IN A NUTSHELL

Otago Witness, Issue 2892, 11 August 1909, Page 54

IN A NUTSHELL

— A horse at 15 years old is as old as man at — 5 The Ca Auckland gelding Master Delaval has arrived safely in India. — Stronghold has broken down, ««d will not start at the National meeting. _ Zimmerman's only engagement a. tho National meeting is in the Winter Cup. -The Taieri Amateur Turf Club are advertising for a starter to act at their meetln — The C J.C. have refused jockeys' licenses to H. B. Emerson, G. J. Pine, and W. for the Ashburton County Racing Club's spring meeting are due oa A TtL 2 C.J.C. granted W. J. Taggart * trainer's license with "a severe caution £ a' possibility that the Winton Jockey Club vail reinstate the Wmton GU i n | fle I*l - * *• worth 1350SOVS, of which 250sovs goes to S3 l AHl^ugh the D.J.C. Save indeed their ?OT.X°? O T.X°k p C StJSSS £ 553 a horse in the race. rn-;.-^ — The spring programme of the Taien. Amateur Turf Club carries £410 in stak«sv and the amount represents an mcreaee of Su y c£ns P TH. Wilson. E. O'Brien and H. E. Barnea for licenses under trotting rules were refused by the N.Z.M.T. Association at their monthly meeting. Agesemos, who won the August Handicap of 200sovs, one mile «nd a-h«Jf, irf 339 3-5. is a. half-brother by Electioneer to Baron Rothschild, the sir© of Flower Child. Xod Sloan was at Ascot (Eng) last! month The one-time brilliant America.ni rider has .received: permission from the stewards of the Jockey Club to attend race meetings. — Bayardo's two-year-old half-brother Lem-be-rg (by Cyllene) is a. ga-lloper At Ascot *En«U lftst month be. e*silj[ won the N«w

Stakes, of £2038 10s. This was Lemberg's first mn. —At the wish of the Bishop of Adelaide, all the Anglican Chuich charities have resolved to decline donations arising from totalisator fractions. In New Zealand they get tlie chance to refuse. — Last year an English syndicate purchased from Colonel Hall Walker eight yearlings for 10,000sovs, and one of the youngsters, Charles O'M&lley, is one of the best two-year-olds seen out this eeasop in England. — A M-asterton writer has made a calculation which shows that, for the season just closed, 28 horses trained on the Opaki track won 51 races, and were placed second on 37 occasions. They won in stakes & total of over £5000. —To put a stop to unseemly behaviour on any of his courses Mr J. Wren has the following notices placed in conspicuous places: "And person hooting or otherwise shouting any objectionable remarks will be expelled from the grounds." — Horses bred by Colonel W. Hall Walker head the winning list for breeders in England up to the ciose- of the Ascot June meeting this season, with a total of £18,695, of •which his Majesty's colt Minoru is responsible for £U,279. — The Tuapek* County Jockey Club are objecting to the- newly-formed Southland Trotting Club racing on November 17, as that d*te clashes with trie date of .the former club's 'meeting, which" has been passed by .the Racing Conference. —Mr J. Wren's next mammoth racing «vevnt is the Ascot Height Class Thousand, of lOOOsovs, and run over five furlongs. It is for horses 14.1, 14.2, and under, and will be decided at Ascot on Thursday, September 2. Entries close on Monday, August 23. — Small wonder (says a. Sydney paper) •Berlin mares are looked upon as matrons second to none in Australasia. Fraulein, by Berlin, is the dam of Fritz, the peerless trotter, and other good ones. Puella, by Berlin, is the dam of Almont and Belmont. — The Martian — Pantomime yearling colt has been named Punchinello. Pantomime was got by Phaethon (son of Trenton) from Burlesque, by Cadogan — xTonsense, by Albany — No Name, by Traducer, and Punchinello can consequently lay claim to aristocratic breeding. —J. Cameron, who took Kiatere and Waipu to the V.R.C. National meeting, returned from Sydney last week. Both the horses were left in Australia. J. O'Oonnell and &. W. King bave also returned from Australia, and will probably be in the saddle during the week at Biccarton. —Mr J. B. Joel, according to London advices, has refused an offer of 35,000gs for Your Majesty. If the statement be correct, Your Majesty may be expected to bring quite as much money as Flying Fox. who was sold for 37,50855. Your Majesty is a four-yesr-old, by Persimmon from Yours. — Ability pulled up lame after a gallop last week, and is an unlikely starter at the National meeting. T. Cehill came over from Sydney to ride Ability in the National Hurdles, and this leaves him without «. mount in the race unless some other owner is anxious to procure his services. —At the monthly meeting of the C.J.C. it .was Te«olved that horses shod with shoes or plates with sharp projections, which, in the opinion of the stewards, were -likely to cause injury to other horses, should not be allowed to start, and that blacksmiths working on the course should be warned to this effect. — A couple of Merman's progeny were successful «t the Folkestone (England) June meeting, the two-year-old filly Nixie winning •the Deal Selling Plate and Black Sea carried his owner's (Lady Bathe) colours to victory in the Three-year-old Handicap. Merman is an Australian-bred Ascot Cup winner, and a son of Grand Flaneur. — Amongst the jockeys' licenses granted recently by the Dunedin Jockey Club was ono which w*b accompanied by a severe caution to the recipient. The club do not wish to publish the name of the rider, but desire it to be generally known that a stricter supervision is to be kept the conduct of those holding licenses. " —In referring to the action of the Racing Conference affirming the principle of stipendiary stewards the Canterbury Times says:— "It is a move in the desired direction to find a majority of the Conference delegates in favour of the proposal, and «U we can nope is that it is not a subtle' move to shelve the matter »nd get rid of further criticism for another year." — Mauutaki. the dam of Pink 'Un. is to Tie bred to Birkenhead this season. In producing a brilliant horse like Pink 'Un t^e daughter of Castor marked a very notable success, attributable to the Blair Athol line of Stoekweil. and it will be interesting to TLote how she produces when mated with a sire «f the Bern* Or-Ormonde-Orme line of the S+ockwell tribe. — News- conva from America, that the famous horse Frank Gill, by Collar out of Bavello. by Sir Hugo, drowned dead at Grave«end. U.S.A.. last aaonth. immediately sifter finishing second in a mile and a furlong handicap, for which he started with odd* of 2 to 1 on him. During his we»r on the turf Frank Gill won over £12.300 in stake*, and be was expected to make a valuable stallion. — One of the nxwt pleasing items to refold In connection wi+h the New Zealand turf fuays Phaeton in the Auckland We*>klv News^ is that the Dnnedin Jockey Club is once •gain on the high ro«d to prosperity. The next T)un«din Cup is to rarry miz«>-moiey to the ex*-«»nt of BOOpovr. The old club ha« tad a- stiff up-hill fit;ht, and any success tbpt oome= rt« way. it can be heartily said will be well deserved. — The Dunedin Jockey Club hove deleted the word "h»ck" from the names of all events on tbeir programme for the romins «e&w,n, but the hark conditions are retained in the same number of Tf-oes as There ia no .doubt that the word has a cKea-peningr effect When s.rcnpprinr in <V>? title of a race, and other clubs would dn •well to follow on the f*aroe lines when drawing titv fhrir Xftotrnmnies. — The CftulfieM Cnp winner of 1904 — MrrTntrr — *>»« h»~n fisrurjr«' in a new role. >t \he Bijou Theatre. Melbourne, the Irish com*dv. " Sweet Comity Kerry." i" beine played, and among thx staee scenes 's s «mithv. in whi<#i t**l horpes'hoef 1 w" fitted to « live animal. The eouine who 'Ha« his f«et adiusted there is Murmur. *rri it is jstufcct that he submits to th* operation as onietly as if he had been all his life on the slag*." — S*vb a London coniemDowary. wriHne pf tTi». Kind's T+oeut Derby victory: — "Amid nil the tremendous demonstrations of popular affection and eai'thumaem there wae to oe •noticed bat one janine note, amd that, wader ♦Tie circumstances, onv well b» foreriv^Ti ■Whi'e the miffhtv crowd w»r luatilv singine the Nation*! Anthem, or© little bookie, who had lost heavily over Minoru Mid had captured" very little of the Sir MaTtin money, ■wa* heard" sin«itur ' God save the rine!' " —Of the £38.997 10« which w«nt to the ■winning horses at Ascot, £11.8"7 ft fell to torsos bred in Ireland. This sum did not include

