DUSTAN SPRING RACE MEETING.

Dunstan Times, Issue 598, 3 October 1873, Page 2

DUSTAN SPRING RACE MEETING.

Friday last, the 2(sth ultimo,, as if provided specially for the occasion, was a beautiful day, and old and young, grave and gay. wore a holiday look and seemed bent on enjoying themselves and making one to swell the number on the Duustan Race-course to witness the equine contests of the day. The evening previous a great number of'visitors put in an appearance, giving quite a holiday air to the town, and from an early hour in the morning horses and veh cles poured in from every direction, and by mid-day Clyde pre-ente 1 a livelier look than for some time since. It being intimated that the first race would start punctually at one o’clock, a general move was made towards the scene of action, and by when we arrived, as the bell was ringing for the first race, there could not have been far short of three hundred people congregated. The number of vehicles on the course was above the ordinary, hence the reason of the grand stand not being so well patrrnise ias it might have been. However, there was to witness each event a good sprinkling of gentlemen, whose half-crowns sunt no inconsiderable way to pay the cost of occupancy. The racing throughout was passably fair, and each event produced an amount of horsey talk, with iny amount of betting or offeis te Let; hut as the two handicaps were looked u |>on as fore-gone conclusions, we don’t think there was much business done. Mr. Rivers’s Manx Roy coining to the post for the two handicaps destroyed all the hopes of the owneis of the other competitors. From the start in each race lie took the lead, and keeping clear of the field, won as he liked. Morgan’s Pickpocket won the Maiden Plate from a field of six, Maori Chief second, Hawthorne’s Bobby a goo I third. The Hack Selling Ba-e fell to Cros-au’s Blackbird, and the Consolation to M‘Kay’s Sweetlips. We cannot compliment the district on its show of hacks, as a more sorry lot than cou'ested for the selling race it would be difficult to miagine The difficulty in obtaining a good hack is expressed on all .‘.•ides, and we here reiterate an opinion expressed elsewhere, that a good shapely sire for breeding purposes would be a good paying speculation in this district. The following is a detailed account of the running : ALEXANDRA HANDICAP Of 10 tovs. Distance, thrce-quartcis of a mde. Mr. Rivers’s bg Wild Manx Boy, Bst (51b (Holt) 1 M‘Kay’s c m Sweetlips, 9st 41b (Bro small) 2 Jack's bg Artfijl Joe, Bst,(Richardson) 3 Kidd’s Silvertail also started; M‘Kay’s Maori Chief accepted, but was scratched. Artful Joe jumped of with the lead, but Manx Boy soon took the wind out of his sail, and, without the aid of whip or spur, took leading position, which was maintained home. Sweetlij s struggled hard to count first honors, but hail to be satisfied with second. MAIDEN PLATE Of 10 sovereigns. Distance, three-quarters of a mile. Mr. Morgan’s b g Pickpocket, 3 yrs, (Richards hi) 1 M Kay’s hlk hj Maori Chief, 4yrs, (Bri.sm.il) 2 Hawthorne’s g g Bobby, 4yrs(Molt) 3 Mr. Stewart’s Nevis, Liscoe’s Pictty Girl, and Ja. k s Aittul Joe a'so started. After a few ineffectual attempts to get the lot together, a start was ultimately effected, Bobby in the lead, and ho ran well for a few hundred yards. Pickpocket and Maoii Chief, who weieclose behind, now colhvrded, and took first ami sicoiid places, and ran a game race home, ending in a first-class finish. DI’NSTAN HANDICAP Of 20 sovereigns, with a sweepstake of one sovereign. Distance one mile and a half. Mr. Rivers’s b g Wild Manx Boy. fist, (Holt) 1 . Morgan's b g Pickpocket, 7st (51b, (iiieliardsoii) 2 M‘Kay’s b m Sweetl ps, Sst Sib, (Brosmau) 3 Mr. Fraser’s Flora also ran. Mr. Jack’s Artful Jos an I Mr. Kidd’s Flora accepted, but were scratched. Mr. Taggart, who was entrusted with the starting (lag, experienced some little difficulty in getting his horses anything like together After several false starts, the flag fell, and away they went, Wild Manx Boy having the lead, which he maintained without the least sign of trouble ; in fact, his backers thought, when coming up the straight, that Holt was taking it too easy, as Pickpocket and Sweetlips made a vigorous push for the lead. Holt, over watchful, shook his horse together, and making a spurt, finished handsomely, hands down, by a couple of lengths HACK SELLING RACE Of 15 sovereigns, winner to 'no sold for 15 ? . No weight under 10st. Three-quarters of a nii'e. llc its. Mr. Crossan's Blockbird 2 11 Maori 1 22 Biscoe's “rutty Girl 3 Kidd's Silvertail 4 Blackbird, after the first heat, was submitted to auction, and bought in by the owner at 14(, 10s. CONSOLATION HANDICAP Of 5 sovereigns. Dis'ance, three-quarters of a mile. Mr. M‘Kay’s Sweetlips, 2st 1 M ‘Kay’s Maori Chief 2 From the fact of both horses belonging to the same owner, they were neither put i on their metal, being merely cantered over j the course. A sailor who has a scar which is the result of a dispute on shine many yca.s ago refers to it, as an old landmark.