PLUMPTON PARK TROTTING CLUB’S MEETING.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume VI, Issue 295, 19 March 1896, Page 10

PLUMPTON PARK TROTTING CLUB’S MEETING.

[by WIRE.—CHRISTCHURCH CORRESPONDENT. March 17. The Plumpton Park Trotting Club’s Meeting took place last Saturday, in beautiful weather. The attendance was up to the average, and speculation exceeded last year’s by the sum of £55 10s, £1906 being passed through the machine. The course could not have been faster, the recent attention it has received, combined with a few nice showers, making it rare good going, as the times show. Pride of Kilkenny, ridden by B. Edwards, was made favourite for the first event, the Maiden Trott (saddle), but could only finish second to Sans Sonci, who covered the distance in smin 45|sec, and paid £6 14s. Six others started. The Pony Trot found Woodlands, also ridden by Edwards, favourite ; but he was never prominent, and after a mile had been covered Polly Plum got to the front, the only others persevering with any effect being the St. George horse Destiny and Farewell, the three finishing in that order. Seven others started. Time, smin 44Jsec. Dividend, £5 4s. A fine field of ten contested the Sockbury Handicap, when Hampton, a stable companion of Rita’s, was pronounced first choice, the winner, Bell Lorimer by Blackwood—Abdallah, coming next. Bell Lorimer commenced at once to overhaul the leaders, and after six furlongs had been traversed was in front, followed by Hampton, Lady May, and Redmire. Bell Lorimer continued to show the way to Hampton, and the issue was confined to these two ; but the former was not to be denied, and came home an easy winner by thirty yards. Redmire third. Time, smin 15|sec. Dividend, £4 14s. C. Harold rode the winner, and B. Edwards Hampton. The Maiden Harness Trot was really a good contest between two, Ascot and Kentucky Maid, until seventy yards from home, where the latter went up, allowing Ascot to win easily. Mist, the favourite, was third, and was ridden by Edwards. Time, 2mm Dividend, £5 12s. Seawood beat Tommy by a length in the Selling Trot, paying a dividend of £ll2s, and was bought in for £7 10s. Sandy, who had been withdrawn from the Pony Trot, was a hot favourite for the Plumpton Handicap Harness Trot, more money being entrusted to him than to the whole of the other five starters, Little Ben being next in demand. Young Irvington, by Irvington, commenced at a great pace, and at the end of the first half-mile caught up to Sandy, who had 14secs start of Young Irvington. From this out tbe latter held his position, although Alice Azmoor, who had been trotting splendidly, made up her leeway in a wonderful manner, covering the last mile in 2min 27sec, and the full distance in smin s|sec. Time, smin 16isec. Dividend, £9. The Edward brothers rode Sandy and Little Ben, J. Jardin the winner, and W. Kerr Alice Azmoor. The latter could have won had she been sent along over the first mile, but she was probably acting as shepherd to something else. She is a magnificent specimen of the trotter and trotted without a skip, as indeed did the winner, who was tiring badly at the finish and was driven unnecessarily wide nearing home, but not sufficiently so to effect the result. The eleven starters for the Electric Trot saw Redmire slightly favoured in the betting. At the half-distance the race looked a fair thing for F. 8., ridden by Edwards, but he broke at tbe top turn, where Redmire came through a stopping field at a great pace and got home by twenty lengths from F.B. Stonewall Jackson (from scratch) trotted at a rare bat and finished fourth, his time for the mile being taken as 2min 28sec. Angus rode the winner, who is by the thoroughbred horse Perkin Warbeck IL, covered the distance m 2min 30sec and paid £3 Bs. The Dash Harness Trot was another fine race. After half-a-mile had been traversed five horses were in a cluster, Stonewall Jackson in the rear. Fairy, Caroling, Mist, and Nigger were in that order at the top of the straight, but Fairy went up, and Carolina finally won a good race by three lengths from Fairy, Mist being third, and Stonewall Jackson fourth. Time, 2min 46sec. Dividend, £9 12s. The brothers Edwards rode Fairy and Mist, and Needham the winner, who is by Kentucky. One feature of the meeting was the bad luck experienced by the brothers Edwards, and the same may be said of the brothers Kerr, notwithstanding their strong teams. Munro, on the other hand, handled three winners, Polly Plum, Ascot, and Seawood.

Miss Rita and Josie B. recently lowered the team record in Kentucky by doing a mile in 2min 12£sec. Monroe Salisbury, the field-marshal of the American trotting world, is only in favour of toe-weights or heavy shoes to make horses go square and level. When they go right he gradually lightens them up. At the Palmerston North Trotting Meeting the pneumatic tyres of the sulky that the Auckland mare, Rosebud, was to trot in got punctured going along the road down to the course, and the mare had to be harnessed up in a road cart, one of the old “bone-shaker” type of sulky. After going two rounds permission was obtained from, the stewards, and the mare was pulled up. In Russia a horse that is addicted to the habit of running away has a thin cord with a running noose around his neck at the neck strack, and the end is tied to the dash board. When a horse bolts he always takes the bit in his teeths, and the skill of the driver is useless ; but the moment the pressure of the cord comes on the windpipe the horse knows he has met his master. The Sports Association Ground Company at Palmerston North contemplate laying down a trotting track on the outside of the present bicycle track on their property at Palmerston. As the distance will be about three laps to the mile, the public will see more for their money than they do when the Palmerston North trotting meetings are held on the Manawatu racecourse. There is a wonderful trotting dog called Ned in America. This strongly-made, well-formed pointer does not belong to the famous Hal Pointer family, but for his size and weight is faster than any of the representatives of that equine branch. He stands 26;} inches high and weighs 761bs. He is in colour a liver-and-white ticked, and in regard to his speed is ready to go against any canine living or any pony under 12} hands in height. He can, when in condition, trot a mile in close to three minutes. He pulls a bike and a boy weighing sixty pounds.

At a meeting of the stewards of the Wellington Trotting Club, the Billah “ ringing in” caso was further considered. A letter was received from W. Yates (who raced the horse there, calling it Fagan) stating that he could not get at Billah to see whether it was identical with Fagan, and he knew nothing more than that. A copy of the evidence taken by the New Brighton Trotting Club, however, left no doubt in the minds of the stewards as to the identity of the horse, and it was decided to disqualify Yates for life. The horse has already been disqualified by the New Brighton Club. It was decided also to take action for the recovery of the stakes paid.

A member of an American trotting club, connected with an important branch of the building trades, owns a horse which has developed an unusual degree of sagacity and intelligence. It seems that the gentleman in the daily rounds of his business, inspecting work on new buildings, has to do quite an amount of climbing. He is generally accompanied by his horse, and when the intelligent animal thinks he has waited long enough for his master, I am told it is no unusual sight to see him try to climb a ladder and whinny, especially near meal times. The latest feat attempted by this wonderful animal was to try and climb a telegraph pole, but the attempt was not successful. Ido not vouch for the truth of this story, but give it as it was told me. And when one considers that in these closing days of the nineteenth century horses can be taught to play on the piano and trundle baby carriages, one can scarcely doubt the marvelous powers of thisclimbing horse.