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TRICK IN BAD CONDITION YESTERDAYS RACING AT COLUMBIA ATTENDED BY NUMEROUS UPSETS. Husky, Lad Beats Sager by Narrow Margin in Overnight Handicap Wire Tappers Reported to Have Successfully Bulled Off a Poolroom Job. Columbia, S. C, Decomlcr 21. Track conditions at the Fair Grounds this afternoon were the worst since the opening of racing here and brought about many upsets. A heavy storm that arose hist night left the going dillicult and uncertain and favoring the most pronounced mud runners. Threatening weather again held down the attendance. Netting was spirited and far in excess of expectations, with the layers having by far the better of the speculative argument at the end of the day. The all-aged handicap at one .mile brought together a quartet of fairly good ones, including Sager, Husky Lad and Judge Mouck, all of which were first-time starters here. The race developed a spirited struggle, with Husky Lad the winner, a small margin in advance of Sager. Sticker, the favorite, iinislied far back, in third place. Husky Lads win was a tluky one and the Schreiber horse will reverse the running at their next meeting. About the worst upset of the many that came during the afternoon, happened in the fifth race, when Haldeman and V. Powers, both backed to the ex-elusion of the others in the race, were downed in decisive fashion by Dolly Bultmau, one of the outsiders. The suicidal tactics of jockeys C. Turner and Hopkins, astride V. Powers and Haldeman re spectively, contributed to their undoing. Both horses raced as a team at a killing pace during the first three-quarters, and were exhausted when challenged by Dolly Bultmanln the stretch. Appassionata in the second raco and Western Belle in the closing dash were the only first choices that scored during the afternoon. Both were forced to do their utmost to land in front, and only did so , by the closest kind of margins. First Aid, Sewoll anil Sticker were the rank disappointments of the afternoon. Protests were lodged with Martin Nathanson, the presiding steward here, by C II. Knebelkamp and T. .1. Shannon, the latter agent for C. Woodford, against the bidding on the horses Uncle Jimmic Gray and Tom Massle by William Shields. The contention was that as Mr. Shields is in bad standing on the turf, a bid from him should not have been accepted. The matter was taken under advisement by the stewards and a wire was sent to the Southern Jockey Club otlieials to ascertain just what the ruling against Mr. Shields really amounted to. Word was received here this morning of the death of Lafe Brown, brother of II. I. Brown, who died suddenly in Jacksonville yesterday. The burial will take place in Jacksonville on Saturday. The combination book was absent from the lineup tills afternoon. The public here developed the pleasant habit of calling a number of the races one-two-three, with the result that the bank roll man decided that they were eulrely too wise for him. S. W. Streett took Anavri from B. K. Barker after the latter ran up Sea Swell the other day. The latter is reported as having developed lameness Since his change of owners. K. II. Snapper Garrison returned from Charleston this morning and, after looking over the string lie is handling for J. J. McGann, left tonight for New York, where lie goes to spend the Christmas holidays with his family. Western Belle, winner of the sixth race, was boosted after her victory and was bought in by her owner for 05, an advance of C0 over the entered price. J. W. lledrick did the bidding. As a matter of fact lie bid 00, but Judge Brady, who was doing the selling, did not near him. There was quite a stir today among race followers when it became known that a wire tapping job had probably lieen successfully put through yesterday. The manipulators resorted to the novel method of "using a declared off race as the medium by which to defraud the poolrooms. According to the information. Sir Edward was sent out as winner in the gentlemens race, with Dick Moss second and Dance-away third. The race had been declared off early in the dav because of the bad weather and track conditions. The poolroom correspondent is said to have sent out promptly the information that the race was declared off. The rooms later received information that the race was on from the wire tappers and they made it stronger later in the afternoon, by announcing Sir Edward ast the. winner, and not to excite suspicion, gave his price at 1 to 2. Dick Moss, the place horse was quoted at 2 to 1 and Danceaway, the third horse, 5 to 1. The supposition, according to those In the employ of the ioolroonis here, is that the job wis manipulated somewhere near Pittsburgh and that eastern rooms were victimized.
