TURF TOPICS.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Issue 1453, 28 February 1918, Page 10

TURF TOPICS.

Mr. F. McManemin was present at the Wanganui meeting.

Sasanof was lame after the Wanganui Cup.

The hard-worked Sasanof needs a spell badly, and as he is now lame he will likely be retired for a time. * * * *

The Australian-bred Almo, which ran in the Wanganui Cup, is a useful sort for hurdle racing.

Fionnuala did not start for the Hamilton Cup, but on her Wanganui showing might have had a chance all the same.

The Jackson Stakes at Wanganui has only once been run faster than Biplane won the race in, and that was by Ermengarde in 1912. * * * *

Fionnuala was unlucky to miss the Stewards’ Handicap at the Wanganui meeting on Thursday. She started favourite.

Sir George Clifford was conspicuous by his absence from the Wanganui meeting, likewise the blue and gold chequers.

Henry Clay is a much-improved hack amongst those that race on the west coast of the North Island. He is a member of the Peeress family.

Client was quite at home on the Wanganui course, and was the double winner of the season —Wanganui Cup and Wanganui Stakes.

Wishful sometimes hangs out in his races going left-handed and runs unkindly, but ran quite up to form in the Wanganui Cup.

Horses that won the Wanganui Cup twice in succession: Resolution, Dudu and Client. Dudu won three times.

The Wanganui Jockey Club’s totalisator staff handled £80,950 during the two days of their meeting last last week, against £67.688 last year.

Beltane. Desert Gold’s track mate, bought as a track mate for Kilboy last spring, got near the money in a race at Caulfield on Saturday.

The last mile of the Wanganui Cup was run in 1.43. Very fair going after the horses had run six furlongs.

The withdrawal of Desert Gold from the Newmarket Handicap will no doubt be a relief to owners of other candidates as well as to punters, remarks a Sydney writer.

Since the Jackson Stakes was inaugurated in 1902, R. J. Mason has trained eight winners of the race, and one of them, Emperador, won twice

Menelaus was not produced on the second day of the Wanganui meeting, much to the surprise of backers, who were waiting for him to wipe out his Wanganui Cup defeat.

Client was favourite for the Wanganui Cup from the time the weights appeared until the barrier rose. Menelaus .started a good second favourite.

Engari, who won the Petre Handicap at Wanganui, is a half-sister to Mr. J. Williamson’s Garryowen, and the pair were bred by the Wanganui studmaster, Mr. George Currie.

Collector, by Conqueror from Grecian Maid, put up an attractive performance in the Westmere Hurdle Race at Wanganui. The distance is a lump over two miles.

Zola, by Sweet Simon from Zaida, who beat Fionnuala at Wanagnui by a narrow margin, carried the minimum. He was a top-class hack at three years old.

Mr. E. J. Watt’s All Black —Concordia filly. Silver and Black, is a pretty good “ring” in appearance for Desert Gold, and won’t be long before winning.

The form Desert Gold has so far shown in Australia indicates that she does not reprsesent anything less in the matter of class than the handicapper assessed her for the New Market Handicap and the AustraL Cup. She should hold her own in the the w.f.a. events coming on.

The Dunedin Cup field was the largest for very many years, if not actually a record one in number. Eighteen starters out of 26 original entries is pretty good, too. * * ♦ •

There was some splendid racing at the Dunedin meeting, and the old club members had cause for satisfaction, though big tote figures are never reached there.

A lot of money was shut out at the totalisator at the Wanganui meeting on the first day. The investments reached £36,811, as against £31,837 on the opening day last year.

The Welkin’s name will be nearly if not quite, at the top of the winning sires’ list in Australia now as the result of Wedge’s Futurity Stakes success on Saturday .

The Wanganui course was never in bettei’ condition to race over than at the present time, being nice and green and well covered with a mat of grass. It was in fast condition, too.

In the Harrison Hack Handicap at Wanganui, Henry Clay and Dusky Eve, who dead-heated, and Signorella, who ran third, were each Wanganuibred ones by that good horse Signo. There were fourteen runners.

T. Quinlivan, the Hawke’s Bay trainer, missed the nominations for the Auckland Racing Club’s Easter meeting with all the horses in his team. This is a stroke of bad luck for the club and for the owners.

Awarua and Renounce, a pair of the gets of Renown, behaved very cranky-like in the paddock and in their preliminary work before the Petre Hack Handicap at Wanganui, and were little fancied.

A win that was quite due was that which Tressida registered in the Autumn Handicap on the second day of the Wanganui meeting. Mr. McLeod’s filly had been out of luck a long time.

Hymestra, who was reported to have an injured ligament, is as sound as the proverbial bell, and ran nearly, if not quite, up to his Auckland form at Wanganui, though he looks just a trifle lighter than he did there.

In consequence of the big fire in Wanganui, which extended to the premises of the well-known firm of A. D. Willis, Ltd., printers, the correct cards for the second day of the Wanganui Jockey Club’s autumn meeting were printed by the firm of H. I. Jones.

Though Hymestra was paid up for in the Wanganui Guineas it was not seriously intended that he would compete, and his withdrawal, though it came as a disappointment to many, did not cause surprise to those -who knew that he had not been prepared for a longer race than six furlongs. ♦ ♦ ♦ *

The Glen Innes Jockey Club, which was disbanded a few months ago according to the ‘“Referee,” has been brought into existence again. Away back in the eighties lhe writer remembers that this was the first club in Australia to give a handicap race worth 1,000 sovs. The profits of the meeting next month will go to the local hospital.

