The Leavenworth weekly times., 1874-10-15
Racing, Past and Future.

In the records of the turf there is about
this time q brief interval of repose. The
great summer meetings are ended, the
notable contests of the Fall have not yet
begun. This day week, Jerome Park
will be thronged by an eager crowd of
spectators, and already the morning can
tiers of the favorites furnish food for spec
ulaiion to an inner circle of turtles.
There certainly never was time in the
recent annals of the American turf " hen
the materials for speculation were more
plentiful, and when the data for forming
a Judgment on the prospects of contend
ing horses were more meagre. The
past meetings of the year have had two
memorable haracteristics-their extra.
ally large number of individual winners.
That steadily y-increasing number of pco-
pie who take an interest in horse.racing
will not be likely to forget that in 1874
EtIloucraf ran four miles in minutes
l9i seconds. beating Lerington's time,
which had stood unmatched for twenty
years. Alongside OF this great achieve
ment will worthily rank Reforms run
ming of one anu ,hree-quarter mile in 3
minutes 81 seconds, and Gray Planets
mile race against time in l minute 42l
seconds. Not less remarkable is the fact
that in all the great Eastern meetings of
the Spring and summer no horse won
two stakes, and that it rests absolutely
with the October meetings to settle the
question of the three-year old champion
ship of the year.
The Jerome Stake for three year olds
at Jerome Park used to be known as the
Champion Stake. That distinction may
now, however, be claimed for the Dixie
Stake at Baltimore. Though the NOM
nations for this years Jerome Stake
hardly include all the possible compete
tors for the three year-old championship,
it nevertheless includes by far the larger
number OF them. Itclosed with fifty-o
nominations, and among these are the
following three year-old winners of the
year: Acrobat, Brisand. Regardless, Aaron
Pennington, Sdron, liddgc. Se4 Eyes, and
Reform. The nominations for the Dixie
Stake at Baltimore include all these, we
believe, with the addition of Culpeper,
!anddlite, and Rutherford. In addition to
the intense interest which belongs to
both races in virtue of the contest of
eight to dozen pretty equally matched
horses, the pecuniarv value of both
stakes is considerable. The winner of
the great three>year-old race of the ap.
preaching meeting at Jerome Park can
hardly fail to carry off less than IS, 600.
The corresponding contest at Baltimore
is richer still, for, closing with sixyt-
eight nominations, it would yield, with
forfeit and added money, s., 500 for q
walk over, while with twelve probable |
starters the first place will be worth some
ST. 800. Next to the contest for the |
Jerome Stake, perhaps the greatest ex-
citement will attend the four mile race. |
II is positively stated that Tom Bouiing |
is in condition 10 run again, and FeltOu- |
crafts recent performance having stamp
ed him king Of the turf, the great Ken.
lucky horse will find 1t necessary to vim
dicate anew his supremacy or retire into
the ranks Of deposed royalty. Sprinybok
and others will doubtless be drawn out
by the four mile race. The Maturity
Stake, for four-year Olds, at Jerome
Park, ought TO be an exciting race. We
fear 1t will hardly be SO this year. Closed
like all such events, two years in advance
its nominations include, indeed, the
name of Ton Bo,rling, but present no
likely to render the issue
doubtful. Donnybrook, WId Idle, Cdtesby,
Sonekenee, and Carer are among the list
of the four-year olds entered to challenge
the Kentucky champion.
1t may be doubted whether it is worth
while moralizing over the rapid growth
of the popularity of horse-racing in this
country. Like most popular pleasures
The sport has its good and its bad sides.
Among its chief supporters are those
Who keep unblemished on the turf the
of honorable gentlemen. There
are also some who pursue horse-racing
simply as q mode OF gambling, with
steady eve to any means, lair or other
wise, of turning the odds In their favor.
ike manner made up of those who attend
because of the opportunities to gamble.
With the addition of q considerable pro-
portion of people with whom both mo-
ives weigh, and q still larger number
Who care but languidly for either. All
they certainly help to famili-
lrize us with that most beautiful OF all
equine types-the Engiish-Arabian race
help to improve by his sys-
ematic propagation, the blood and breed.
ng of American horses. There are few ,
popular outdoor amusements capable of
,eiug made subserve 20 many good puf-
,oses and susceptible of 80 many abuses
ls horse-racing. The history of the
rotting turf is . good illustration Of both
though We fear the black
yuariism of trotting matches 10 steadily
getting the upper hand. We trust that
i viii be very long before the same re-
mark can justly apply to running races,
md among the last places where it ever
IAN apply will certainly be Jerome
Park.