the £3050 won by Princesse de Galles, as the j daughter of GaUinule was, I think (writes a correspondent of the London Sportsman)? foaled at Sandringham. What a testimony to the Iris horse and the Irish soil, *nd wL ¥?<■ /^P I *?*." he lived, would have dilated on the glories of yet another iTisn Ascot. — The Dunedin Jockey Club, in drawing Tip their programme for the coming season^ in addition to tacking about lOOOsovs on to 2Sn/ TT T le £ St> W kel>t dOWn tL * COfrt ° f ri^M i. horse - ow *«s in a manner fiat should be appreciated. For instance, it only evlnt TSl°T S l° Btart a hOTSe ™ W 100-OVB HSagBRSSB ior ±17,501 10s» of which Minoru by his four S^W?!.^ 1 " 1 *? 111 £14 ' 279 - Gall&cJme ta^orfS for £1 °.°50; then followed I £R9G7° r r: rr Per « m «»»- seven wins, for *p67, Carbine, eight wins, for £8915; Eager for^a^ £8W1; &nd Bay S"* l * k™: •ar~^ P? 0111 ""; ease. b*s cropped up in Leonatus &rfsfied second to Eeliance in the Belmont Hurdles on July 10, has decided to apply to the club ,for the amount of the first prize, on the ground that -the owner of Reliance, Mr Meares. was at the time a disqualified person, or liable to be disq«a1 *$ * the rac€ M» Heares was diss?^nh£ ¥*• matter of form b y th « W.A.T.C. but was reinstated immediately. Ihe trouble arose over a horse, leased by Mr Meares. having been raced at an unregistered meeting. —At the monthly meeting of the N.Z. Trotting Association a letter was received from the Foxbury Park Trotting Club stating that it was disappointed at the association's decision U pay only £33 of the expenses incurred in connection with the Conocrah case, lexvlng the balance of £27 to be paid by ihe a'ubs^ interested. The- club asked that the association would reconsider its decision, as it considered that in such cases the association should btar the expense. The association decided to repls that they saw no reason to alter tbeir decision. — One of the oldest brood mares in the Dominion, Musket Maid, by Musket, died tast week at Mangere Mountain (says the New Zealand Herald). Her owner, Mr B. Cun- | ningham, had her grazing on the Mountain Reserve, and on going up to the mare she seemed all right. Some little time after the mares was noticed to be suffering, and she ! succumbed. Musket Maid will be best remembered by her son and daughter, Waiuku and Oko*ri. both of whom were sired by St. Leger. Waiuku was undoubtedly one of the best handicap horses ever raced in New Zealand. — Stormonfs withdrawal from his engagements at the National meeting came as no surprise to the writer, who drew attention prior to -the last D.J.C. winter mcc liner to the fact that the Apremont gelding: w>as ami3S in his respiratory organs. It is a piece of very bad luck for his owner, as sound and well Storrnont would in 9.11 probability h-av-p dev*.]oT>sd into one of the best between the flap:s. Such big-framed animals a" t.fce Anremont gelding are more likely to " ioin the band " than pmallo-r hor«e=. and Stormont has been in- , clined to whistle for <*onie timp past. — A brace of British-owned borFos in +^o shane of Mr C. G. Asteton-Smith's Jerry M. and Mr P. Neike's Afoimt Prospect were F-pnt across to France in June to contest ihe Grand Steeplechase de P*/ris; but both hrA to strike their colours. The French-owned Saint Caradee, a four-year-old hoiFe by St. Bois, who was weighted at 9.12. started favourite, and he justified the eonfid'eTice by defeating Jerry M. two lengths. The Grand Steeplechase de Paris, it may be remarked, carries the richest stake attached to 'tiy event of its class in the world. In addition to a sweepstake of 40sovs for starters, there is a stake •of 5000sovs. and a work of art of the value of 400ovs. The race is -un over a course extending to four miles and «-ha!f. The following ominous " par." appeared in en English t>aper 8- week prior to tha Graaid Prix de Paris:— The Prefet of Police has aspured the oeople of Paris that the Grand Prix will be run on Sunday, and that visitors will be able U go to Li-mgchamp in safety and comfort, ■n.ofwi*h<?tar>din*t the noisy threats of a few agitators who have boen endeavouring to break up the harmony that has always prevailed in racing stables. For ihe disgraceful fcene« at Autsuil no one directly connected with tbe turf was re-spo>-,<!ible, and the attempt to throw discredit on racing people in consequence is in keeping with the ignorant and maJicious attacks bo often . made by self-rif?hteou= censors, whose narrow- mirds are incaoable of taking delight in any sport or healthy pleas«re . -m i- v Tho sporting notes wnt< o* fcnelisii Truth makes an aopeal to the Ascot authorities to revise the programme. He ob^r.s to tfce "fatuous polirv of throwing £2000 away" on the Apcot Stukes; p'eade for the abolition of the Triennial* and the institution of a new and richer two-year-old T»ca. while he declares that events like iV V'sit-vta Handicap and tbe Ascot High-weight Stakes are out of o'ace at Ascot. He continues: "It may be hoped that the tco long doferre'l revision of the