SPORTING.

Waikato Times, Volume 94, Issue 14773, 12 October 1921, Page 9

SPORTING.

RACING FIXTURES. M . I October 13 and 15—Whangarci Racing Club. October 13 and 15 —Duncdin Jockey Club, Spring. October Li and 15 —Masterton Racing Club, Sprim". October 22 and 24—Wellington Racing Club. October 24—Waikato Hunt Club. October 2-i Waverley-Waitotara Racing Club, Annual. October 27 and 29—-Poverty Bay Turf Club, Spring. October 29 —Taratahi-Carterton Racing Club, Annual. November 5, 7. 9 and 12—CanterburyJockey Club, Metropolitan. 1 November 5 and 7—Auckland Racing Club, Spring. ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. . . "Y.R.," Te Kowhai. —Rational in fonr starts has won 1200 sovs. in stake money. His next appearance wdl :| probably be 'in the Champion Plate at Trcntham, in which he will meet | the Derby candidates, Tamatetc and Grotesque. . "Goldflclds," Te Aroha. — (1) Bang won the Borough Handicap over live furlongs at the Thames J.C. meeting of 1921. Infante was scratched for the event. (2) Stilts is a chestnutgelding by General Soult—Maid of the Forest. ••Classics," Hamilton.—Sir George Clifford, who previously won the Wclling-ton Wellcscy Stokes wsta Glenogle, Treadmill, Kirriemuir, Fleetfoot, Moorfowi, had four youngsters engaged this season, but they have all been allower to drop out of the event. Swallow Flight, a coll, by Autumnus —Flitaway, owned by the Christchurcii sportsman, has hern nominated for the handicap

events. THE CUP PENALTIES. On more than one occasion in th< past, "Sentinel" of the Olago Dalh Times, has expressed the opinion thai the penally condiilions attached to the | New Zealand <-up has a detrimenta effect on the tone of the running at Ui; spring meetings which precede it or the calender. It may be taken as an undisputed fact that the owner of a Mew Zealand Cup candidate is no! anxious to incur a penalty for hit horse, but under existing conditions a horse can gather an increase of weigh! for the big two-mile race by winnin? over live or six furlongs. That su :h js the fact is hostile to the cOmmor sense of racing. Two horses may Lc equal at live or six furlongs or up to 10 furlongs, but there may be at least 141 b between them over a IG-furpmg journey. Everyone agrees that th".'■■: is a chronic dearth of stayers, and under the circumstances a horse : should not be penalised for such a race as the New Zealand Cup unless a win has been scored over more ground than a mile and a quarter, Hie value of the stakes being a secondary 1 consideration. If owners were not troubled with the bugbear of penalt.es the principal events at the spring meetings would carry 100 per cent J more interest, and certainly supply a much more reliable line to form. As it is, we see fat horses and indolent jockeys, stayers running amongst sprinters; but whether out of their course or not, they are merely training instead of trying. The easiest. and best method of Improving our racing morals is to remove temptation, and if the penalty conditions attached to t'te New Zealand Cup were improved it i".,.'safe to say that there would be better sports and bigger Holds seen at "; the spring meetings. JOTTINGS. There will be racing at Whangarei shd at Dunedin on Thursday and Saturday, and at Alastcrton on Friday and Saturday. Lord Wilton, who spent large sums On yearlings in 1918, has had a very short turf career, as his name now appears 'in the unpaid forfeit list. The well-known cross-country horseman, L. Hagcrty, has recovered from the accident he met with ill August last, and was riding work 'it Riecarton last week. The New Zealand Cup candidate, Foo Chow, has resumed light work at Picca.rton after pulling up lame at the Gcraidine' meeting. The trainer of Solferino's son has every hope oi getting him to the post next month. Veil's failure in the Gimcraek Stakes at Randwiek was a big disappointment, to New Zealand sportsmen. It was given out thai national's sister w.it something out of the ordinary, and U. J. Mason was very confident, of her. When Hie Sydney papers come to hand it may be found that Veil was unlucky . in her faces. Mr R. B. Lusk, of Auckland, has been appointed to the position of .judge to lii-: Wellington Racing Club. There were hulf-a-dozon applications for ll'.c position. A petition is being signed at Hastings asking the Accident Fund Trustees to make a grant to the mother of Ihe late Roy MAnson, who died recently at Aucklai a. The "three-year-old Lord Martian, who raced unsuccessfully in Sydney, dieit at Trentham on Thursday afte? undergoing an operation. Lord Martian was owned by Mr A. J. Toxward. of Akitio. if, is reported from Hastings that Mr T. 11. Cowry was expected back from England An a few weeks, but that fie was not remaining long in New Zealand, and was returning almost immediately to England. Mis horses in training will probably he sold. A newcomer to I ho Wanganui I racks is the big chestnut gelding Hindi, a ! full-brother to the New Zealand Cup winner, Indigo. Hindi is now owned ' by Mr J. Marshall, who will prepare him for racing. The Victorian champion, Eurythmic, , had revenge for his October Stakes defeat when h" turned Ihe tables on TangaloOma in the Caulficld Stakes .>Ji Saturday. It looks from the reading ni' Ihe running thai Dempsey did n it keep Eurythmic >n far hack from the ■ field as is customary with this rider, Last, :.<-■■-)!■ Ihe pair also ran first and *Wcond in the event. One of the dividend payers at. the i Geraidinc meeting was in an ahsent.i minded mood and paid Ihe wellknown owner and trainer, ,[. MrCohibe, about half a hundred too much over gome liekets by mistaking one dividend for- another. When he realised the : situation J. McC. promptly 'returned the money. Search your souls and askhow many people would return an oasy half hundred gathered by accident. Sydney papers announce victories at | the sinails of dare Hatch (Gloaming's brother) and Winged Vlictory fa brotborrto Biplane), but, they are many tfreetsVemcrwi from the pair tha:. I **)>irk" Mason Jv>= so much money i «fih.

