WELLINGTON NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 4028, 26 May 1931, Page 54

WELLINGTON NOTES.

(From Our Own Correspondent.) May 22. This year nominations for the Wellington classics do not close until June 12. This is better than the first Tuesday, the date on which the Australian events close. The Wellesley, Wellington, and Challenge Stakes have each been reduced to 750sovs (250sovs each), and the St. Leger from 750sovs to 550sovs. This reduction is not so bad as other places in New Zealand. Black Duke has done well on the present North Island trip. He won at Marton, ran fourth on his only appearance at Egmont, and won on his only appearance at Waganui. He was rehadicappcd for the Cornwell Handicap at Ellerslie, and is now top weight with 9.3. Merry Damon beat Black Duke at Egmont, and may beat him at Ellerslie if he goes there instead of Otaki, where he is top weight with 61b more than he is rehandicapped at at Auckland; It was broadcast from Hawke's Bay that the Jockey Club made a profit of £BOO over the one-day meeting held at Trentham. Your correspondent understands that the profit ran into four figures. Mr Griffiths, secretary of the Wellington Racing Club, and the office staff who ran the riieeting, got a hearty vote of thanks. There does not appear to be the same live and let live attitude among the clubs in- the South Island as there is in the north. Your correspondent cannot understand Ashburton objecting to Westland holding a meeting a week after its gathering, or Dunedin objecting to Westland racing at Greymouth on June 3 and 6. It was reported in a local paper' of Monday that Mr Lisle Aiderton, an Auckland barrister and solicitor, who is a member of the judicial committee of the Takapuna Jockey Club had been appointed a deputy stipendiary steward by the Racing Conference. This was officially contradicted the following day. Before he was appointed starter to the Auckland Racing Club, Mr R. H. Skipworth acted as deputy at the summer and autumn meetings at Ellerslie.. I 1 or some time there has been an outcry for better control at meetings in the Auckland district, and it would not have occasioned any surprise had an appointment been made. Historic won the last Masterton Cup with 9.7. and he appears nicelv placed in the forthcoming event with 9.11. He is well suited by the long straight at OpakL The two-year-old Richborough (Chief Ruler—Rosellate), the full brother to Tenterden, who cost 1300gns as a yearling, met with an accident recently at Tauherenikau, and had to be destroyed. He won in his last two starts at Wairarapa and Wellington. He won £327 10s in stakes, and, proved a bad bargain for Mrs C. E. Elgar. The work of revising the Rules of Racing is well in hand, and will be readv to place before delegates at the annual conference in July. The work was carried out by Mr Joe Heenan, a member of the Government staff and turf writer for the Free Lance. The successes of Richfield at Wanganui were his first since the Australian trip. He is top weight with Paitonu in the big race, and Orapai in the sprint race extra meeting at Opunake on the _ There will be plenty of racing at Ellerslie this winter. It is reported that the Taumarunui two-day meeting will be held there the first week in July, and that Hawke’s Bay may hold its winter meeting there later in the same month. The Wellington-owned Conjurer II won the Century Hurdles at Wanganui on his only appearance there. He was not engaged in the Great Northern, He ran second in the Hawke’s Bay Hurdles last winter on his only previous appearance in a jumping race here. He was afterwards taken to Melbourne and won a hurdle race at Sandown Park in September. He may make another trip to Melbourne after racing at the Waikato meeting next month. Conjurer is a full brother to the successful Australian perform Poitrel. Aurora Borealis is only a pony, and the big burdens she was asked to carry resulted in her breakdown in the Wanganui Steeplechase. She had 11.13 in the Egmont Steeplechase, and ran third, and was fourth in the Adamson Steeplechase with 12st. In the event in which she finished her racing career she again carried 12st. Birkbeck and Zipper were not taken seriously when handicapped for the big jumping events at Ellerslie, where both got in with the lightest weight allowed by

