fake run race, and the time recorded does riot always give a, true indication of the winner's merit. Still, if 30sec is generally allowed for the final quarter of the Century Hurdles, it will be found that Wimmera could just aboutput up an Australasian record for two muiea over huioJes.

Danny Maher, the celebrated American jockey, has just ridden his thousandth winner in Er gland, and has thus earned a place amongst the few successful horsemen to achieve this rare distinction on the British turf. Maher first rode in England in 1900, and his best season was 1903, when he piloted 139 winners. On averages Maher has headed the list of winning riders' in Great Britain for the last six seasons. Before going to England Maher had a record of 420 successful rides in America, but his full total is still a- long way short of the record of the late Fred Archer, who between 1870 and 1686, the year, of his untimely end, rode a total of 2748 winners.

Few horses have shaped more consistently than Stone Ginger, who won both hurdle events decided at Oamaru last week. At the Dunedin Cup meeting he was twice second, and won on the final day. He then contracted an attack of thrush, but came on again, and at the South Canterbury meeting was defeated by narrow margins in both hurdle events, and then followed up by his dual win last week. Stone Ginger was bred by Sir George M'Lean and sold to Mr St. John Buckley, who subsequently passed him on to Mr J. O'Brien, who resold at 22sovs. Stcne Ginger is held under lease by Mr T. Twoiney, and that gentleman has apparently got hold of a good sort. —Dr L. L. Smith recently celebrated his eightieth birthday. He was at a Moonee Valley meeting, and was the recipient of nif.ny congratulations. Dr Smith and Mr J. Wilson, sen. ,_ are the two veterans of racing in Victoria" (says the Argus). In the " sixties" Lady Manners Sutton, Melancholy Jacques, Lancashire Witch, Glenyuille, If. L., and were well-known horses that Dr Smith raced. He won the Sapling Stakes with Melancholy Jacques at the meeting held by the V.K.C. on November 30, 1867, in honour of the visit of H.R.H. the Duke of Edinburgh. Later on he had Melodious, dam. »f Wallace. The last horse of any account that carried his colours was icescued, who, trained by I. T. Carslake, won several good races for the sporting doctor.

The Australian-bred horse Bobadil TI wag a recent winner in England, when he won a selling' race, and was subsequently sold for 300sovs. He had a lengthy career in Australia and India before going to England. Originally owned by Mr J. Wilson, jun., he wjn good laces in Australia, inclusive of the Birthday Handicap, one mile and ahalf, at the V.R.C. meeting of June, 1905, and the Richmond Handicap at the V.A.T.C. meeting later in the same month. In the following season, among other races, he again won the Birthday Handicap. Subsequenlty he was sent to India, being bought for over £2OOO by Mr Dwakcdo3 Dharamsey, at that came Sheriff of Bombay. He ran for the Viceroy's Cup in 1907, finishing fourth to Fitz Grafton. and was intended to run for it again the following year, but broke down. Eventually he wia:s sent to England. A Melbourne writer points out that the leading Australian sire. Maltster, being by a horse of the 2G family from a No. 21 mare, whose sire and grandsiro' were both of the same branch of 23 tribe, Maltster is thus very much outside the best sire families of the Bruoe Lowe cult; but when his pedigree and wealth of sire numbers which represent its components are examined, it is readily seen that the brown horse is not deficient in the most successful sire strains. Maltster's family, 21, takes its source through a famous winning channel from Queen Anne's Moonah Barb mare (to whom Longbow, Musket's grandsire, traced in much the same way), a celebrated representative of which lino in Australia was The Australian Peer, who, like the present-day crack, came team the Anonyma branch.

