SPORTING.

Taranaki Daily News, 16 March 1917, Page 8

SPORTING.

JIASTERTOX MEETING. OPENING DAY. ®y Telegraph.—Press Association. Masterton. Last Night. The Masterton Racing Club's meeting opened to-day in delightful weather ami with a large attendance. The tote investments were £10,357, compared with £10.178 on the first day of last year. Results: — ' MAIDEN.—I Birkenvale (Clarke) 1, 3 C'oolpan 2, !> Association 3. Also started: 10 Sundown, 4 Black Hill, fi Johnny Walker, 7 Robur, ft Idyllic, 2 Galore, S Crescent, 12 Rocksalt, 11 Princess Marie, 13 Pupil. Won by a length and a half Time, lmin. 1 3-ssec. MARCH HANDICAP.—I Waimatoa (W. . ~l'ice) !. . Lady General 2. 4 Lady Black 3. Also started: 2 Nvstad, a Mcnelaus, 5 Potentiality, fi Otter. Won by a bare head. Time, lmin. 14 l-osee. HACK HANDICAP.—2 Perfldv (Watson) 1, 3 Captain Glossop 2, 11 Kukri 3. Also started: 4 Cynic, 5 Lord Laddo, 9 Revalenta, 7 Try Again,, 1 Poliehe, fi Consultation, S Teopai, 12 Ally, 10 Sardinia. Won by a short neck. Time, lmin. 41see. , ; ? T^pP MASTERTON' CUP.—4 Mis.-, De Val (W. Price) 7 Pacific Slope 2, 1 Devotion 3. Also started: 3 Tango, 2 Ararat, fi Merrie Gain, 5 Multicipal. Miss De Val got the best of the start, and led practically the whole way, winning by about half a length. Time, lmin. Bisee.

RUAMAHUXGA HACK HANDICAP. —1 Comment (H. Young) 1, 2 Sabana 2, 5 Battle Song 3. Also started: 3 Bairnsdale, 7 Ngarua, 4 Kiltess, 0 Perrier, S Lady Nolan. Comment and Sabana raced together the whole way, the former winning by half a length. Time, lmin. 14 3-ssec.

LADIES' PURSE.—I Rylstone (\V. Beatson) 1, 2 Lord Nelson 2 V 4 Hasti* 3. Also started: 3 Ruatangata, 0 Last Hope, 8 Sir Thomas, 7 Takapau, 5 Le Chat. Rylstone was the warmest favorite of the day and led from start to finisk Time, lmin. 58see.

OPAIvI WELTER. —I Gang Awa' (C. Price) 1, 5 Goldstream 2, 8 Waimakaka 3. Also started: 12 Undecided. 11 Tavistock, (! Mistic, 10 Sir Solo. 2 Sir Agnes, 3 Paraoa, 4 Pearl Mario, 7 Altercation, 9 Roumania. Won easily by a length. Time, lmin. 42 l-ssec. DASH HANDICAP.—I Birkenetta (R. started: 0 Black Lake, 3 Gold Shot, a Silver Web, 0 Woodrow, 4 Merrie Poto. 7 Pawerawero, 10 Miss Tail, 11 Royal Battery, 8 Tutieorn, 12 Lady Boris. s Won •easily. Tims, lmin. l|see.

SECOND DAY'S ACCEPTANCES, Masterton, Last Night. GRANDSTAND HACK HANDICAP (7 furlongs).—Bairnsdale 0.1. Lord Laado Revalenta, Kukri 5.2, The Baronet 8.1,. Captain Clossop 7.10, Pohelie 7.0, Consultation 7.2, Te Opai 0.10, Sardinia fi.lo. TELEPHONE HANDICAP (five furIcings).—Waimatoa !).0, Nvstad 8.3, Cariysian 8.3, Hindaus 8.3, Bradamante 8,0, Lady General 7.7, Lady Black 7.7, Splentlidv.s 11.13. J1 Kill WEIGHT 'HANDICAP (one mile),—Rylstone 12.0, Lord Nelson 12,4, Ruatangatfl 1-1.10, Hastie 11.4, St. Rees 11.3, Last Hopo 11.0, Thrinster 11.0, Sir Thomas, Takapau, Le Chat, Touhy, Lady Bons 11.0. WAIPIPI HANDICAP (a mile and a distance). —Tango 7.13, Ararat 7.11, Morrie Gain 7,9, Tavistock 7.5, Perfidy 7.8, Devotion 7,7, Multieipal 7.2, 'Pearl Marie, Mistic 11.10, Botanist 0.9, Altercation (i.7. 1 RAILWAY HACK. HANDICAP (six turlongs).—Caslation 9.0, Sabar.a 5.9, Kitten 8.3, Comment, Ngarua 8.2, Pcrrier 8.1, Master Boris 7.7, Woodrow 7.6, Merrie Poto 7.0,' Sardinia 0.11. FINAL WELTER HANDICAP (seven furlongs),—Goldstream 9.12, Undecided 9.9, Downhain 9,2, Bradamante 8.13, Nystad 5.13, Mistic, Sir Solo 5.7, Sir Agnes S.4, ( Bairnsdale, Pearl Marie, Jt»unmkakft 8.0. Altercation 7.13, Otter 7.11, ELECTRIC HACK HANDICAP (five furlongs).—Foeman 8.13, Birkenetta 5.13, SplentlidUs 8.3, Black Lake 8.0, Gold Shot 7,11, Silver Webb 7.8, Humorist 7.7, Ualvie 7.4, Eobur 0.10, Tutieorn O.ID. - ■ TURF TOPICS. (By "Motnroa.'') Concluding day at Masterton Opunake races to-morrow. Don't forget! Ararat is due for a win at any moment. They are talking of Korke's Drift as a National horse. Revocation and Zetes are Hawera fancies for Opunake. Postillion, in Alec Hall's stable, is jumping in splendid style. Rinaldo, who has been sold to an Australian, goes to Sydney this week. "Bronk" Attwood, the Feilding trainer, drew & "prize" in this month's ballot. Toatere has been entered for both the Great Easter and Great Autumn Handicaps at Riecarton. Jockeys' premiership: O'Shea 52 wins, Olscn 49, Emerson 47, A. Reed 44, Deeley 38. , Those who pretend to know, assert that only the Metropolitan Clubs will be racing next season. "Horse-racing is not an essential industry," says Mr! M. J. Mack, of the Military Service Board. Will Mr. Mack kindly inform us how it is 1 hat King George is still racing horses? If New Zealanders cannot realise that there is a war on, surely those in the Old Country have "tumbled" to the fact! Much of the talk about racing in war time emanates from those who strenuously opposed racing at any time. It is the other fellow's pleasure—not theirs! They are satisfied with picture-shows, plays, concerts, picnics, etc. Of course they realise that we are engaged in a life-and-death struggle! It is painful to read of soldiers in France protesting against racing at the present time. The writer lias had hundreds of appeals from soldiers tor sporting papers and general sporting gossip, and the interest taken in New Zealand sporting events by those who are figlit-

