SPORTING NEWS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7996, 27 April 1904, Page 1

SPORTING NEWS.

FAR AND NEAR. (By THE POSSD3LE.) The Wellington Racing Club's Autumn Meeting was affected in more ways than one by the weather. In fact, what promised to be the most successful meeting in the club's history was converted into a series of disappointments. The attendance, the financial results, and, worst of all, the racing -were detrimentally affected, and j it can safely be said that some of the results would have been different had the meeting been held under favourable conditions. der the circumstances, a diminution of £2273 in the totalisator investments, as compared with those for the autumn meeting of last year, is not so bad as might have been expected. The racing, too, even under the disadvantageous circumstances, was really interesting. The defeat of good racehorses by bad luck, more than by superior Ability, is always to be regretted, and in all probability this was the fate of several during the inclement two days at the. Hutt. Such reverses are disappointing at anv time, but most of all at the end of, the season, when there is no opportunity for revenge until after feelings have had time to cool. For the present the reports of the racing tell the tale fully enough, without the results being enlarged upon here. It ig safe to predict- that, given favourable weather the autumn meeting of the Manai watu Racing Club, which will be held to-day j and to-morrow on the club's fine new course ! at Awapuni; will be a very successful gatherj ing. The acceptances in. all the events are Highly satisfactory, and it is improbable that there will be any important defections, except, perhaps, of those who have earned penalties since their engagements were con- '• tinue&. The winners in the respective events ! on the first day of the meeting may come jfrom the following:— Telegraph Handicap, Kremlin and Rehua; TriaJ Handicap Hurdle Race, Pushful and Narcissus ; Manawatu Racing Club Handicap, Cannie Chiel

and Bagpipes ; First Hurdle Race, Comfort and Levant ; Welter Hack Handicap, Woodmount and Optimist; Longbum Handicap, Sandy and Black Reynard; and Electric Hack Handicap, Provost Marshal and Trent. In the Court of Appeal, at Welington, on April 18, Mr Harper applied taht the Courb should hear an appeal affecting bookmakers. A bookmaker at Christchurch was sentenced to imprisonment without the option of a fine for trespass on a racecourse, and' thig decision was appealed against. About fifty other cases would be affected by the decision. The Court declined' to prolong the present sittings to deal with the case. Fifty-two charges against bookmakers for having trespassed on the Riocarton Racecourse were set down for hearing at the Christchurch. Magistrate's Court the following day. Mr Stringer, who appeared for the "prosecution, applied for a remand for a fortnight, pending the decision of the Appeal Court in a case of a similar nature. Mr Cassidy, who represented a number of the defendants, offered no objection, and his Worship adjourned the cases sine die, and it was arranged that Mr Gassidy should receive seven days' notice before the cases would be caled. A meeting of bookmakers and others who have been prosecuted for betting on the local courses was held the previous evening for the purpose of considering the desirableness of concerted defence. It is understood that there will be some tangible results from, the discussion. that occupied the evening. The balance-sheet of the.SontS"Canterbury Jockey Club J 6 Autumn Meeting showed ae follows :— Receipts : Nominations, acceptances, etc., £241 ; programmes, gross, £51 16s 8d ; privileges, £53 3s ; gates, £36 16s ; paddock, £101 12s 6d ; railway, £61 16s ; totalisator, £539 13s 6d ; total, £1085 j 17s Bd. Expenditure : Stakes, £600 ; handicappers, starter, etc., £54 3s ; luncheons, £8 19s ; advertising and printing, programmes, etc., £31 18s 6d; sundries, £7 146 ; totalisator expenses, £171 3s 2d ; total, £885 I7s Bd, leaving a profit of £200. ■From this is to come a further £20 for wages. All the items in the receipts show, a considerable increase upon those of last year's meeting. At a meeting of the committee a trainer who, it was stated, had failed to scratch a horse in due time for one of the races, and had used abusive language to the secretary, was fined 1 £5 for the latter offence, but it was found that the scratching had been effected according to the rules. It was decided to warn a number of others who had acted irregularly as regards scratching that fines would be strictly enforced in future. A dwelling is to be erected at the course for the caretaker, a capable man having offered to fill the position for a term of five years, and to himself erect loose-boxes, the club compensating him for these at the end of his term. He would also keep the tracks in order, look after the jockeys' licenses, and generally look after the club's interests. Other improvements are to be made for the benefit of trainers and the public, and- the club evidently does not intend to rest upon its recent successes. A northern writer, after mentioning the story of Mr Reid having practically sold Gladsome at two-years-old to Sir George Clifford, and that the sale was cried off at the former's request, goes on to recount a little history regarding Mr Reid's purchase of the filly, which will bear repeating. Mr Hugo Friedlander (in whose colours Gladsome's full-sister, Gladisla, had run well) contracted a bit of a fancy for the chestnut daughter of Miss Gladys when she was led into the ring at Sylvia Park in the summer of 1901. He was quickly found bidding for her, and when the Ashburton sportsman capped Mr Reid's bid of 90gs with one of 95gs, the latter good-humouredly remarked, " You don't want the lot, Friedlander! Let me have one!" Mr Friedlander thereupon generously gave way, and Mr Reid being left in possession of the field with a bid of lOOgs secured the filly that was destined to earn Oaks, Derby and Cup honours, and to clip the wings of Australian cracks at weight-for-age. Thus, savs the raconteur, we have an illustration that an ounce of luck is now and again worth a ton of judgment even at the ringThe "Breeder and Sportsman" (San Francisco) records the death of Mr Joun W. Ronayne-Dickeon. The deceased was an old-time resident of Oamaru, and was I for many years a partner in the proprietary !of the local " Times " newspaper, which j states that there he was known as W. H. Ronayne. He left Oamaru in the early eighties for Auckland. From Auckland be went to San Francisco, where he became ! proprietor of the " Calif ornian ( Turf ," and took a prominent part in coursing matters. !He was a keen coursing man when in ! Oamaru, and owned Camellia and Kathleen, I the former being a winner of the New Zea- ! land Waterloo Cup. To old identities, of i Oamaru Mr Ronayne would be well known. I Since the " doping " rule • was passed in i England several people have asked whether 1 giving a horse whisky before a race constituted doping. According to Mr Corlett, it does. He writes: — "It may not be out of place to caution owners and trainers against administering Dutch courage to their horses in the shape of whisky or other stimulant. Th© new rule not only forbid." the artistic American ' dope,' but it also senders illegal the use of whisky. In future, therefore, any tradner giving his horse before the start the old familiar bottle of whisky will, if the horse wins, on objection being made, be disqualified. ' Bowes' steed, the tardy Taraban,' it will be recollected, used to be regaled with a bottle of old port, which h,e took like a Christian, and unless he had it he would not win. Under the new rules he would have to go on losing. The Jockey Club » r e wise in forbidding artificial treatment, and while they are about it they might also pass a rule rendering it j \ imperative that where a parade takes place, no horse shall 'be excused from taking part j in it. In horse-breeding good^temper and general tractability are as desirable as any I pother qualities* and we are becoming gome- i

