The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-07-07
EMPIRE CITY
 MEETING TO
 START JULY F
Three-Year-OIdS Will Clash With Stars of Older Division On Saturday.

The Midsummer meeting of the Empire City Racing Association, which opens on Saturday next, July 12, and continues to Thursday, the 31st. at the Yonkers track, will m doubtedly furnish New Workers with splendid sport, as the best horses in training will be seen in action during that period.
 The chief attraction for the open ing day, the Empire City Handicap. with a guaranteed cash value of $5,- coo, will bring out a crack field and the talent will have a chance to de- termine whether Purchase is a, really great 3-year-old and worthy to com pete with Sir Barton for the Empire City Derby, which will be run later in the meeting, and should be one of the best races decided over New York tracks this season
 Sam Hildreth, who trains Purchase, makes no secret of the belief that this big son of OrmondaIe is a good colt Hildreth has had many a great B year-old during his career as train CT, among the best being F'itz Herbert and Dalmatian. He won the Empire City Handicap with the latter in 1910 and established a record of 1:51 for the event, which has never been ap- preached except when Roamer tied it last season with 12S pounds up. Dal- matian carried HIS pounds and horse- men have always pronounced the feat as first class in every particular. This colt was a thoroughbred of rare quality and he demonstrated that good horse can hold his own in any company by winning races in Eng land after he was sold to Ross Win ans of Liverpool.
 Purchase will not be the only g. year-old, however, in the Empire, as Be Frank, the winner of the Latonia Derby, King Plaudit and Harry Payne Whitneys Vindex, regarded by many early in the Spring as a probable champion, are all eligible. The latter after sparkling performance at Havre de Grace failed to race satis- factorily at Pimlico and Churchill Downs and Trainer Rowe sent him back to Brookdale in the hope that the tranquility of the home training grounds, where he had carried equal weights with Borrow in April and had given the old gelding sound beating, would restore him to the form which made Rowe smile as he hasn't done since the days of Commando, Colin and Sysonby.
 King Plaudit, according to his owner and trainer, George Odom, has never shown in public what he has repeatedly shown in private, that he is colt approching the topnotch division He has been troubled with cracked heels, and these may cease to be troublesome by next Saturday. Then, too, there are Roamer, Spur, Lahins, Exterminator, Sunflash End, Star Master, Midway. Tippity Witchet, Westy Hogan, Old Rosebud, Domin- ant and Corn Tassel yet to be con- sidered.
 Roamer's form this Spring has been too bad to be true. It requires the full warmth of Summer to bring out the old champions best form, and as he has always shown a preference for the resilient footing of the YonkerS course, he may be expected to run the best race he has shown this year in the Empire. He will be carrying much less weight than any of his previous essays in the handicap division.
 Spur is another candidate that may be looked for to show high form In this same event This stout son of King James had a most strenuous career as a 3-year-old in 1916, but the long rest he enjoyed last year i when he started only a few times has 1 helped him, and he Is taking his training under the watchful eye of Dick Miller at Aqueduct in a most i satisfactory manner. Spur won the l prize in 1917 for President Butler, l and if he should repeat this season he l will have earned the eNdistinction of | being the only horse to land it twice. |
 The Empire City Handicap is by l no means the most brilliant of the | many events to be decided during | the meeting, as there is the Empire 1 City Derby of $5,000 guaranteed cash | value for S-year-olds. the whirl | Stakes of $5.000 for 2-year-oIds and l many other stellar attractions. sched- | uled during the seventeen days of the ] meeting.