WANGANUI.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume XIV, Issue 835, 8 March 1906, Page 9

WANGANUI.

NOTES ON THE WANGANUI MEETING. February 6. The Wanganui Jockey Club’s Autumn Meeting of 1906 must be written down as the most successful and enjoyable in the club’s history. The weather was delightfully fine on both days, the fields were large, and the racing throughout of a very high class. The attendance on Cup Day constituted a record, and on the concluding day there was again an exceptionally large crowd present. Included amongst those who were on the scene were visitors from all parts of New Zealand. Many flattering comments were made on the new grandstand, which has already been described in these columns, and which was generally voted one of the prettiest and best-appointed in the colony. The officials of the club were congratulated on all sides for their enterprise in having had such a fine, handsome structure built for their patrons. The club deserves success and it is very gratifying to know that the meeting was not only a great treat from a racing point of view, but the financial returns will be highly satisfactory. Speculation was very brisk on both days, and Messrs. Neylon and Spriggens were kept very busy with their six machines, the total amount handled being />6,060, more than last year. Just how much of this increase was due to the fact that there was no telegraph office on or near the course is hard to say, but the figures are considerably ahead of the best previously established on the course. The arrangements for the conduct of the meeting were admirable, thanks mainly to the efforts of Mr. Frank Moffatt, the club’s secretarv, and his efficient staff, who carried out their duties in a most praiseworthy manner. Judge Hartgill occupied his usual place, and acquitted himself with gteat credit. Mr. Geo. Morse, the club’s ' handicapper, came in for many complimentary references, as the excellence of his adjustments assisted materially towards - the great success achieved, as better racing could not be wished for. Altogether, it was a delightful two days’ sport, marred only by an incident on the second day which caused a deal of dissatisfaction. This was in the Hack , Hurdles, in which, through some misun-

derstanding, the two horses —Dalkey and Florio — w ho were most heavily backed, and carried between them more than half the money on the machines, were left at the post, and took no part in the contest. To begin at the beginning, however, proceedings opened with the Stewards’ Handicap, for which nine horses started, Starshoot being made favourite. Chryseis, on whom young V. Cotton had the mount, was first away, and maintained her .lead to the end. Sir George Cliffords filly paid the nice price of £8 6s. Jewellery, who. ran second, got off well, but dropped back at the half-distance, coming again in tho straight. Roseal was last, and Exmoor finished behind all the others. Ten faced 'the barrier in the next event, the Juvenile Handicap, six furlongs, for which Ku.ratvaka, the San Fran—Maude filly, trained' by J. Prosser, was sent out favourite.’ She and the Nelson —Dudu filly Stratagem, a nice-looking bay filly owned by Sir George Clifford, were out in front at the start, the favourite leading into the straight, where the field closed up a bit. A furlong from home Glenullen could be seen to be rapidly drawing up to the leaders, and galloping in fine style the son of Lochiel —Consistence quickly settled the issue, winning comfortably in 1.16 3-5. The winner carried 9.5, so that he put up a most attractive performance, and rewarded his 146 supporters with the very acceptable divy of £$ is. The big Hurdles were contested by ten, of whom Catherine Gordon and Vexation between them carried /J 476 out of the invested. Mr. G. M. Currie, owner of Vexation, purchased Catherine Gordon on the morning of the race, which accounted for them being bracketed. It is understood that Mr. Currie was very confident of landing the race with one of his - pair; but after a magnificent • race Miss King, who took the lead three-quar-ters of a mile from home, never gave anything else a chance. She paid £9 125., while Defoe, who got second, rewarded her friends with 12s. Killarney was pulling hard for over half the journey, and covered more ground than any horse in the race. St. Lyra jumped much better thah'at Egmont recently, and finished a good third. Seven started in the Hack Hurdles, Dalkey being the most fancied. Mr. W. K. Tuck’s cast-off justified the confidence reposed in him by winning easily in 3mm. 21--3-5 se c< Flanagan'paid for second. Lion Heart shaped differently to what he has done in most of his previous essays, as he generally dashes away with the lead, and makes the pace very warm. On Thursday he never got very near the leaders, while Inglewood broke a blood-vessel, and was pulled up early in the race. Then came the Wanganui Cup, for which the fine field'of' 13 ..linedt-up.--.Prior—--

