DERBY PROSPECTS.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 31, 13 March 1914, Page 2

DERBY PROSPECTS.

I THE TETRARCH AMISS. I FORTUNES I.OST AND WON. |&::' After an unbeaten two-year career Tetrarch retired into winter quarSji tens a staunch favourite for the coming m." season's. English Derby; in fact, I *. doubt if any two-year-old has finished | tip his career with more promising creIdentials or in stronger demand. The ease with which he downed the other two-year-olds made their pros'pects of turning the tables on the grey colt in the blue ribbon seem particularly remote, and it looked to be only a question of his wintering well to attain .Derby honours. Apparently that is fast what The Tetrarch has not done. For sotne weeks past rumours have been

of a disquieting nature con|r cerning the colt's welfare, only to be |1 contradicted by those in a position to

feiaflSw. Now comes confirmation of the in the form of a couple of one announcing that the |r s veterinary surgeons have not, yet de-ll-cided whether the colt is suffering from §fvsua knees or from a tendon trouble, |Jj*phile the other states that 50 per cent. Tjeing paid to insure a settlement &-J|ag»nst total loss if The Tetrarch does start in the Derby. Ilother Possibilities. |ra£sstotom this it would seem that it is B^jSojofV ß ' level money chance of The: ,, takingpaft in the Derby conas that much coveted only some ten weeks' distant. |£!l!ho#gh the-misfortune is greatly to be the absence of last season's i certainly leave the issue not the Derby, but also of the other fg itlnre6«<year-old events, much more open. f>P*abably Kennymore will now occupy |-r the position of favourite, though on factual form Corcyra would be entitled £a»o iffiat distinction,' but unfortunately £_Tbe iaoiot engaged in the three-year-old K, "elawife. The former is bred on ap-jp-lwroved staying lines, and his victory in pc'the Efewhurst Plate stamped him as- ah p exceptional colt. Parhelion is another -* v whose- prospects will have to be taken colt is, reported to have win*?!&&s'' well, besides having the cont£~B&4*fo of his connections. There is just dottbt as to whether he will not show 4 to m&re advantage over mile than mile £~,and a-half courses. Another pair that %' an two-year-old form must be included the dangerous list are Hapsburg and |5 '-Courageous. Both these colts are bred '£. <m recognised staying lines, and perso well last season as to suggest Jjfrjlerby honours being within their capa|t; bilitqes. |L*. Snorting Frenchman. p- That enterprising French sportsman, |r/!M. Edmond Blanc, evidently intends £-'. having another attempt to wrest the %' coveted prize from "perfidious || 1 Albion," though it must have eOst him §£'* small. 1 fortune in"'"similar ventures, jp since Gouverneur chased Common home IP Hearly v a- quarter of a century ago. Ig.-.'lj'or-rtne coming contest he has half a £?-<-dozen well-bred colts nominated, but !*■ on past form none of them can be conivsidered as really first-class. The best §£ of them may be Sloughi and Coq Hardi, of whom have several smart perp. Jtormances in France to their credit; the former was crenerallv

[fleetly the former was generally with being the premier twoof last season, It would be a

% xn.de shock to British conceit were the - taken across the Channel, but ever a sportsman deserved such H'lrononr it surely is M. Edmond Blanc. i • ' ■ ■ . .. . ■... . st The Great Gladiateur.

Jt4s many gear's now/since Count de captured the blue ribbon with & iis great horse Gladiateur, and the retf. «rolt gave rise to one of the most exfa «iting scenes ever witnessed on the jki famous Epsom Downs. The thousands

jpSof- Frenchmen present went almost !"_' delirious in their excitement, while it tj-Jtasaid that one prominent sportsman so f far forgot himself as to yell just as the \ Iforsesr were returning to the-birdcage, p.'**"Waterloo avenged." "Yes," came answer from an English owner, V *'The French ran well on both oci" casions."

Betting. pi* From the somewhat vague cablegram $W published on Wednesday, it appears •f" that the early backers of The Tetrareh \» are insuring their wagers t». as to *" lessen their obligations in the event of \' : the colt not starting. If that is so, it ':- indicates that there must have been a Iribt of early betting on the Derby this

?' season, though of recent years that Inform of wagering has sunk into comfpiparative insignificance to what it used I to be. As a matter of fact, the blue tr ribbon,, does not excite nearly so much %, 'speculation, nowadays as do some of the

II '.big spring-handicaps. In the .years such leviathan bettors as Messrs £ lierry, Chaplin, Saville, Cartwright, 3j Peck, and Prince Batthyany used to

§ operate, it was no uncommon happening v for fortunes to be lost and won over % the Derby, for in those times large books were opened on it as soon as the P ;" two-year-olds retired into winter : |> - quarters.

; Hitting the. "Ring." ' r - For instance, Mr Nayjor is credited [ with, having won £IOO,OOO in Blue ; , Gown's year, probably the largest p amount ever taken out of the ring by one speculator. An even larger amount )■ would have come Mr Chaplin's way r -when Hermit scored, but, unfortu- , nately, a good deal of this wan on paper, some of which was not "redeemed. In Daniel O 'Eourke 's year two

[ historical bets were laid by a member h«C the ring against "The Irishman," r;.«ne of £50.000 to £IOOO, and another of L 540,090 tot.£looo.- That hard bettor, Igltr Merry, relieved the ring of £70,000 % When Thormanby won, and similar sums p.were landed by Sir Joseph Hawley on ; Jtfusjid, Teddington, and Beadsman in ; their respective years. Mr Suewing'a

winnings on Caractacus amounted to about £30,000, and though the ring was not nearly so strong when Doncaster won for Mr Merry, he had one nice wager of £4OOO to £IOO offered him justbefore the race started. Though reckless speculation of this nature is now a thing of the past, a win in the Derby means almost as much as ever it did, for now the stake is much larger, while the inflated prices at which blue ribbon heroes can be sold as sires on the conelusion of their racing careers, pays owners much better than backing them. Besides which, there is no getting away from the fact, that whether the betting be heavy or light, the bookmaker is sure to get the best of it at the finish. TEMPLAE.