SPORTING.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 183, 7 September 1909, Page 3

SPORTING.

iWOOTTON'S GREAT RECORD. By Cable.—Press Association.—CopyriglU London, September 5. * rank Wootton, the Australian jwkey, rode three winners at Lewes races, making 102 will:* for ine season. AVOXDALE WEIGHTS. By Telegraph.—Press Association. " Auckland bcpu'i.i,;er (i. The weights for the "bpeuing day of the Avondalc races are as iolluw: Maiden.—Sublime 8.!), Seldom 8.0, Winhaston 7.13, Royal Scotland, Prince Leo Monsieur, Soult Fleet 7.10, Arrow 7.9, Arawa, Admiral Soult, Reka 7.8, Dainty' 1' rank-in J.o, Spectre 7.5, Censure, Laay Phoebe, Key 7.4, Miss Stella and Caruso 7.3, Sabre, Lloyds 7.2, Fuss, Romantic, Lecflre, Lady Doone, Flying Soult 7.0. First Hurdles.—Swagmau 10.12, Irish 10.10, Commander 10.4, Xewtown 9.10, Mozart 0.8, Huia Teiahui 9.0, Master Paul 9.2, Luminator, Good Faith 0.0. Steeplechase.—Mozart 11.2, Tanglefoot 10.2, Bachelor 10.5, Wairaka 10.4, Pierre 10.2, Arty 9.12, Good Faith 9.10, Master Paul 9.8, Red Macgrcgor, Westerly 9.7. Henderson Handicap.—Xaumai ' 10.9, Kareroa 8.13, Lady French 8.0, Tarinn 8.1, llikuia 7.13, Aimwell 7.11, Mahinga 7.10, All's Well 7.0, Mighty Atom 7.5, Orange Blue, Roselike, Hydraulic, Maika 7.2, Sealeaf, Positive 0.12, Xortrv 0.10.

Plunket Handicap.—Waimunga 9.7, Celtic 8.13, Azoll' 5.12, Aristocrat, Notearini, Coroinandel S'.IO, Wailiuku 8.8, Octoroon, Landlock, John 8.5, Winhasotn 8.4, All's Well 8.2, Tetrazzini 8.0. Bookmakers are notified by the secretary of the North Taranaki Hunt that applications for bookmakers' licenses for the club's annual race meeting on Thursday next will be received up till 11 a.m. j on the day of the races.

■Horse-racing has its tragedies. It also has its light side, and many a meeting has been enlivened with some humorous incident in which owner, trainer, jockey, bookmaker, or gambler has figured. "What do you feed your horses on, my boy, to make theniWin so often?" little johnny Reiff was once asked hy a (facetious racegoer. "Pineapples," was the quick reply, the point of the joke, of course, lying in the fact that if there is one thing more than another a horse dislikes it is a nineapple. DID HE EAT HIS HAT? At Newmarket one afternoon Tod Sloan %as engaged .to ride a horse ramed Sea Fog, "who had hitherto proved a perfect rotter," to quote from "Racing Reminiscences," a book lull of interesting Turf information and amusing stories, published by George Newnes, Limited. The form of Sea Fog wis shocking, and it was impossible to see that lie had any sort of chance in the race in question. "If Sloan ean win on that horse," remarked a stable-lad, as Sea Fog left the paddock, "blimey, I'll eat my bloomjn' 'at." Thanks to Sloan's superb riding, fjjea Fog won easily, but whether the stable-lad ate his hat has not yet "been disclosed. MARVELLOUS WOOTTOX.

A chapter in the book, which gives an interesting account of that marvellous boy jockey, Frank Wootton. at Homo, contains, amongst other-, the following story. It may he remembered that a short time a£o Wootton was suspended for five weeks. During the suspension he stayed with a well-known owner, riding every day in order to ''keep nis hand in."