"Poor Paddy," wailed Mrs Casey, 'he come home drunk from the races, singing, "I won't be home till morning.' The policeman saw him, and now he won't be home for a rnon'h!"

The fact that one of our stipendiary stewards has inherited a fortune may be taken as a guarantee that there will be a vacancy to till amongst our ra:ing officials. It is to be sincerely hoped thai, the vacancy will be (illed wTh someone with horse sense and knowledge of racing, and not, by someone whose ignorance of the business tempts a certain class of owners to use his own rules. The blind cannot see the dead.

An inquiry was held at Hastings into the falling of Truthful in the Spring Handicap, and as a result Hoy Reed, rider of Maioha, was suspended for three months for crossing and inL>'--ferencc.

When Ere'taph ran away from her opponent in the Hastings Stakes, her lime ( /- S 2-ssec.) equalled the record for the race, registered in 1911 by Hie Hon. J. D. Ormond's Glade. Epitaph's brother, Humbug, won the race in 1010.

Mr E. J. Walt evidently possesses a particularly smart filly in Eady Aura, who accounted for a big field in the Gt.'mcrack Slakes ' at Randwick last week. She was purchased as a yearling by Mr Watt for SOOgs, and on the dam's side comes from the same family as Desert Gold. Beau Soult, sire of Beaufort, winner of the Epsom Handicap and Graven Plate events at the Australian Jockey Club was a New Zealandbred horse, "lie was bred by Mr G. M. Gurrie, and was by Soult from Our Lady, the dam of Bronze. The Caulfield Cup \VilI be run on Saturday over a mile and a-half at the V.A.T.C. Spring Meeting. It is a handicap of £6500 and gold cup, value £100; second £IOOO, and third £SOO from the stake. From all accounts, stales a recent Sydney Morning Herald, Lord Northcliffe had a good day at Randwick. in Ihe morning a Sydney friend handed Lord Northeiiffe a race book from Mr .Joe Browne, one of the best-known bookmakers in Sydney. Mr Browne gave Lord Northeiiffe the winner of the first, second, fourth and last races. As all these were at a long price (the last at 20 to 1), the distinguished visitor is not likely to forget his first day at an Australian race meeting. The next appearance of Amythas is to be in the Champion Plate at Trentham. The big fellow is going well on the tracks, and the other morning reeled off six furlongs very comfortably in lmin. 10 3-.">sec. Believe, who chipped in over the last half-mile, was of no use to him. A couple of days later he did seven' furlongs in lmin. .29 2-ssce. Mustard Pot assisted over the last half-mile and gut beaten. A member uf Parliament, who is interested in horse racing, expressed the opinion the other day that a fall in the tote receipts would be experienced by all the clubs in the wool districts, but that there would not be the same fall in the daiirying districts. Wanganui, which, lie said, was the centre of a big wool-growing area, was down, and Avondalc, which drew the people from dairying districts, was up. It may be interesting to follow his theory and see how it works out. With what has happened so far the politician is about right.

When Tetratema beat Orephus in the King George Stakes at Goodwood he carried 10. i and easily did the six furlongs in imin. 11 2-ssec. However, Goodwood must be favourable to fast time at the particular distance seeing that in the previous race, the Findon Stakes, a two-year-old named ConrJover (by Radium) easily did imin. 10 4-Sscc, notwithstanding that he Was carrying O'.O. The New South Wales breederowner who races as "Mr J. Baron," has got hold of some useful performers sired by Prince Pootc. Prince Sandy, who won the (rial slakes on the opening day at Uandwiek, and ran second in the Metropolitan, is one, and Princo Charles, winner of the Squatters' Handicap, another. Both had failed to win races at two and Ihreo years of age, and had been given time to develop. It is recalled (hat "Mr Baron" also won the Trial Stakes with Piastre, who ran second to Duke Foote lin the Metropolitan, nnd also won the Melbourne Cup. It will be interesting to see whether Turf history can repeat itself in the

rase of Prince Sandy, who is in the Melbourne Hup with 6.7. An amusing story its going the rounds "f London concorning an incident which is said to Ime hnppened at a reccnT race meeting. An individual in a state of great agitation rustled into the ring after a race, shouting, “Hats off! Hats off!” Almost unconsciously the order was obeyed in .several cases, and somebody then asked, “Why? is some Royal personage corating along!” “No,” replied the excited one: “t'vc been weir hod by a blighted bald-headed bookmaker, and I’m trying to lind him.” Gray. the New Zealand .joekey, who is riding so successfully over here for rir li. Gunliffe-Uwcn, is not, as many people Imagine, at, the threshold of his career (says All Sport Weekly of July As a matter of fact, he is now liiirly-b.vo years of age, and actually retired from the Saddle two years ago to lake up farming. lie must regret he did not conic to this country and try his luck before the war. I was '■halting about Gray to a oncc-famous jockey the other day, and tic was considerably impressed with litis ability. Gray is no doubt a very tine Judge of pace, and another of his assets is I hat he never leaves Ids mount too much to do in the last furlong or so. Gray is already getting plenty of rides when not rcnuiim) by Sir If. Gunliffe-owen, and he should finish (he season with a big per ccntagc of winners.