The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-11-19
A STEEPLECHASR IN SAMOA.
AND A WICKED EARL VINO NEEDED
Hrs FELLOW TOURIsTY CASH.


Natural Obstacles o. tho Course and stu
More Formidable Obstacles Raised by
samoan Native Customs-After Revela-
tions of the Dupiicity OF the Earl.
The Earl OF IIardwicke won all the money fast
enough That seems appropriate TO any one
who has given attention To the peerago. Dukes
may be noble, marquises probably have some
special designation which slips the memory just
now. but in all literature eatls are either bclted
or wicked. This one was wicked, with wi, kcd.
ness that would qualify him for the bggcs, belt.
ing that ever earl got on an outlaw track.
There never had been any real sport In Apia.
Wars there had been. but they were far too slow
! and conversational to become q good betting
proposition. Samoan communities frequently
engaged In stick -throwing competitions for a
kog Of salt beef, but these occupied anywhere
from a week TO month, and no white man ever
yet had been lazy enough TO watch a game all
through and and gu, how h was counted. Some
thing better than this hsd to be done for the
mcnt Of several young men who found themselves
cast together in Apia after having reached the
South Sea metropolis from remote quarters OF
the earth. They tourists. They had filled
themselves UP on all the poetry Of Poly ncsian
! life and had come down 10 see the reality. They
! had found that tho romance made no mention
Of the discomforts Of sleeping on coarse gravel
! Of eating dirty foods Of uncouth ,asto, Of walk
! Ing YEARLY over Jagged rocks or porspiringy
under the dense canopios OF tho trees Of unbroken
| forest After the first enthusiastic days Of lead
ing tho native life they all traied back To
! Apa and found no higher occupation than tcpid
bocr conducting interesting problems Of the
art Of gauging the liquid capacity Of certain sea
soned vessels on the Apia beach, who were will
! ing to be experimental ON In that line so long
as II would benefit science. Their idlcnees led
10 the frst horse held in Samoa, the one
which is now being helped along into history.
The Earl Of Hardwckc deserves the credit Of
proposing the affair. Therefore IL may be uine
less discreditable that he got all the money. lie
was very nodes young person. There WAS
not the least bit OF side about him. lie travelled
about Just like any fellow His card read sim
ply Charles Philip Sorkc." and on the steamer
they called him Mr. Yorke until IL popped out by
accident In conversation deck he CHANGED
to quote some little thing that his man had said.
II was not 40 much what his man had said ns IL
was the way he said IT, when quoted II began
with M Lud" and II wound up with Yer i.udship"
With very becoming evidences Of confusion. Mr.
Yorkc appeared disconnected and rapidly changed
the subject But in the steamships library there
u copy Of some almanac or other giving details
Of the peerage. and II took no very long search
title Of Earl Of Hardwickc After that there were
many who felt II wrong 10 call him Mr.. Yorke.
The young man was most aHablc considering
his status and explained that he was sorry that
IL had leaked out for IL was his desire To- travel
incognito or as he phrased H. in the dialect of the
House Of Lords, without any OF this bally fuss
His modcs'y was respected as much as was pos
siblc, but less on account Of his wishes than he
cause the passengers were divided into two hos
tile camps as TO the proper form Of address one
party clamnrcd for Your Grice" and the other
for Noble Sir Out In tho middle Of the Pacific
the dispute cnud not BE- settled. In fact II lasted
over into his Samoan soIourh and was only set.
tied by Carr. who always made a staggcr after
accuracy and declared that an earl should always
be addressed as Your Earldom" Which went
This modest and vagrant Earl WAS responsible
for the great Naiala steeplochasc the very hrst
race In the history Of the islands The most that
could be said NJ the horses that they were
better than nothing. Even at that they wercn
much. They were distinctly Of the mutt class
II IL very doubtful II they would he admitted To
the District Of Columbia tracks although IL is we'll
known that the capital of this cou-fry does get
, some Of the queerest racing propositions espcc.
tally In the winter. The only Samoan horses are
little ponies from Tonga n, pedigree to soy any.
thing about. full Of mischief and tricks no par.
hSWo' H'bshhS P'"'i' bu' n ChphCINy
To stand punishment Of whip and spur There
never vet was one that couldn't he bought for a
sovereign, and as the freight from Tonga is six.
teen shillings II clear that the real value Of tho
horse IL four shillings, or throw In the odd tup.
pence and generously say one dollar But in the
dulncss OF Samoa horse is a horse when time
hangs heavily on the hands NJ sporty tourists
The Earl started IT, He proposed that they
should get up scratch race for native horses
owned by natives ridden by native jockeys and
that the white men should male up purse for
the winners and find their own sport in betting
II Was agIeei that, as there were nine oi them.
each should nominate horse and subscribe
sovereign, and the purse should be divided among
the winner. second and third. The horses must
b. nominated that evening, which gave each Of
their mounts am The race vas to be run
on the next morning At high tide all
scnce Of bookmnkers and the talent in general III !,
was mutually agreed that each gentleman sub
sccrbcr was to back his own nomination against
all comers AT the best odds lie could get during
the hour when the horses were on view,
in the steep municipal district there is no SPACE
sufficiently level TO lay oil any convrniences Of
tho sort, %' , ,hs,e aIs stretches Of hard beach
ought to prove good going for unshoi hoofs he
cause Of the natural features Of the nearest stretch
natural obstacles beginning on Matautu Point,
short distance beyond the pilo, station. the
CoWSc cNNnuch hiOnR INC DchCn 10 windWaTd for
a little more than two miles The obstacles were
two cocoanut trees to be capcd. one river 10 swim
another tn ford patch Of roc ~. a mangroye
swamp, a straight run home and a stone wall 10
Jump at the finish. The summary:
ONLY RACE.
Tho Great vaAla S'ee ploc iIandcap for tbroe.
yoarolds and upward. or downward: bv subscrip.
non Of one sovereign each OF nine nomlp at )rs OF
which 81 to tho winner f3 to second IN O. 10
thru about two miles and two or three furlOnes
Mr.. rofaeOnoE ch. Y. SOlotanuA. no pedigree I2b
Fasgaoiy, nominated ~ the Earl or Hard wicke 1
Mr.. TangalOA's Dr. h. TelrvAve, no pedigree 7b
Cralolol. nominated bv Mr.. Page. -. .'.,,,', ,
Mr.. PAtus b. Y. Mann, no ped gree $50 townrf
up, nominated by Mr.. Dbbs ...,........,'
Tas, Lua, Toin, Pa, Lama and Ono also ran.
TiWe. 1870.
Botting-fifteen to SooiAnna even money Tels
wave. sto Manu-. 6tg TA.i, at, Lua, 10
Toln, 7 to Pa, 3 to Lima, To Ono.
But this Is not the sort Of horse race that can
he fubbed of with mere summary and nothing
else. Eveyybody had n run for his money, and
tho noble Earl got II all In the end for il turned
out that he needed II In his business, that and a
great deal more.
when the horses were brought together Mt
the appointed limit Of one hour before high tide
in their run 10 windward-this is not a Yacht
race. but there seems no other way 10 describe
a horse race on the beach there was NOT very
much TO brnR about In speed or form, Each al
the gentlemen nominators had done his hest