Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1900-05-13

English racing is increasing so great
Iy as to be a good deal of worry to
English sportsmen. AS has been said
more American turf followers will be
on hand at English tracks than ever
before, and American jockeys are beat
Ing even their surprising record OF last
year. Sloane has lost none of his form
the Reiffs are winning right and left,
and the two more recent rivals-iIunt
n Rigby-are having almost as great
good fortune. So great an impression
has been made, in fact, by their ex-
ample that they are being copied by
the English jockeys. Young Hare, who
has gone in for the American fash
Ion without modification, has been
particularly lucky this season, and
even Sam Loates, Tod Sloanes ancient
rival, although too old to adopt the
American principles altogether, has
bowed to its superiority by moving his
saddle further forward and shortening
his stirrups.
Drama of the Derby.
Perhaps the fidelity of the British
public to the Derby Notwithstanding
the steadily increasing number of 9TH
Ell important meets is to be account
ed for by that races Infinite variety"
It always has been essentially a race
OF great surprises, of romantic and
picturesque happenings; one that in
frequently is run without beggaring
some rich man, launching a poor one
into prosperity or witnessing the tri-
amph of some dark horse.
That Is one of the singular points, the
persistence with which the favorite is
heavily backed and the almost unfailing
regularity with which he loses. When
hingcraft won the Derby he ran as an
unknown, with scarcely a pound wagered
on him. Macgregor was the favorite at
8 to 4 on and carried hundreds of thous-
ands of dollars, but was not among the
first three at the finish. The win of Sir
Hugo was the occasion of another great
| surprise and a remarkable incident. In
that race La Fleche was recognized by
NS S"ASAS SS liz pIly lililiS III lie race,
but she lost to the winner by half a
length, and the horse that came in third
was so particularly dark that no one
had even thought of betting on the beast.
The old Farmers Dream.
The queer incident happened to an old
farmer in Sussex, who usually drove over
to the race, and as usually had his "bit
on" He didn't know much about racing
not about the chances in this particular
race beyond the names of the horses, but
the night before the event he dreamed
that he saw his boys running an amateur
Derby on their farm, and that his son
Hugh won. This dream made a strong
impression on him and he believed in it
as a sort of celestial tip so firmly that he
put all the money he could scrape-$3, 500
on Sir Hugo, and the horses win secured
for him $4,000. In that race, however,
the horse with the French name had been
so popular that the bookmakers had re-
fused to take any more money on her.
They gathered in hundreds Of thousands
of dollars, and a rich banker almost went
to the wall by reason of his losses.
1t was practically the same story when
Hermit captured the Derby, winning at &c
to l against. A rich peer and a friend,
who knew little or nothing about horses.
made a wager on the result, the friend
picking Hermit to win; why, he couldn't
tell The nobleman. a little vexed, bet
him that the horse couldn't possibly win,
the amateur risking only $1,000, but the
horse was under the wire half a neck
ahead of the second best, and the noble
man was out nearly 800, 600. The story of
Jedda's victory is almost as curious. 1t
was another tyro, and had he only fol-
lowed his ~inclinations, he would nave had
tyro's luck. Dunlop was the favorite, but
the amateur bought a six-penny Tip
book" that, oddly enough, named Jedda
to win. For a moment he had an idea of
putting $3.50 on, but changed his mind and
pumped for the favorite. Nobody had
thought of Jedda as a possibility, but the
horse beat the fEvorite easily. The anna
teur lost $3.50. Had he won the amount
would have been $3.50 And yet the pub
lie continues TO back the favorite.
Like n Dime Novel.
One of the most nerve-racking incidents
ever connected with the Derby, ane one in
which a kings ransom was bet on a horse
without the tip getting abroad, was in
1862, and the horse C~aractacus. He was
not the favorite, save with his owners
private friends and stable hangers-on. but
they bet so intellectually that the
'bookies'' were laden down with their
money. The secret, however. was so we'll
kept that the odds against Caractacus
were 40 to l. A jockey who was famous
alike for his skill on the track and his
general shrewdness in betting refused to
ride the horse, when one OF the stable
boys. a midget named Parsons, volunteer
ed. Boy and horse had grown up together
and loved each other, and when the lat
ter's hackers heard who was 10 ride those
who had enough money left doubled their
bets. There We're thirty-five horses in the
race, and Caractacus won as he pleased.
There had been agony enough and TO
spare for the hackers of the lucky animal
already, but there was more 10 come. At
ter the race. when the stable boy weighed
in. he failed to turn the scale. The bride
was flung in and the beam went up. Then
along came another objection. II was de-
elared by a nobleman that the winner and
some other of the horses had not gone the
complete distance, as they were in front
of the post when the flag fell. That OBJ
lection came to nothing by the surpris-
Il inrIv lrrpkr fart that ~ had NOT haor ~r1I~