SPORTING.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 302, 14 May 1913, Page 7

SPORTING.

THE HAWERA MEETING. (By "Moturoa"). To-day all roads lead to liawera. Railways, high roads and low roads; roads ■ —like many Taranaki ones—which simply aren't roads at all. Hours , before the average tame kill-sport party has risen to see that the half-perished milkman is dealing out full measure the sporting world has been astir. Pegasus is calling, and trains wait for no man! "Better late than never" is a rotten maxim when the last train has steamed out. There is something exhilarating about a race-crowd—going out! Cheery faces, beaming with expectation; pockets bursting with cash, and everybody out to make "a pile." An anxious man in the corner is carefully nursing a right-from-the-stable tip. Percy (from the Bank) loudly brays of the watch-break-ing gallops of Katua, and Billjim solemnly offers to wager 'arf a dollar that Grattan will blanky well make no race of the "N T e\v Plymouth neddy. 'Twas ever so, Horatio. To get to the racing. The ball will be set rolling with the Tongahoe Hurdles, one mile and a-half. Sam Pan will probably be most in demand. Punters from this end of the province will be falling over each other to back Katua. in the Tawhiti Handicap. The New Plymouth horse is pretty (it at present, and will require to b<; to defeat Tneuru (if caught in a .galloping' humor) and Boronia. Field Force comes with a great reputation from Gisborne, and the son of Marshal Soult certainly beat an indifferent crowd at Masterton in hollow fashion. How he will fare with Kaniki, Silver Rose and Co. remains to lie seen. - Twenty-one very ordinary ";nilers" are carded for the Ladies' Purse, and the winner looks hard to pick. Kurnalpi, Hamurana and Silver Hope have all shown pace at times, but much depends on the gentlemen jocksters "performing." A fine field should go to the post for the Telegraph Handicap. If reserved for this race the Wanganui-trained. Silver Rose is sure to carry a lot of jnoney. The Dodger, Lord Lupin and others should make the race interesting. The principal event, the Manaia Handicap, has attracted a dozen horses, of which Lady Volga, Kina and Lady Mens- ; chikoff have done most racing lately. If., A. Olliver pilots the first-named the mare will find plenty of backers. \ The day's racing will be concluded with the Waihi Handicap, run over a mile. The acceptors do not include I many good horses, but Moirette, Kilrain i and White Crane may run well. Kilrain would only require to .be back to last season's form (when he won thrice, was second once, and only once unplaced) to keep them all busy with Ost lib. TURF TOPICS. (By "Moturoa"). Wanganui races on Thursday week. The erratic Prince Soult has "been added to the list. | Appin's withdrawal from the G.N. Steeple caused few heartburnings. _lt seems to be the fashion for The Native to be made favorite for every- > thing in the jumping line nowadays. C. Emmerson rode four winners at Ashburton and B. Deeley two. The leading figures now are: Emmerson 53, Deeley 47. The" disappointing Ilaydn Park was sold ("well sold," I hear somebody say) i for lOOgns after the Blenheim meeting. First acceptances have been paid for Bercola, Cornelian and Sam Pan in the G.N Hurdles, and for Paritutu, Bercola and Bismarck in the Steeple. ( When Webfoot dropped out of the G.N, Steeple many big punters were hard hit on the money bag. It was a strong order up north. Morevkofi, who won several races on the West Coast, is at present eating, the oats of idleness at liawera. One gets used to seeing horses "dving" in the straight, but old North Pole varied the order of things by dropping dead at the barrier at Ashburton. An exchange reports that Oxton has been put into commission again. Not in this world surely! The Birkenhead gelding was dead and buried some weeks ago. Darby Paul has a liking for the Wanganui course and has run his best races there. Last year lie. won the Century Hurdles very easily with !)..j up, and his party fancy his chance again next week with lOst. A trio, of New Zealanders, Marrie Zealand Ost, Electrakoff Bst 121b and Manakau Bst Sibs were weighted for the Newcastle flflOO cup to be run on the 17th inst. The distance is a mile and three furlongs, and at the weights Electrakoff reads best. Sir Lethe, Seatondale and Merrie Tad are now under J. M. Cameron's care at Caulfield. On the same track .T. Hennah has Tiunut and Julian. Captain Jingle joins the latter pair very shortly. Returned New Zealamjers say that very moderate jumpers are paying their way easily on the other side. First Glance, who carried 0.5 (and the confidence of the public) to victory in the Trial Handicap at Ashburton, is said to be a cut above the ordinary. She is a three-year-old lilly by Kosmos Bey, and was bred in the land noted for shamrocks, "pathriots" and praties—good ould Ireland! It would be hard to find anything wrong with Antarctic to-day. Yesterday morning he registered a fast wallop over two rounds at Wanganui, living Allure and Serenity as companions o\ei the last mile. The 'chaser was in gieat heart, and led the pair home. Writing of Great Northern prospects, a contemporary remarked last week:— "Many «ood judges at Ellerslie are likely to pin their faith in Webfoot." It is hardly safe to pin even one's faith "in" a racehorse. The latter might get the needle! One of the strongest stables in the Hawkf's Bay this' winter will be H. Mickey's. This well-known trainer of jumpers lias The Rover, Chief Marshal, YUiakaweira, Sunray and Stourton in good nick, and the quintette should gather in some of the plums durinw the next few months. °

'lt's a wise child that knows its own father," according to the saying, and this is also applicable to horses, as instanced in the case of The Curate at Newbury, (England), who appeared on the card as a colt by Mackintosh, Searpia, Dalgcty, or All' Black—out of Demure.

Midnight Sim's unexpected rise 011 the racing horizon came as a surprise yesterday. Since going over to 'Stralia, the Xew Zealand Cup winner lias been showing imlili'erent form. In fact, only last week he ran last amongst moderate performers in Victoria. Most people imagined that his sun had set, but his good win in the Adelaide Cup (one mile and five furlongs), from ivventvtwo others, dispels the idea. Mr. E. J. Watt tried hard to sell the rougish soil of Multiform and La-'Notte, but could not get his price. As it turned out,' the New Zealand sportsman was lucky to retain the horse." ;

Xylaiid is jumping- nicely for a begin ner, and will be seen out at Otaki.

Delegate is the quiet tip for the Great Northern Steeple. My informant states - that the horse jumps the big fences at Ellerslie faultlessly, and lw>

developed good Btaying power also. Delegate lias only 10. G. If anyone once saw The Chief and The Chef he would never confuse the horses, but both are entered at the Auckland Winter Meeting, and the similarity of the names may cause trouble. The Chief is a very ordinary little ehesnut gelding by Jet d' Eau —Opawa mare, and was well known as a jumper in the Ilawkc's Bay and Raugitikei districts before being sent North. . The Chef, a fine bay gelding by San Remo— Lady Cuisine, is an altogether different sort, and is a horse worth watching for forthcoming jumping events. He won at Avondale recently, and last season his eleven starts produced 4 firsts, 1 second, and 3 thirds. He was only twice outside a place. Miss Explosion has joined the "musical" troupe, and her prospect's do not da ale one in the Great Northern Steeple. The Native, states "Flaneur," is now trained by Mr. J. Prosser, at Porirua.