to the start, the horses were paraded in the lawn, and the condition of the various candidates was closely scanned. It was generally agreed that every one of the contestants looked well fitted for the task before them, and it was hard to say which took the eye most. The supporters of Faritutu had every reason to be satisfied with the condition of the Castor gelding, who had put in some sterling gallops since his arrival in Wanganui. Nonette came in for a close scrutiny for the reason that i was felt that so much depended upon his condition. If he were sound many thought he would pull the Cup off. He looked well, and galloped well in his preliminary. The other horses all had many admirers. Melodeon was probably never sc well, while his stable-mate was a picture. Faritutu was installed favourite, but the betting showed how open the result was thought to be; in fact, it is a long time since backers were set such a problem in an important handicap as they were faced with in attempting to pick the winner of this event. When the barrier went up Paritutu jumped to the front, but' was immediately steadied, and Boomerang took up the running, with Bourrasque, Multifid, Paritutu and Ghoorka following in order. The first six furlongs were cut out at a clipping pace, Boomerang sailing along in front comfortably. He kept his position round the back, where some bumping took place, Nonette and Paritutu, who had got into a rather bad position, being the principal sufferers. Half a mile from home it could be seen that Boomerang was still going strong, and though Letherin made desperate efforts to overhaul the son of Merriwee, the latter kept going on the even tenor of his way, and passed the post a winner by a length. D. Price rode a fine race on Boomerang, who cut out the mile and three-quarters in 3.1 —a New Zealand record. Though the official time given was 3-3 I_ s> s ’ x or seven reliable private watches registered 3.1, and one or two under that, the only watch which was slower being the official. Multifid finished fourth, some four lengths behind the winner, and Mr. Dan O’Brien’s colt was timed by two reliable watch-holders to cover the distance in 3.2, which proves that the official time was too slow. Just how much better Boomerang could have done had he been pressed is hard to say. Person-

ally. I doubt whether he could have done much better, as it struck me that he had not much left in him at the finish. However, this is only conjecture, and no doubt he could have saueezed a little more out if necessary. Many believe, and I agree with them, that had old Nonette not broken down a quarter of a mile from home he would have troubled the winner. At the stage mentioned, Nonette was going strongly, and was just commencing U> draw on the. leaders when his leg went, and the old fellow limned painfully back to the paddock. Paritutu had no luck in the race. He had a bad passage, and received more than one bump. Then, when he started to make his run at the bend for home, he was shut in, and had to - ease up and come again on the outside. He made up a deal of around in the last furlong or so, but finished two lengths behind Letherin. Rona was well supported, but was in the rear nearly all the way. Geo. Price, who rode the gelding, says that his mount did not- seem to move well at any part of the distance. Ropa dropped dead shortly after while being led home, and on being opened it was found that the gelding had ruptured an internal artery and bled to death. No doubt this accounted for his o’isappointing display. Multifid gave a very good account of himself, and should be heard of to more advantage later on. Marguerite annexed the Petre Welter Handicap easily, beating Apa and three others. Then came the Wiritoa Hack Handicap ,of one mile, for which Maharanui and The Lark were about equal favourites in a field of 14- The winner turned up in Shrapnel’s half-brother, Science, by Somnus —Element, a four-year-old gelding to whom I have called attention in these columns as likely to distinguish himself. He took the lead before half the distance was. covered, and galloping in fine style won by a good length ftom The Lark. It was an attractive performance, and his 74 supporters netted ><lB 2s. each. Science, who is trained by Walter Raynor, is remarkably quick on his legs, and should win some good races. He looks like one who would make a splendid jumper. The last event of the day was>the Flying Handicap, six furlongs,, for which nine faced the barrier, Ailsa being favourite. Stronghold and King Billy set the pac6, and the former led into the straight, looking all over a winner. Halfwav up the straight, however, Black Reynard put in an electrifying run, and got home after a sensational finish bv a long neck, paying £6 55., and cutting the six fu'rlongs out in 1.15 dead. Ladv Annie, who was kicked at the finished fourth. Exmoor opened the ball on the’ second '• -seoriqg in the Autumn Handicap, -

being followed home by Roseal, who finished absolutely last in the Stewards’ on the preceding day, when Exmoor was just in front of him. The distance was the same, the winner having 31b. and Roseal 21b. less to carry on the second day. It is really wonderful what a great improvement was effected in these two horses during the interval between the two races. The stewards held an inquiry into Roseal’s running, but decided that there was no evidence to justify any further action. Gold Crown, the winner’s stablemate, finished terribly fast in this event, and will be worth watching in the near future. Those who watched the running closely on the first day formed the opinion that Killarney would score in the big Hurdles on the second day, and there were three times as many investors on him as on the preceding day. Those who sorted the Vanguard gelding out as the “correct pea” were not far wrong, as he won, after a splendid race, comfortably from Cassiopea. I apprised readers in last week’s issue that the last-named mare was in capital form and worth keeping in view. She made a big effort to defeat the favourite, but the latter was too good. He is in great nick at present, and should be worth following up. He and Miss, King are a nice pair, and if taken to Australia would win a good stake or two, I fancy. Miss King came with a rattle at the finish, getting fourth Such fine fields as competed in the hurdle events at this meeting have not often been seen anywhere. The next item was one of the tit-bits of the meeting—viz., the Jackson Stakes—in which six faced the starter. It was, of course, regarded as almost a certainty for the champion, and he duly got there, but only after a most exciting race. When the barrier flew up Stronghold and De Witte shot off like lightning, followed by I eftus. Porcelain, on the other hand, jumped back, and lost six lengths in the first furlong. Achilles was very slow to begin, and was some four lengths behind Stronghold and De Witte after going 300 yards. Jenkins never bustled the champion, however, but let him run along. The leaders were cutting out a clipping pace, and as they appeared to be holding their own at the half-distance some thought the son of Medallion would never get up. Just afterwards, however, the terrific pace told on Stronghold, a nd he began to drop back a little, while Achilles could be seen to be making an effort. As they raced round the bend the Porirua crack was upsides with Stronghold, who had just been passed bv Loftus, De Witte beiner out of it. It did not take many strides for Achilles to settle Loftus, and an easy win for Medallion’s son seemed assured. Halfway up the straight, Jenkins glanced round, and seeing Porcelain coming along the Bulls horseman sat down and rode Achiles for all he was worth. The cham-

