The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1896-12-27
SPORTS OF THE YEAR.
RECORD PERFORMANCES AND
OTHER LIVELY FEATURES OF 1890.

The year about to close has been productive oil
some capital sport In all Its branches. While
there have been more sensational seasons In
certain specialties,t hero has rarely been such a
general feeling OF safety and satisfaction. All
classes and communities neem to have had nm
squable share of the fun, aud the results fur
nish q pleasant retrospect. Some international
spice was thrown into the doinRs OF golfers.
crioketors, oarsmcn. athletes, and horsemen.
The numerous other standard games scom to
have fourished. and there were Just enough In
noyations to Keep popular interest up to q
healthy Nitch. Record breaking, by both blpeds
and qua.Supeds. played an important part, tho
progress of the athlete. cyclist, and PAGER
toward the utmost conceivable limits of speed
being especially noticeable.
TRorTINo AND FACING.
The I'VE great PAGERS, John r. Gentry, 2:ool5;
Robert j., 2:0lla; Star Pointer. 2:0211; Joe
Patchen. 2:o3, and Frank Agan, 2;o3S, by their
series Of remarkable performances on Eastern
tracks. saved the harness racing campaign OF
1890 from falling to the level of mediocrity and
made II a season which will long BIO remem-
bered by all followers of the sport. For the first
time since harness racing had its origin the
star PAGERS this year overshadowed the best of
the %trotters in the public eye. and their doings
were distinctly the feature OF the campaign.
Horsemen differ in opinion as TO whether the
greatest performance OF the season took place
at Fleetwood Park. where John r. Gentry de-
feated the pacing kings over q slow track In the
unprecedented time. for three heats. of 2:035,
R:03N, 2:03A. or at Glens Falls the next week,
where he took the measure of Star Pointer aud
eoualled In q race the champion exhibition rec
ord of 2:o115, then held by Robert j.. or at
Portland, Me-. a fortnight a%fterward. when he
electrified the horse world by pacing a mile in
O.nAZ III arraa hnurarA- Shat ,ln -,... -.
son of Ashland Wilkes, n PAGER. was the hero of
the year. Other cham pion records made by the
PAGERS in 1896 were the team mile In o:O9L by
Mrs. w. E. d. Stokes's mares, Miss Rita and
Josie b., at LeXinRton; the performance of Joe
Patchen In o:o4A on the half-mile track at
Boston, and the wagon record of 2:0SIS made
by the eccentric Colorado sidewheeler, WV +.
Although there were more trotters of gals
capacity in evidence this year than ever before
At the big meetings there were few stars of the
FIRST magnitude among them. and no worlds
records of Importance were lowered during the
campaign. Fantasy. the champion OF the free
for-all division. trotted tho fastest mile Of the
season. 2 :06h, but this was go far below the
standard Of the four preceding campaigns that
1t only served to draw attention to the absence
OF such NJ Alix. Azote. Directum, and Nancy
Hanks. The two-year-old colt Jupe. bred by w.
g.. Faure of Now York. scored the fastest time
ever made in a race by q youngster OF his age.
2:13M. but the performance is not within gum
shot of Arion's marvellous two-year-old record
of 2:10A to an old-style sulky. J. Malcolm
Forbes's colt Bingen. 2:121S. gained the fastest
three-year-old record of the year. although
closely pressed for first honors by NJ. E. Nc
Henry's Futurity winner. Rose Croix. 2:l3Ia.
or the four-year-old trotters of 1895 the big
Nebraska colt Pat L. by Republican. who
trotted to q record Of 2:11N as q three-year-old,
WAS the best. He opened the campaign by cut
credit the fastest record ever made on a half
mile track. 2:10h. and finally wound up a hard
Winiam Penn, and the other stars Of the free.
for-all. brigade at Lexington in the fastest
looked upon as, a phenomenal four-year.oid II
there had revef been q Dlrectum. As IL is, he
+ what horsemsn term "a good one for what
YACHTING.
While there was no race for the Americas
cup and while the unsettled condition of bust
putting their boats in commission. the past
yachting season was interesting in many ways.
accomplished By the New York Racing Union
OF Long Island. Sound. which not only put a
clubs. but caused the adoption OF uniform rae.
Ing rules throughout this section of the country
9 q Yacht Se 6luSs Advocated sHSsd't By the Gs't Sew
In spite of the dearth of racing in the big
there were two intssn1!iSnal races in n which
history OF yachting. the Yankee yachts were
defeated in both contests by Canadian boats.
seawanhaka- Corinthian Yacht Clubs inter
rational small boat trophy. when the
and owned by James Ross o, Montreal. easily
defeated the Yankee defender. Ell Heirie. owned
other race was for the championship Of tho
great lakes between the Chicago yacht Venice
In the race the conditions were so manIfestIy
unfair TO the Yankee yacht that It was absolute
L. IA im NJ ;Sd bo, for her to WIN: and no one on this
SO far as local rscing was concerned, the
the debut of the Colonia as q two.sticker and
the remarkable record Of the new Gardner and
Another. incident which has caused any
amount of criticism among yachtsmen has been
for American yachtsmen in Clyde shipyards.
These foreign yachts. whose aggregate cost is
built for A. J. DreIel. ogden GoeIet. Eugene
Higgins. Robert Goelet, John Z. Brooks. Ruther-
furd Stuyvesant. and Mr.. Cassatt.
ooLFINo.
COLTS greatest event in 1896 was the amateur
championship held in July at the Shinnecock
Hills links. when it was demonstrated, for the
first time. that the homebred players are very
graduates OF Scotch or English links. The
winner. i. J, Whighaln. Chicago Golf Club, an
ou oCOtcn- playcr. was not pusueQ very nara IN
any of bis Matches; but then he was
who had gathered for the open championship
united In saying that the form Whighnm dis
played would have won him honors in the ANA
teur championship of Great Britain. Like +, g
TAFT, who won the special cup at medal play
and the amateur championship at Sand witch on
succeeding days last June. Whigham beat his
rivals Mt both the stroke and the hole game.
Tho placed men. In the order named, were J. q.
Thorpe. Cambridge Golf Club; A. VI. Coats.
Newport Golf Club, and H.. =. Toler. Baltusrol
Golf Club. There were eighty starters for the
medal play.
SO satisfactory was the new system adopted
In the am ateur championship, of having the six
teen highest scores at medal play on the first
day play ont to the finals at match play. that IL
was generally adopted IN the open tournaments
held at the different clubs after that event. A
variation at these succeeding. competitions was
to have all who failed to qualify at medal play
start for u consolation prize under the same con-
ditions as governed tho more important trophy.
The consistent form and prominence OF the nix
teen who qualified at shinnecock Hills in the
open competitions that followed during the sea-
son. has demonstrated that the United States
Golf Association acted with sound judgment In
establishing the radical departure from the ,
method solely match play, OF the amateur
ciiampionslipin Scotland and England. When
the merits of the system are fully understood