TALK OF THE DAY.

Otago Witness, Issue 4028, 26 May 1931, Page 52

TALK OF THE DAY.

By Sentinel. THE OTAGO STEEPLES. The D.J.C. handicapper appears to have ignored the flight of time when considering the form to be balanced m connect“on with the Otago Steeplechase. Tuki ha“ not raced since September, 1928 •when Royal Wink beat him at the Otago Ilunl meeting of that year, and Fabnano, nltliouch then in winning has , no f anneared since the Grand National of last, season. Tuki was an aged horse in 1993 and Fabriano came on the scene i 1919’. Prowess in the arena does no usuailv return at such an age, and until thev show track work suggesting somethin" in that direction it may be more profitable to ignore them until after -the declaration of acceptances for the race. Squatter beat Maungamoe handsomely at Invercargill, and it is doubtful if 71b better terms will give the latter a chance. Squatter has more briHiancy than Maun gamoe, and has greater possibilities than thcTlatter, who is a fully exposed horse. Kapuna was apparently beating Maun-

gamoe on the final day at Riverton when he tipped out, and now meets him on 91b better terms. Kapuna should be a fitter horse at Wingatui than at Riverton, and so beat the Balboa gelding. Maungamoe must, however, be granted a plodder’s chance in addition to ability to get over a course. Squatter beat Radiac at Riverton at 191 b, and the former won again at Invercargill. Radiac will be suited by the shorter course at Wingatui, and will meet Squatter on 161 b better terms. This should give Radiac a chance. Matu is booked for Auckland. Squatter beat Snowfall at Invercargill, and should do so again at Wingatui. The Babe has been off the scene for some considerable time. Valves meets Deportment on IClb better terms than in the Great Western Steeplechase, and while the latter is preferred, they read two of the most dangerous horses in the race. They should both beat Radiac at the weights on the form displayed at Riverton. As a matter of fact Valves meets Radiac on better terms than when he beat him in the Great Western

Steeples. Kaikahu has two placed performances to his credit at Riccarton in the early part of the season. Deportment is regarded as rather well treated at 31b above the minimum for a winner of the Great Western Steeplechase. Prior to that he beat Tractarian at Waimate, and was handicapped to give him weight at Timaru. On that line and the confirmation of recent success it appears that Deportment on the handicapping in Hack and Hunters’ Steeples should be giving weight to Kaikahu, and more than 31b to West Dome. In fact, if Deportment reaches the post fit and well he will be one of the popular picks on the day. At the present time Deportment, Squatter, and Valves seem, to have the best chance on paper. THE BIRTHDAY HANDICAP. When Black Duke and Town Major met at Timaru last month in the Teschemaker Handicap, there did not seem to be much between them at -the difference in the weights. In the Birthday Handicap, Town Major meets the Balboa gelding on lib better terms than at Timaru. Town Major heat Charmaine and Royal Saxon handsomely in the Easter Handicap at Rivorton, and should do so again at Wingatui, where he meets Royal Saxon

on 71b worse terms over an extra furlong, and Charmaine on the same terms. This does not give Charmaine much chance. Mount boa is a better horse than generally allowed, particularly when acting in soft ground. He, however, is meeting Town Major on 71b worse terms than in the Dunedin Cup, and on 11b worse terms than when the Prince Willonyx gelding made a better show at Timaru. Ball Dress is meeting Glenrowan on lib worse terms than when she ran second to Black Duke in the SockbuYn Handicap, and reads well treated in going up 11b to Black Duke’s 161 b on that form. Starshooter was too big in condition when seen at Timaru to repeat form, and hence to get a line on him it is necessary to go back to when he raced in the early part of the season. He put up his last winning performance in the Kurow Cup, when he beat Black Duke a head when "in receipt of 71b. Now there is 211 b between them. This makes him a rather dangerous horse, and in fact, a return to his best form would make Starshooter

the pick of the handicap. Camisader won the Riverton Cup with 7.10, and an extra 21b should not greatly shorten his stride, but he may be found amongst the hurdlers at the meeting. Salmo Solar and Night Maid should again be about a match on their recent form at Invercargill, and on firm going Glenrowan could not be overlooked. Those that appeal most at the present time are Town Major, Starshooter, and Ball Dress. Mount Boa would be entitled to reconsideration if the track proved to be in his favour, but Town Major is equally at home in soft going as the Dunedin Cup winner. THE TRADESMEN’S HANDICAP. Royal Saxon won handsomely when he scored in the Flying Handicap on the first day at Invercargill. Palermo did not show his form on that occasion. Palermo won on the second day at the same meeting, and in the Tradesmen’s Handicap meets Master Anomaly on 61b and Royal Saxon on 81b worse terms. Royal Saxon was made a bit too much use of on that occasion, and got hampered at the finish by Master Anomaly boring out. At the weights Royal Saxon reads the best of the trio. Waving Corn won on the final day at Riverton, when Assemble was handicapped to give her 51b. At Winga-

tui Assemble meets Waving Corn on 81b better terms. Waving Corn has better form to her credit in good company than Assemble, but is not so reliable at the barrier, although she now shows improvement. Waving Corn won the Shorts Handicap at the Dunedin spring meeting, finishing two lengths in front of Caterpillar, when giving the latter 2lb, and the Flying Handicap at the Dunedin Cup meeting with 8.5 J from Royal Saxon 9.4, and Master Anomaly 7.3 She reads well treated in the Tradesmen’s Handicap on that form. Ranelagh has not returned to form, and would probably do better over more ground. Caterpillar and Rin Tin Tin have not regained the racing shape that they carried earlier in the season, but the latter seems to be improving. Aspiring is still dropping in the weights. At the present time Royal Saxon and Palermo seem most likely to supply the favourite, and there will also be a demand for Master Anomaly. Track work during the next week may bring others into favour.

