SPORTING.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume L, Issue 61, 30 October 1907, Page 3

SPORTING.

RACING IN AUSTRALIA. IXiEMINUTUN NOTES. Heinington, October 29. Master Foote, lift, and lion Grafton ran a mile and a-half in 2min 52sec; Mazarain ten furlongs in 2min 17sec; Mountain King a mile in 2min 45'/;,sec; True Scot a mile in Imin u2sec; Barrenjoey six furlongs in lmin 23sec; Tart-,in and Jlooltnn ten furlongs in 2min la'/usce; Saraband a mile in lmin 4!)'/2 sec; Tangaroa a mile and a-lialf in 2inin olsee; Melodrama and Comely ten furlongs in 2min l'Jseu; Peru Sivori ten furlongs in 2min and Lady Diffidence a mile and a-half in 2min 41sec. MELBOURNE CUP ACCEPTANCES. Per Press Association. Received Oct. 20, <>.33 p.m. ' Melbourne, October 20. The acceptances for the Melbourne Cup are—Poseidon, Tartan, Melodrama, Proceedor, Mooltan, Ellis, Tulkeroo, Apologue, I)yed Garments, Mazarin, Tanganla, Comely, Mira, Spinawav, Peru, Thackeray, Socialist, Knox, Beitdigo, Welcome Trist. Mountain King, .lack Smith, Lady Hsme, .Master Foote, Lady Diilidence, Moana. LATEST BETTING. Received Oct. 2!>, midnight. Melbounie. October 20. The betting on the Melbourne Cup is 3 to 2 against Apologue, 7 to 1 Tartan, Mountain King, and Poseidon, 0 to 1 Mooltan, 11 to 1 Welcome Trist, 10 co i Dyed Garments, 20 to 1 Spinawny ml Bendigo, 25 to 1 Tulkeroo, 33 to 1 Mira and Lady Diffidence.

Per Press Association. L'hnslciiurdi, La»t Night. Lupulite was scratched l'or the stewards' Handicap at 2.35 p.m. to-day. THE APOLOGUE INCIDENT. (By "Moturoa"). At present, both in Australia aud in the Dominion, the burning question oil the hour is, ' Could Apologue have, won the Cauliield Cup'i" The ex-New Zealander was trained by "Ike" Earnsliaw, and had as a stalemate the mignty Poseidon, and Australian sporting writers are hurling cold, hard "doubts" at the genuineness of Apologue's performance at Cauliield. It is allaged that the Poseidon-Apologue "double" aas been backed to win a fortune in the two Cups, and the public talked so loulIy that even "Bob" Clealand, Apologue's owner, made some slight shovy of interest, and asked the stewards of the V.A.T.C. to inquire into the Cup running. Of course this half-hearted move soon fell llat, and we have now only to wait for Apologue's victory in the Melbourne Cup. Hi.s chance looks second to none, but "there's many a slip," in the big Cup, and "morals" have often been beaten. The running of "stablemates" in New Zealand has, times oui of number, caused punters to "welp goldcu coin,' and it is up to all straightgoing "stables" to name their "triers," and the general public, who, by the way, keep the game going, can steer clear of "stoomers." The Bulletin thus caustically comments on tne Apologue incident:—ln talking last week of Poseidon's chance for the Cauliield Cup, and admitting it to be a good one the Bulletin remarked that "Apologue should beat Mm at the weights." The remark may now be repeated in the past tense. Apologue should have beaten him at the weights, and could have done it, and would have done it had jockey Coffey—who, in this case, was cold Coll'ey indeed —ridden the animal in question so as to get the most out of him at the weight. Tne Cauliield Cup was, in fact, such a good thing for Poseidon's stable companion that, notwithstanding the public fancy for last year's winner, Apologue started at 7 to 2, a point behind Poseidon, On paper the horso was as near a certainty as anything could be in a big Cup event, provided that he was not to be sacrificed to Poseidon in the running. The result proved two things. Firstly, that Apologue was as good a thing as he looked "on paper"; and, secondly, that he was ridden in a way which lost the race for him. The public has naught to say against the gallant victory of Poseidon. In winning for tlie second year in succession, the speedy, stout, plucky :-i intelligent son of l'ositano performed a great feat, and was cheered accordingly. But a't the back of the cheers of the* Caul multitude there were the wrathful exclamations of "hundreds of observers, who declared that Apologue could have won very easily—"with Poseidon out of the way." 1 Which, considering that Apologue finished only a little in front of Welcome Trist, was equivalent to saying that the Maorilander was not ridden to beat Poseidon. At the back of the course, nearly a mile from home, Apologue had dropped into the position of attendant on the heavily-weighted and heavilybacked favorite, seven or eight horses being well ahead of them. So they ran, until Poseidon was bustled up w ' a view to getting near the leaders at the turn for home. But Apologue still lagged somewhat. As he field of horses turned into the straight it was apparently 50 to 1 on Poseidon beating Apologue, anyway, for the latter lay lengths behind the favorite.' At the distance post Poseidon, coming with the expected rattle, had caught the leader, and then came Apologue, with even more of n rattle, in hopeless pursuit. It was the judge's business to record the distance that Poseidon managed to win by. But it was nobody's business to state the number of lengths that Apologue gained on Poseidon Tand all the others) after rounding the final bend. On the Cauliield Cup running, there is only one horse "in" the Melbourne Cup—apart from the fact that Poseidon has incurred a penalty of 141b. If a ; goes well with him up to the time of the race and during the performance, Apologue will win. And the connections . of Earnshaw's stable will win the money i they put on the "Melbourne Cup horse" I —straight out, and in "doubles" with I Poseidon. Nothing but bad luck can ' prevent the achievement of a remarkable coup by means of two brilliant horses.