"One day, on returning from exercise, a' local pack of harriers galloped right across the lawn and into a neighboring meadow, hot on the heels of their quarry. The excitement was too much for the youthful jockey, who at onoe started off. at full gallop in pursuit of the hounds; and, bqing unable to turn his hack in time, he actually had the misfortune to gallop over one of tbe hounds. Hi, there, youngster!' shouted the master. "What on earth do you mean 'by riding over my hounds?' ' 'Pon my word, I'm very sorry, sir, I am indeed,' replied the budding Archer, when at last he had managed to pull up his hnck: 'but I was unlucky, otherwise I should have eot the hare.'" PLUXfiEKS AXD PLtXfiTXf!.

Of men who hot in tens of thousands two names of famous magnates of the Turf, those of Lord George Bentin-k r-i'l Lord Glasgow. stand out perhaps more th-vn nnv others. Frequently thoy stood to win or lose £IOO,OOO on a single roee. hut nevertheless wore as cool as the proverbial cucumber. An amusing encounter once took place between these two. On the evening before the Derb.v cf 1843 Lord George looked in at Crockforl's and nsked i'f anvone would \iv Ir-n "threes" against Gaper, of who>:e chance he was very much enamored. "Yes. I'll lav you." replied Lord Glasgow. who happened to he present. "H'm!" slid Lord George, in rather a halting. hesitating man'ier; "but I waul to do it to money—l dont want a small bet." That remark was quite enough for Lord Glasgow, who quickly replied. "I'll lay you £OO.OOO to £30,000." For i once in his life Lord George seemed io j be taken a little aback, ,and he had to I confess tint he had not intended to "i{o I quite so far as that." ! One of Lord Glasgow's peculiarities j was to organise an occasional shoot for ! the -benefit of those particular horses in his stable which either could not, or would not, win races. He was also notorious for never naming his animnts, and the number of horses he ran as brother to this, or sister to that, and so on, must have caused considerable confusion to the publisher of the Studbook.

RACING SYSTEMS. On the fallacy of systems in bctting, there i 6 much that will general public in "Baring Reminiscences." Here is a personal experience of the author. "A few days after 'he Derby last year," he says, "I wa? introduced, at a certain well-known . restaurant in the Strand, to an enthusiastic ollower of racing, who gleefully declared that he had at last formulated a scheme by '.vliicli he would be able to live for the rest of his joyous existence without putting any more strain on the contents of his brain J box than is required 'by hacking horses. " 'The -whole thing is delightful'y simple,' be remarked, a beautiful smile overspreading" his countenance. 'All I have to do Is to go to the meetings aud ■back the favorite of the first race to win a certain slim—plus my expenses. If the favorite wins I look on for the rest of the afternoon, but if it happens to "go down" I back the favorite of the second race to win me a. certain sum plus my losses on the first race and my expenses. In fact, I go on backing favorites until one wins, when I hare netted all I came out to net, and my original capital is still intact.' "I ventured to explain that this notion, alluring though it sounded on paper, was not a new one. and that, as a matter of fact, it had been tried before -with entirely beneficial results !<• the ring. Nevertheless, the man tried it, and -was soon 'cleaned out."'

JUST A BIT OF PLAY. A man who knows more ahout welshcrs and their nays tlian any oilier Jockey Club ofliciai is r. Bob Moody, the famous .Tockey Club guardian of tile ring. " Racing now is like walking on a Turkey carpet compared with what it was in the early days when I served my apprenticeship," lie remarked a shoi t time ago. "When I first commenced business I never -went out to work without a six-chambered revolver in my hippocket and a life-preserver tied up my sleeve. 'The boys' •wanted to see what sort of stuff I was imade of—now they know, and don't try it again. In the old days, however, my wife used to get all sorts of threatening letters. No real offence intended, I'm sure—only just a bit of .play on the part of 'the boys.'" A KEMPTON STORY.

To an owner of racehorses there are few more expensive luxuries than a'rt unsound animal, and therefore the r> | cent disappointment of a certain youthful noble lord, who manfully gave 1500 guineas for a bargain which turned out to be woefully dejected in his "understandings," can readily be understood. "Let me see, you arc the rascal who sold me a horse with only three legs and a s\vinger," lie said one day, chancing to hump against the horse's late owner in the paddock at Kemptoo. "Certainly," replied tlie late owner, gleefully: "that is to say, if you are really the'idiot I sold him tp."