With Maltster the tribe, haa obtained the highest distinction. Wimuiezn. lilee another of T. Quinlivan, jua.'s pupils, Roseshoot, won his first race ua tho second day of the Hawke's Bay Jockey Club's autumn meeting, and then. went "oil aad scored in the Century Hurdles at Wanganui the same season. Roseahcot (a Napier writer, points out) was installed favourite for the Great Northern Hurdles after his success at Wanganui, and on th» day was first selection for the contsst, but failed to get a place, the winner being Aka. Aka, who had run third to Bo3eshoot in the Century Hurdles. Through his annexation at Wanganui, Wimmera has incurred a 71b penalty for tho Great? Northern Hurdles, and his impost in tins event will now be 10.9, or 61b more than ha won the Century Hurdles with. In addition he will have to go a quarter of a. mile further and have an extra hurdle to jump at Ellerslie. Up to the present' Waipu is the only horse that has succeeded in winning both races. —ln commenting on the Australian jockey Wootton, who was recently suspended, Mr John Gorlett said: "With regard to the suspension of Wootton, we have merely to state that all along jccl-eys have been under the impression that if a hcrse attempted to come between them and the rails they had the right to prevent it. Why, however, a horse should be prevented from coming up on tho near side without committing an offence, whereas a corresponding movement! fta> prevent him from coming up on the outside is admitted to be foul riding, passes our compiebersion. A stern lesson has been taught not only to Wootton, but to other offenders, that obey must keep a> straight cours\ Many of the most famous of the old jockeys by. no means looked on it as ' the rails or nothing' in order to secure victory. If you are well placed on the rails, well and gocd; but it is a very different matter if a lot is sacrificed in order to secure that position." —ln the course of an article on country racing the Australasian says:—"Meat people think that the presence of tha stipendiary steward is invariably welcomed by tho conductors of country race meetings. We can assure those who think this way that a good many small clubs would rather be without the stipendiary steward. They] do not want their patrons interfered with, any more than did the early pioneers of proprietary racing. Before the V.E.C. took a hand in management the proprietor of the gate money course ensured good patrons of the meeting against inconvenience 'by acting as chief steward himself, and appointing complaisant friends to assist him. As far as regular supporters of the meeting were concerned there were no disqualifications in those days. If a casual visitor, not likely to be of mucJe service to the fund, was caught doing anything improper, he was made an example of, just to let the public know that the lina was sometimes drawn somewhere." Woolloomooloo, the horse of that ntarHif that Mr F.\ Foy bred, by Definition frontFarthingale (imp.), and who went to Nevt Zealand some weeks ago, has not" had form over-estimated by the weight-adjusteil to the Wanganui Jockey Club. He was ei.tered for the Century Hurdle of 300sovs, two and a-quarter miles, given the lowest weight—9st; while at th<! top of the list are Compass 11.2 and Poly* anthus, Waicne, and Makr 10.13 each. Among other horses entered at the meetings are Kiatere and Bullworth, who, it will hardly have been forgotten, distinguished! themselves as winners at the A.J.C. rutumn meeting, the former with 11.4 and the other with 9.12. They are in the Wanganui Steeplechase, a three-mile race of the value of 425sovs. Kiatere tops the handicap with 12.5, Eldorado being next with 11.7. whila Blullworth has 10.4, From that it would appear (says a Sydney scribe) that the weightadjuster was not very strongly impressed} with the quality of the opposition encountered by Bullworth when he last appeared ail Randwick. The absurd practice that obtains in New Zealand of sending horses to the post hali! an hour before ibe time fixed for starting? races is to be objected to. Jockeys hav«? been grumbling for some time, and so hav© owners, that their horses are sent out fa* too early, and a petition is in circulation) amengst Auckland jockeys for presentation to the Auckland Racing Club Committee, asking that an alteration be made, so tha* they will not be required to go to the posit until within 15 mintes of the time fixed for? the start of each race. The reason why. hcrse? are sent to the post so long baiora the start is that it tends to make those who are betting get to business. With time limited at the totalisator and speculators dallying about in many cases till the last! minute, it -will be argued that an alteration!, in the procedure observed in the past would' probably bring about complications. Buti under present conditions the comfort of! horses and jockeys appears to be about the last thing thought of (says the Sydney Telegraph). What would riders and owners here think if their horses were sent out on cold' or wet days, as they are said to be in the Dominion, half an hour before the advertised! time for starting? There would, at least, be a very strong protest. —At the Farmers' Union Conference held at Marton last week, a system of inspection of stallions was urged by Mir C. J. Reakes,, chief veterinarian. He said he fully realised! that something should be done to prevent unsound stallions from travelling around the country. They could arrive at the end desired without pressing unduly hard on horse-owners. Some practical and effectual way of getting rid of the unsound stallions would have to be adopted. A voluntary, system had been suggested, and this had proved satisfactory up to a certain point in Australia, but it was not possible to arriveat the amount of improvement effected by the scheme. Until power had been given by legislation to prevent or limit the_ use of rejected or unsound stallions, his belief was that a voluntary system was useless. ¥ha scheme he outlined was that it should not be made compulsory for stallions over three years old. At the same time, such stallions could of course come up for examination if the owners liked. With the exception of aged horses, all hardship would be done away with after a few years. Of course all sires would have to come up for examination. This examination should be carried! out by two yeterinary surgeons or two good) judges of horses. They did not want scrubbers going round. It would be possible to establish a scheme of insurance against condemnation.

