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GOSSIP OF THE TURF. Concerning tbe speculative department of racing near that city, the 8 an Francisco Chronicle of last Monday says: "Never in the history of continuous racing in California have the bookmakers had such a good break as the present season. It is estimated that, the ring is 25,000 ahead. This is no idle gossip, but a carefal calculation obtained from moo in touch with the pencllers. This is one of the f eisons that a man needed little outside of a elate and a snpply of chalk. Money and handicapping skill were never so much at a discount and all the bookman needed to do was to grub the coin offered him. Favorites have been beaten with a great regularity and it seams ntbnt in vary close calls the decision ha3 favored the bookmakers rather than the speculative public. Such a phenomenal streak of luck for the bookmakers cannot continue much longer. Saturday was a great day for the books, but they can hardly expec. another such day during tbe Reason. "The biggest winners at preeent are John Coleman, Joe Harlan and Fhil Archibald. These three pencilers are fully 5,000 ahead. Coleman encountered the worst kind of luck during the last season, and he will have to win many another thousand to even up, but he has made a good start this year. Jack AtkinB, who is booking for Johnny Humphreys, iB ,000 to the good. Applegate and Hoffman, of St. Louis, are both several .thousands winner. Hugh Jones has already cleaned up ,000, and several of the new books are good winners. W. Lang-ford has made a success of tbe Olympic Club book and cleaned up ,500 in one day. "Last year the season opened up in the most disastrous style for the bookies, and many a bank roll was consumed before the season was a month old." "Billy" Barrick, well known to Chicago racetrack habitues, has been phenomenally favored by Dame Fortune during the past few motths ad at Bennings led all the sensational plungers. In the course of a recent talk with a newspaper man he gave this account of his lucky adventures: "After many ups and downs I borrowed 00 daring the MorriB Park meeting from a Canadian friend and played the bank. After an all-night session I was 0,000 to the good. After an interval of a day I returned to the bank and played all night, quitting 1,000 richer, "From that time I prospered in all my speculations. I won over 6,000 at the Morris Park meeting and went to the Aqueduct track well heeled, as the boys Bay. There I ran Sir Guy, a colt belonging to me. I got 30, 25 and 20 to 1 against him, and won nearly 0,000 on him. It was one of the biggest killings I ever made. I beat the Aqueduct meeting good and then came to this city. "To show yon that a man when in lnck cant do anything wrong, I telegraphed to a couple of friends to place several thousand dollars on Sir Guy when he was beaten here by Boyal Sterling, What was the result ? That night when I returned to the hotel I opened a telegram I had received just as I left the track and found that my friends were unable to place my money on Bir Guy because tbe poolrooms had refused to take it. Thats luck, aint it ? "During the fifteen days racing here I have had only three losing days. Xho other twelve days have netted me a big profit on my investments. I have backed horses at all kinds of prices and won a big mejority of them. Just how long this good fortune will continue I cant say. But 1 can stand it as long as old Dame f Fortune is willing to throw it at me. Should my good luck desert me I suppose I will go broke egain. That is the fortune of all speculators." In relation to the refusal of the California Jo ckey Club to receive his entries the San Frandn-cisco Bulletin represents Mr. Corrigan as saying: The least said about the matter tbe better it will be for racing. If the California Jockey C lub bad not given it to the paper I would not have mentioned it. When trouble can be averted I believe in averting it. In regard to the entries, all that I have to say is that they were solicited. An agent of the Jockey Club as ked me to patronize their stakf a, and I told my clerk to make out a list. I thick I sent over eight entries in all. I might have sent them anyhow, but I know I would cot have sent them when I did if he had not solicited the entries. If there is any feeling against me at Oakland I am clad they returned the entries, for I never want to race where I am not wanted. Thore are plenty of places where I can go without forcing myself upon my enemies. That is all I have to say." A late number of the London Sportsman gives the following records of the fastest performances on the English turf at distances from five fnrlongs up to a mile and three-quarters: Five furlongs, Le Bnff P:59 Six fnrlongs, Serpentine 1:12 One mile, Harrow 1:356 Rowley mile 1 mile, 11 ydp. Galtea More.l:10?g Ono mile and a quarter, Clarehaven 2:041-1 One mile and three furlongs. Fatherless. .2:19 One mile and a half, Nunsuch 2:379 One mile and three-quarters, Florizell 11.2:59