Apcot rsros>Tamn>e will c oon b? serku=ly taken in h»<nd. cr Ihe meeting will f*!l or evil days when it ceases to ba « fashionable resort. It is a certain fact tnr.t. more than half of the elab->r:ttelv-attiTed moo who now crowd the stands and enclo«u-es at Ascot do not care a potato-neeling about the racing." —A well-informed correspondent expresses a very decided opinion that in France the turf is in a fair way t:> to the dogs. The constant smd vexatious interfprenre «>f Government Department <?, says Truth, is sending racing straight to perdition Owners are not now permitted to 1 acl; their horse* so as to get a fair frbare of the market A man cannot ascertain before the is.se what orice he is to obtain about his beroe, but if the animal is a public fancy He may re-rt assured that the edds will hs very short indeed. Everything gives way in the interests of tke Government lottery, and the immtm>Q profits of that concern are devoted to object* which have nothm*? whatever to do with racing. It if started that during; a recent gr^t day at Lonecbamps the turnover at the official betting offices was over £120 000 and no less a sum than £9603 was allowed for The crack pacer Ribbon wood is to stand this season at a 15-guinea fee. which is tbe bi-iiest yet asked for his service". The following ere ronie of the ti=ne3 put vi» by his progeny: — Ribbons, 2yrs, one mile, 2min 30sec; Ribbons, 3yrs, one mile. 2min 20* sec; Ribbans, 3yrs. one mile and a-half Smin 32 4-ssec ; Ribbonwood. Jun, 2yrs, one mile. 2min 23isec; First Ribbon, 2yrs, one ini!c, 2min 3&2 se c; Berlmwood. ore mile, -mm 23 2-ssec; Royal Ribbon, two miles, 4min 59sec ; King Cole, two miles, 4min 53sec ; Rosewood, 2yrs, one mile, 2min 31sec; Black

' Ribbon, two miles, smin 35sec; Marie 1 Narelle, one mile and a-half, 3min 51 3-ssec; First Ribbon, one mile and a-half. 3min 51sec; King Cole, one mile and a-half, 3min 40sec; Red Ribbon, one mile and a-half, I 4anin ; Ribbonite, one mile, 2mdn 24$ se c; Birchwood Maid, one mile, 2min 42Jsec ; Silver Ribbon, one mile, 2min 44sec — England is recognised as the home of the thoroughbred, but France easily leadls the way in the encouragement of stamina in Lhe racehorse. Unmistaloab.e evidence of this is \ furnished by a comparison between the programmes hung ap in England, and France. Some time-honoured! long-distance events are decided in England, but the bulk of the xacing is over short courses, whereas in France sprint events are very much in. the minority. The French Derby was decided on Sun-day, June 13, aod during the day, in addition to tihe classic, the following races were got off: —Prix de la • Reine, 10J furlongs; Prix de Dangu, of 400sovs, for four- i year-oida and upwards, w.f.-a., two- miles and a-half; Prut de Gouvienx, of 200sova, 10J fur- J longs; Prix dcs Etangs (selling race), of 160sovs, for thxee-ye*r-olds and upwards, to be sold — thxee-y«*r-olda for SOOaovs, four-year-clda andl upwards &wr 400sovs, weight for age, 10 furlongs; ami the Prix dn.Ch.emin de fer div Nord, of 250sovs, for three-year-olds, having been entered in the Derby and with- ' drawn, to carry 9.2, one mile and a-half. ' — "It js a pity that it is impossible* to form j any estimate of what money is spemt in j betting during the year. We know that the same money goes through tie totalisator again and again, but you cannot make the enemies of racing believe this. In Soufa Australia this seceaa. there has been a great improvement in attendance, and the totalisator turn-over has increased from' £233 500 in 1907-8 to £330,000. This is a great increase, but in New Zealand last year three cmos alone put through £562,023, »nd also received some thousands in bookmakers' fees! Considring t!he prosperity of South Austra-lia, the State's betting bill is small compared to that of New Zealand, but the figures give no id<ea of the money actually spent in betting by the community. All we know is that, despite the figures, men do not risk anything like the anxmnt that they did 20 or 30 years ago. In England in the sixties— the Hastings era. — it was not uncommon for a man to win £100,000 on * race. We doubt any man having won £20,000 on a Melbourne Cup since Carbine's year." — The Australasian. —After all, the New Zealand Racing Conference has expressed itself favourable to the rtipendiary steward system,- and 1 suppose (says "Pilot," of the Sydney Referee) it will not be long ere appointment* are uiad<e iv that direction. Racing in Australia is not quite as pure