A. writer in the London Sportsman recently wrote:—''Last back-end I mentioned in these notes that a well-known owner and member of the Jockey Club, speaking to mo - on the subject of handicapping of Newmarket hcrses, said that it was all our fault —meaning myself and others who write about them. He said that we crack them, up too much, and, in fact, make all our geese into swans, thereby dr-iwing the. attention of the. handicappers to thenr. This I, on my own part, denied, for I think my readers will! hardly charge me with overrating our horses as a rule. Eive i if we did, as I them told the gentleman, surely that was no ex« for the handicappers to deal harshly: with them, I may &o<w say that the gentle-

man I am alluding to is Mr Leopold de "Rothschild, and I do not think he can show ae where I ever referred to King Charming as being anything even approaching a ood horse—indeed, I do not remember having seen any other Newmarket writer refer o"him as such, so that he cannot say we ,vere the cause of King Charming being handicapped in the style he has been-. Thus he must look elsewhere for the reason, and if he m?ke an ii.quiry in the proper quarter he would, I am sure, be doing Newntarket in general a kindness which we all know he ivould Ito on'j tec pleased to do. Cf cciirse, we also know that for his own part he aever conirslains, no matter how his horses ire treated." The. Right lion. James Tomkinson. win} was killed in the House of Commons Light-weight lUics '(a steeplechase) at Epping (Eng.) last month, was 70 years of age. He v:?s riding Iris own mare, May Day, who established a lead early in the race, and looked like winning comfortably. At the last fence but one, however, his horse fell. Mr . .Tomkinson bsing thrown heavily. He was badly kicked in the head, and his ribs were crushed. He remained unconscious for half an hour, and was then removed to a farm, where the doctors, who were soon in attendance, advised that he should stay the night. Mr Tomkinson, who sxpressed the opinion that he was very_ iit prior to the race, had been a keen rider for half a century, and. of course, had had ma-ny falls. The mest serious prior to his fatal accident occurred about 10 years ago. during a run with the Cheshire Hounds, ■when, his horse falling into a ditch, Mr Tomkinson became wedged in between the bank and the animal, it taking nearly an hour fo dig him out. Mr Tomkinson was one of the most active members of the House of Commons. When 65 he won a yeomanry point-to-point race between Cheshire and Lancashire. He was hon. lieutenant-colonel of tho Earl of Chesterfield's Yeomanry. Deceased belonged to a celebrated hunting family. The Cheshire poet, War bur ton, wrote of his fathci and his two uncles: /Were my life to depend on the wager, I know not which brother I'd back — The vicar, the squire, or the major,. The purple, the pink, or the black!

