SPORTING NEWS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7979, 7 April 1904, Page 4

SPORTING NEWS.

» FAR AKD WEAR. (By THE POSSIBLE.) The Auckland Racing Club mad© a good start with its autumn meeting on Saturday. The Easter Handicap provided a surprise, all the fancied candidates going down before Regulation. The Regel m&re has a Jiabit of coming along when little fancied, an even larger dividend rewarding her backers when she succeeded in the Riecarton Welter Handicap nearly eighteen months ago. Starshoot ran a good race, and for the second time was second in a big event at ELlerslie. Ghoorka, the favoarit*, ran disappointingly, and Romeo and Wairiki also failed to act up to expectations. When it, was announced that Silkworm was not to be taken north, it looked as if the Auckland two-year-olds would have the (jjcampagne Stakes to themselves, but the Porirua colt Boris upset ibis idea. Boris, who was bred by Mr J. F. Reid, made the top price, 360gs, at the sale of the Elderslie yearlings in 1902, whea he wao purchased by Mr R. T. Turnbull. He made his debut in the Hastings Stakes at the Hawke's Bay Jockey Club's Spring Meeting. He was fancied by the stable, but he could only finish- third to Silkworm and S-ir Percivale. Then he unfortunately went wrong, and he could not be started at the Canterbury Jockey Club's Spring Meeting. Now that he is all right again, he has demonstrated that he is a colt of some class, and he may a**.- interest to next season's three-veai'-old events. If for nothing elee moet peppk will be glad to see him turn out well, as at present the prospects, outside of the Yaldhurst stable, do not look very bright. The Australian Jockey Club's autumn, fixture was commenced on Saturday under favourable conditions. Judging from the brief account to hand the racing appears to have been well up to the average. Chere Amie, winner of the Doncaefcer Handicap, ha* only recently sprung into prominence. A month ago she was a, very moderate performer, ana on the first day of the Rosehill meeting last month sho could only run second to Sir Faust. On the same day Contest defeated a fair field in the March Stakes, at weight for age with penalties and allowances. Oa the second day of the Rosehill meeting Chere Amie won the CarlingforduMUe from a moderate field> Fucilc, fche sire of Chere Amie, is a son of Carbine. He was a fair performer on the turf, but judging by his early success he seems destined to earn some distinction at the stud. In tue St Leger Emir again demonstrated his superiority to the reet of the Australian three-year-olds. He defeated all of that age that opposed him at Flemington last month, but in Belah he was taking on a fres- opponent, so far as the autumn campaign was concerned. At the spring meeting at Randwick Belah won the Australian Jockey Club Derby, but on journeying to Victoria he went off. Emir was also far from being at bi6 best then, so that the form of the pair in the Victorian Derby, in which Belah finished third and Emir fourth, wae anything bat conclusive. Both fche colte were reported to be well at latest accounts, and the result of Saturday's race proves the superiority of the Wallace colt. Chief interest in the meeting centred in the Autumn Stakes, in which Gladsome made her initial appearance under silk in Australia. Mt Reid's filly seems to have run a food race, and it was certainly the worst possible luck for Mr Reid to lose through faulty horsemanship, as the cable message suggests was the case. Sweet Nell has some good performances to h«r credit, but, ac she is believed to 'be 'a long way behind Emir, 1 am afraid Gladsome will have to improve a good deal on. Saturday's showing to defeat me champion. Mention of Donovan's riding call* to mind the fact that Iftie Australians have always been Dtady to adversely- criticise New Zealand horsemen. Some of our best jockeys have in tie past been seen in the saddle in Australia, out almost without exception they hiave come in for severe handling by the critics. It seem* strange that th«y should all 40 off bo badly on the other side, for in a few cases at any rate they have been top-notch«rs, whatever their form in Australia may have . been. j The cable message a few days ago an- ' aounced that at the dispersal sale of the Morphettville Stud the total amount realised was £2892, Light Artillery 'bringing top price, 150 guineas. This is the third important sale held at Mopphetkville since it became a stud, nearly thirty years ago. At the first sale there was spirited bidding for wveral of the lots, among which <weie Guesswork, Conjecture, King- of the Gipsies

