New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-05-27
Belmont Park Racing
Centre Next Tuesda,
The Metropolitan Handle.
Will Be Feature Of
Opening Card
BY FRANK O'NEILL

/
The twenty-ffth running Of IN. ~
toric Metropolitan Handicap, with ~.
I leading stake horses Of the eou,,r.
4 named 70 start, will be the feature :,
! the inaugural day Of the Westehss,..
Racing Associations spring meetins
For seventeen days the thorors,
breds will hold forth at the besos;ta,
Long Island course, and no fewer o..
| eighteen stake races will prov;S.
thrills for the crowd.
II. G.. Hallenbeck's sturdy It'll. N..L
horse, The Finn, has been assirnsd "a
the post OF honor in the Metropolt.s
! This son Of Ogden. which woa IL -.
| last year, will pack l27 pounds o,,,
the one-milc journey. while Ausu.,
| Belmont's Stromboli and Andrsv Nj
ler's Roamcr are second viii ,,s
pounds.
Derby Winner Enters
Dodge. which will carry the eolou
, Of A. <. Macomber, is asked 70 pieI
up l25 pounds. George Smith, IA,
winner OF the Kentucky Derby in 1915
will run, and many keen Judges o.
horses will give the stylish looking COZ
|
| chance OF winning.
These horses are so well known !,
racing enthusiasts that they reouir,
no introduction. They have tough, on,
their battles of speed and courage tim.
! and again, and have acquitted them.
/ selves with konor. The Finn ana
Stromboli will have another little dis.
pute to settle. for she chestnut Psi,
| PLAY gelding defeated the Ogden col:
in the Kings County Handicap Las.
week.
a. X. Macomber will be well repre-.
sented. His racing stable, some forty.
eight head in all. arrived at Belmei.
Park in good condition, and few "a.
! Tops 20 loosen up the muscles will msis
the horses ready for racing. Dodr
heads the list of the Californiari
entries, with Hank ODay and Did
Williams. The Cock, lie Chevesne, Sta,
Master, War Star and Stargazer FOL.
lowing along.
Hank 0'Day is in at llS pounds, Dits
/ Williams at ll3 and the others at iN
los, 1902. 100 and 81 pounds, respee.
lively. Sunbonnet, the best of the two.
year-old FLIES last year, is another
entry from this stable, and is In ct %
pounds.
The three-year-olds will make their
bow in this race, led by Campfire. the
sensation of last season. and Hourless.
which was ranked second 20 him. There
are many who insist that the Belmont
colt is fully as good as Campfire, bp.
| w. S. Vosburgh, the Handicapped, 10 no,
numbered among these. He has placed
1903 pounds on the son OF 0lambsla
while Hourless is in at two pounds less
Interest will be sustained throughou,
the meeting. The Suburban Handicap,
a stake richer in tradition than in
actual value, perhaps, is on the card.
while the Withers, the juvenile, rich
: est of the early season stakes for two
year-olds; the Fashion, the Belmont.
the Ladies and the other events will
hold the attention of the crowds The
Grand National Steepleehsse. the Ia
ternational Steeplechsse and the
Meadow Brook will attract the jumpers.
Busy Preparing Damage
Herman Pelz. superintendent Of Bel.
mont Park, has worked hard TO make
the place ready for the throng that will
flock to the course. A force Of ne.
chanics has been hard at il, and while
the spacious grandstsnd will not pre-
sent the same appearance as il drd be-
fore the big fire, there will be no cause
for complaint.
The decision Of the British author.
ties TO continue racing will have q far.
reaching and a beneficial effect upon
the sport throughout the world where
the sport of kings has foothold. For
the last 100 years racehorses have been
bred from English blood stock, and
those horses which stood out among
their fellows on the English turf have
always commanded the highest prices
throughout the world Rock Sand, Or
monde, Prince Palatine. Meddler and 8
host of others have commanded prices
which exceeded or approached 100000.
August Belmont, chairman o! the
Jockey Club, said few days ago 10
commenting on the wisdom Of the dsei-
sion:
"Thc decision of the British authsri-
ties TO continue racing will be ttt
throughout the world. The wisdom of
the action cannot be questioned. The
world owes much TO British racing, and
that debt shall increase with time. The
British turf is rich in tradition, TOO
There Is the English Derby, which hs'
been run every year since 1850 without
interruption. Were the race to q
postponed even for one year, it wouls
lose much of its glamour"
IL would seem from figures furnishes
that the British authorities did not g
deeply into the matter of grain eos
sumption by racehorses. A British
publication in a recent issue points ou
, that, although there were Approximate
ly 1000 thoroughbred horses in III
United Kingdom. fewer than half o.
them were in training. About hall q
I the total number were yearlings. Wild
feed principally on grass and consun'
little grain.
Nine Hundred Stations on Hand
There were something like 900 stall
lions devoted to thoroughbred stock, |
was said. As matter Of fact, mon
than 500 Of these we're what Is klov'
as country stations" used chiefly y
mating with country mares and han
breeds. In the last issue Of the Gsi
eral Stud Book thoroughbred fosh
were credited 20 only 400 sires. -.
more than half Of these were credits
with only one or at the most two foai
From these few figures il may >
CLEANED that Great Britain has soes
] into the horsebrecding interest meis
: deeply than We have. The best OF hs'
racing stock Is kept TO propagate w
breed, OF course, but many OF the oshs.
horses are put TO work for the bensl'
of the horse in England IL is not 80
essary at this point TO discuss the ~
portance of the horse and the part -
is playing in the war to-day.
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