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GOSSIP OF THE TURF. Jockey H. Cochran has .left New York for his western home in Missouri. But before going he was engaged for the season of 19 3 by the Lotos stable through trainer E. Heffner. The papers have not yet been signed, but the ongaeement is settled, and tho lad will sport the "all pink" next spring on the eastern tracks. While the Lotos stable does not figure in the list of big winners for 1902, by the aid of its two-year-olds a considerable sum was laid by for winter hay and oats. Miladi Love, Enight of Gold and Chicle earned their keep, while The Guide, Wheeler B., Lady Knighthood and other youngsters showed well enough to warrant the supposition that the three-year-old division of this stable will be a strong one next year. Belle of Lexington also earned a share, and as she is sound may be raced another season. The Lotos stable was a liberal purchaser of yearlings this season, and jockey Cochran will have plenty of material to work on when business begins. The New York Sun of December 3d has this to say of H. P.Whitneys retirement from the turf: "Harry Payne Whitney has sold out his interests in the two-year-old colts Acefull and Irish Lad to his racing partner, Herman B. Duryea, and has retired from active participation in turf affairs for the present at least. This news was confirmed by W. C. Whitneys private secretary last night in the absence of yonng Mr. Whitney, who could not be located by The Sun. It seems that tho letters interest in Acefull was sold to Mr. Duryea before tho colt sailed for England to bo trained for the Derby, while the transfer of Irish Lad has taken place since that time. Mr. Duryea now owns Acefull and Irish Lad outright, but whether Acefull will carry his colors in the Derby or those of W. C. Whitney is a question which cannot be definitely answered just now. acefull was shipped to England along with the elder Mr. Whitneys colt Slipthrif t, and is now under the care of John Huggins, who trains all of the Whitney horses on the other side. It is barely possible, some people believe, that Acefull will be passed over to Mr. Whitney before tho Derby is run. John S. McDonald, who has had charge of numerous consignments of thoroughbreds from America to England and back, has just returned from the other side. He says that the prospects of the American stables in England next year are ptrtic-ularly bright. When asked if Tod Sloan had a chance to be reinstated by the English Jockey Club McDonald said that Sloan ttood an equal chance with Madden and Rickaby, who wore recently Bet down and who are not in high favor just now with the English turf authorities. When seen on his return to America from Russia "Cash" Sloan had this to say of turf matters in the land of the czar: "The English riders never had a look in, but one Pole named Boris like the duke, and two Russians Eassackath and Bolentoff were really good jockeys. They copied the American seat in the saddle and rode with fair success, improving steadily as they became more experienced." "Morgan won the Warsaw Derby on a horse called Brave Lesanncy. This ia tho richest of all the racing events, and is worth 35.C00 rubles, or 7,E00. "The next biggest race is the Moscow Derby, and this fell to Mitchell, who. rode Sirdar to victory, trained by Jack Keene. "By the way, Sirdar is the bsst horse I ever saw on a soft track. He looks for all the world like the American horse, Ethelbert. "Mitchell also won the St. Legqr at St. Petersburg. I was second on Santiago, not the old fellow Lucky Baldwin used to own, but another bearing the same name. Rutter was third on Burlock. "The tracks in Russia are circular and, usually, a mile and a third in circumference. They use the starting gate for tho youngor horses and send the older fields away with a barrier. "The fields are large, consisting in most cases of from fifteen to twenty horses. The racing stewards are very strict as to foul riding or crossing, but are, at the same time, extremely fair and nono of us over got into trouble. " The betting is all done by tho mutual system. The government manages the pools and gots a rake-off of 10 per C8nt. of tho money watered. No one can make a bet of less than ten rubles, and ho never knows the price until after the race is run. "The betting, however, is light, and the sport is therefore clean. The stables are all owned by wealthy noblemen, who love to see their horses run and care little about gambling. They run from ten to twelve races a day in tho summer time, beginning at 4 :30 oclock in the afternoon and ending at 10 oclock at night. The climate is much the same as ours, a trifle cooler, perhaps. The weather was unusually wet last season. " I was amused at the stories printed in the American papers about Joe Piggotts being broke in Memphis and begging for funds with which to go to Frisco. Piggott rode all season in Russia and when I left was well fixed. He hasnt seen Memphis in a year at least." John E. Madden writes from Lexington that lie has been compelled to abandon his idea of racing a stable at New Orleans this winter. The illness of his foreman, Hiram Steele, is given as the reason for the shift. H. Michaels, who went to New Orleans under contract to ride for Madden, is left without an engagement. This means a chance for some one to pick up a fair boy at a bargain, as Madden is willing to sell the call he has on his services. The Bennings delegation got to New Orleans Monday morning from Washington. They made the trip.in good shage.ond before, nppnall jvore h,ousodr at the fair grounds and -in the stables surrounding the track. Among the different horsemen who arrived wore J. J. MacEessey, P. S. Roberts, J. Dumas, W. French, C. Mack, Moor and McCourt. Yic Hollar, W. Dunke and Frank Bray. Among the riders were