Amid the Thoroughbreds.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume VI, Issue 282, 19 December 1895, Page 11

Amid the Thoroughbreds.

[by

BORDERER]

THE MOTU-KOREA YEARLINGSAN ILLUSTRATED VISIT TO THE ISLAND STUD. Three crops of thoroughbreds have been raised at the Messrs Alison Bros.’ Island Stud at MotuKorea, and the present yield leaves the preceding efforts far in the back ground. During their first two seasons the popular proprietors of the stud (Brown’s Island as it is generally called) relied upon the services of sires from neighbouring studs, but this year their leading stallion is the St. Leger —Atlanta horse, Regel, who carried their colours in season 1890-91 (when he won the Takapuna double), and who promised to develop into such a stout sprinter until an unfortunate break-down threw him out of work. I had heard a lot of the fine stock this St. Leger horse was producing, and one day last week I journeyed down to the Island to see how far this highlypraised son of a doughty sire justified the encomiums passed upon his ability as a producer of racing stock. It only required a glance at the yearlings being prepared for the annual sales next month to prove the truth of the complimentary remarks that are being passed upon Regel’s stud work. The youngsters claiming him as sire are all well grown, excellently muscled and proportioned,, and fit in every respect to stand comparison v/ith stock grown on any stud-farm in New Zealand. The party in whose company 1 visited Motu-Korea last week had a metallic twang about it, inasmuch as the Auckland Ring were all there with very few exceptions. The pencillers were not there on business. They accompanied our party because they have a natural feeling of affection for the youngsters

who will some day or other either roll shekels in their way or call upon to disburse. Bookmakers are very fond of racing stock —generally from the point of view obtained from an inverted gin-case. One member of last week’s party does not, however, come under that clas°. Mr D. A. McLeod has shown his love of the thoroughbred and its attendant pleasures by running a colt in the classics of the Australian turf. So far the gentleman has not made a fortune through his predilection, but he is very confident en route to MotuKorea that his turn will come when the Great Northern Derby Stake is hung up, for if you listen to “ Mac.” Osculator is going to lick the Derby out of sight. “ What about Fabulist ? ” the penciller-owner is asked. “ Him ! ” replies Osculator’s owner with a ring of scorn in his voice, “If my colt can’t beat him I’ll drown him.” But for all that -Fabulist will run a big horse in the Derby, although from the work I have seen Osculator do in the morning of late there appears every prospect that Mi* McLeod’s colt will carry off the Blue Riband. But there will be a struggle for it. . The Ellerslie trainer, Adam Byers, is another member of our party, and.is no doubt on the look-out for another St. Regel, who first saw the light at the Motu-Korea Stud. When the first lot of yearlings were put up at the Island in 1894 Byers became the possessor of this colt for a sum of 200 guineas, at which figure he was a very cheap purchase. The win registered at Takapuna on the 7th inst. by St. Regel should form a good advertisement for the Messrs Alison Bros., and with such a showing the produce of the dam, Friendship,. should be eagerly sought after. In order to supplement the' writer’s descriptive powers, the special artist of the Sporting Review, Mr J. A. Slack, accompanied the party named with his camera, and as will be seen from the pictures appearing on this page and on page 9, took six representative plates’of the Stud as it stands at present. In previous 'accounts of my visits to MotuKbrea, I have referred to- the admiral natural

surroundings which the Island possesses to make it eminently suitable fur a depot for the breeding of thoroughbred stock. The soil is a warm, rich volcanic, and the Ivalleys in the centre of the Island gives abundance of shelter, while the outdoor life led by the youngsters hardens their cohftilutions. And the hilly nature of much of the acreage is calculated to give them grand muscular development.. The feed at the Island is always first-class, and the salt tonic thrown on its paddocks from the open bay gives the youngsters an ever present'desire to exercise their powers of digestion. The matrons of this stud are small in number, but very select. But, as .the principal object of my visit is to look at the yearlings, We will examine the Regel —Friendship colt, which is being placed in position by Mr Slack. As this youngster is out of Friendship (St. Regel’s dam), Adam Byers adopts an air of proprietorship and proceeds to put him in a position most suitable for the display of his points. His picture appears on this page, and from it one can easily imagine what a fine-grown substantial colt he is. In colour he. is chestnut, and is built in a mould that speaks racing all over. He has a level, short-coupled back, beautiful head and neck, with great powerfully-developed quarters. There is. no silliness about, this colt, every glance of his eye showing him to be a sensible, fellow. As I remember St. Regel when a yearling, this half-brother of his is larger than he was, but you can’t say he is better shaped, for the simple reason that it would be very hard to find a better proportioned. fellow than St. RegCl is as a three-year old, or as he was-as a yearling. His run at Takapuna showed what Friendship cando with the aid of a sire like St. Leger, and with a worthv son.Of the Doncaster horse, such as Regel undoubtedly is, there is every reason why her present yearling should be every whit as good as the stock thrown to St. Leger’s serving. It would, indeed, be strange if Frieiidship threw a bad one, for both in breeding and racing deeds sl e i« an undoubted gem. Bred by Mr Rouse,’