ing at the front is every day evidenced. "Sweeps" on our principal races are as common in France as they were in Gallipoli, in Egypt, and elsewhere, and the amount of mild gambling (to say the very worst) over these far distant events redounds to the boys' credit. Sportsmen arc sportsmen all the world over. And then there is the other side of the question, the , financial one. Will those who demand instant cessation of rating yiakc good to the Governmentand to the patriotic and other societies the losses which the fulfilment of their pet aversion would cause? Are they prepared to recoup the Government for the loss of thousands of pounds of totalisator revenue and of percentage of gross takings, stakes winnings, etc.? Will they step up to the Patriotic Societies and say. "Here, we don't believe in racing, and to stop it we will hand you a sum equivalent to the net profits of various race meetings"? \vill they? Don't smile! It remains for the Manaia 'Witness to "rub the acid in" on the racing question The awful picture painted shows mad mobs," and ''young men and old wildly struggling round the tote," of "over-dressed girls and male shirkers," of "swin isli excitement," and of New Zealand "reeling drunk in a mad delirium of horse-racing." Surely the \i.iness has been seeing things! Just let the editor of the Witness, take a run out to Opunake to-morrow and see the crowd of soldiers, returned from Egypt, Gallipoli, France; or fresh young fellows up from Trentham or Featherston. Just see them enjoying themselves! Ask , any one of them if racing is a thing to be stopped. Their decision will do us.

IN A ,r J)RY" DISTRICT, (By "Motnroa"). An old friend, now living—beg pardon, writing—under the alias of "The Stripper," tells of Lis experiences recently in a "dry" district. Hear him: A few months ago I attended a race meeting in one of tlie "dry districts," th<; only wet, tiling being tlie weather. Being on holiday bent, I set off for the course in anticipation of an enjoyable day; so I feel constrained to tell von how I fared. I*l was not because I>'did not get on the winners, but it was the catering and the so-called booths that was my undoing. I had had a couple of wins, and being in high spirits hied myself off to luncheon. I do not remember having seen a luncheon on a course, not even in the old days when a. meeting used to be held close to Parihaka. However, I was hungry, and endeavoured to have my halfdollar's worth, but everything was badly cooked, and what a scramble it was! Beating a retreat from there, attention was again directed to the business of the day, and a little later the handsome black horse from the cow country gathered in the big so a few of us who hailed from the coun-' try where the milking machines chant their lays mornings and evenings, and where even the struggling "cockie" now hums along in his Ford car, foregathered, pud decided to (as is the custom in our own part of the country) to wet the victory, seeing that we were all in on the divvy. We therefore adjourned to the booth, which had evidently been a proper booth in pre-wowsev days; but now all was a hollow mockery, shelves iined with lemon syrups, ginger pop, and cordials, and concoctions that would make any medico or chemist snigger in anticipation of foes to come. .But the greatest travesty of all was a big barrel standing on the counter (Just n parody again being hran'dod with an X or some such thing to remind the lost community of bygone days), enough to make a self-respecting barrel of "Jimmy Paul's" or "Speight's" roll over in convulsions if set alongside of the said barrel, Well, we had three or four, and a,little after a great change came over me, and all the feir symptoms which our dyspeptic friends can so cheerfully recount, overwhelmed me, the fell hand of depression weighed me down, and I felt done. I stumbled or groped my ' way to the grandstand—a victim of the most acute melancholy, I was in tlio throes of an acute gastronomical attack, and all because of that abomirtable luncheon, and the subsequent consumption of the apology for alo that they serve up in dry districts. [ was finally rescued by an acquaintance who happened to linve a flask, and this with tlio help of a bottle or two of soda, .water, revived me sufficiently to enable me to take an intelligent interest '.n tlie two concluding events. But 1 made a solemn \ow—-Xo more luncheon or wowser beer in dry districts for me. In conclusion, I may say that business next day took me to the town of P—, where there ore some licensed houses, and I made haste to secure for myself a decent luncheon. On entering I breasted the bar and called for a long shandy. The barman brought it; then a Hood of recollections and glimpses of my old life seemed coming back to me (I had been a fortnight in the dry district), so I enquired, "Is that* real shandy?" "Sure," says the barman, looking somewhat surprised. "Good" I replied, Standing off a pace or two, l cast an affectionate glance on the glass, and, like the "Sentimental Bloke," I "dips me lid." I doij't know what the barman thought; however, I didn't citrc; I was in civilisation again. ' THE STRIPPER. March 14, 1917.,