Gannon. Rice, Milburn, Blake and Michaels. For ,CO0, P. J. Gorman, of Cincinnati, purchased of trainer Wesley Fields at Lexington last Monday the two-year-old bay colt Lem Reed, by Victory Mertie Reed, and the colt has bean shipped to Owensboro, Ey. where the Gorman racing string is wintering. Lem Reed is one of the most sensational two-year-olds over trained at Lexington, running a half mile in 4 I seconds and five furlongs in 1:01 over tho Eentucky Association track this. fall. He has never started in a race. Clarence McDowell and paddock judge Hall have arrived at New Orleans from Bennings. Mr. McDowell reports that the meeting at Bennings was the most successful one ever held at that track, Tho gate showed an increase of 0,000 over last fall the total receipts being 05,000. The Washington Jockey Club is now a member of the Jockey Club. This means that they will be allotted dates without the formality of applying for a license in the future. Judging from the following, taken from a Cincinnati paper of December 5, work will soon begin in earnest on the Newport race track: " After a lengthy conference with Frank Fowler yesterday morning John J. Ryan, accompanied by Detective Billy Jackson and Attorney Nolan, of St. Louis, went to the First National Bank in Newport and made deposits of 5V0C0. One deposit of ,f00 was placed to tho credit of John J. Ryan individually, and the other of 5,000 was to the credit of J hn J. Ryan and Frank F. Fowler jointly. " That 5,CC0, said Ryan, as ho displayed tho bank books, is to be used to pay carpenters, glaziers, steamfitters, andc, for the inclosing and heating of the grandstand and tho betting shed at the Newport track. The work will be begun Monday, and the contractors inform mo that they will have everything in apple pie order for tho opening of the winter mooting two weeks from Saturday. There may be a few people in this neck of tho woods who think that I am four-flashing about this mooting; people who may harbor the idea that I am out with a bluff to whip tho Western Jockey Club into letting me booic at the New Orleans mooting. Well, I never was more in earnest about a proposition than I am about this winter meeting, and I never saw opeuiug for an investment that looked bettor. Ian As far as booking at New Orleans is concerned, I have the crows in tho ring at tho Crescent City meeting, but Mr. Bush doesut seem to ba able to CONTINUED ON FOUETH PAGE. GOSSIP O V THE TURF. Continued from First Pago. locate them. They are there all right, and he is getting his 00 a day from each of them. I guess his objections were more to my name than to my money. That 00 a day is pretty sweet to him just now. " Starter C. J. Fitzgerald is rapidly educating the many green boys who are riding at New Orleans. The curriculum includes the barrier and no rcall system. "In a short while," Baid Fitzgerald recently, "I expect to have the boys well in hand. New Orleans is different from most race tracks. Many of the boys are beginners and have to be taught everything. Once they learn to keep a horse straight, the rest is easy with the no recall system. The starter has simply to make sure that the horses are in lino facing the barrier and thon press tho button. "But mistakes often happen over which he has no control. For instance, a mare like Lennep, which was left at the post last Monday, cannot be well controlled. She is a sulker, and often refuses to break. She may be in exactly the right position when the barrier goes up and still be left standing-. A horse like W. J. Deboe, which runs out at the start, is also difficult to manage. Last time out he was perfectly straight when the barrier went up, but broke, going sideways, and carried a couple of other horses over to the fence, making a very good start appear a straggling one. Such a horse should be set a length behind the others, so that ho cannot interfere with the others after the break. " With horses of the Lennep type, which refuse to leave the barrier, I have determined to have their owners school them until they learn to break like the rest. "There are some notorious actors, like Jerry Hunt, Tom Collins and Prince Blaze9, that nothiag can change. With those we will, have to do the best we can. Unlike good horses, nothing ever happens to them and they are long lived. Wo must expect to have them with us for many meetings." Charles Ellison has shipped four of his string to Montgomery Park. They are Skilfnl, Ljman Hay, Daddy Bender and Judge Himes. Lyman Hay, Daddy Bender and Judge Himes will bo restod up until next spring, while Skilful will get his preparation for the Qrescent City Derby ovor the Memphis track. Lyman Hay was goiDg alone well in his work at New Orleans and gave promise of 1 W proving- more than a useful colt this winter. Ho pulled up lame after showing a half mile in 491 sec onds, and will now go on the inactive list for the remainder of the winter. Sam Hildreth sent back his string in the same car. The condition of the track prevented his setting them in shape, and they will be fitted at Memphis for their engagements at New Orleans later in the meeting:. The passing of the starter as an important factor in running race meetings was noted recently at St. Louis, when an informal contract was concluded for equipping the Fair Grounds race track with mechanical starting devices. President Tilles, of the Fair Grounds Association, has given Frank Carr an order for his improved machine, which will be used next season at the May meeting. The machine was given a private and public trial during the season closed, and was pronounced a-success by all who witnessed the trial. Since the trial machine first appeared Carr has made many improvements, notably the lossening of its weight and j strengthening of the barriers in front of the stalls which hold the racers.
