The Sun.
London, England, 1862-09-15 00:00:00

SPORTING NOTES.

The most important meeting in the north will commence
at Doncaster to• morrow, with every prospect of furnishing
the same amount of sport we have witnessed of late years,
since the added money of the corporation has been so judi-
ciously distributed by Mr. Johnson. The increase in the
attendance of fashionables at Doncaster has also been very
marked within the last few anniversaries, and may be fairly
attributed, not only to the revived taste far racing among
the Yorkshire aristocracy, but also to the improved tone of
morale in the conduct of the racing which has been marked
by none of those disgraceful proceedings which characterised
the meeting in the days of Maraeluke, Bessy Bedlam,
Plenipotentiary, and other great cracks, whose chances
were impaired and extinguished by the nobblers' arts. The
impetus given to the rearing of blood stock, which is brought
to market at Doncaster in the highest perfection, is also
another cause for the accession of visitors to the town, as
in no other place have they the same choice of blood, or the
same opportunity given them of picking up a flyer for a
trifle. The list for the four days extends to 32 items, in.
elusive of the 500 Sow. Match between Lord Derby's
Hightown, by Longbow out of Lancashire Lass, and Lord
Glasgow's bcby De Clare out of Clarissa. Of these, eight
are appointed for the first day, Tuesday, the most im-
portant of which are the Fitzwilliam Stakes (the entry
for which has yet to be made), the Champagne Stakes,
Great Yorkshire Handicap, and the Revival Plate. For
the Champagne the entry is the most numerous ever known,
but as no fewer than 23 of the 45 horses nominated have
already run without producing anything good, except Lord
Clifden and Armagnac, the field will not be very numerous.
That there is a good horse or two among the dark division
there is not much room to doubt ; but entertaining a great
opinion of Lord Clifden, I cannot bring myself to believe
that his overthrow will be effected by any of them.
The Great Yorkshire Handicap, St. Leger Course, has an
acceptance of 34 out of 74 ; last year's winner, Wallace,
being at the head of the poll, with 9.st 61b. Doefoot cannot
complain of her weight, and if in form, which mares mostly
are at this period of the year, ought to have a great chance.
Cowley has received lenient treatment, considering he ran
well on three occasions last year, and that this year he won
a handicap at the First Spring Meeting easily, giving Lord
Glasgow's Y. Melbourne colt 251 b, and Breechloader 331 b.
Dulcibella has been let in on extraordinary easy terms, con-
sidering her antecedents. - Moorhen, Sir Joseph Hawley's
"second string," will doubtless be started to serve Cowley.
Haddington ran very backward in the spring, ran well at
Liverpool for the Cup, won by Costa, and is now first
favourite, The wnner, I except, will be
COWLEY or HADDINGTON.
On Wednesday the principal race of the meeting will be
decided—viz., the St. Leger, and the field should include
most of the following :
Ace of Clubs
Amateur
... W. Shington,
Argonaut
Bertha
Biondella
Buckstone
Canwell
Carisbrook
Clarissa colt
Costa (or Knave)
Exchequer
Garibaldi
Harlequin
Hurricane
Imperatrice
Johnny Armstrong
Marquis
Old Calabar
Piccador
St. Alexis
The Stockwell colt
Warminster
Welcome
The Marquis holds his position of first favourite with
great firmness. The Marquis's career is so well known, it
is useless to reproduce it ; and how he beat in the Derby
every horse ho met before, is already a matter of history,
as so many were behind him in the Derby which were
backed for perfect fortunes by their owners, it is only fair
to suppose that in a thinner race, and with less chance of
collision, he will distinguish himself better—at all events,
there is nothing on paper to beat him. Hurricane is a fine
and much-improved mare, and not without friends. Buck-
stone has always been a favourite of mine, as I know him to
be a really good horse, and that Grimehaw 'was physically
unable to do him justice in the Derby, for which he came
to the post under many disappointments of which his
backers were not aware. Now he, like The Marquis, has
had a long rest; his stable is in form, and as his trainer
must know by Sir William what he can do, I think in
Fordham's hands he will be most troublesome to every
animal in the race. Exchequer keeps his position very
firm in the market, and, after beating Montebello at
Worcester, he looks on the paper to have an excellent chance,
Argonaut will in all probability be as great a favourite as
he was for the Derby. But lam incredulous both. as to
his speed and his staying powers, and fancy some mistake
has been made about him throughout the season, as time
will show. He has within the last two days been knocked
about in the rot.l,ct, Lui I expect to see him return to his
old price. Bertha has been set down a miler, and yet she
has only been over a distance of ground once— for the
Oaks at Epsom. This affords no criterion of her real
merits, for she had been amiss all the Spring. Biondella is
one we think her sure to beat over any distance. Canis-
brook ran a thorough rogue all last season, when in " The
izard's" stable at Whitewall, but gradually improved
this year until he ran into a great horse. The market has not
been encouraging for his followers of late, but we believe his
owner to have a large sum of money on the horse, Carisbrook
will be one of the most difficult to shake off on Wednesday next.
Garibaldi has missed too many engagements for us to sup-
pose Lord Zetland has an idea of winning the St. Leger
with him, Johnny Armstrong has an advantage in being
prepared especially for this event, as he was not in either
the Derby or Two Thousand, and when performing once
in public this year he was so backward as to Le beaten over
a mile and a half by Brahmin. Warminster is a mysteri-
ous gentleman, having been struck out of the Derby for
some unexplained reason after ho had been backed heavily
by the cleaverest men on the turf. He was only out
once in public, when he won the Willoughby Handicap
at Warwick last spring ;very easily, with all the worst
of the weights, beating Loiterer, Prince Imperial, and
two others; and should he be allowed to face the starter
this time we must advise that he be kept on the right side.
Amateur is in Blink Bonny's stable, and has been occa-
sionally backed at outside prices. Lord Glasgow will
doubtless not only run the Stockwell colt, but the Clarissa
colt also, to insure a pace for the former, as his clever trainer
attributed the loss of the Two Thousand to its not being a
strong run race. The easy defeat suffered by the Stockwell
colt for the Derby does not in my mind count much against
him in estimating his St. Leger chance, for though a diffe-
rent shaped horse to Buckstone, his formation quite as little
adapted him for the hill, and, being hurried in his prepara-
tion for the Two Thousand, he was not himself on the
Derby day. That he will run a very different horse this
week, as he is now in form, I have no doubt, and more un-
likely things have come to pass than Stockwell proving for
the third time in succession the sire of the winner of the
great northern prize. The race, it appears to me, lays be-
tween THE MARQUIS, BUCKSTONE, CARISBROOK, and
the STOCKWELL COLT, and, to anticipate the judge in
his decision, I would place
THE MARQUIS
BUCK STONE 2
CARISBROOK
The other events to be decided do not require any cosi'
deration from A FRESH MAN.