as could be wiahed, but according to some visitors to New Zealand, if stipendiary stewards are necessary here, they are doubly so there. The position may scarcely be as bad as that, but I must say that while some New Zealand racing men who have visited Sydney have been all that could be wished 1 , others were prepared to take risks that men resideint here would xx>t even contemplate. Despite tbe big fees paid for betting privileges. Sir George Clifford, president of the conference, deplored the presence of bookmakers on New Zealand raoscour&as, but hi 3 fears as to the effect the presence of the members of the ring will have upen the morals of trainers and jockeys are Unnecessarily great. 1 cannot say how it is at country meetings in this State, but at metropolitan fixtures it is rare to bear 'ever a suggestion tibat a trainer or owneT has been approached by a bookmaker. And where racing is concerned there are individuals ready to allege almost anything on the slender-est cf foundations—An item that may interest the minority who desire Governmental! cr vetsrinary interference with thoroughbred stallions is embedied in the history of that great French horse Gladiafceur, who won the Two Thousand Guineae, Derby, Grand Prix, St. Leger. and Ascot Cup. "The horse" says the .historian. Mr Sydeniham Dixon, "always suffered from ruavicular disease, and 1 w*s lame off and on through his career, which makes his extraordinary performances all the more marvellous." There ir a coloured picture oi Gladiateur in this book, showing a big short-crouped, clean-necked. deep, flatshouldered^ dark bay horse, the very counter part in con-formation- asd character of numerous sons of Grandmaster we have seen in this country ; such, for instance, (says the Sydney Mail), as Highborn, Rackarock, Locksley, and Gibraltar. Australian horses have been eulogised wherever they have gone for their soundness, and also their hardness, but in ail our horse history we cannot claim a stallion who was superior to Grandmaster in the production of cast-iron horses, absolutely free from hereditary disease. Yet Grandmaster was the sor of Gladiateur, the unsound, and, as before-mentioned, got many of his stock in the likeness of his great yet diseased sire ; but instead of inheriting navicula>r troubles sounder horses than the Grandmasters never wore a shoe. —As if following the example of stable boys ji France on a re-cent occasion, jockeys engaged at a recent Victoria Park meeting struck before the programme commenced because th-ey objected to a regulation stipulating that during the currency of the programme riders are not to emerge from the quarters provided for them, except when it is necessary to keep their riding engagements. The proprietor of the course (Mr J. J. Smith) was thus brought face to face with a serious problem, and not deeming ii wise to pestpone the meeting a^d thus to disappoint his pa'.rons, who had, by that time, collected in large numbers, promi&od tho strikers that tha law objected to would be reconsidered by the clubs concerned, and with that assurance the jockeys condescended to ride. The Board of Management will oorvsider the questions, both as to the new law and the strike, and decide al-^o as to whether the clubs or the jockeys shall dictate the terms under which race rp-eetiugs are to bo controlled. Thcee who struck work at Victoria Par!' were wrong in adopting the stand-and-deliver policy they did The law to which they objected was (says a Sydney paper) passed on Monday j morning an 3 appeared in Tuefd-ay's morning ! papers, and the proper course to hay» adopteJ was ftr the jockeys b have then interviewed , the cubs representatives, with the view to the order being rn<:d~ined or cane?! lei. As it was, they practioa'ly heM up Wednesday-* mepting. and have rendered themselves h?b!e to heavy punishment. — A point croprce-ct up recently which, though it did not le'id to a dispute, was much , argued, though, really thare was very litt'e to ague «l>jut. A backer who js not a plunger, and who is in the babit of having a small investrrw.t by deputy when he is unab!e to attend a meeting, wm put on to a "good tiling" at a pony inoe-ting. But *»be ajiimal which was to increase hia wealth was engaged in two races, and the adviser was rot sufficiently armed to state which of them his good thing w-a, intended for. But tne back-er got over the gup by arranging for an investment en his "<]csid bird" at th-e firsi/ start. He ace 'rumEt'v iniesied hi« money at "s'arting price" on the horse's "first start." It so happened (says a Sydney paper) that the object of his investment ran n de?d heat, and -.vas beaten in tbe run off and that gave rise to the question, Was the backer entitled to a cl!vi<=ioi of his bet on the dead hsat. cr was the bat carried on to the run-eg? Even here there was a difference oi opinion, though it is difficult to see by wiait law a backer j

