Turf Topics.

Free Lance, Volume IV, Issue 203, 21 May 1904, Page 20

Turf Topics.

THE Wanganui Jockey Club's wmtei meeting takes place next Tuesday and Wednesday. The acceptances for the jumping events are fair. The contest for the Century Hurdle Race should prove interesting. The Auckland horses Spalpeen and Haydn have been both paid up for. The foimer, I hear, is not quite ready yet, and, although the travelling and racing at Wanganui will improve him, I do not give him a winning chance. Haydn should be hard to beat. Ofcain, Ttipara, and Ranana have tempting weights.. Otain just missed winning this race last year, when Merry Boy beat him by a neck. He is handicapped to carry lib less this year, whilst Merry Boy's weight is inoi eased by 71b. Haydn amd Otaan are a pan that I would advise backers to follow. The Connolly Handicap should fall to Exmoor, Blaok Reynard, or Shrapnel Shell. I like them in that older. Hutaoa should win the Grandstand Steeplechase. The Flying Stakes ought to be a good race between Black Reynard, Ballarat, and Delania. Paratutu is more than useful, and those who like long odds might do worse than e»end a pound to the totalisator on him. Starina is a useful hack, and should go neaii winning the Puaua Hack Flat Race. Kaimo© is nicely handicapped in the Hack Hurdle Race. The Wanganua Steeplechase is run on the second day (Wednesday). Haydn, Hutana, and Killarney are a trio I select to furnish the winner, and I prefer them in that order. Of course, if Hutana is defeated in the Grandstand steeplechase, it would be good business to substitute his oonqueroi . The winner of the Grandstand Steeplechase incurs a penalty of 101b for the Wanganui Steeplechase. The ancient sprinter, Goldspui beat 4 he handicapper badly in the concluding event of the recent Ashburton meetlncr Mr. J. Chadwick, who. acted as deputy for the official handicapper, Mr. Henrys, let Goldspur in a five-furlong i ace with Bst 81b. His opponents were not much class, and the old fellow iump-f-a away, and, never giving them a chance, won by a couple of lengths, in Imin 1 2-sth sec. Colonial horses are apparently not much in favour with English punteis. They allowed Moifaa to start at 25 to Seahorse;, after making all the running, finished second to the Englishbred Puerto for the International HurdJe Race, on March 16th last. The New Zealander was the outsider of the runners. Kiora, an Australian-bred horse, started at 12 to 1 in a field of eight for a three-mile hurdle race at Kempton Park, and finished a good second to a horse named Cossack. Victorian owners have founed a horses-owners' association. At a lecent meeting, held at Wagga Wagga (Victoria), they resolved that no mem»ei of the Association should on and after August Ist, 1904, nominate with an-" club whose charges in fees were more than 3 per cent, of the prizemoney. It was also resolved to petition the Railway Commissioners for a reduction of fees for travelling horse-boxes. What has become of the proposed New Zealand horse-owners' association ? Sir G. Clifford's colt, Treadmill, winner of the New Zealand St. Leger, is at present laid up with a severe attack of influenza. Cutts informs me that the

colt was galloping well on the Hastings track, but suddenly w as afflicted with an affection of the tlnoat. His trainer, aftei waiting a day to see if tlieie was any lmpiovement in his condition, was obliged to leave him at Hastings in chiaiee of a vet. The suddenness with which liomses develop influenza after a journey in a horse-box is causing trainers somei concern. The Hoe. Geo. McLean is a tiue sportsman of the old school. With the view of piovidmg iranself with some diveisoon duiing the session, he is having a couple of two-year-olds trained at the Hutt by Mr. W. Davis. Their owner, wheii the Uppei House becomes dreaiv will be able to take a lun out to the Hutt. training fciacks, and see his juvenile t h on ought)] eds put through them paces. Hany Goodman's fnends weie pleased to see him have a win with Solution at Hawke's Bay last week. Her ownei's immediate friends weie on to a man, with the result that the layers had 1 a lough time. Rose Madder was also wired as a good thing, and quitei a number of puntei s came out on the right side oven the meeting. Canine Chiiel is earning an unenviable notoriety for in-and-out running , he seldom, luns two races alike. He performed badly on the second day of the Wellington meeting. A feAv days lateu , atManawatu, he won seemingly without an eiFotrt. The follow ing day when freely supported by the public he ran like a mule. This performance' he repeated at Hawke's Bay much to tho disgust of his miany backers. Boris, bv winning the Hawke's Bay Stakes, somewhat surpused his followers. They estimated his cthance on his Ohallefnge Stakes foim, and consideied Machine Gun easily held him safe. The local metallicians thus had' a "skinner" over the race. George Price, who rode Boris, kept him going from the woi d go, and. although M'aohine Gun was going the faster of the pair at the finish, the Pornua colt scratched home with nothing to snare. The decision of the Appeal Board m the Convoy-Gladsome case ha& been much difeoutaseid in sporting cweles. The geneial opinion seems to> be that Gladsome's owner has been made to suffer through the rules of racing having been so tinkered and amended that even the fraimeirts disagree as to their correct interpretation. Three lawyers inteipret certain rules one way ; another lawyei and two laymen hold that they mean the opposate. How owners', trameis, and jockeys are to understand such rules is a bit of a puzzler. Mr. J. B. Reids trainer, it is aid, was fortified by the opinion of the secretary to the New Zealand Racing Confeience, and whetn he put the apprentice Jones up on Gladsome he had every reason to believe he was not committing a bleach of any rules. Most sporting men think that the alleged breach of rule 143 would have been equitably met bv the infliction of a fine on The uder, but, apparently, thetre is no punishment provided for the unqualified lider who accepts mounts. So the Appeal Board, in their anxiety to purify the turf, fine> the owner of the hor.se lidden bv the unqualified rider something like a couple of thousand pounds.

The whale case leads like a ohaptei out of one of Nat Goulds latest novels. Mi. Reids mare put up a meiitoaious performance each time she won. Many a sportsman may race foi years befoie getting hold of such a filly. It is hard luck to b© depraved of stakes which w ere fanly and squarely wan. It is doubly annoying when it is considered that Mr. Reid (himself a steward of the C.J.C.) thought he was acting in acooi dance with the rules of racing, amdi that his and his trainer's opinion was backed up by the secretary of the Racang Conference. Some' comment wae occasioned by i lie ridleu of Machine Gun sitting quite ' till amd refraining from using his whip ot the business end of the Railway Handicap, at the leoent Welimgibora meeting. It wn& rumoured that. Hewitt's explanatiooi was that Machine Gun galloped best when his rider sat perfectly still. A visitor to Hawke's Bay tells me hat Machine Gun was 1 iddem vigorously the last furlong of tihe Hawke's Bay Stakes, and responded geneiou&ly. It is ctident that even Hewitt ca,n gain wisdo-n by experience. Mr. D. Thomson, who owns that useful trio, Kremlin, The Guesser, and Toman an ga, contemplates taking urj his residence at Palmerston North. When suitable stablmg has been secured, his ho-ises will be trained on the Awapuni course. The well-known cross-country horseman, Alick Hall, has made an application for a trainer's license, and

will have charge of Mr. Thomson's horses when qualified to accept a tiamer'% position.