A QUESTION OF QUALIFICATION. In referring to a reported appointment of a deputy stipendiary steward a North Island scribe said that the gentleman appointed would render particularly valuable service by reason of the fact that he is a barrister and solicitor. This legal knowledge would be of great assistance in the conduct of inquiries. Legal knowledge is desirable when fighting points of law in the law courts, but it does not carry equal value in racing. The Rules of Racing should not require any skilled or expert interpretation. They should be easily understandable to any person of average intelligence, and there is no reason whatever that they should be compiled in a manner tending to confuse the purpose for which they were constructed. The rules have recently been overhauled, and no doubt simplified to the level of ordinary intelligence. Knowledge of the Rules of Racing is, in the writer’s opinion, a matter of small importance in the qualifications of a stipendiary steward. _ A thoroughly practical knowledge of racing from barrier to post is the principal asset required. They should not work by rules, but by commonsense knowledge of racing, horse sense, and horsemanship. The rules seem to be principally applied to matters of comparatively trivial im-

portance, and making them a dominant matter savours of regarding the rigging of a ship of more importance than building the hull. Without the hull there would be no ship, and without a thorough knowledge of racing plus a passable acquaintance of rules a person is not fit and competent to hold the position of stipendiary steward. BEFORE THE STEWARDS. At different times an agitation has arisen in favour of allowing a representative to appear when an owner, trainer, or rider is brought before the stewards. Many strong arguments have been advanced in that direction, but for some reason or other honorary stewards do not seem in favour of the idea. When anyone is brought up for an alleged misdemeanour he is confronted by the members of the Judicial Committee and the stipendiary steward or stewards. A person has been known to be subjected to a running fire of questions and so gathered the impression that he is crossquestioned with the object of endeavouring to establish guilt instead of being granted a fair and impartial hearing. The stewards are there to do their duty to sport, but it must be admitted that the odds, as the composition of the court may be termed, are all against the person “on the carpet.” In other words, there are five or six persons up against one. In the amended Rules of Racing that will come up for adoption at the next conference, provision is made for a person to be represented at an inquiry, but only in the unavoidable absence of the defendant. In the case where an apprentice or any other minor is a defendant, his employer or some person in control for the time being, may be granted permission to be present at an inquiry. When a person is defendant at an. inquiry on which may hinge large financial interests as well as prestige as a sportsman, every possible assistance should be granted. The average man on trial for a serious offence may not be mentally alert to present his case in the best possible light. Persons unaccustomed to being confronted by several judges may not, in the excitement following a race, be in a frame of mind to furnish a good defence to combat apparent guilt. In common law the meanest criminal can secure support to establish and present a case on his behalf, and there io no reason why the same right should be debarred in racing. WHO KNOWS? Mr W. S. Vosburgh, an eminent American authority on breeding, says:—“ That men should make mistakes is not so strange, after all. Racing and the breeding of racehorses are too involved —too complex. Breeders allow themselves to become the worst kind of theorists. They ignore the fact that ‘ a horse is a horse,’ and build their operations upon his ancestors or his relationship to some successful performer: or worse still, upon some ‘system’ of which they have in mind only cases in which it succeeded—forgetting or ignoring the percentage of its failures. Every few years there is a rush for some particular family of brood mares. Thus we hear of the Fair Play mares, the Rock Sand mares, and the Sardanapale mares; as if the fact that a mare was the daughter of a certain horse she was bound to produce superior colts. Then we Wave the popular idea of the superiority of crosses. The Lexington-Glencoe cross; the VandalMargrave cross; the Fair Play-Rock Sand cross. It ignored all individualism, all idea of make or shape, all suitability; it sufficed if the sire belonged to one of these families, the mare to the other. The results occasionally justified the selection so far as related to one or two foals, but the percentage seldom has. In England, Phalaris has succeeded best with Chaucer mares, but the trouble is the tables published give only the winners of that cross. We should like to see how many were failures. We cannot estimate the value of a cross by stating only its winners, nor the merit of a sire by his only good l colt, any more than you can fairly handicap a racehorse on his form in one race. 1 The question then is ‘ Who knows any- ■ thing about racing or breeding? ’ Some » know more than others, and they only i know how little is known.”

GREAT GALLOPERS. England has produced so many great horses, over long periods of time in which conditions have so materially differed, and there is so much guesswork in comparing modern and old-time gallopers, that not much profit is to be gained by expressing a mere opinion as to the “ best six.” Most racing men have agreed (says the Sydney Referee) that the two greatest horses seen on the turf were St. Simon and Ormonde. Jos. Osborne declared that the “grandest and the best horse he saw in a long career ” was tho Irish champion, Harkaway. Other great horses were Isonomy, Isinglass, and Galopin (whose powers, like those of St. Simon and Ormonde, were never fully exposed to the public), and in more recent years Bayardo and Hurry On (who was never beaten). The prodigy of an earlier age was Eclipse, Other great horses whose names come to mind readily enough were Persim-