I could claim — wh\ah, by the way, this particular one did not — that his bet only applied to that pait of the event with which the dead heat was associated. The wager was clearly | on the first "race" in which the horse selected started, and the race was not decided, or the prize ,won, until the dead heat was run off. Had th« owners of the dead<-he»tera divided the state the race would then have been determined, and the beta and the prize money divided. But -wftert » dead heait is to 1 be run* off., a backer can no more eempel % bookmaker to divide than the latter can order a division with his client. — A la<w of the most drastic character is understood to have been gazetted by the Attorney-general, Mil de Villiera, at Pretoria,for introduction into the South African Assembly, dealing with horse-racing, and aiming at preventing newspapers and others from disseminating betting information. The proposals include the licensing of racecourses, and prohibition of racing in the Witwatersrand and Pretoria districts, except on Saturdays and public holidays, with the exception ! of Christmas, Good iriday, and Ascension Day. The bill forbids the selling of racecards except on racecourses and on race days, and prohibits all betting, except od racecourses on race days, and on races actually; run there, which precludes betting on English j races. It prohibits betting on all other I sports, while minor .and coloured persons will not be allowed 1 to make wagers, cot will newsi papers be allowed fco publish betting "information prior to -races or "otiher sporting events. It further prohibits the circulation of South African newspapers containing betting information, and the dissemination in any other manner of betting -information on events in or outside South Africa, prior to results. The bill taxes the fcoUlisaior 2 per cent, of its gross takings. Settling rooms will be allowed bo open for five hours a day following the races; otherwise, excepting on racecourses on race days, settling will be «.m offence, the penalties for which provide, on firet conviction, a fine of £75, or in default imprisonment not exceeding six mouths, and on the second oi subsequent conviction six months* imprisonment without the option of a fine. —At the annual meeting of the Wanton Jockey Clut the president, Mr C. M'Rae, was in the chair. In the course of his address the President congratulated the club on a most successful year, and stated that the credit balance had increased from £754 7s lid to £1116 17s 6d during the past 12 months. Totalisator investments showed a decrease, but were more than Jounfcerbalanced by license fees receivecl from Bookmakers. Nomination and Acceptance' fees had been very satisfactory, and showed" a substantial increase of £90. The balance sheet showed that total receipts for the year amounted to £2063 10s 3d, and the expenditure £1701 0s Bd. There was now on fixed deposit in Bank of New Zealand, £1000 ; balance on 'current account, £116 17s 6d; leaving a gross credit balance of £1116 17s 6d for the year. The President said he had great pleasure in moving the adoption of the report and balance sliest, and congratulated the club on its satisfactory financial position: The club had had «t very successful race meeting last year, and was the best yet held. ,The stakes had. been increased, and. good stakes meant good racing, and the attendance at the fixtura had been exceptionally large. Office-bearers for the ensuing year were elected as follows:—President, Mr C. M'Kae (re-elected unopposed) ; vice-president, Mr J. Looney (re-elected); secretary, Mr H. H. Kicfd (re-elected) ; treasurer, Mr W. Norman (re-elecced) ; committee — Messrs W. Muir. j. M'Donald, C. D. Moore, J. A. Hornsr, R. Jamieson, J. Duffey, W Shand. N. Kelly, J. Tobin, and George Bain; auditors, Messrs W. Cowie and W. A. Marchani. — The bookmakers and their licenses were briefly referred to bj the president of the Auckland .Racing Club (the Hon. E. Mitchelson) at the annual meeting of the club (says the Herald). "There are bookmakers and; bookmakers," he said, "end we have found great