The Sun.
London, England, 1868-03-10 00:00:00

SPORTING NOTES.

There are not many points of interest to refer to in con-
nection with the three days' sport at Liverpool last week,
the Grand National Steeplechase, of course, being excepted?
and a brief resume of each day's sport is all that is neces-
sary for the purposes of the future. The first day's pro-
ceedings commenced with a walk over for the value of the
Mersey Cup by Lord Westmoreland's Master Willie. The
next event, however—a Handicap of 100 sous—was a
dreadful blow to backers, who wore so eager to be on that
before the flag fell the odds of 6 to 4 were increased
to 4 and 5 to 1 on Mistletoe, who was defeated in the
commonest of canters by King's Daughter, which is an-
other proof how weight will tell, and bring most classes
of handicap horses together. Hilda next cut down the
five youngsters opposed to her in the Tyro Stakes, not-
withstanding her penalty of 51b„ with great ease, and the
gentlemen who again had to lay odds must have re-
covered a portion of their previous loss. The two next
affairs, the Trial Steeplechase and a Selling Stakes, were
too insignificant to require comment. A field of twelve
wont to the post for the Spring Flying Stakes, but there
was a tedious delay at the post, and Chivalry, who, be-
fore the flag fell, wont over the course twice, and one
or two others who broke away and ran seine distance,
must have materially injured their chance thereby. The
winner turned up in Dawdle, who won a similar handicap
here last November, and ought to have had 101 b er 111 b
more on her back this journey. It would be desirable, in
my opinion, to expunge those conditions of several of the
races at this meeting, Tho Sefton Handicap and The
Welter Handicap to wit, wherein it states that horses
beaten for certain stakes, and not placed second or third,
are allowed 51b, because it appears to me an inducement
for owners to start their horses expressly to get the allow-
ance. It seems quite preposterous that Moonbeam, who
won Tho Sefton Handicap, on Wednesday, should be
able, after incurring a penalty of 101 b for previous win-
ning, to get off 51b of that weight by starting for
The Flying Stakes. Chivalry is another case in
point, as he claimed 61b from a similar cause, and
won the Welter Handicap on Thursday. The
Annual Hurdle Race, which wound up the day's proceed-
ings, was won cleverly by Pearl Diver, but an unfor-
tunate scrimmage, caused by Archimedes, spoilt Steamboat's
chance, and brought one or two of the other competitors
to grief.

The Great Steeplechase attracted an enormous concourse
of people on Wednesday—a number, in never excelled
in the memory of the oldest inhabitant.. Very little atten-
tion was paid to the two prior events of the day, in the
first of which, the Welter Cup, Three per Cent., who
started favourite, landed his backers by a neck, and in the
next Brick upset a great "pot" on Musketeer, who
was backed against the field for The National
Hurdle Handicap, by a similar distance. In dux
course the twenty-one competitors for the Grand
Steeplechase proceeded to the starting place, and with
commendable punctuality, a few minutes only after the
appointed time, were despatched on their journey. Poor
Chimney Sweep was the first to come to grief, and in
crossing the lane struck his leg against some stonework
with such fearful violence and injury to himself that Lord
Coventry at once ordered him to be destroyed. Every
sportsman will sympathise with his lordship, who is not
only ono of the staunchest supports of this national pastime,
but one of the finest judges also. There can be no doubt
from the Sweep's antecedents, and the amount of money
for which his noble owner had backed him, that The Lamb
would have mot with a more worthy opponent in him had
this unfortunate catastrophe not occurred. The pace was
first rate throughout, but a long way from home only The
Lamb, Pearl Diver, Alcibiade, Capt. Crosstree, Moose, and
The Huntsman's Daughter were in the hunt ; in short,
after jumping into the racecourse, it was any odds on one
of the first-named pair, who ran locked together until after
they landed over the last hurdle, when Pearl Diver's bolt
was shot, and Lord Ponlett's horse won cleverly, amidst
the greatest enthusiasm, by two lengths. The Aintree
Plate was won by Dawdle, and Moonbeam's victory for the
Sefton Handicap, to which I have previously alluded,
finished the day's programme.

the attendance on Thursday was a wretched contrast
to the previous day, but it was about on a par with the in-
difference of the sport, the only event of the slightest in-
terest being the Liverpool Spring Cup, in which Knight of
the Garter left ten others behind him as if they wore
standing still. He was giving lumps of weight away to
every animal engaged in the race, but they were a bad lot,
with the exception of one or two, who had not been half
prepared, and will do their owners a good turn the first
time of asking. . . .

Mr. Frail has received the usual amount of support for his
Spring Meeting, but we fear he will miss the patronage so
liberally bestowed upon him by the noble supporters of
John Day's stable on previous occasions.
The other meetings during the week aro of too second-
rate a character to render it desirable for me to give any
advice about.

