OTAGO.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume XIII, Issue 786, 30 March 1905, Page 9

OTAGO.

Dunedin, March 28. Wairiki arrived from Melbourne this morning by the Montiwai, on whose top deck the son of Soult is comfortably housed in a 1 commodious and well built box which is well paddrd and floored with cocoanut matting. The son of Soult, despite the troubles he has undergone since November, lookw in fair condition and is bright and healthy 7 in the coat. The writer paid a couple of visits to the boat, and on the second trip found the gallant son of Soult busily 7 engaged with his evening meal. His off fore log is much shorter than the. near fore as a result of the breakdown in the Melbourne Cup, but the deficiency is made up with a cork sole and an aluminium shoe which enables the horse to move about and stand squarely on his legs. With Care there appears no reason why Wairiki should rot fulfil a useful and valuable career at the stud, as on conformation, brecd’ng and performances he is a horse which may’ be safely 7 calculated to win the patronage of breeders. The erstwhile Dunedinite. Cante n, has not entirely lost caste in Australia, as the well-known wiiter. “Bosetdon. ’ after the appearance of the weights, selects the Vivandiere horse or T ord Ullin’s Daughter to win the Sydney Cup.

The Betrayer mare, Kathlenda. the dam of St. Denis, has a fine colt, foalj at foot by Peerage, ' the Son of the Australian Beer and Naomi. Zephyr, the sister to the defunct Pampero, has a very racy-100 ii.ig filly fc-al at foot to the same horse. The difference between a bw scale ot weights 4 liahdicaD and a s-. ah' is noticeable in connection with the adjustments given out foij the last y car Easter Handicap and this year s race. I ast year some of weights read : Achilles to',9, Red Gauntlet 9.6, Exmoor 8.10, Vladimir 8.10 (the winnner), whilst this vear thev read’: Achilles 9.13. Vladimir 9.4. Red' Gauntlet 8.11, and Exmoor 8.3. Achilles was top weight in the last Great Easter Handicap with 10.9, and this year be again holds the pride of place 'with 9.13 opposite his name, with Golden Vein at 8.3. Stronghold at 8.2, Lady Waywardat 7.5, and To-morrow at 7.3 Sir Geo. Clifford has a Ic.okino- quartette engaged in the Great Easter. Sir George, fry the way, has never had a win in thils race, and perhaps the, wheel of fortune may give lim a turn th s year. Some critics do nil inclire tc Master Alix’s chance in the Easter Handicap on the ground that the Slepn’ak gelding is a non-staver. but he did not stay 7 so badly when he was beaten in the spring bv Golden Knight in the C.J.C. Maiden Plate whim the Wallace colt only, caught him in the last few strides, and had to make the watch register Imin 41 3-ssec to beat him. If there is anything m the time test it is worth pointing out that Manjess won the Fernhill Welter at th' Dunedin J.C. Summer Meeting wi h l ’' ( ’ on his back, and ran home a comfo’t able winner in Imin 32 2-ssec, whereas he has <>nly the: feather weight of 6.7 in the Easter Handicap. The question is will the gelding fly 7 any’ faster with the feather ! . The fiuctation of horses form is evidenced by 7 the fact that Achilles with 10.0 was asked to meet Nightfall with 6.11 in the. last New Zealand Cup. and now the pair meet at 9.13 and 8/13 respectively, ivhilst Sandy 7 got in the Cup at a concession of 491bs, and m ti e Easter gets an allowance of 481bs. This shows how one horse will improve and how another may remain stationary in form. The Dunedin J.C. intend u a mg botanic improvements at Aingavui. It is quite, possible that sore of Crichton’s losing -form reads better than the winning form < f some of those engaged both at the Auckland and Ri<cartonl Eiaster ?Jeetings, but he looks harshly treated in being asked to gi weight to some very fair wi'-ners. In referring - to Hewitt s recent dis.qjua.ification by 7 the Dunedin -J.C.. th 'pSvdney “ Referee'’'' said that after receiving a strong warning as to his conduct from the chairman it would not say much foi Hewitt’s intelligence if he deliberately indulged in foul riding only a couple of hours later. and the probabilities are that the interference was accidental so far as he was concerned. ■M any 7 w ell-bred end well-m rfertm-d horses make poor sires, whiht p<”’ on la many- indifferent performer 7 -’. who are nevertheless well-bred and shapely, pro' e themselves excellent sires, possibly because the prowess of their ancestors has been dormant in themselves, but is happily reproduced in their progeny. I his mav prove to be the case with Peerage, some <>f whose stock was recently 7 seen , by the writer. Peerage was imported from Australia by 7 Mr D. O’lßrien as a yearling in 1897. but does not find, a place m either of the issues of ’ the New Zealand Stud Book. He is a son of the well-per-formed horse, the Australian Peer, the latter, as is well known, being the resu’t of a union between smh historical e inines as Darebin (who was one of, the best sires America has seen) and lhe T raducer mare LuiTine, so that th ne is _n > gainsaying’ Peerage is bud on J*articularlv attractive lines throuuh his sire, w 7 hilst his dam. Naomi, is a beautifullybred mare, as' she was got by Hen h ’ an {Ano’ler—Chrvsolite) out Mddbre. a daughter of Wild Cat and tlm Musket mare. Dynamite. Vhilst on the turf P<irage proved himself fai”ly good, but somewdiat unlucky performer , and although wins wore few, still some of bis P'laeed performances cont’ in n-'t a I' 1 t .l r ' merit. Sires are best gmm< dby them stock, and some of Peerage's get whidi the writer saw last weely displav plenty of sine anidl <<imlitv —in im t, .if ih'-.v do not gallop fast they will greatly belie their appearance. Pampero’s sister. Zerln t’, lias a A > racy-lookiing filly by Be Tag" at foot, which is to be given every chance, and with that object in view the darn was not served, this year. will piobably go to St. Ambrose next vear. The Le Tonne mare. Red Piding Hoo<L the dam of Red StaN. w> s destroved last week. A promising two-vear-ohl by Obligado, and a foal bv Black,st one. ate the tw’o latest of her offspring.