Turf Topic

Free Lance, Volume II, Issue 78, 28 December 1901, Page 20

Turf Topic

By Silverspur.

The wcond da\'s lacing of the Auckland Club eventuates, to-moiiow (Saturday), when the L-100 Summer Cup comes on for consideration The third day's gathering ushers in the new year, and unlucky backeis will be afforded an opportunity of setting their losings back on the day following — if they have any cash left to speculate with I venture some chance shots, as follows — Great Northern. Derby — Menschikoff. Cruciform, Nonette. Maiden Handicap. — Hippowai, Cavalry, Royal Conqueror Sylvia Handicap -Man- Seaton Spalpeen, Northumberland. Seventh Royal Stakes —Royal Artillery, Cruciform, Porirua Auckland Steeplechase — Rufus, Scallywag, Balhneer. Auckland Plate — Mensdhikoff Cruciform, Bluejacket » • • Horse enthusiasts in this district will be afforded an opportunity of attending a first-class little country meeting on New Year's Day, when the Wairarapa gathering eventuates Mv selections, are — Flvin"- Handicap — Ringlet, Rebel, Dewdrop. . First Hack Hurdles —Smithy, Tirea. Meerschaum. . Flying Hack —Pure Silver, Liable. Ayrdale. . „ , Wairarapa Cup.— Fashion, Queens Guard, Tortulla Rimutaka Handicap — Benefactor Liable Field Trick. , , •„, v - Grandstand Welter —Rebel, Fashion 'Hack' Welter— Laureate Stage WhisT>er, Horton * * * The Catesbv horse Conspirer is standing here at a guinea a mare Lower Valley and Manawatu meetings will be continued to-day The Wellington Park thoroughbred yearhngs will be auctioned to-day (Friday) week. The reason that the race isn't always to the swift" is that a great many of them are not always triers. Turf "guns" say that they don't mind when Yaldhurst Stead's big guns win, as they pay very small dividends. Dan O'Brien's racing string will, in future, be trained at New Plymouth. They will go into J. McCraoken's stable. The most acceptable Christmas-box this year end would be a cheque from Tattersall. And there are a great many people anxiously awaiting one, too. New Zealanders take turf pills in large doses at Christmas tune. There were eleven horse meets in different parts of the colony yesterday, and eight are time-tabled for to-day. It is not wise to burst up promising two-year-olds when the times comes for them to don silk. La Valette, Beddington's brother, will not be raced until the back end of the season. Platt, one time owner of Castashoie, First Blood, and others, is reported to be doing well with a fair string at Eastbourne (England) There are any number of people in this colony who will be pleased to hear about him. A Southern tote bettor was relieved of some cash by a pickpocket at New Plymouth, while on his way to Auckland the other clay He didn't mind the money he said, but the thief got away with his mascot — a coooanut finger ring, attached to a piece of bootlace. Successful punters rake m more gold when the one-dividend system is adopted, and a great many prefer it to the recent innovation. The Thames Club has decided in favour of the one-horse dividend in preference to the new fangled notion. Quite a number of Australian racehorses have been exported to South Africa lately. There are a few New Zealand breds racing in that leadetricken country. Turfites do not allow a little thing like war to trouble them when they are set on having their usual race meeting Mr. E. Murphy, of Gisborne, has purchased the trotter Kingston one of the finest-bred horses from the blue grass of Kentucky, at a cost of 1000 dollars The Bale was effected by cable, and the expense of shipping him amounts to as much as his value. Kingston is a four-year-old, and said to be a remarkably fine animal.

Canteen nia\ possibU oomi' up for the Wellington Cup He has howevei boon eased off m lus> taaming lately Pi evident Roosevelt does not behe\e in bob-taaled nags, and will not nde one t.liat lias liad its panda,! appendage cut off Southern horses axe likely to be hoie in laige numbers foi tlie Hutt meeting The thing Blazei is booked to make thi trip Karl Cadogan once ow ned the Auckland stallion Seat on Delaral, but let him go foi the price of a few mince pies at auction. The St Leeei gelding Dartmoor will not trouble punters for a spell, hawng broken dow 11 He w as never too strong in front Whispered that there i a hot rod 111 pickle for next Wellingto Cup We'll, when the 20th corner rouiu \\o shall see what we will obseive. The only complaint made by a giumbling visitor to the last Woodville races wafc not that he had lost his mone\ but that he had lost his hat. Sir George Clifford decided to let Yseult go for 24 ,soys after she annexed a seeing race at Christchurch She cost him 11 sots more as a yearling. The Southern mare Leona, w hich has had three foals is to sport silk agam It will be remembered that she surprised the natives bv romping home in. a minor race one da\ paving over £80. Related that a ceitam suburbanite of sporting proclivities borrow ed £20, in. order to have a real good flutter at Woodville, and lost the lot m a day A 'dead hoise" to work off with a vengeance After a eursoij glance at the Wellmgton Cup weights, I have come to the conclusion that the handicap is a lathei flattering one. People will not give it very serious consideration, however until the holiday meetings are over. A well-known lacing man, in this district, who has had bad luck in business during the past year or two, is said to have been obliged to dispose of a couple of horses not long ago, to provide funds to a,void a breach of promise case A Hutt man, who made a pot of money over Reclaimer's recent victories actually wanted to bestow the name on. his last-born child, but his wife strongly objected. She said there was too much of a Salvationist ring about it. Noted that some clubs take the nomination fees of owners who are bookmakers, but will not allow them on the course to see their horses run. A man's money is apparently very acceptable, but his presence is not Sydney pony clubs occasionally let the public see that they are not thoroughly blind. The Kensington people lately passed a crowd of four out for twelve months in one afternoon for "waiting for a finer day," and cautioned two others Good biz 1 Man-o'-wai , who won a double at Warwick Farm (Sydney) races lately is well bred, being by the V.R.C. Derby winner The Admiral, from Corvette. Latter is by the New Zealand-bred Martini Henry, winner of the V R C Derby and Melbourne Cup A one-time owner of a small string of racehorses has just joined the Salvation Army down South. In narrating his experiences, he puts down all his troubles to the handioapper. In fact, the handicapper is about the only person in this wide world that he does not offer up a prayer for. A Northern man, who suicided the other day, had got to the end of his tether financially, but it was not altogether through backing horses that he suffered ruin and mind worry. According to the police report, his sole asset was a medium-pace trotter and a revolver. He .sold the moke to pay for his funeral, and then coolly shot himself I am glad that the owners of Hippomenes got flattened out at the police court for cruelty in starting him for a race when he was dead lame, and just after he had been beaten in an earlier event. The Racing Conference should pass a legulation empowering stew r ards to prevent a horse going to the post if he is unfit to race Some owners expect too much from their spindle-legged gallopers I think, for instance, that it is a crime for a man to start a horse three times in one short afternoon Yankee jocks and tiamers have been introducing their Yankee notions into Austria, and have been in trouble more than once lately. After the two-year-old Egardo' won the Austria Preis, value £3444, run over six and a half furlong course, the horse was seen to staler about and his American jockey Ross at once dismounted, but got on again. A protest was entered for this, and for bumping in the race, and he was disqualified. The horse was undoubtedly doped, otherwise he would not have finished in the condition he did. Than t goodness doping is unknown here, out horses are often given something to stop them winning. You see a jockey cannot always be trusted to pull his mount, and he sometimes has a go on his own.