SPORTING.

Poverty Bay Standard, Volume X, Issue 1060, 13 April 1882, Page 3

SPORTING.

Auckland Easter Meeting. (Br Telegraph.) Auckland, April 11. The annual Easter Meeting of the above Club was held on the Ellerslie Course yesterday. The weather was all that could be desired. The totalisatora were well patronised throughout the day. There were a large number of people on the course. The following are the respective events with the names of the winners :— Tradesmen's Plate, of 80 sovs. Mr J. Smith’s Maid of Honor, Ost 11b ... 1 Mr J. Ryan’s Luckpenny, 6st 71b 2 Mr W. Walters’ Larry, 7»t6lb 3 Eight horses came to the post for this event It was a splendid race, on entering the straight the Maid came away and won easily. Mares Produce Stakes, a sweep of 10 sovs., with 100 sovs. added. Mr W. Walters’ Fanny Fisher Filly ... ] Mr M. O’Brien’s Landseer ... 2 Mr W. Kelly’s Katipo ... 3 This was a pretty race, Mr Walter’s Filly being the favorite, and justified the confidence placed in her by winning easily. Handicap Hurdles of 60 sovs.; 2{ miles. Mr J. Leonard’s Ma tan, 10stl21b 1 Mr M. O’Brien’s Catch-’em, 9st 121 b ... 2 Mr Shakespear’s Harkaway, 10stl2lb ... 3 Seven horses faced the starter, Matau and Oatch-’em being the favorites. After a little delay at the post they got away to a good start. After going li miles Matau went to the front and won a good race by a length. Easter Handicap of 150 sovs.; 2 miles. Mr Allan McLean’s Louie, 7«t.01b 1 This was a very fast race from the start, Mr J. Lennard’s Dewdrop, 6st 101 b, and Mr J. Munn’s Suukar, 7st sib, running a dead heat for 2nd place. Selling Race of 50 sovs. Mr J. Leonard’s Ratcatcher, (£5O) ... 1 Mr W. Adam’s Lara, (£5O) 2 Mr F. Harding’s Rocket, (£5O) 3 Five horses started for this race, Ratcatcher winning by a length after a good race with Lara. Publicans’ Purse of 60 sovs. Mr J. Smith’s Maid of Honor 1 Air Allan McLean’s Virginia Water ... 2 r Mr J. Ellis’ Amazon ... 3 Five horses saddled up for tkis race, when Mr Smith’s liandsome mare succeeded in placing another win to her owners eredit. Second Day—Tuesday. To-day’s races were hardly so well attended as yesterday, it being very showeiy. The racing was equally as good, if not better, than the first day. Tluit game little horse Matau came to grief in the Steeplechase, breaking his leg, he was at once destroyed. The following are the events ;— Flying Stakes of 50 sovs. Mr i. Smith’s Maid of Honor 1 Mr Allan McLean’s Virginia Water ... 2 Mr P. Martin’s Mischief ... 3 This was a splendid race, the pace being ▼cry wanu. Steeplechase of 100 sovs.; 3J miles. Mr J. Gallagher’s Te Whetu, list. ... 1 Mr J. Gallagher’s Rukuu, lust. ... 2 Mr M. O’Brien’s Catch-'em, Ittet. ... 3 Eight horses came to the post, Matau meeting with an accident as stated above, C atch-’em was most fancied on totalizator, but could get no nearer than third. Autumn Handicap of 150 sovs. Mr S. T. Horsfall’s King Quail ... 1 Air J. Munn’s Soukar ... 2 Air P. Martin’s Mavis ... 3 Won by a length, 9 started. The win was a popular one. Ellerslie Handicap of 100 sovs. ATr W. Walter’s Slander Filly ... 1 Air J. Ellis’s Amazon ... 2 Air W. Walter’s Fanny Fisher Filly ... 3 Won by a length after a good struggle with Amazon. The Shorts (Handicap) of 80 sovs. Air W. Bobbet’s Paramena ... 1 Air S. T. Horsfall’s King Quail ... 2 Air J. Lennard’s Ratcatcher ... 3 Thirteen horses started. A complete boil over. Consolation Handicap of 25 sovs. Mr R. Wheeler’s My Dream ... 1 Air J. Ryan’s Lurkpenny ... 2 Mr J. Lennard’s Kennilworth ... 3