difficulty in discriminatingbetween them. This task had caused considerable annoyance, but at the last meeting they had adopted a new system by invoking the assistance of the police. He regretted that the Racing Conference had not taken this matter into its consideration, with • view of inducing the Government to amend the act so as to give the clubs more discretionary powefc The Wellington Club had asked permission from- the conference to refuse licenses to bookmakers plying at unregistered meetings, and he thought it was desirable that such bookmakers should be debarred from betting at the metropolitan meetings. He also thought that the clubs should set their faces against the Temoval of the disqualifications of all persons or horses taking part in unregistered meetings. The proposal to institute the system of stipendiary stewards in connection with NewZealand race meetings was also mentioned by Mr Mitchelson. In referring to the [ considerable sum that had been expended I by the club in connection with appeals, he expressed the opinion that the appointment of stipendiary stewards would obviate a great deal of trouble. Mr E. D. Cyßorke, in endorsing the remarks of Mr Mitehelson, said that experts who were always engaged at the work must be the best judges as to how a race shouid be run and ridden, and as they would act with an unbiassed mind, free from all local conditions, their appointment would obviale much of the present trouble in ies?rd to appeals. — The withdrawal of Armlet from Epsom Handicap is likely to cause seme trouble among: bettors who backed that filly for the raca in question a few hours before her scratching was registered at the A.J.C. office. The scratching, it seems, came by letter from New Zealand, and Armlet's backers— or rath-el ' some of them — contend that as they backed the filly between the time the letter was posted and its receipt at the A.J.C. office they had, according to betting rules, no chance to win, and therefore do not lose. But this view (says a Sydney ecribs) is rot correct. Armlet remained in Epsom Handicap until the time she was officially scratched, and had the owner so desired, h« could 'auvo countermanded by wire- the instructions contained in his letter any time before it reached the A.J.C. officials. No, this is a rase in which the backers of Armlet clearly losa their money, and they must pay and lock a3 pleasant as is possible under puch annoying circumstances. If the letter sent by Armlet's owner had miscarried, or been lost, or its delivery d«-JayeJ for some weeks, until after the forfeits had become due, the owner would be liable- for the full amount though someone else was to blame. His pea that he had posted the authority to scratch m ample time would not avail him anything A horse is only regarded as being withdrawn when notice in writing to that effect is given to the secretary or other official appointed to receive scraitchings, and however small were ■ho v>rosnects of Armlet's backers getting a. run for their money once the letter referred to was posted, the hard fact that Armlet was in the race when bets were ma3e cannot be got over. Those backers of Armlet who think tha.t their home was out of the race when the written instructions to scratch her left New Zealand are labouring under a misapprehension. They muet pay, unless, of course, they cm talk their bookmaker into letting them off. — Giving a brief sketch of Frank Wootton's

life, both privately and as a jockey, a writer" in the Throne and Country, a London paper, says: — "Frank Wootton is unquestionably <a fine jockey; he 'gets away,' is a fair judg© of pace, and grasps the situation of winning instantly, while he is a masterpiece over a long course. There has bsen an outcry recently as regaids nia invariable partiality for th& rails. There are dangers in such manoeuvring, which a youtE realises, and he has undoubtedly lost a few races through attempts to come through on the inside. But he has won ten to one lost by such* actions, and his effort to get on to the rails is solely because of a very natural belief tn*t horses run truer alongside them At very 'ordinary boy* in everyday life, little Wootton, it may be said, shines a* nothing- : except m the saddle. During the winter (ne attends school at Epsom— for pastimes . plays football, or goes hunting. He is keen, on bridge-playing, and a real champion »t this— his only vice. He has no value, oi< need, for money, rarely carrying more than. 2s or 3s in his pocket, and is a boy you f n ?