SENSATIONAL DIVIDEND

Waikato Times, Volume 195, Issue 22456, 18 September 1944, Page 4

SENSATIONAL DIVIDEND

RETURN OF NEARLY £SOO NIGHT ROBE S ASHBURTON WIN The sensational dividend of close on £SOO was returned by the galloper. Night Robe, in the Penscroft Hack Handicap, at the Ashburton meeting on Saturday, it being the largest recorded in the South Island and one of the biggest paid on the totalisator in the Dominion. Night Robe was nineteenth favourite in a field of 23 and twenty-first favourite on the place machine, on which his return was close on £IOO. the highest since the introduction of win and place betting. Night Robe is a five-year-old gelding by Night Raid from Silk Robe and this was his first success. He is owned by Mr L. R. Simpson, solicitor of Dunedin, and is trained at Timaru by E. J. Ellis. Neither the owner, who was present, nor the trainer, participated in the dividend. The sum of £5 was invested on’the win machine and £9 on the place machine, all being held in 10s tickets One prominent Government official from Christchurch invested 10s each way on the winner. Night Robe was ridden by H. J. Ford, an apprentice in C. Humphries’ stable. Ford was engaged by Ellis only a few minutes before the time to weigh out. and when putting him on the scales had to ask him his name and initials. He had not seen or heard of him before. Ford’s only previous win was on the same course in May last, when he rode Silver Sal, trained by Humphries. The largest dividend on a single event in the Dominion was in 1920. when over £IOOO was paid to a solitary supporter of Wairoa Belle at a trotting meeting at Nelson. Running his first race. Ephialtes was responsible for the second largest dividend of over £SOO at a race meeting at Carterton in 1930. Most recent of the larger dividends was paid on Billy Peach at Ellerslie in January last year, the amount on that occasion being over £440. In 1924. over £440 was paid on Karamu at Avondale, while over £3OO was paid on Unworthy at a trotting meeting at Hawera In 1937.