Owing to rain and inclement weather the Volunteer Church Parade at Christchurch last Sunday did not take place as arranged. The men occupied the morning at drill at the Shed instead. A large number of excursionists left Wellington.on Friday afternoon by steamer, to attend the opening of the Christchurch Exhibition. The Premier was unable to attend, owing to ill-health. In reply to a deputation, the Bishop of Waiapu has consented to send a strong representation to the Manager of the Union Steam Ship Company in reference to making Napier a port of call on Sundays. Mary Jane O’Sullivan has been committed for trial at Patea, by Coroner’s Warrant to the Supreme Court, New Plymouth, for the wilful murder of her illegitimate infant. The jury found she had caused its death by strangulation. The French troops succeeded in engaging insurgent Arabs on the 6th, and a desperate battle ensued, which resulted in the utter annihilation of Arab forces. Later despatches state that after their defeat the Arabs fled for refuge across the border into Tripoli. The Athletic Sports Aleeting at Christchurch during the Exhibition has been decided to take place on Alay 6. There will be fifteen events, with a prize list of £130; the highest first prize being fixed at £lO. A grand attendance is fully anticipated. We are pleased to see from Dr. Burton’s advertisement in another column that he has recovered his health sufficiently to enable him to resume his professional avocations. Dr. Burton notifies that he may be consulted as usual, at the residence of Mrs. Henry Adair, Bright-street.

Owiug to the Napier Hospital being full, a portion of the Governor Brown Barracks lias been converted into a fever ward. The late Earl of Beaconsfield had no taste for hunting. His successor at Hughenden, however, Sir Samual Wilson, has already associated himself with sport. A meet at Hughenden House is surely a novelty, and this was to the full enjoyed last week by the 0.8. H. So was the sumptuous repast which Sir Samual provided on the occasion. The sport that followed was not equally unimpeachable ; but in the future foxes will certainly not be proscribed at Hughenden Manor. The following further intelligence regarding the recent murder of Lieut. C. M. Luckraft, of H.AI.S. Cormorant, is to hand. At the time of the occurrence the Cormorant was visiting Espiritu Santo Island, one of the New Hebrides, for the purpose of punishing the Natives concerned in the massacre of a boat’s crew of the labor schooner Isabel, with whom was t he late MrL. H. Mair, Government Agent, in November last. Lieut. Luckraft had landed with a party of seamen, and successfully arrested one of the islanders, who had taken part in the outrage, but while he was being taken under guard to the boat, the Native struck one of the seaman, who retaliated and killed him. A fight ensued with the islanders, in which Lieut. Luckraft lost his life. Auckland City Council is being threatened with another deluge of compensation claims arising from various causes. The most of the whole number is that of Captain Philip Jones, who demands £lOOO damages for the permanent injuries he sustained through being knocked down and run over by a hose reel car on the occasion of a recent fire at Ponsonby, the accident being attributed to the negligence of the Superintendent of the Fire Brigade. His lawyers state that if a proposition is not made within fourteen days legal proceedings will be instituted. Then Mr Slater makes, a claim of £5l 5s for losses which he avers he has sustained through what he terms Councillor Offer’s meddlesomeness and interference with his business. There are also some smaller claims founded upon alleged damages done by excavations in Alexandra street. During the hearing of a case in the R.AI. Court, Christchurch, Dr. Lovegrove awakened the Bench, the officials, the reporters, and everybody else, to quite a breathless ini erest, as the Apostle did the inhabitants of Mehta when the viper fastened on his hand. The question of whether a certain substance was strychnine or salts being doubtful, the learned doctor proceeded to make investigation, not with crucible or mysterious process, but by a simple apparatus carried in his mouth. In short, the doctor actually took a small quantity on the tip of his tongue. Bench, Bar, and public looked on in breathless expectation of seeing the doctor “shulleoff” there and then, and the Bench regarded him with awe when he smacked his lips and pronounced it very good strychnine indeed. What a thing it is to be a man of science ! The Melbourne correspondent of the Otago Witness says : —‘ The statement seems hardly credible, but it is made by persons not usually given to exaggeration, that, the public lost £250,000 over the lat e Alelbourne Cup meeting. There can be no doubt that they were relieved of large sums, for the leading bookmakers frankly admit that they I count their gains by thousands, in several I instances by tens of thousands. This gigantic I national gambling has been felt, in business circles, and hence the cry that the Legislature | should interfere to moderate—it can scarcely I hope to suppress —the betting mania. This has been attempted in two forms, one I measure aiming at the suppression of racing ( sweeps, the lasr transactions of Messis Miller i and Co., as well as the former ones on the course, and the other by the introduction.] or rather recognition, of the totalizator. i | regret to say that the latter scheme has been negatived, and the former is ?o Draconic it would defeat itself. There is no doubt that the gambling spirit is spreading with fearful rapidity amongst our youth. When young men in church will wager us to which of the collectors will make the round of the p<»ws most quickly it is pretty evident that tiiey are strongly imbued with flu? prevailing spirit. It would be wise to try and check Liu evil before it outgrows control. For continuation of news see 1/h pane.