SPORTING NOTES.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XIX, Issue 5308, 14 March 1884, Page 2

SPORTING NOTES.

[BY FLANEUR.] t \"' '' The late Autumn Meeting of theW.J.C. was without doubt one of -the most successful ever held under the Club's management as the fields were good, the racing of the very highest class, and the arrangements almost perfect. Great credit is due to the Club's handicapper, Mr Evitt, who had the measure of the different animals submitted to his judgment so accurately guaged, that in adjusting the weights for the different handicaps, he succeeded in giving every horse a fair chance of winning on its merits. The results were large acceptances and most exciting finishes, indeed after a quarter of a century of racecourse experieDce, during which it has been my lot to witness the first Champion Race (won by Flying Buck), the first and many subsequent Melbourne Cups, cum multis aliis, I cannot call to mind so large a programme having 3uch a sustained success in its own different items, as there was no one horse competing that was able, at the allotted weights, to sweep the board. The consequence was_everyone was, pleased,, and the W.J.C. Autumn Meeting of 1884 will long be talked of- as a thing to be proud of, and to try and emulate7if not surpass, in the future. I may, I think, be excused a little pardonable > pride 'jn referring to my i continued success as a racing "prophet," as I managed to tip correctly five out of the seven events I gave my opinions on, and can only hope my readers reaped the profit, as personally I. never bot, enjoying myself quite as truly without, besides being able to judge impartially of each horse's merit?, which one cannot do if he backs any particular animal to win. Consul sustained my good opinion of him by winning his Derby cleverly after a,, big ,tussle with the Marlborough crack, who was not quite up to concert pitch. Ahua. too, although beaten, was not disgraced, and might have done even better had he had the services of Derritt, as it was too much to expect a lad of Scott's limited racing knowledge to get as much out of the colt as the finished artist could have done. ' The finish, between . Clifford and Wattie on Consul and Refrigerator was a real treat, worth going a long way to see ; there was no leather flapping nor horse butchering in it ; they simply sat down and sent their mounts home at their , very top speed, and did it too as only your first-class horseman can, without punishment, as practised by some of the fraternity, who fancy they have not done their duty if they have not cut a' horse to pieces with whip and spur. As for the latter, it is fast falling into disuse at big meetings, and I noticed several of the riders at our last who eschewed "hooks," and trusted to their knowledge of pace and racing tactics, instead of brute force. In Melbourne if a, rider were to bring in a horse butchered, as I have seen them cut about in New Zealand, he would be severely fined by the stewards, and taught, through his pocket, that racing was never intended to be horse torture. The Cup was a graud race, and I think might have ended in Mr Tancred's favor had the boy on Administrator been a Derritt, as the latter justified my anticipations by fairly squeezing The Poet through his horses at the finish, and popping his head in front in the last few strides. Bayard disappointed his admirers sadly, as he either never tried or was" off color " j to look at he was fit to run for a kingdom, but when it came to the test he was never dangerous. I am, however, quite sure he will run a different race before long, and regain the confidence of his friends. Tim Whjfflerytoo, ' was another disappointing animal throughout the meeting, as I am quite certain we did | not see his true form. Maori did ;as I predicted, and won "when least expected." I have heard several complaints that people who tried to get on him on the totalisator the second day could not do so, as the totalisator people turned a deaf ear and served out the tickets,' on anything else with alacrity. Asldon't "totalisate" I cannot say of my own knowledge whether such was the case, but I I can find a dozen who are very sore because they could not get attended to for tickets on Maorii and thus failed to participate in the best dividend of the meeting. Hinemoa justified my preferencefor her by'winningthe Flying and District after a hard fight in each case. I , always said the mare could stay two miles if run to suit her, and the way she stuck to her work in the District Handicap and struggled home, proved her a really good and game animal. Loch Lomond turned the tables on Orient in the two hurdle races, and proved himself a thorough Day Dawn ; but the way Diomedes got along in show con'ditiou was a veritable surprise ; had he been fit, he would have had a lot to say at the finish. The Hack Races fell to an erstwhile butcher's basketnag, who romped away from his field on both occasions, notwithstanding the fact that some of the so-called hacks were suspiciously like horses I have seen running for bigger stakes. The accident to poor Tommy Cressy was the only drawback of the meeting, and in connection therewith I would suggest that the club, before next meeting, fit up a small room for '' casualties," and provide an ambulance stretcher so that, in case of a bad accident, the unfortunate subject may not have to lie for a couple of hours on the hard floor in the press room, and then be removed off the course with broken bones in a joltiDg cab, as was Cressy 's fate.

The great Martini-Henri has failed to do the Grand Flaneur trick, and has gone down before horses he has hitherto had no trouble in keeping behind him, aud the public have

no doubt been hard hit, as the winner, Le Grand, was hardly mentioned in the betting. He is by Epigram from Legend, and was bought in the Spring by Mr Smart, the owner of Archie, Warwick, and other well-known cracks, but did not recoup his new owner until Saturday last, for the big price he gave for him.

Lord Falmouth, who never bets, and who has won £200; 000 in stakes alone during the last ten years, has decided to quit the turf and '"sell -"off Msijforses", on;'som,e' .d£\which Fred Archer has' risen 'to fame'and^fortune, as he has always been at Lord Fal mouth's call.' As" Lord Falmouth' bred nearly all ' hia great winners, the sale of his brood mares ought ."fcrdraw a" large audience; "and I ;hope one or two of the plums may be secured for N.Z., as the p"rodubei of a Wheel of Fortune, a Bal Gal, a Spinaway or a Jennette when. > niate'd f 'wfth J either "Muskfei"' iAnteros or 1 Cfa&ogah ouglft >f to'brifa^ four flgut-e'sj' before' a 'Saddle' ever touched ;th<lin— llie Grand'the 1 winner of 'the Champion Race' J was , backed ;<to win in' the' New-* ( market Handicap- in' 'which he- carried ' Set * [101 b, he was beaten- by Malua Bst 71bs by a peek. It was indeed malua (wait awhile). .The time wa's'fasfe'l'min' 15£secs-. The winner is by St Albans sire of Tasman and adds another to that' very successful stallion's list of winners among which I notice Prodigal 3 years old fuU'» brother to Tasman who pulled off the, All-Aged Stakes at Hobart lately. - ■ ' •<.' ' ■ ,\t) The respectable number of seventy nominations hay been received for the next- New Zealand Cup, the only animal from this district being Armourer. Mr Stead has six, Mr Horsf all seven, Captain Russell four, Mr P. Butler three, Mr D. O'Brien four, Maaon and Vallance two, Hon W. Robinson 'six,' Hon G. McLean five, -'Mr Bate three; 'Major". George two, and 'Mr E. Cutts'hasi^fouill animals nomitiated'for' it." ■' >'• >'•' < V] ,v << , "The Haweraf Races on Monday next Will be" largely .patronised, as the card is, a good one ' ,and Mt 1 Higgie Has made spine very fair Handicaps. „; ._„' ;; :. : - '■/'";■• 1 .Owners ' are reminded that acceptance's 1 i close for ; Taranaki on the 15th. inst,)' pn. j which date also nominations for Waverley. i close, and weights" for Feilding will be de^ iclared. r '-> * | I noticed a jockey riding in the Handicap' 1 , Hurdles who is under the ban of disqualifi.cation on the West Coast for gross misconduct. • , - —

- George. Williams (says Actseon) -has de-> cided to return- to Australia, and .Wattie will take up his abode in Auckland, where,, a few weeks ago, ,- he took unto himself a" wife. - ,; , ' ' -