The Express.
London, England, 1868-04-09 00:00:00

TO TIM ICD/TOR OP PHI =MESS.

811,—That the plech geo season 86748
has heed tether tee long is clearly shown by the fatal
•01111111•* to poor yeas,' Clifford, on the hard pound at
Bromley ; bat there are two heavy tamping weeks to get
through yet, and metropolitan clerks of the course are
evidently determined to keep the gams alive as kung se
passible, two days at. Hendon on the 131 h end 14th bast, ,
and then again Croydon o.r the 23rd and 24th—just a
little month before the Derby'.—being dill in the "fix-
tares." The general public, however, have done with
the sport for the present, as have ales the owners
et what may really be celled eteepladramers ; and
even the peat Irish meeting, held at Punchsetown on 1
Thursday and Friday next, would excite no interest this
his of St. George's Channel had not the Prince of Wales
determined to moist thereat. Newmarket is fixing the
attention of all turfites, who are led to antkcipate some
stirring incidents in connection with the crack 3-yr-ola ,
rams during the Craven week, and have quite lest sight of
the Handicap in their aaxierty to dissever what will per-
form for the Biennial. That =yoked' s' triumvirate, Blue .
Gown, Suffolk, and The Karl, are acknowledged to be the ,
pick of the lot entered, for Europa's lag will keep ha in
the stable, whilst the inferiority of St. Ronan, St.
Angela, The Parson, Ritualist, Hatchment, King
Alfred, Blueskin, and Innerdele to the three has bees
demonstratedoftenenough. Neverthelessonanyakirmiahers
will put in an appearance just to find oat hew the lead
lies in certain districts, and every Derby "stable " will
endeavour to get • line of Blue Gown, whose darting I
believe is determined en. Mr. Merry is " lucky "in this
particular race,having once landed the coup with a very
moder As animal called Masquerade, and he may,
try h fortune with the dark Sunflower colt
as well as The Parson, it being scarcely on the cards that I
the latter can pull through, allowing for • yard improve-
ment on his City and Suburban form. The Speculum divi-
sion must find something better than Innerdale to get •
bite at the " cherry ;" but the followers of Typlibeue,
Formosa, and Vale Royal, appear even worse off, appa-
rently. John Scott may send a Spy—the Frenchman,
Mersure—and the upholders of the Franchise, Besinergee—
on • voyage of discovery ; nevertheless, unless Baron
Rothschild substitutes King Alfred for Suffolk, there is
nothing beyond Mr. Marry's champion and The Earl to
jecpardies the fame of Blue Gown. Should the son of '
Young Melbourne bowl him out, Lady Elizabeth will see
a short price for the Derby instanter, as there is every
indication that the colt will not be allowed to perform at
Epode, or is vastly inferior to her. By the
same rule, Suffolk's success would bring Baron
Rothschild a warm favourite for both the Two Thousand
and Derby, though it would be bard to believe then that
Restitution is the beet of the bunch. The defeat of Blue
Gown would not, perhaps, have such a depressing effect on
Rosicrucian and Green Sleeve as one might suppose, as Sir
Joseph Hawley appears to be depending more epos his
elder horses for a " line" of the smeary, having pitted
Xi against The Earl last autumn, whilst in the
Two Thousand week his Palmer is to try con-
cludons with the Hermit at certain weights. This
will come off after the Derby winner has met
his old opponent Julius. over the Two Middle Miles. and
hence The Palmer will get another measure of the Cedars-
witch hero. He once ran a dead heat with him, and at a
time, too, when the trial must have been very useful to
Sir Joseph, for Lady Elizabeth had just beaten Julius in
this celebrated match, and the relative merits of the Dane-
bury and Kingsclere cracks would then be ascer-
tained almost to an ounce, if the Middle Park Plate
were not satisfactory enough. Both parties appear
very confident just now, the only lot" there is any
mystery about, as regards the Two Thousand or Derby
being the Duke of Newcastle's ; and I have every reason
to hope that, when it cornea to the finish, all the former
good horses will be found up to the mark, and that the
frightening reports of the pant two months will turn out
mere canned,.

Beyond the Biennial there are several three-year-old
events in the programme or toe opening campaign at head.
quarters, engaged in whims we have Restitution, Court-
smut* The Earl, Lady Coventry, Speenhun, and lone or
two dark things, whose reputations were ones good; yet,
in no came will any two creaks meet, and the great four.
year-old events will excite most attention, after Tuesday's
proceedings. There are the Ninth Biennial wherein Van.
ban or the Hermit, with, perhaps, the Hike end Tarsban,
will have to beat or frighten Julius—the Claret, with Frip-
ponnler and the Dragon in—sad the Port, when Julius,
Vauban, and the Rake again came agalnat each other,
joined by Mandrake. It will be time enough, however,
to diatue the probabilities of the mew starting or winning
on Monday next, when it an be pretty safely determined,
too, whether the Manoeuvre My will be allowed to ran
and win the Newmann mandloap ; and all I need farther
trouble myself about at present is. the first day's list,
wherein there is an important matter, the Fres Handicap,
that must not be neglected, though the aoceptanees have
not cows to hand yet. Some dyers are certain to be left
in, and the Duke of Newcastle will claim every respect
with his beat, after the forward running of Pericles at
Northampton, nevertheless, it is impossible to overlook
the claims of last year's winning colours, Mr. Fleming's,
the three-quarters being just severs enough to suit Van
Amburgh. Restitution must beat the Brother to Knight
of the Crescent very away in the 50 Sore. Sweep, or re-
turn to obscurity; and Admiral Rous appears to have
made one of his anal good matches in putting Ruff spinet
Ratty at 191b.—1 am, &c. METEOR.