£ P?} 1 ' His interesting to be able to say that Frank Wootton's earnings as a jockey last year amounted to £4000 after he. paid all his expenses, and, of course, he Tode for. Ins father's stable without any fee whatever. His money is invested by the boyi himself and- his mother in -unison. As w j"jt • * an<i of "Kangr he ia splendid, being, in fact, an extraordinary tipster ?it } kaa ° aA fottower^-a. very aged friend! of the family— who has 5s upon all Frank'stips, and they were successful enough to win the veteran £70 last season. The boy's popularity— even among bis rival lightweights—is universal. His nickname a* home is 'Fa!'; his ability, integrity, and 1 position, one to be envied," for he is "at the moment head of the winning jockeys' list." «Ti~£J I ? w , rule P r °Posed by the stewards' of the English Jockey Club to -the effect tha* no horse shall be handicapped for any race until he shall have run at least three timer) in this country (says the London Sportinjj Times) can scarcely be said to be aimed at the Americans, inasmuch as it applies to our own horses as ' well as those of other countries. We are not sure that the proposed new rule is not in favour of tha Americans. As matters stand, the handicappers are compelled to deal with them om their American reputation, which places* them in a very high position. If they were to run three times hare and win, they would! not be adding tc- the reputation they already! possessed, whereas if from want of acclimatisation or through loss ef form they -were to fail to maintain the reputation they had! gained in their owp country, thej would ba very materially lowered in the handicap., The alteration proposed is sure to be carried . and ought to be. At all races run in this country an official handicapper is present to watch the running of the horses, and' obviously he could not note horses like Colin ■and Ballot, which had never run here, Plaisanterie came ever .here and won tha Cesarewitch and Cambridgeshire without having previouslj run in this country. Th« new rule, too, would have somewhat interfered with the Cambridgeshire success of Jongleur, •in conneclim With'- which. £0,00(1 of British* money crossed- the Channel, and' it would have been the same with the Cambridgeshire victories of Peut Etre and Ali-< cante. Then, again, had the German Adonis run three times in this country before winning the Cambridgeshire, the handicapper" would not have let him off with a light* weight, confounding him with a wretchedl Epsom selling plater of the same name. —At the annual meeting of the Auckland! Racing Club the committee, in its reportf for the year ended June 30, stated that th» past season had been the most successful yet} experienced by the club. The stakes given. (£25,285) were a slight increase (£195) over those of the previous year, and each of that four meetings yielded a handsome profit. IV had been agreed to largely increase th« stakes for the coming season. The surplus on the year's working amounted to .£8307 19s Bd, and of this sum £1468 13s 6d had been expended on improvements, £2016 6t 7d written off the club's assets, and £482S| 19s 7d added to capital account. During th< year a new members' stand had been erected^ the cost of which, including furniture an<{ fittings, so far amounted -o £5550, of whiclr £4550 had been paid out of revenue. Tbi President (the Hon. E. Mitchelson), in mov-< ing the adoption of the report and balance sheet, referred to the -satisfactory nature ot the year's operations. He said that witht the increase in population and the increased! attendance that would result from the opening of the Main Trunk railway, it was evident that the accommodation provided by thei club would be taxed to the utmost. Th» time was not far distant when it would be necessary to either place a roof over the main stand or provide some other means of increased accommodation. H» alluded ta the increase of stakes last year, and said! that if the club was to become the premier club of New Zealand, further increases must: be made. The committee had decided to give £4000 more in stakes during the coming yeai than luring the past year, and _this would make the total amount about £30,000. He referred to the recent improvements to. the course, and stated that others were contemplated, including a peoples stand, tae laving of water round the course, and the. formation of separate entrance dnves for members and the public, as well as a 20ft footway for pedestrians.