The Sun.
London, England, 1868-09-07 00:00:00

SPYRTING NO rm.

The Doncaster S ,pt tinter Meeting will be celebrated oa
Tuesday, Wodu rs lay, Thursday, an 1 Fs i•iay. For t!ti.s
gathering, which is perhaps the most interesting in the
tvhole range of racing fixtures, Johnsen has is Ica a
rich an•l diversified bill of fare, which includes thirty
items; and, as upwards of £2,000 aro ad led, the spirt
ought to be of a high class. There are eight races in
Tuesday's list, all of which are completed save the Fitz-
william and Stanl Stakes, which do not close till Monday
evening. The Champagne Stakes (5 furlongs 152 yards
course), which has often been a good .Derby beacon,
should attract a strong field, as fifty-seven two-year-
olds have been named thereir.. The pick of these
are Belladrum, Strathnairn, Brother to Ravioli,
Prince Imperial, Chatsworth, Martyrdom, Minaret, Bou-
logne, Lady IDewhurst, Chatelherault, Woodman, The
Hind, and Chaucer. Woodman and Prince Imperial aro a
brace of well-bred useful colts; but, as the latter is not
thoroughly fit at present, I shall rely solely on Belladrum,
who has no penalty for previous successes. There is a
capital entry for the Clumber Plate (5 furlongs 152 yards),
as the following, amongst others, have been engaged
therein:—The Palmer, Vespasian, Friponnier, Bismarck,
Mercury, Tibthorpe, Thorwaldson, Vagabond, and Mar-
tyrdom. Possibly several of these may be entered
for the Fitzwilliam Stakes, run for on the same day
as the Clamber Plate; but if the Palmer and Martyr-
dom start, one of them should win. The Great
Yorkshire Handicap (St. Leger Course) is a failure
in point of acceptance, as there are only eighteen
horses standing from the original 60 nominations. But
thirteen stables are represented in the race, as Sir Joseph
Hawley accepts with three, and Lord Stamford, Lord
Westmorland, and Baron Rothschild with two each. The
Palmer, 9st, is the top weight, but we presume this speedy
"miler" has been left in to serve Fakir, Est 61b, and Co-
tytto, sst 101 b, the latter of whom, notwithstanding her
indifferent running this year, may turn out the pick of the
Kingsclero basket. Of Baron Rothschild's pair—Hippia,
Bst 41b, and Nyanza, Est i.lb—l prefer the chance of the
last-named, who is a great raking filly, and sure to act
well over the Doncaster course. Romping Girl, 7st 61b,
will probably be reserved for the Oesarewitch, as
Lord Westmorland has a useful second string in Thalia,
6st 81b, who, it will be remembered, ran second to Seville
for this race last year. Christmas Carol, 7st 61b, consi-
dering his antecedents, has been leniently weighted ; and
as the horse is well and meant, he will as nearly win as
possible. Of the trio of heavily handicapped three year
olds—Paul Junes, 7st 21b; Cap-a-pie, 7st 21b; and Ta-
bouret, ist 11b—I have no hesitation in awarding the pre-
ference to the last-named, who is one of the best handicap
horses in training. Etoile Filante, ist, is now
trained at Middloham, and, as her weight is favour-
able, she ought to run well. Bessie Dixon, 6st, has for
several months past been on the reserve list, but she cannot
beat Rel-tub at even weights, and the latter horse 1
hold to be dangerous. Papillon, 6st, will be defeated by
The Laird, sst 71b, as Mr. ifeathcote's horse can stay the
course, which Papillon will not. Lord Stamford's Couple,
—Happy Thought, sst 121 b, and Warrington, sst 71b—
are nicely in, and the elected, which may be Warrington,
will be bad to boat. Christmas Carol, Tabouret,
Nyanza, Rel-tub, and Warrington are, in my opinion, the
best of the candidates that have accepted; and the pair in
which my confidence is reposed are Christmas Carol and
Tabouret.

On Wednesday the famed Town Moor will be crowded
with enthusiastic Yorkshiremen, and lovers of the national
sport from all parts of the kingdom, to witness the con-
test for the ninety-third St. Leger. The competitors will
be selected from the knowing list of

PROBABLE STARTERS AND JOCKEYS.
Athena, by Stockwell—Heroine
Birdseeker, by Colsterdalo—Birdtrap
*Blueskin, by Skirmisher—Doeskin —
Chelsea, by King of Trumps—Sortie
Formosa, by Buccaneer—Eller G. Fordham
King Alfred, by King Toni —Scholar's dam J. Daley
Mercury, by Lazubtln —Starlight . J. Osb mu°
*Orion, by Cramond—Beautiful Star
Paul Jones, by Buccaneer
*Restitution, by King Tom—lt .st's darn Norman.
See-Saw, by Buccaneer—Margery Daw
St. Ronan, by St. Alban's—Elspeth
The Sawyer, by Kettledrum —Corrival J. Snowden.
*The Spy, by Underhand --Victoria —
Typhoeus, by Stockwell—Typee Morris.
Viscount, by the Marquis—Columbine Custanee.
*Doubtful starters.

The Danebury division will probably comprise Athena
and Birdseeker.

Chelsea is merely a speedy " miler ;" but, as it is
" all the money," run or not, Mr. Morgan may start
his horse for the off-chance. Formosa, the beautiful
daughter of Buccaneer and Eller, has ever been a
favourite of mine, and in reviewing the great weight-for-
age races during the winter months she was my selection
for both the Oao and Two Thousand Guineas; and if
the St. Leger was run on the Ditch mile at Newmarket,
we should again trust Formosa. Over a long course, how-
ever, like that on which tho Sr. Lager is decided, we fear
Mr. Graham's filly may be found wanting, though, as
The Earl is scratched, Formosa. will boat all the remain-
ing horses engaged, save the one that finished second in
the Derby. King Alfred, judged by the position he
obtained in the Derby, for which he ran second to
Blue Gown, who was a very different horse at Epsom
to the one we saw Tho Earl beat at Newmarket, has a
chance equal, if not Impeder, to that of any animal engaged
in the St. Leger. Up to Monday last no horse had und
gone a better preparation than King Alfred, and we bad
booked the St. Leger to Baron Rothschil l's colt, whose
fine speed and immense stride must have brought him
home in front over the Doncaster course. Suddenly, how-
eve; the King was dethroned, but the real cause has not
yet transpired, though rumour attributes his decline to
lameness from a bruise on the foot. We believe that all
traces of lameness have now disappeared. Mercury is a
bad tempered colt, and a non-stayer to boot. Paul Jones
is a second-class handicap horse, and is quite out of place
in such a race as that under discussion. See-Saw, al-
though he has been freely backed by the public, may not
run, as the Stanton party know he has no pretensions to
beat the best horses in training. St. Ram is a "piper,"
and will not run well over Doncaster flat. Tho Sawyer
is fast, but not up to racing weights, and, in addition
to this drawback, he cannot stay the course. Typhoeus,
whatever may be asserted to the contrary, has not
undergone the necessary preparation to win one of
the greatest races in the calendar, and certain de-
feat, iu our opinion, awaits this highly-bred .son
of Stockwell and Typee. Viscount cams into prominent
notice through his easy victory over Cap-a-pie, Blueskin,
and four others in tho Great Yorkshire Stakes, and was
suddenly tranformed into a first• class horse. In the doubt-
ful list there is nothing better than Orion, Bluoskirt, ReEti-
tnt'op, and The Spy, and their chances are not worth con-
sidering. Measured by public form—the surest of all tests
in weight-for-age races—the struggle for St. Leger hon-
ours should be confined to