MESSRS. BARNETT AND GRANT, Christchurch, report the following quotations on the Easter and Autumn Handicaps : —

pion responded to his rider’s call in the gamest possible manner, and though Mr. Stead’s colt got within a length of his great rival the latter held his own over the last 150 yards, and flashed past the post a winner after a stirring contest. The time registered was 1.14 2-5. Some private watches made it a shade faster. This made Achilles’ third successive win in this event, and both he and his rider received an ovation on returning to scale. Some profess to think that Porcelain would have beaten Achilles had he got away better. but I have my doubts on that score. Jenkins rode with consummate judgment, and proved his right to be considered the premier horseman in the colony, not only by his handling of Achilles, but by the way he steered Marguerite and Exmoor in their engagements the same day. It was his horsemanship alone which enabled Marguerite to defeat Apa in the Welter for second place. The Hack Hurdles was a fiasco pure and simple. Seven faced the starter, of whom Dalkey and Florio were the most fancied, but they never left the mark, their riders declaring that they understood Mr. Chavannes to say “Stop,” whereas the other riders agree that it was a proper start. I' appears that Mr. Chavannes had occasion to say “Steady, Swop,” just before he called out “Go,” and this is believed to have caused the trouble, the riders of Dalkey and Florio confusing the word “Swop” with “Stop.” It was very severe on the backers of the two horses mentioned that they should lose their money without getting a run for it, but the stewards could do nothing but give the race to Swop, who got home from Showman, whose saddle slipped round as he was putting in a fine run over the last quarter of a mile. There was a great hubbub on the horses returning to scale, and the starter came in for a lot of adverse criticism that was not altogether merited. ' Admittedly, he did not get his fields away too well, but in this particular instance the fault was not Science then won the Welter Handicap in capital style, galloping in fine style, and cutting out the mile in 1.43 2-5. ’Mr. T. L. Parsons, the owner, and his popular trainer are to be congratulated on having got hold of such a good gelding, who promises to be even better than Shrapnel. The Wanganui Stakes came next, and fell to Melodeon, who beat seven others, cutting out the mile and a-half in 2.36 3-5, the fastest time ever recorded on this course. Medallion’s son had only 6.10 — the lightest weight he has ever been given —on his back, and won easily. It is quite evident that Melodeon can run kindly enough at times, as he shaped as true as steel in this event, and his trainer had the satisfaction of winning the double —the Cup and Stakes —for Mr. E. J. Watt, who was present to see his horses run.

Truce won the Matarama Hack Handicap, six furlongs, after a nice dash at the finish. The Grafton filly was picked out as a good thing for this by some of those who kept their eyes cpen the first day, and they were rewarded for their alertness with a divy amounting to Z?n I2S - The six furlongs were cut out in 1.16, not bad time for hacks. The curtain was rung down on one of the finest race meetings one could wish to attend with the Farewell Handicap, of six furlongs, which went to Delamere, who got home by half a length in 1.15 1-5 from Black Reynard and five others. C. Jenkins and D. Price each rode three at the meeting. Roseal broke down in the Autumn Handicap, and will not race again for some

time. ■ t t. The track was in good order; in tact, first-class condition, and yet quite a number of horses went wrong. Lovelink put his fetlock out in the Petre Welter, Lion Heart went amiss in the Hack Hurdles on the first day, when Inglewood broke a blood-vessel. This in addition to Ropa s death and old Nonette’s breakdown. Porcelain had never started prior to competing in the Jackson Stakes. He is a fine-looking bay colt by MultiformSaucer, three years old. He is well built and muscular, and is evidently endowed with a great amount of brilliancy, though he appears to gallop rather high in front. Providing he and Achilles meet in Wellington in the North Island Challenge Stakes great interest will be taken in the result.

Master Delaval was galloped on in the Stakes, and received a nasty bruise on the hock. He was going well at the time, and appeared likely to have had a say in the settlement of the race. Handicappers J. E. Henrys, Ulic Shannon, J. H. Pollock and J. Chadwick, in addition, of course, to Geo. Morse, witnessed the racing. During the two days only three favourites got home, which is a striking testimony to the excellence of the handicap-

ping. . A feature of the gathering was the splendid large fields which competed in the hurdle events. On Saturday evening last nominations closed with Mr. Selby Morton for . the Warrengate Jockey Club’s Hack Meeting, which eventuates on March 22. I have not seen the list yet, but the secretary informs me that the nominations are exceedingly good. Given fine weather this little meeting will attract a very large attendance of “sports,” and will prove a most pleasant re-union.

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