" Sir Betlevere,'' of the Wellington Post, »aid: " .Kiatere's appearance lent interest to the Grand Stand Steeplechase, for which, however, he was almost entirely neglected on the totalisator. Cameron bad him in fine trim, but be was allowed to be much coo far away from bis opponents, and only began to put in bis run when it was too late His stable mate beat him home by fully a dozen lengths, but oo my mind their respective positions at the finish should have been reversed. Anyway, Kiatere is by no paeans a back number yet, and may be absolutely relied upon to render a clinking good account of himself at Ellerslie, where, so far as I can judge, his only really dangerous opponent will be Audax. The Sir Lethe bubble was ruthlessly burst badly, foils had every opportunity of scoring had he Tjeen good eiicngh. He is no doubt a, useful horse over a short course in moderate company, but whilst granting that he is in anything but gcod condition at present, he is ne\er likely to take rank as a first Jiighter. XBullworth's success was .well deserved, but ■whilst he was unlucky on Tuesday, fortune largely favoured him to-day. Oryx, who was full of running, was lying only a couple of lengths behind him about three furlongs from home when he turned a fearful somersault at one of the hencoops. It subsequently transpired that he had stood off too far, and, hitting the fence fairly in the middle, he went clean head over heels, landing on his back and breaking his hip. His owner managed to get him on his feet again, but ho was soon down once more, and though he might have lived his injuries were so severe that- Mr Homes decided to destroy him. Foitur ately, Lyford, who rode faim, was thrown well clear, and thus escaped injury. I thought that Maher (wrote "Rapier" In reference to Wootton's suspension) rather overdid the business of throwing up his hand and stopping his horse at Newbury last week in the way jockey's do when chey suddenly make up their minds to object. The trick is designed to show onlookers, of course, including stewards, that they are being interfered with. However, there can be no doubt that Wootton, on St. E'lroy, did interfere with Maher, on Flower Saint, and no one could ha\c been in the ieast surprised at the disqualification of Wootton's horse, and the leport to the stewards of the Jockey Club. The betting on the objection showed what would almost inevitably happen —longish odds on th« second " getting it." Wootton thought he was the necessary two lengths ahead, it is reported, but if this were ris belief it can only be said that he has much to learn about the judgment of distance. A rather strange thing was that many people anticipated precisely what would happen to him. " I suppose he'll have to stand down for a couple of months!" That is what one heard frequently, s-.nd that is what lie has to dc. It is most unfortunate for. the boy, as it must almost inevitably prevent him from again heading the list of winning joikeys. it means heavy loss to fcim, and gravi inconvenience—probably loss also—to owners for whom he would have ridden. But after, his suspension the year before last it was a certainty that the stewards of the Jockey Club would take action after the report of the Newbury stewards, and Wootton has only himself to blame for a severe lesson. He was drawn 8, Maher, I thought, VI, but I read that it was 14. Had they kept straight, as it was understood some former stewards of the Jockey Club said jockeys must, Maher would have been well on Wootton's right hand, and Wootton certainly a long way from the left-hand rails. On those left-hand rails, however, Mah-jr finished, and it was for getting in front of him there that Wootton is in trouble. W. H. M'Lacblan, who recently rode the winner of the Adelaide Cup, has a wonderful record in Cup races. In 1908 he won the Caulfield Cup on Maranui, and last year, riding Aborigine, dead-heated for first place with Blue Book in the same event. He won the last Melbourne Cup on Prince Foote, ind the last Sydney Cup on Vavasor; while the other day he piloted Lady Wilde to victory in the Newcastle Cup. He also has two Svdney Tattersall's Cups and the ft..J.C. Summer Cup to his ciedit. Though he appears to be more at home in long races, he has ridden the winners of the CaulBeld Futurity Stakes, V.R.C. Newmarket Handicap, A.J.C. Villiers Stakes, and other sprint races. M'Lacblan, who is still young, started riding at 15 years of age. He was apprenticed to the Sydney trainer, R. Wootton, and for him rode several winners in South Africa. In the course of an interview recently with " Mostyn," the well-known Adelaide turf writer, M'Lachlan said: —" Mr Wootton taught me everything, and I don't think it vould be possible for anybody to be associated with that trainer without be--coming a. good rider. He spent no end of time telling us how to ride, what not to do, and what to do, what to avoid, and what lo take aavantrge of What is more, ho was aJways on the !.c okont for what wo s wrong ffith" certain hr.rr.ns arid r.F.st lim« would

tell us particularly how to ride then*. I can quito understand his own ison Frank being top of the tree in England. As a matter of fact, I should have gone to England with Mr Wootton, but at the last moment a particular friend of mine, who afterwards became my wife, was dangerously ill, so Mr Wootton let jnc off." " Being at the top of your profession, what advice would you give to young riders?" M'L.achlan was asked', and his reply wtsr —"The very same that Mr Wootton always impressed -on me. Nsver. try to win a race rounding a turn. Either s*«-i.re the nieaFure of the opposition before yen get tc the turn, or when once you are well in the straight."