TURF TOPICS.

Free Lance, Volume III, Issue 159, 18 July 1903, Page 23

TURF TOPICS.

By 'Krect-Card.

Wairiki the favourite for the New Zealand Cup, will be .sent early to Riccarton, where he will be placed in the hands of E. Cutte to finish his preparation. During the week the son or Soult was supported by his connections to win £2000, most of the money being obtained at 11 to 1. A Wanganui resident, Mr. P. Byron West, won the hrst prize in Tattersail's consultation on the V.R.C. brand National Hurdles. He will receive £6000 net. The Wellington Racing Club intend changing the dates of their spring meeting from November to October. This will probably clash with the Obaki Racing Club's meeting, which is held on Demonstration Day. Unless some amicable arrangement is made, the latter body intend annealing to the Racing Conference to settle the dispute. Excellent entries were received by the Wellington Racing Club for the classical events to be decided in 1905. For the Wellesley Stakes 125 nominations were received, for the Wellington Stakes, 165; North Island Challenge Stakes, 128; and for the St. Leger of 1906 98. As the latter number exceeds' the limit placed by the club the stake will remain 400sovs. Had the number been less than 80, the stake v, ould have been reduced to 300sovs. It is gratifying to be able to chronicle such a liberal response from owners, and it is to be hoped that when these events come up for decision, larere fields will face the barrier, instead of the miserably few in previous contests. News has been received that the exNew ZeaJamder, Record Reign, won the valuable Hurdle Race in Paris that he was taken from India to contest. The Steeplechaser, Jack-o'-Lantern, annexed both of the cross-country events decided at Hawke's Bay. He is engaged at the Hutt, and, with list 21b, has been given a chance of further adding to his laurels. A serious accident happened in the Farewell Steeplechase, on the concluding day of the Napier Park winter meeting. When TJmslopagaas came down, he fell on his nder, Hutchison, who sustained very severe injuries. Honeysuckle, the dam of Tortulla, Indian Shot, Ngaio, and others, had to be destroyed the other day at the Messrs. Douglas's Te Mahanga station. She was twenty years old, and has been failing for some years, so it -was deemed advisable +-. end her days. It is probable that Blazer, the speedy son of St. Clair, will end his days between the shafts, as a Southern writer says he is to be broken into harness. Tiger Lily, a full-brother to Blazer, is used in the same capacity but he was too unsound to race, while Blazer is as sound as a bell, and before the last Riccarton gathering is reported to have run half-a-mile m 49sec.

At the last meeting of the Hawkes Bay Jockey Club, Sir William Russell wiote suggesting that the Hawke's Bay Stakes of GUOsovs should be discontinued, or materially reduced, as he did not think it was likely to be a paying race. Any such race at the end of a season was, he thought, a certainty for one of three or four horses, consequently it had little interest, and resulted in no profit The club decided to reduce the Hawke's Bay Stakes of 1905 to 400sovs. Nuptial Rite, the stallion which the Government recently purchased at Home, has no deeds of a racing character to introduce him to noti.ce but, on the score of breeding, he should be an acquisition to our blood stock. His sire, Matchmaker, is a son of Donovan and Match Girl, by Plebeian, from Fusee. Nuptial Rite's dam, Lectern, is by Beauclerc from Canonical, by Cathedral. Matchmaker is the sire of Handicapper winner of the Two Thousand Guineas of 1901. The North Island bred pony, Belle Cole, the daughter of Lebel and Miss Cole, who, after racing at Auckland, was sent over to the other side, was not long in giving them a taste of her quality. She was sent out favourite for the 14.2 Handicap, at Kensington Park (Sydney), on June 17, and won cleverly by a length from nine others. Belle Cole is well enough bred to win anything;, as her sire, Lebel, is a son of Nordenfeldt and Pulchra, the latter being the imported daughter of Rosicrucian, from whom have descended St. Clair. Formo (the dam of Multiform), Uniform, and Forme (the dam of Formosan and Cruciform. Her dam is related to Vedette, the sire of Galopin. The Trotting; Conference is being held this week in Wellington, and there are a large number of delegates present. Mr. G. P. Donnelly has lost the services of that useful sire Douglas. In his day, Douglas was a good racehorse, his victories including the Kawke's Bay Cup twice, Napier Cup, Wanganui Cup, besides many other important races. He met with injuries on one of his owner's runs about two months ago, and had to be destroyed. On breeding lines, he should have made a name for himself as a sire, but he got very few good chances. He was got by Crawford Priory from the imported mare Good Fruit. American jockeys have won the Finglish Derby three years in succession. L. Reiff was the first rider from the States to score when he had the mount on Volodyooski, in 1901, J. H Martin copied his example on Ard Patrick last year, and it has been left for D. Maher to complete a notable treble for the Americans by w inning this year on Rock Sand. South Africa is not the paradise for the bookmaker that some people imagine. According to Cape files, it is reported that thiee bookmakers, who keep betting shops in South Africa, were arrested. Although they had not previously appeared before the authorities for a similar offence, less than £1000 bail would not be accepted, and eventually they were fined £150 each, with the alternative of six months' imprisonment. A man recently undertook to gain admission to an up-country racecourse without purchasing a ticket. The friend with whom he had made the wager stood near the gate while he w alked boldly up in the wake of a trio of smaller men. The first, on reaching the gate, announced himself as "Owner," and passed in , the second