what tired of the nervous, fidgety brutes j that cannot take part in a parade without being upset. If owners choose to breed from these excitable strains, let them take the risk, and not be allowed when the time for action comes to be excused from Certain phases of the race that other horses take their share in." Lord, Cardigan wound up the hero of the A.J.C. Meeting. This, says "Ribbleden," is a result no one would have expected after seeing Emir beat him no fewer than three times at Flemington, but although Emir was looking so well at Randwick, he did not come up to expectations in races, and after his poor showing in the AH- Aged Stakes it was decided not to run him again. A well-known racing man expressed the opinion at Randwick the other day that this season's three-year-olds are the best we •have ev<fr had. This is going a little too far, perhaps. Abercorn, Carlyon, The Australian Peer, Cranbrook and Niagara, were a nice batch in one season, and in the year when First King, 'Chester, Swiveller, Savanaka, etc., came there were a -wonderfully good lot out, but this season's three-year-olds are decidedly good. The Caulfield Cup, tho Melbourne Cup and the Sydney Cup have all been won by three-year-olds, and although Gladsome did not -win the New Zealand Cup, she won several other important handicaps before coming to Australia. Emir, Lord Cardigan, Belah, Sweet Nell, F.J.A., Gladsome and Scottish King can all be set down as good, and Duke of Grafton and Hauturier, who were put out of the running early in the Reason, anight both have done well if they had had the luck to train on. Probably all these three-year-olds will be running in Australia again next season. Koopan's win in the Easter Stakes at j Randwick was an eye-opener, says " Ribbleden," and evidently Payten was right when he said, after the Champagne Stakes, that Koopan should have beaten Lord Fitzroy. Here Koopan was always running over the others, and won pulling up. After this j performance he is very likely to be the winter favourite for the Victoria Derby. The. autumn bloodstock sales held in Sydney during tihe race week were (says " Milroy ") the most successful since their institution. The sales extended over four days, and 264 head of thoroughbreds were disposed of. In all 186 yearlings were catalogued, and of these 106 were sold by auction, three by private contract, and one j was leased. The balance of the 264 head consisted of brood. mares, untried 1 stock, stallions, racing ponies, and racehorses in training, and the sum realised for the lot, including the three sold privately, amounts to 27,026 guineas, or an average of a trifle over 102 guineas. The sales began tamely, and breeders looked glum, but prices livened up later on. The principal buyers outside New South Wales came from West Australia, 40 head going to that State. The Victorians came second among visiting buyers, and took 22 head, while 20 we#e ] bought for India. Our Queensland- cousins bought 12 ; six go to New Zealand, five to New Caledonia, four to South Australia, and one each to Tasmania and Fiji ; thus j 111 head -were purchased ,by visitors, which \ goes to show that our iiorse stock is appre--1 oiated outside our own borders.