THE FAILURE OF NOCTUIKORM. < In referring to the failure of the Now Zealiind-bred horse Noctuiforni in England the Winning Post says:—"Noctuiform came here with a fanfare of trumpets, and the echo answers 'blast.' True, he won many races down under, but the merit of these performances lies in the excellence of those he beat. Bad horses have won tho Derby. Acting on what we believed to be good information, we wont for him for tho Newbury Cup, but on seeing him for the first time prior to the running of that race wo ' iit once Inst hope of landing our liri. What kind of a horse he looked in New Zealand we do not pretend to know, but if ever we saw a flat-ca&cher Noctuiform is the acme. A beautifully colored chestnut, with a good forearm, moulded shoulders, anil a neck supporting an ordinary head of the chestnut type, he is pretty well right in front; but his Kick ribs and quarters, not to add Inek of second thighs, havo no pretensions to match his otherwise passable proportions. In front he flatters, behind and to follow he is a plater. His late owner states that Noctuifonn has lost stones since he left New Zealand, while Maher savs he has turned rogue, hence to cure this it is highly probible he may yet lope even more. Whether Noctuiform was put into training 100 early after his arrival in this countrv we are ! in no position to assume; but to say [ that he looked a good all-round horse ' at Newburv is ridiculous. If he were the horse Air Stead emphatically asserts he was when he sold him for a large sum, then the only reasonable deduction is that his training has lieen rushed, and he was not given that time to mature and build up which is necessary to a horse after the long confinement of a

sea voyage from the opposite ends of tile world. If this ii thn (UK'. Api r from the loss of form, it would also account for a disinclination to rare and Ihe development of a temper, more especially that of the sour order. Were Noctuiform our property we should take him out of training forthwith, use him as a hack, and sun him whenever the

masquerading summer gave opportunity. A lad could ride him to the post for letters, or fh'e pageboy could trot hmi to the village inn for the cook's bottle of sjnul--;!Mytniiig except the downs. Should lik (pi;ir!ers not fill ouf und'T this treatment, and if he 9id not show something behind the stwldle to work on in place of his present slackness, then we should be forced to doubt if ii« weighed so many stones more when winning his races in the Antipodes, or that be ever beat anything of true merit." . ;