and Bassanio.. The first Neckers^afc yearlings were offered at the same time, and they included two high-class animals in Newstead and Dunlop. 'No one could be persuaded to take Newstead, and he was ultimately sold for about £50. The second ale was held after Sir Thomas 'Elder's leat-h, and at it Horfcense, Lady Lovelace md Mostyn were disposed of, but Hortense was bought back on behalf of Mr T. E-Barr-Smith, who has since run the 6tud. Hortense was the pick of the brood mares in last week's catalogue, which, however, , also included a number of other high-class matrons. The sum realised at the sale was rather disappointing. The price paid' for Light Artillery seems ridiculously low. He is only fourteen ye^rs old, and until Auram appeared on the scene he was regarded as the best horse sired by Trenton. He was quite the equal of Patron, who won the Melbourne Cup of 1894, but he was a hard horse to train, and for that reason the best of him was probably never seen in public. The nominations received by the Well- > ington Racing Club promise well for a sue- 1 cessful meeting at the Hutt. In the Thompson Handicap, there is an entry liart of i forty-seven, including most of ,the best ■ milers in the colony. The South' Island is , strongly represented,, horses from this part of the colony being Vladimir, Grand Rapids,, j Martian, Bagpipes, Bulawayo, Cannie Chiel, ! Quarryman, Sandy, Lady Lillian, Welbeck, Bkckstone, Red Gbuntlet, Canteen, Lolah, De la Rey. Southern stables ard also prominent in the other races, in which the entries include Petrovna, Kremlin, Cerise and Blue, Slow Tom, Catherine Gordon, Ragabrash, Brighton, Machine Gun, Brave Heart, Golden Lily, Chryseis and Signalman. As might have been expected, the North Island stables are also, well represented, and altogether, appearances point to the Wellington Racing Club having $ very successful meeting. Although the winter meetings are still events to be looked forward to for some time yet, the nominations for the hurdle races at the Wellington Racing Club's meeting serve as a reminder that we are fast ap- [ proaching the season when jumping contests will form the principal attraction for racing men. Hurdle and steeplechase horses are not so plentiful in the colony that we can afford to lose any of them. It is, therefore, pleasant reading to find The Guard's name figuring in the entry list for the hurdlo races at the Wellington meeting. When the JPorirua chaser fell 1 in the Grand National Steeplechase at Ricoarton in 1902, he went into retirement, and as he has not emerged since then, it looked as if his racing career was over. The fact tlat he has been again entered for hurdle Taces suggests that there is at least a. reasonable ohance of his carrying silk again, and with the present dearth of good cross-country florae* this is good news. The Guard is undoubtedly one of the best steeplechasers seen out in New Zealand for some years part, and his reappearance will be welcomed by all '. who take an interest in the winter sport. There will be ample time later on to speculate on the probable recruits to the jumping ranks, but in the meantime Oingo and Westf uard may be noted as likely iurd!« racers, their names appearing among the nominations for the Wellington meeting. Judging by the nominations received last week, the autumn meeting of the South Canterbury Jockey Club should be one of the 'best ever held on the Waehdvke course. The entry list contains the names of a number of good performers, and there is every appearance oi interesting racing. The hack races have filled particularly well. The only disappointing events are the two selling races, and, coming on top of poor fields for similar evsnt? afc recent meetings, it is becoming clear that the club would be well advised to delete them from its programme. Considerable improvements have been made at the course of late. The buildings 'have been painted and repaired, the lawn enlarged by nearly half an acre, and the fencing round it improved in appearance. The totalisatbr house, which has been moved back to a position in line with the grandstand, has been enlarged to twice its former size. It now runs north and south, instead of east and west as formerly. It has eight selling windows, the fencing being so arranged that three £1 windows and one 10s open on to the lawn, while three 10s window* and one £1 will -be available . for outside investors. This .will give more choice and better, facilities for investing than previously. Inside, the arrangements of the totalisator house are very convenient. Mr H. Reynolds has been engaged fixing up in the new building the totalisator of which .le is the patentee, which will be used at the meeting under the personal supervision of Mr Reynolds. Other improvements in- 1 elude a new track inside the racing track. It is eleven yards wide, and half has been sown in grass, the other half being left as a plough track. Starting-gates have also been erected on the course, and these will be used for the first time at the coming meet- ; ing. Altogether, the South Canterbury Jockey seems to be making excellent " progress. From time to time we hear rumours of the unuatisfactory condition of t^e turf in Australia. The latest tirade comes from Sydney, the " Daily Telegraph "of a recent , darte having the following caustic remarks on the subject : — " It will probably be denied in interested quarters, but the average racegoer will be hard to convince that the turf of this State was ever in a more rotten cont" - .

dition than now. Horse trainers — not all, but some of the number — set the authorities at defiance, judged Dy the manner in which their representatives are engineered, and go to win or lose just as the fancy takes them. Some supporter^ of racing will have it that picking a trier nowadays is quite as difficult a task as finding a winner, and, though this may be too sweeping an assertion it is beyond dispute that what should be sport is drifting into a busines of a go-as-you-please nature, and unless checked none but the most undesirable class will care to be associated with it. There was a time when 'pulling horses' was an art, and- old hands are often heard to relate how clever at the business certain jockeys were, but no suoh cleverness seems to be required now. Those who have made a study of racing, and know when they see horses prevented 1 from winning, must surely wonder if the rule have not been altered so as to allow owners- and trainers to do as they please with their own. Some of them do not even bother to take up an ertra hole or two in the throat strap, but merely instruct their rider to 'take hold,' and how often that has been done of late keen observers only too w«ll jenow. 'Xhe frequency with which horses finish 'down the course' when unbacked, and on another occasion behave like totally different animals after the betting market has indicated that a change was imminent, is steadily disgusting the better class of supporters of the turf. It never can be that the authorities desire to bring about the withdrawal of the patronage of those whose support is most desired, but there are indications that matters are tending in that direction, and before it is too late an attempt should be made to check the flow. Years ago pedestriainisnß numbered its followers by thousands, but crooked practices knocked the bottom completely out of that branch of outdoor sport, and though racegoers are slow to find out thai hoTserieing is being similarly threatened, bhere are not wanting signs that they are surely making the discovery that it is- not worth patronising. The public keeps the sport alive, and deserves to be protected from the thieving practices fhat nave become so common. It is not only the trainer with one horse who plays the game low down, but men with well-filled stables are playing it for all there is to get, and until an example is made of some of the most daring and influential the so-oalled sport of kings is likely to be flavoured with a very unpleasant odour."