A FRESH MAN.

PROGRAMME OF CHELMSFORD SPRING
MEETING.
WEDNESDAY.

The ITyde Plate of 30 sovs, for two year olds ; colts Bst

101 b, fillies Bst 71b ; five furlongs.
The Springfield Selling Stakes of 3 sons each, with 25
added; two year olds 7st 31b, three Oct 315, four lOst, five
six, and aged, lOst 31b ; half a mile.
The Boreham Handicap of 3 soya each, 1 ft (to the fund),

with 30 added ; one mile.
The Scurry Handicap of 3 soya each, with 30 added, for all

ages ; three-quarters of a mile.

The Essex Plato of 30 sovs, for two year olds: colts Bst
101 b, fillies Bst 71b ; half a mile.
The Fairlands Handicap of 15 sovs each, 10ft, with 60

added ; half a mile.

SHREWSBURY SPRING MEETING.
WEDNESDAY.
The Wilton Plato of 80 sovs (handicap). About half a
mile, straight.
The Whitehall Handicap of 5 sovs each, 2 ft (to the fund)
with 50 added. About three quarters of a mile.
The Spring Handicap Steeplechase of 150 sovs, added to a
sweepstakes of 15 sovs. each. About three miles and a
half.

Age st lb Age st lb
Astrolabe
Doctor
The Nun
Daisy a n 9 , Greenland
The Lamb
Northern Light ... all 6 Flying Horse
Globule a 11 5 Corkscrew (11 b) ... 6 10 3
Pearl Diver
Hall Court all 2 Helen
Despatch a 11 4 Portland
Columbia
Garus alo 12 Owen Roe 5lO 0
L.S.D.
Flandrin
Huntsman's Daugh a 10 7 Golden Cross
A Steeplechase Plate of 100 sovs (Handicap). Two miles

and three-quarters.
A Hurdle Race Handicap of 5 sous each, 2 ft (to the fund),
with 50 added. One mile and three quarters, over six
hurdles.

A Selling Stakes of 3 sovs each, with 25 added; two year
olds 6st 101 b, three Bst 121 b, four lOst lib, five and up-
wards lOst 31b. About 5 furlongs, straight.
A Plate of 40 sovs (Handicap); winners after the declara-
tion of the weights 71b extra. About half a mile,
straight.

RACING FIXT I
MA.

RES FOR 1868.
OH.

Chelmsford Spring M. 10
Surewsbury Spring lO
West Drayton l2
Warwick Spring
AP.

Margate
Epsom Spring Meeting 24
Croxton Park
Northampton
lIL.

Bromley Spring 6
Durham
Hendon
Newmarket Crayon
Knighton l4
Abergavenny ..... 16

Catterick Bridgo l6
Lewes Spring
Thirsk
Curragh April 2l
Newmarket Ist Spring 27

Chester 5
Winchester
York Spring
Doncaster Spring
Salisbury l4

.Y.
Bath
Croydon Ist Summer
Harpenden
Epsom Summer

West Drayton 1
Croydon 2d Summer „
Manchester 3
Ascot Summer 9
Beverley, Hull, and
East Riding lO
Windsor Summer
JU

•
Newton
Hampton
Newcastle 23
Bibury Club 4
23
'2
Stockbridge
Alexandra Park 3O

N.
Odiham, l9
Stamford
Radcliffe . 2O
Huntingdon. 2l
Nottingham July
Southampton
Goodwood

Chelmsford
Worcester Summer
Carlisle 7
Newmarket July 7
Pontefract
Reading
Down. Royal Corp "
1V I
Liverpool July M
AUGUST.

Brighton 4 I
Brighton Club .........••• 6
Lewes Summer ...
11 7 I
Wolverhampton
Stockton
Plymouth
Windsor August l3
Egham lB
Hastings
York August
SEPT'
Baden
Warwick September
Abingdon 3

Dover
Oxford
Scarborough 24
Canterbury
Derby Summer
Weymouth
Lichfield
Tunbridge
1 Margate 3l

IMBER.
' Kelso
Hendon l7
Monmouth .. l7

Leicester
Doncaster September 8
Brecon l4
Richmond
Hampton Autumn l5

Newmarket Ist October 22
Walsal l 23
West Drayton 29
Royal Caledonian Hunt
and Western M

OCTOBER,
Bedford 1 I Cheltenham ............... 15
13
Bromley Autumn
Newmarket 2d October 5 I Newmarket lioughtoo 19
Chelmsford. Autumn

NOVEMBER,
9
Shrewsbury Autumn ........................
Leamington and Warwickshire 17