SPORTING NOTES,

Poverty Bay Standard, Volume IX, Issue 992, 29 October 1881, Page 2

SPORTING NOTES,

(From Exchanges.) Bathurst, Waxy, Wandering Jew, and Sir Modred, have been steadily supported for the Melbourne Cup. Dr. L. L. Smith has evidently had enough of racing, for he advertises his horses and training grounds for sale. Mr. Franck’s action against the Canterbury J.C. and others for infringing his totalisator patent is fixed for the 24th of October. Tbe anuual meeting of the members of the Auckland Tattersail’s Club will be held at the Occidental Hotel this month. The V.R.C. meeting opens to-day, when the Derby and Maribyrnong Plate will be run. The Cup is to be run on Tuesday next. Wheatear’s weight for the Melbourne Cup is 7st. 11b. His Derby win rates him at 6st. 121b5., and his victory in the Members’ Handicap adds another 31bs. penalty. We hear that Ariel is having a splendid season in the Waikato district. Mr. Buckland will not have cause to regret his purchase of this grand old horse. A Chinaman named Ah Foo is training racehorses at New Plymouth. What next ?—why perhaps the defeat of the All England Eleven by a Chinese team —certainly small pox, or horse pox among the New Zealand racers.

An American paper says : —As an instance of how dearly John Bull loves a winner, it may be stated- that after Iroquois won the Bt. Leger, hearty cheers were given for Mr. Lorillard, Archer, snd Pincus, finishing with perhaps a still louder cheer for Yankee Land. “ Augur ” writing of Mr. Town’s stud farm at Richmond says : —“ The grand old New Zealand mare Peeress, who is at present on a visit to Maribyrnong, was represented by a son of Yattendon, and being a well grown youngster I don’t see anything to prevent him becoming a racehorse. George Low, owner of a colt named Barcaldine, telegraphed to Sir John Astley, asking the latter if he could manage to send him £lOOO not to start for the Northumberland Plate, or get for him £12,000 to £lOOO to win, adding “reply to our mutual advantage.” The Jockey Club have warned Low off all courses under their control. The betting at the start for the St Leger was: —2 to 1 on Iroquois, 12 to 1 agst Geologist, 50 to 1 agst Lucy •Glitters, 5 to 1 agst Ishmael, 12 to 1 agst Scobel, and 16 to 1 Voluptuary, who was backed with enormous sums for a place. It being reported some days before the race that Iroquois was suffering from influenza the ring punched him a good deal, and consequently got “copped.” The colt won easily by a length. - We notice that the Hon. James White’s colt Bathurst has jumped up

to first favourite for the Cup. Bathurst is now four years old, and is by Maribyrnong out of Alpaca. " He did not perform as a three year old, but at the late A.J.C. meeting he won a couple of the minor races. It will, therefore, be seen that he has never done anything much in public to warrant his being placed at the top of the tree. Bathurst has 7st, lllbs. allotted to him in the Cup.

The Yankees have once more done the trick. Mr. Keene’s colt Foxhall .has carried off the Czarewitch Stakes —the most important handicap of the year on the English Turf. Foxhall also won the Grand Prix de Paris for Mr. Keene recently, and has also ran very forward in other events. The colt would therefore, I think, not carry much less than 7st. in the race. The Americans have certainly done exceedingly well bn the English Turf this season, for, besides other races, they have won both the Derby and St. Leger with Iroquois, and now Foxhall has succeeded m getting home first in the rich Czarewitch Stakes. These victories of American-bred horses should have the effect of setting some of our Australasian sportsmen thinking whether they cannot breed an animal in the colonies which can, as the Yankees say of Iroquois, “ lick all creation."