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CHIEF OF ALL STAKES AT SARATOGA Conditions of the Saratoga Special and Hopeful Stakes with Probable Contestants As affairs now stand the two richest prizes of the Saratoga meeting are for twoyearolds the Saratoga Special and the Hopeful Stakes The Special Is truly a sporting affair on oldtime lines Far back In American racing owners not Infrequently got to ¬ gether and as the result of banter and retort devised sweepstakes of big amounts each the result to the winner approximating the values of the richly en ¬ dowed stakes of modern days Such was the great sweepstakes of 5000 each won by Peytona in 1844 The Special Is a sweepstakes of 1000 for each subscription half forfeit An owner may take as many subscriptions as he pleases at 1000 and name three horses for each subscription But he can only start one out of each three If he starts nothing he Is out MM forfeit for each subscription Thus in this years SpecIaU John E Madden took three subscriptions For the first he nominated Schleswig Lawton Wiggins and Joe Madden for the second Sir Martin Connaught Ranger and High Range for the third Fayette Ilarrignn and Ed ¬ ward The net result is that he is entitled to start three horses if he chooses to do so Heretofore the association added gold plate of the value of 2500 but this year a silver cup or trophy of the value of 25O is all that is added so the owners inter ¬ ested run almost exclusively for their own money The whole sum goes to the winner the second and third horses taking nothing The event should net 10000 or more this year fourteen subscriptions having been taken The takenThe Hopeful is on different lines It Is a produce stake the first subscription being of mitres at 10 each which renders their produce eligible without further payment until a named subsequent date The value to the winner is contingent on the number ot mares entered The value of the event has fluctuated from the 29790 of Tanyas year down to the 10490 won by Mohawk II Last year it netted Jim Gaffney 17500 So far as the Sara ¬ toga Association is concerned it is the most costly race of the meeting 5000 being added It is a race of penalties and an allowance the extreme penalty being eight pounds while the allowance is one of seven pounds to horses not having won 1OOO This race closed November C 1905 with 401 nominations of which 1C5 were void Declara ¬ tions have reduced the number of eligibles to fifty six sixJohn John E Maddens formidable pair Sir Martin and Fayette are in both of these rich events and have been in particular training with a view to adding them to their already imposing list of vic ¬ tories In the light of their racing over the metro ¬ politan tracks it will be hard to prevent them from doing so But other owners want those stakes also and will not fail to send their best youngsters out to do battle In the Saratoga Special August Bel monts Practical James B Bradys Quick March or District Attorney H B Duryeas Strike Out F A Forsythes High Private James R Keenes Helmet Melisande and Wamba or Wedding Bells John San fords Duncraggan Van Den or Hoffman and H P Whitneys Hillside Bobbin The Vicar County Fair or Sixty will furnish the opposition Most of these have been beaten by the Madden pair Of those that have not started the Sanford youngsters and Bradys pair are unknown quantities The Brady colts Quick March and District Attorney are both by Meddler and were bought at high prices when the Mackay yearlings were sold last year Jligh Private is a good colt and has been given a special preparation for this event His owner Fred For sythe considers him the equal of anybodys colt Victor over Fitz Herbert and Preceptor in separate races his racing credentials are of the best He lias not started since his defeat by Melisande in the Laureate Stakes at Belmont Park in which he was an unlucky colt He will surely be one of the favorites favoritesBut But public expectation will turn to the Keene stable for the possible conqueror of the Madden cracks Of the half dozen representing the stable it is almost sure that Helmet and Melisande will be the selected ones Both are doing famously at Saratoga Helmet was beaten by both Sir Martin and Fayette in the Great Trial Stakes at Sheeps head Bay but there was that in his running that led shrewd turfmen to conclude that with more seasoning he might prove able to reverse the running of that rich stake As for Melisande it is sure that she is the best twoyearold filly of the year except Trance and a very highclass young mare indeed There is the usual talk about the comparatively untried ones in the Keene stable talk about Wedding Bells being the star for in ¬ stance but the probability Is that Mr Keene played his trumps in the big Sheepshead Bay stakes and that the two named are his best twoyearolds The hope of the Keene stable must repose in the theory that the Madden colts were at their absolute best at Sheepshead Bay while the Keene youngsters were not entirely ripe and for that reason are more susceptible of further development and im ¬ provement This may prove to be the case it be ¬ ing in line with what lias been frequently wit ¬ nessed on the turf turfThere There is a gelding in the Special that is unsur ¬ passed for speed by any other eligible That one is Herman B Duryeas Strike Out He is by Grif ¬ fon Pillowdex and his work as a yearling was such that Duryea gave 515000 for him last fall In his racing he has shown meteoric speed but un ¬ luckily for his owner has so far failed to main ¬ tain it far enough If he could do for six fur ¬ longs what he has done for three he would simply lose the other aspirants He may improve in abil ¬ ity to stay as the season advances There is one thing to be considered in connection with the Spe ¬ cial and that is that there are no penalties and al ¬ lowances weightsIn They all carry the regular stake weights In general what has been said about the Saratoga Special candidates applies to the Hopeful nomina ¬ tions the entries being nearly the same High Private however is not in the latter event nor is Melisande As unknown possible factors H P AVhitney has in the brown colt Sixty by Diamond Jubilee Miss Hamburg and an unnamed chestnut colt by Persimmon Urania What these two sons of the two great English sires can do Is confined to the stable They certainly represent the extreme of high breeding Mr August Belmont has an Englishbred one among his nominations that early in the year was rumored to be a coming star of the track This Is the bay colt Melodeon by Collar Mem Sahib Collar Is the sire of the good race horse Frank Gill Mr Keene has in as a dark one about the last of the Commando representatives in the chestnut colt Ultimus by Commando Running Stream The Saratoga Special will be run Saturday Au ¬ gust S and the Hopeful Stakes on the last day of the meeting Saturday August 15