of New South Wales, in 1879 ; she was got by the Yattendon horse Reprieve, from Nydia, by Tarragon out of A taianta (grand dam of Reprieve), by Reprieve (imp.) Friendship showed great pace as a four-year-old by winning the Penrith Handicap, Coronation Handicap, Albury Cup, Summer Handicap at Yass, and Publican’s Purse. She also won Chipping Norton Handicap (Liverpool, N.S.W.),one mile and a quarter, with 8.2 ; ran second to Merlin in the Sydney Anniversary Handicap, at Randwick, in a field Of twenty-four starters ; won a large number of races in Auckland, among others the Onehunga Spring Flying Handicap, one mile; Wanganui Consolation, one mile ; Takapuna Birthday Handicap, one mile and a half, beating Antelope, Libeller, Turquoise, Tamora, and four others; A.R.C. Winter Handicap, one mile and a distance, beating a field of eleven ; Onehunga Winter Flying Handicap, beating five others; A.R.C. Autumn Easter Handicap of 200 sovs, one mile and three quarters, beating a field of six ; Takapuna J.C. Stewards Handicap, Winter Meeting. Friendship ran her last race at the A.R.C. Winter Meeting, being beaten by a head out of twelve starters, carrying Ost and giving 2st to the winner. She was one of the gamest mares that ever carried a bridle, and as.kind tempered as she was consistent. The second youngster to look into the photographer’s camera was a chestnut colt by Regel from the Musket mare Tamora. .This youngster is a sturdily-built fellow with a fine sloping shoulder, good quarters and rare timber. He possesses the dignified calm that stamps so many successful racers, and displayed a quiet contempt for the attitudinizing of the photographer that was good to behold. Like the Regel c<>lt first inspected this fellow shows great bone and substance, and has a racing line in every 1 urn of his limbs. This colt is out of the same dam as Nestor by a son of that two-year-old’s sire, so that there is close relationship between the pair. The Friendship and Tamora colts are splendidly grown and stamp Regel as a sire able to transmit strength and grace to his progeny. Running in the same paddock as the pair mentioned is a brown colt by Cuirassier. He comes from the Anteros mare, .Jessie (dam of Rex), and compared with his companions is perhaps a trifle peacocky, but a good ’un for all that. He is not cast in such heavy lines as is generally the case with Cuirassier’s get, and shows by his style of striding around the paddock that lie has a very fair idea of galloping. Jessie showed big pace when training for three-year-old engagements, but owing to an accident had her speed seriously impaired. Her dam, Tres Deuce, was full-sister to Calumny, as good a racer as ever put toe on New Zealand turf. When tried in Australia she carried off amongst other big items the Hawkesbury and Geelong Handicaps. Jessie’s full-sister, Louie, was another good performer, so that on both sire and dam’s side this colt -comes from big galloping strains. My readers have only to look at the pictures of these three colts to see for themselves that they show fine bone and substance, and are cast on lines that betoken speed and breeding. After finishing with the enclosure tenanted by the three colts described above, we entered another paddock where from amongst a cluster of yearlings one stood out prominently. Closer examination showed that we were looking at a bay filly by Nelson from the Musket mare, Phantom, and a mre-shaped youngster she is, as will be seen on reference to her photo, appearing on page 11.. She is well forward, too,, for her age, and shows as much quality as I have ever seen in Nelson’s get, and they all have a fair share of good looks. Look at her photograph, and you will agree that a handsomer yearling it would be hard to find. Running in the same paddock as Nelson’s daughter are three colts, one gelding, and two fillies. Rewa Rewa has an upstanding well-filled-out colt to Regel, and the Barbarian —Ladybird mare, Pearl, has a bay colt to the same sire. The fillies are from Vasator and Torment, by Cuirassier and Nelson respectively, and the unsexed youngster is from Mystery by Regel. The juniper Warrior is represented here by a neatly-built brown colt from the St. Leger mare Muriel. All these youngsters do credit to their breeding, and the care bestowed upon them by the Alison Bros., who are to be complimented upon possessing a batch of yearlings that for breeding and looks are equal to anything to be found on a New Zealand studfarm. . '

Before we depart our attention is arrested by the Musket mare, Tamora, galloping past with a colt foal, which for forwardness and build beats any foal I have ever seen. He is so grandly proportioned that the photographer places the foal and mare in position and takes a picture which appears on page 9. This foal speaks eloquently for the stallion powers of Regel, who will, I think, find it a difficult matter to improve upon the pledge of affection given by him to Tamora. On our homeward journey I learn from Mr E. W. Alison that Regel has seven foals on the islandfour colt and three filles. The mares with colt .feols are Jessie, Pearl, Tamora, and Vasator, those with fillies being Muriel, Mystery, and Rewa Rewa. The four pictures of yearlings appearing in this issue show what sort of stock Regel is throwing, and one finds' little difficulty in prophesying for him a successful career at the stud. t