Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1868-04-16

1 NEW OhAahsA M AGANtS-EIhSt DA .
From the New Orleans Times April Il.
4 The long-expected day for the opening
Of the Metairie spring races arrived yes
| terday, and save that the heavens were
ashen and lowering, and perhaps deferred
some visitors from coming, everything con-
| spired TO make the day what its best friends
| hoped it would be. The betting was freer
than was expected-the track was in mag
| nificent order-the stand crowded with
! large attendance of ladies, members and
visitors, and the day altogether anything
| but dies non in the racing calendar.
| On the grand stand were the two COM
partments for ladies, with the reception
and retiring rooms below; beyond were
the seats for members and visitors, while
in front stretched the quarter track,
crowded until the signal for starting, with
the elite of the racing world. Altogether
there must have been an attendance of at
least twenty-five hundred people and in-
cinded a number Of distinguished visitors
from the North and Northwest, ard all
known names in The sporting world.
Among those were Messrs. j. III. Smith,
Secretary Of the Buckeye Club, of Cincin-
Bati; A. Keen Richards, of Kentucky
Jno. G. Cox, Duncan Kenner, Foley, Slo'
comb, James and others.
Z The contest which excited most interest
was the hurdle race of two miles for $1,000.
over eight hurdles. The struggle here for
precedency lacked some of the elements of
excitement which are witnessed in the Eu-
ropean races, in having no water courses to
swim, or bitches TO founder through, but
the race was undoubtedly one of the most
interesting ever witnessed here or in aEy
other city in America. The hurdles 10 be
leaped over consisted of barriers of wood
about three feet high, surmounted with
withes of palmetto thickly interviewer. As
there was enough of hard running TO do
without the additional eight leaps, there
were not a few bets made that the race would
be characterised with broken neck or
tumble of some sort.
The entries for this were as follows: d.
7. Penn's b. h. Edinboro, K. w. Simmons
b. b. Jonesboro, s. L. James b. h. Red
Bird, VIM. Brady's b. h. Beauregard. At
3 O'clock the bell sounded the signal for
clearing the track, the judges and timers
took their places at either end of the red
cord, and at a repetition of the signal the
contest was fairly commenced. First in
the race sped Red Bird, next came Edin-
boro, followed by Jonesboro, Beauregard
bringing up the rear. The first barrier was
cleared by Red Bird without difficulty, but
was struck by both Edinboro and Jones'
boro, who went over almost at the same
time. Jonesboro now shot rapidly ahead
of EdinbOrO, and gained steadily upon his
foremost antagonist. The third barrier was
Knocked down by Edinboro, and the fourth
shared similar fate The first round
showed Red Bird ahead, with time az fol-
lows; First quaater, 30 seconds; halfmile
post, 58 seconds; mile, 1:58.
In the second heat JOnesboro claimed
the prize, coming in ahead by four lengths
of Red Bird, with the latter preceding
Edinboro by twice that distance. Beaure-
gard had no trouble about getting over the
barriers, but was left so far behind that
some doubt was entertained as TO what had
become of him.
Time, altogether, 3;5lk-said TO be the |
best racing time ever made in the United |
States, the next best being 3:543.
The second race was for the two year old |
stake S25 entrance, p. p., mile dash $500 |
was added by the Club for this the follow
ing were the entries I. b. Patter.op's !
Riehelieu; Wm, COitrilPs ,Pnss Brodnax.;
;. Leonard's Ontario. At the start Ontario |
who had been greatly the favorite, took the
lead to the quarter stretch, and all three |
passed the halfmile post in cluster.
U pom rounding the half-mile turn, Puss
Brodnax shot ahead-Ontario swerving /
before getting to tie gates. Both Puss and |
Richeleu came in under whip and spur
claiming the victory. f
The performances of the day concluded |
with a race for the post stakes, two mile
heats, entrance $25, the Club adding $500. |
For this the entries wereJ. McCloskey's
Fanny Cheatham, and Col. Nelligans Bis
mark.
At the given signal both the mare and the
bay horse came we'll up to the word-the
former going off upon the lead and going to
The back stretch III the same positions. Time
for the first quarter p ], hall-mile post 554
In this way they continued on for the first
mile, passing the stand in l:548. They
went round TO the back stretch in the
second mile with no change. On coming,
however, to the half-mile post Fanny moves
forward 20 the front; on rounding the turn
she took the lead, aud henceforth had it all
her own way.
On the second heat the chances were /
in favor of Cheatham but
BAD start, and the rubbing of the flly
against the inside track fence, led many to
suppose that there might be still some
ioubt about the matter very little ex-
ertion on the part of Cheatham soon proved
otherwise, and though Bismark made
better race than had been anticipated by
many, the flIy was declared victor in time
3:4S4.