said "Trainer/ and was admitted; the third followed with the word "Jockey." Then the sportsman winked to his friend. "There's only one thing left far me," he observed. Then, to the gate-keeper he said, "I'm the horse." Needless to say he was passed out. Ard Patrick, last year's Derby winner in England, after an absence of some months from the racing arena, came out at the Newmarket first July meeting, and annexed the rich Princess of Wales Stakes, of 10,000sovs. The Melbourne Cup winner, Merriwee, who was purchased last year by Mr. E. J. Watt, of Hawke's Bay, has seven foals on his owner's station. Four are colts, and three fillies. These are the Bill of Portland's/ stallion's fiist lot, and, from reports to hand, they are splendid specimens of the thoroughbred. Wairiki is now a pronounced favourite for the New Zealand Cup, no longer price than 8 to 1 being obtainable about the son of Soult. Shrapnel is next in demand, at 12 to 1 , then comes Lady Lillian at 100 to 7, and Orloff 100 to 6. During the past week General Symonds has been backed to win a fair stake, presumably by his connections. Eighty-eight nominations were received by the Wellington amd Suburba,i Coursing Club for the Wellington Cup, to be decided on August 26th and following days, at the Wallaceville enclosure. This speaks well for the management, and there is every prospect of this meeting being as successful as the one just recently held. Fifteen horses started for the V.R.C. Grand National Steeplechase, run last Saturday and the winner turned up in Grafnell, by Grafton — Little Nell, who was ridden by that successful cross-country horseman, M. Mooney. The winner started at the large odds of 14 to 1. The favourite, Sir Harry, fell early in the race, and the other place-getters were Freedom (9 to 2) and Plunger (not quoted). A Southern writer states it is Mr. Stead's intention to send Cruciform and one other — probably Orloff — over to the A.J.C. meeting, to contest the Epsom and Metropolitan Handicaps, so it would appear that the mare's owner is satisfied at the weight apportioned her. It will be generally conceded by New Zealand sportsmen, who know anything at all about racehorses, that if Cruciform can be landed at the nost fit and well her opponents will have to gallop to keep on terms with her. It is to be hoped that this visit will be leciprocated by Australian owners, and that in the near future we shall have the pleasure of seeing them race over here. An American paper sums up as follows a bookmaker who was recently ruled-off m that country — "The only trouble and mistake is that he was ever permitted to enter and transact business. The man is essentially of a very low level he has not the faintest idea of decent behaviour to his kind, and the only wonder is someone has not severely trounced him a thousand times. That he is a bully and a coward at heart was shown in the old Guttenberg days, when the police, with warrants, swept into cue ring, and this big. awkward lout ran screaming like an hysterical woman to climb over the back fence, leaving _ cash-box. sheets, cash in hand, etc , in care of his employees who sat still, and let tilings settle."