Though defeated in the Futurity Stakes, carrying 9.13, Desert Gold caused the winner, Wedge, to put up a record for the race, the distance, seven furlongs, being run in 1.27 Good for the Caulfield course.

Desert Gold has now given a taste of her quality to the Australians, but they will probably still have a fancy that over seven furlongs at weight-for-age,—that |s, Desert Gold 8.12, Biplane 8.5 —there would not be much in it.

The very free-sweating Client started favourite for the Wanganui Cup, and won. He was always favourite in Wanganui. Had Menelaus been ridden decently he would have caused the Elevation gelding to hurry up a bit more.

A number of Aucklanders were present at the Wanganui meeting. Koesian’s success in the Flying Handicap was very pleasing to his breeder, Mr. H. R. McKenzie. Mr. Raven took his bit of bad luck with Fionnuala in the Stewards’ Handicap like only a good sport can.

Croesus ran right up to his best form for over five furlongs in the Flying Handicap at Wanganui, but that is his best distance, and the same can be said of Lingerie, who cannot get further in good company. On the second day he met Koesian on 131bs. better terms, and just beat him.

The Maoris are hero worshippers. When Estland beat Biplane in the Wanganui Guineas a number of enthusiastic members of the race called for one more cheer for the New Zea-land-bred colt, after Mr. Lowry’s colt had already met with a good reception—indeed, few winners have ever been better received.

Biplane is an undoubted champion. He made Hymestra and Finmark look cheap in the Jackson Stakes, and they ran the six furlongs under Imin. 14sec. He won in Imin. 13 l-ssec., and could have done better. Hymestra and Finmark each ran gamely enough, but simply could not go the pace. It was the first race Biplane has run over six furlongs this season.

Miss Mischief, about the first race mare to win a good stake or two for M, G. D. Greenwood, was represented in the Juvenile Handicap at Wanganui by Missouri, by Danube, but Staccato, a filly by Husbandman, was too smart for her and ten others that ran. Oratress, who ran third, is a two-year-old filly by Demosthenes from that good mare Equitas, and given time may prove useful.

There was a field of only five for the Wanganui Stakes, and the horses were backed in the order their names appeared on the card. Client carried 9.3 and just won, but another stride would have settled matters in favour of Toatere, who was receiving 141 b. and ran such another race as he did in the City Handicap at Ellerslie in November. J. O’Shea rode him.

It is some time since such a galaxy of racing celebrities in the horse world have competed at a Wanganui meeting, but there were some of the best in the Dominion in evidence, and

their aggregate winnings to date would run into quite a respectable sum. Sasanof, Biplane, Estland, Menelaus, Client, Toatere, Finmark, Form Up, Croesus, Wishful, Koesian, Nanna, Seadown, Nystad and Lingerie comprised the chief.

Mr. G. D. Greenwood, Mr. E. Short. Mr. Jas. Bull, Mr. W. Duncan, Mr. W. Raynor, Mr. R. Laurent, Mr. G. L. Stead and Mr. S. Sayles were owners of winning horses at the Wanganui meeting on the opening day. On the second day Messrs. T. H. Lowry, Emery. W. Duncan, R. Johnson, and • J. S. McLeod, L. Pepperall, A. J. C F. Hardy scored, Mr. Duncan thus being the only owner to score two wins.

Wedge, who beat Desert Gold in the Futurity Stakes on Saturday, has been a good performer, and has 9.7 in the Newmarket Handicap, top weight, so was thought something of by the handicapper, who only asked Desert Gold to concede him 61bs. , whereas, there would be 131bs. between them in the Futurity Stakes. Wedge would thus be what could be called the handicapper’s tip for the Futurity Stakes which he won. Wedge is a well-grown black four-year-old son of the Welkin, whose service fee was recently fixed at 500 guineas by the owner.

One of the most sensational hotel fires that has ever taken place in the Dominion was that which occurred on Thursday night in Wanganui, demolishing the well-known Foster’s Hotel completely, leaving nothing standing but the brick walls, not a vestige of the building or contents remaining. The hotel was crowded with visitors to the races and the swimming sports, a hundred and sixty beds being en-

gaged and all available rooms occupied, most of them containing wearing apparel and other property. The 'fire started about 7 p.m., and many of those staying at the hotel had not long had their dinner over, while others were actually getting theirs, and some had already started out for the theatres, band concert, and other places of amusement. The fire gained so rapidly that the boarders were not able to save their effects, and some must be Very heavy losers. The loss to the owner, Mr. Jack Foster, above insurances will be very considerable indeed, and to the town of Wanganui the inconvenience which will be suffered until another house can be built to take its place will be a very serious matter indeed. It can be imagined what the effect would be at a time when the town was crowded with, visitors, and every hotel and boardinghouse and many private houses taxed to the full. The fire had got too great a hold by the time the various fire brigades got to work, which was with all promptitude. It raged fiercely. Fortunately the evening was calm and the flames, instead of spreading, leaped high in the air, lighting up the immediate vicinity, and the houses on Durie Hill on the opposite side of the river were all as plainly visible as in daylight. Many people crossed the river and viewed the fire from the opposite side. One fortunate circumstance was the absence of loss of life. What might have happened had the fire started a few hours later can be imagined.