SPORTING INTELLIGENCE.

Evening Star, Issue 3667, 23 November 1874, Page 2

SPORTING INTELLIGENCE.

{By our Sporting Contributor.) THE SPRING MEETING. In looking through the list of weights for the bt. Andrew and Spring Handicaps at I shall first notice those horses that have just been running at Christchurch, out which, it appears, have since become the property of Dunedin owners. Traitor, 9st and 9st dibs, carries the top weight in each handicap, and is a highly spoken-of horse, although thought by some to be over-rated. He did not score a win at Christchurch, but ran second to Tambourini in both the C. J.C. Handicap and the Cup, the latter giving him 231bs and 13!bi in the respective races. 1 raitor beat lempleton in each race for second p ace at even weights—in the first by halt a length, and m the second rather easily but the distances (two miles and two and mIT rlj\ ere rather beyond Templeton’s mark. Tadmor, receiving 201bs, ran i’empleton very close m the Christchurch Orand aand Handicap, and again, receiving 22Jbs, u the Metropolitan Handicap ; but as concedes the colt only 17H.s and lolbs, it should not be a hard matter to choose between the two. Traitor will give and n h* mbU V* lbS iu the S|)rin » Handicap, rSA v an as he B ave her 27lbs in the Christchurch Cup, and the filly was nowhere. . “'Ogcther, Traitor cannot grumble at his impost (although he has never won a race), as in the St. Andrew’s Handicap he carries only weight for age. Xadnjor should hold

Sonnambula safe, giving her 6lbs, as in the Christchurch Derby be beat her by four hngths. giving 51bs. It is difficult to get a line by which to c mpare the chances of the e three with those of the local horses, none of them having nut before; but I may say that tbe strangers give awav lumps of weight—Traitor larrjing weight for age, Gibs and 111 b-s over weight f r ago, and Sonnambula Iffihs. It is useless to mention Pertoho and Bight Bower, they rot having run in this country, and the only thing known of the fo'mfr being that he is exceedingly well bred and that he has lately been doing some good gallops. They are in both races at 91ba and lllba below weight for age respectively. At the May meeting Congreve beat Miss Rose at even weights in the Maiden Plate by three-quarters of a length after a hard tussle, but she now meets him in both handicaps on lllbs better terms, which should decidedly reverse their positions. In the Birthday Handicap Lydia carried d’hs (extra weight) more than Miss Powo, but did not run into a place, and the advantages of 21bs and lib less now will make scarcely any peiceptible difference. Captain Hutchison’s mare Mabel we all know something about. At the last annual meeting she won the Publicans’ Handicap, bating Spritsail, Congreve, and others ; and at the May meeting she won the Birthday Handicap, against Miss Rowe, Envy, Lydia, &c. In the first race she gave Congreve 12 lbs, and should, therefore, be able to give him 81ba and 71hs now. In the second race she received 4lbs from Envy, who did not get placed, and now gives Mr Cotton’s mare 21bs; she gave Miss Rowe (who ran what was thought by many a dead heat with her) 22lbs, anil now gives bet only 191bs and ISlbs; she gave Lydia 221hs, and now only 171bs in each handicap. Mabel, therefore, can evidently do as she likes with these three. Then we come to Verbena. This mare ran as a three-year old at the last annual meeting, and was but a moderate third in the Novel Race, carrying 6st, and being beaten by Taffrail and Malabar. Mabel, Bst slbs, was nowhere in this event, hut next Monday will give Verbena only 22lbs and SOlbs, instead of 331bs, which will make a considerable difference. The young one, however, has improved greatly of late, and has b-en running well up country this spring, and the distance can’t trouble her; sothatif anyone of the Otago horses comes in before Mabel, it will, in my opinion, be Verbena. Of Idle Girl I knownothing whatever, but Kathleen and Faugh-a-ballagh have run fairly at up-country meetings. Nelly King, who carries the lightest weight (7st) in the Spring Handicap, Won the Maiden Plate at the • lutha. What I have said about the horses engaged applies almost equally to each handicap, there being so little variation in the weights, so that I may sum up by saying that those best in in the St. Andrew’s Handicap are Mabel (91bs under weight for age), Traitor. Pertobe, Tadmor, and Miss Rowe—though the last is held safe by Mabel, In the Spring Handicap, Mabel, Traitor, Pertobe, Verbena, am| Tadmor.

Captain Hutchison, who returned from Melbourne in the Albion, brought over with him a valuable purchase he made there. This is a three-year-old colt, called King Philip, by Camden out of Lady Dowling, and who ran second to Scanmag (third in the Melbourne Derby) in the Maiden Plate at the recent V.R.C, meeting, beating Menindie. Light of Day, Mute, and others. The colt was landed in first-rate condition.