the rules. Since then Birkbeck has won the Egmont and Wanganui Steeplechases, beating Oineo and Nukumai, who finished in front of Birkbeck on the second day at Egmont. Birkbeck has been rehandicapped to 9.7. Zipper, who won three events at Egmont and Wanganui, has been raised a stone. _ The three hurdle races at Wanganui were won by horses making their only appearance at . the meeting. Mountain Heath was favourite in the race he won. He is a promising sort, and is engaged at Te Aroha and Ellerslie. He has 9.7 in the Great Northern Hurdles, and does not appear to be penalised. In the Penrose Hurdles, declared since Wanganui, he has 11.7. For those visitors to Wanganui meetings who do not want to get rich quickly per medium of the totalisator, the musical programmes by the Garrison and Queen Alexandra’s Own Bands is a great attraction. The club is to be congratulated on retaining the high class musical programme supplied by the two bands named, and not following the example set by other clubs in reducing expenses by cutting out the bands and substituting the Woeful loud-speaker noise. _ It was reported that Mr and Mrs T. 11. Lowry had left on a visit to the Old Country. The voyage has been cancelled, which means that the Hawke's Bay sportsman will not see the New Zealand cricketers in action in the Old Country. Sir Lowry has sold Great Charter to Mr T. White, who owned High Court before he went to Wingatui, since when he has been a great disappointment. High Heather, winner of the Grandstand Steeplechase on the opening day at Wingatui, was well sold by Mr H. R. Peacock, of Waipukurau, to Mr F. S. Easton, of Foxton. In his new owner’s colours he carried 9.8 in the Wanganui Steeplechase, but failed to finish in the money. Mr Easton once owned a good ’chaser in Master Strowan, but High Heather is not in the same class. It is reported that after Royal Bengal (Chief Ruler—Tigeroy) ran second in the Trial Hack Handicap on the concluding day at Wanganui, his Hawke’s Bay owners gave him away to Mr A. Lite, owner of Omeo. The owners named got 1500gns for another of the same breed (Watch Officer), who has so far not returned any of the purchase money for his Victorian owner. While Toxeuma is having a well-earned spell, two of his stablemates, Pewa and Pakitere, both three-year-olds by Arausio, are earning the winter oats for the stable. Both scored on the concluding day at Wanganui. The Nelson Cup winner, The Dove, will be racing at Masterton. It was intended to race her and her stablemate, Earthquake, at Otaki, but the nominations were missed. They will be able to race at Greymouth on June 3 and 6, now that Dunedin has withdrawn its objection to the Westland Club racing at that time. It looks as if the Maeterton Racing Club made a mistake in putting on a hurdle race. Only five of the seventeen horses, accepted. The topweight, Red Fuchsia, owned by the president of the club, was probably put in for the good of the cause. Another acceptor. Staghunter, who has yet to make his appearance in a jumping race, is also in the Flying Handicap. Fordell trainer F. Tilley recently returned to Wellington after a lengthy holiday spent in the Old Country. He will resume training at Fordell, and will have the horses owned by Mr W. M'A. Duncan and Russell Grace under his charge. L. G. Morris.. who has trained at Fordell during Tilley’s absence, has leased boxes from the Marton Jockey Club, and will train the members of Mr T. A. Duncan’s team there. Messrs Aitken and Wood are going to try their luck at Randwick in the spring with Autopay and Maypay. Autopay’s mission will be the Epsom Handicap. Messrs Murphy Bros, will also engage some of their team at the A.J.C. spring meeting. The horses to be entered will include Concentrate and Oratorian. Trentham trainer H. B. Lorrigan has received an addition to his team in tbe yearling gelding by Tea Tray—Bonny Dawn, bred by his owner, Mr R. J. Murphy. The local owner has also placed with C. Emerson, the Riccarton trainer, a yearling gelding by Diaequenod—Ora- ■ tress. The imported horse, recently shipped to Sydney, only sired two winners. in New Zealand. However, the gelding comes from a great running family on the dam’s side, and that may make up for his sire.