MAHARAJAH FOR WINGATUI

Southland Times, Issue 25655, 24 April 1945, Page 7

MAHARAJAH FOR WINGATUI

Sir Percy Engaged At Ellerslie E. TODD’S RECORD RECALLED Acceptances for the Forbury Park meeting close at 7 p.m. on Friday. . BACK AGAIN The Wingatui jockey H. J. Powell has returned from overseas.

DUNEDIN MEETING Nominations for the Dunedin Jockey Club s winter meeting are due on May 14.

FOR WINGATUI Maharajah has been kept In work with the idea of being raced at the Dunedin winter meeting.

AT INVERCARGILL , x „ Monagh Leagh, who Is engaged at the Forbury meeting, is now a member of A. McLellan’s team.

BIG FIELDS , 4 . A field of 70 has been nominated for the Great Northern Hurdles and 47 for the Great Northern Steeplechase.

FOR WASHDYKE Inscrutable, Black Light and Aurora Australis, who are engaged at Washdyke on Saturday, were taken north yesterday.

MONETARY’S DEATH # Monetary is said to have died of fright when A. Didham’s stables were burned. The Paper Money gelding was found dead in his box when a stable hand went to remove him.

A BURDEN _ t o . Australian studmasters pay 18/6 in the on the yearlings sold at auction. . BloodstocK breeding is a very large industry in Australia, but the imposition of such a tax suggests that it is evidently regarded as a pleasure-seeking hobby.

OPINION ENDORSED The opinion expressed in this column a few weeks back “that the success of the withdrawal method of taking acceptances lies in its universal adoption.” is also held, by northern club officials. The Wyndham club’s innovation is likely to be discussed at the annual New Zealand Trotting Conference.

FURTHER.REQUEST , , The New Zealand Trotting Calendar reports that at a meeting of the. New Zealand Owners* and Breeders* Association, it was decided to write to the Forbury Park Trotting Club again urging it to give further consideration to the division policy and pointing out the confusion which resulted from the balloting system at its last meeting. NEW QUARTERS - ■ A. E. Didham has his team at the stables erected by the late Sir George McLean. Foxchase is a recent addition to the team. It is understood that Didham’s stables and contents were not insured, and he will suffer a severe financial loss as a result ox the fire.

ENGLISH-BRED FILLY Scottish Rose, an entrant for the Spring Stakes at Washdyke, is an English filly who was imported last spring with her dam Haltwhistle. Only a two-year-old to English time. Scottish Rose ranks as three in New Zealand and will thus be at a disadvantage if she starts. She is trained at Oamaru by N. J. Dwyer.

INTERESTING CLASH Some interest is being shown in a meeting between Sure Harvest and Freckles at Forbury. Freckles will be in receipt of 12yds over a mile and a-half and 24yds over two miles. Both were winners at their last appearances and Sure Harvest scored in runaway style. Freckles v *c'otild have won by a much wider margin had he been required to. These two young trotters are a class above the majority of square trotters raced in Southland this season. Sure Harvest has won three of his last four starts and Freckles has won once in his only three appearances this term.

ENGAGED AT ELLERSLIE Sir Percy has been nominated for the Great Northern Steeplechase (£2750), tun over three and a-quarter miles at Ellerslie in June. The field at the moment totals 47 and if he takes his place, the Sir Simper gelding will be an interesting candidate, as he is a brilliant jumper and a fine stayer. Sir Percy is a member of one of the most successful jumping families in New Zealand and his record this season has been an outstanding one. The Hazlett stable has a second representative in the Great Northern Steeplechase in Spanish Main, a Paladin gelding from Spanish Maid. Spanish Main, who has recently raced over hurdles, is trained by the veteran trotting trainer, F. Holmes. Colonel Rouge, who was bred at the Chelandry Stud and later sold to a North Island owner, has been entered for both the Great Northern events. Fairy Bard, trained by E. J. Ellis and owned by Mr W. McCarthy, of South Hillend, has been entered 'for the Great Northern Steeplechase and Hurdles. Sir Percy was taken to Washdyke yesterday. He will be taken to Ellerslie by T. J. Boyle, who will ride him in the Great Northern. AN EARLIER RECORD

