Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1914-07-25
STAR-BULLETN SPORTS : :.::s
Derby Day is the
Racing Fixture
That's Different

| 49, Ue DtTDy, Says Z A-OIIOu "TlIeT III
the New York Globe, Is far more than
mere horse race. 1t resembles
Christmas pantomIne, Yorkshire pud-
ding, London fog, and the Magma Car
Ia in being one Of the bulwarks OF the
! British nation. On Derby day the
fsfstasA Empire seems to surge back
rom thcse far-famed lands where the
| sun never sets and oVerflows upon
/ Epson Downs. Ii is true that the
| King Is there, AMI that society in its
| newest bib-and-tuckerie is paradlng
before the obliging photographer in
the gnandstand; II is true that there
are horses that run and men who ride
them, and doubtless to some these
things seem of overwhelming impor.
| lance; but they are really only the
unimportant part that gets itself into
the newspapers. The real Derby day
is known to those thousands outside
the grandstand-excursio book
les, tipsters, gipsies, hawkers, Arries
and 'Arriets from London, tramps,
beggars-flooding The Downs with a
constantly ebbing and flowing tide OF
humanity In iocular mood. The writ
er remarks, commenting upon his own
observations. there: r..
mo scene could be more typically
British-or more absolutely un-Ameri-
can--than the one presented on Ep-
som Downs. The night before
swarm OF gipsies and hedge-parsons
and heaven knows what of English
x,a ,,,hoodaoa bod oatfIad i,non tho
Downs. ! counted more than 100 gypsy
vans, and then gave up from sheer
WEAKNESS. had not covered tenth
of the territory. An itinerant parson
handed out tracts and took up col.
lections. A score of tipsters, coat
less, perspiring, worked .valiantly In
rings of supplemented, interested peo-
pie Each had thrown his coat upon.
the ground, and as the half-crowns
and shillings came in, each threw the
money upon the coat. The most
money went to the man who showed
the most money. Success begets con-
iidence A penny tipster was kept So
busy marking his cards that his agent
fairly beat the people back.
"'Giye your money to Penny Jack.
II you don't he'll give 1t back
he chanted. Jockey EASTWOOD, once
successful on the English turf, now
wearing a bright blue jockeys eos
tune and supporting himself by a
crutch because Of q missing leg, act
cd as interIocutnF for q master OF pat
ter who handed out EashWOod's tips
at shilling each.
ssScores OF bent and manned anu
blind Ten and women felt their way
through the crowds begging for pen.
mics. Vendors of lovely ellis heres
your sweet. jellied eels-all In jelly,
OH pressed their shivery' delicacy
upon persons who wouldn't eat an eel
even to oblige friend. Extraordin
argyly dirty little gypsy children, wear
ing the cut-down or tiedlp dresses OF
elders, danced for pennies through
the throng. One imp of eight or nine
years held mouthharp while he tap
ped out a dance tune with a single
drumstick held in the other. GipsyI
women pestered lovers of quiet. A
pair of young Cockneys, enjoyably
picked, put their noses together in
Weber and Fields fashion and sang:
"'H'all abo'; hall abo'; hall abo'
for h'Alabam,' to the great delight Of
Americans, who threw them pennies. |
''Men and women alike stood be-
fore the scores of open-air bars, drink |
ing their ale and whisky-sAnd were1
alike quiet and well behaved In ali i
the Derby crowd | did not see one in.
disputably drunken man or woman. |
Concertina-playing seems to be the
British workingman. Here and there
one would discover q dense clump Aof
patient, quiet people, peeriEg interest
eddy over each Others shoulders. In
the center, of the ring, his nose about
level with the knees Of his auditors,
sat a dusty minstrel squeezing away
at his whining instrument Concert
na-playing may be bad habit, but
1t is not a vice. Not one of the con.
certina specialists was begging for
pennies. Burned-cork MINISTRIES,
sweating profusely through the black
entreated dole. Clowns in dusty pier,
rot costumes worked through the
crowds.
Everywhere takers begged one TO
ave q shy at the cokernuts.' A par.
rotlike cry of 'Oly chilly rose al
intervals in the crowd, but could mott
trace 1t to its origin for some time.
Then found small man with a
great basin in his hands in which dill
pickles swan in dark mixture. Fried
fish at a penny, well larded and dust
ed, offered sustenance to the inner
man."
The Derby race-course. it appears,
has rightly been called the worst in
Europe. Not one person in fifty can
see the start, not one in twenty has
more than glimpse Of the back
stretch, and the finish is visible to
only 10 per cent of the onlookers.