F. J. Smith’s performance in producing five winners on the opening day of the Auckland Trotting Club’s meeting has been referred to as being a record one. The performance of E. Todd at the 1935 meeting of the Invercargill Trotting Club has apparently been overlooked. On this occasion Todd trained five winners, four of them on end— All Sunshine, Royal Drive, Journey’s End, Lynwood and Rocks Ahead. He drove . the first four winners himself and the fifth, in a saddle event, was ridden by his son, W. Todd. On the same programme Todd trained and drove Happy Knight, who finished second to Moko Child. Todd’s team at ’that time was one of the best any Southland trainer has ever had, as practically all won good handicaps on metropolitan courses later. SOUTHLAND FAMILY A paragraph in the Australian Trotting Record stated that at Derby Lodge awaiting transport to Sydney is a brown colt by Raider (imp.) from Mission Queen. The writer adds: “This colt is a remarkable looker and will stand any scrutiny. He is one that many would feel proud to own, although only 15 months old and he stands 14.2.” Mission Queen, who was bred at Winton by Mr J. Duffy, was an unraced sister to Grand Mogul (4.21) and Smile Again (2.4) and a half-sister to Happl, Aspirant, Fervent, Larry Grattan and others. Their dam, Logan’s Mission, was an unraced mare by Logan Pointer from Wild Queen (grand-dam of Dark Hazard), by Wildwood Junior from Regina Belle, by Bellman. Mission Queen’s blood lines stamp her as one of the finest brood mares at the famous Derby Lodge stud.

HAS PROSPECTS Logan Max is a Southlander whose prospects will be highly rated at Forbury Park next week, where he will be better placed in the handicaps than he has been for some time. Already this season he has won once and been five times placed—a record he would have bettered by now had he been reasonably placed in some of his races. The Maxegin gelding is trained by his owner, D. McDonald, who has achieved some success in recent years with straight out trotting winners. Jimmy Drusus being one he raced and gaited. Logan Max does not boast an extended pedigree, but he was sired by Maxegin from a mare by Logan Sun. The lastnamed, a Logan Pointer horse, did not gain much distinction at the stud, probably his best winner being Blue Logan, a useful square trotter. SCOTTISH EMPEROR Scottish Emperor’s 3.10 3-5 for a mile and a-half at Trentham on Saturday is not only a fresh grass track record for the distance for New Zealand, but it also equalls Zincali’s New Zealand record put up at Addington in 1941. Scottish Emperor is also the two-year-old one and a-quarter mile record holder, his time of 2.48 1-5 being put up in 1943. The U-Scott gelding's Trentham performance is one of the greatest mile and a-half exhibitions registered outside America, as the Trentham track always carries a heavy sole of grass. In-.a trial against time in 1939 Van Derby registered 3.9 3-5 for 12 furlongs, and the world’s record for the distance is 3.2‘/z, put up by Greyhound in 1937. Princess Napoleon, the dam of Scottish Emperor, is also the dam of Direct Bingen and In The Mood, the last-named also by U Scott. Princess Napoleon was by Silk Thread from the imported mare Loretta Napoleon, by Napoleon Direct.

UNPROFITABLE BUSINESS Over 2000 horses have raced in New Zealand since the start of the season last August, and the total will swell as fresh horses come into action for the winter season. The number of horses in training will diminish, however, as the number of horses going into winter quarters will be greater than the newcomers. Only about a-quarter of the horses have won races, and a good number of the winners have not succeeded in paying their way. A few horses have more than paid their way in minor placings, but the majority of the owners have had to pay for their sport. Unbeaten horses this season are Yorkish (1), Bronzemor (1), Monmouth (2), Kindergarten (2), Travancore (2) and Findon (4).

SEVENTY YEARS AGO There was no restriction on the number of days of racing in the colony 70 years ago, and no totalizator to provide stakes, yet no fewer than 27 different racing clubs were operating in the Otago district. Race meetings were held at Alexandra, Arrowtown, Balclutha, Bendigo, Blueskih, Cadrona, Cromwell (2), Dunedin (3), Dunstan, Clyde (3), Havelock, Kakanui, Queenstown, Moari Point, Matakanui, Nevis, Oamaru, Omarama, Otematata, Palmerston, Portobello, Reidstown, St. Bathans, Mosgiel, Tapanui (2), Milton, Lawrence and Wanaka. But in the province of Southland at that period the only meetings were at Invercargill, Gore and Winton.