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o ■ i- u ,. f to 0 .. s e . J £ j" u - • • p • t il t ■ e - I- • - |. t h e e e 7 J 1 ~ e 1 " !- ie ::i ,i J, r. .. . of f jl a is s* ■ Sir r t r- •e is is ■e to to LAST OF THIS YEARS ENGLISH RACING. October 20 was the last day of the Newmarket Houghton meeting and. also the last day of flat rac- inf. probably of any racing in England this year. The knowledge of this was s:i sent a big crowd M the Heath in anything but a jovial mood. But it so happened that a vari ty of im-idents of ■ nature pleasing to the British race-going public attended the racing and the assemblage finally broke up in good spirts. In an editorial summary. London Sporting Life said of the days proceedings: "The flat racing season came to a most appropri-! ate conclusion yesterday afternoon, win n the last race resulted in a dead heat between two horses owned by an Englishman and a Frenchman. The Frenchman was M. de St. Alary, who for some time past has bad a few horses in training with Mr. Gilpin at Clarchnven. Newmarket: and the English-" man was none oilier than the Director of Recruit-" ing. Lord R.-rby. To carry the parallel still further. the two horses. Khedive III. and Hasta. are repre- sentatives of tlie broiling studs of the allied eoun-:" tries, and altogether this cementation of interest. in a sporting sense, may lie accepted as a singularly happy augury for the future. "Khedive III., which had run on so gamely into third place f.»r the Cambridgeshire, was expected to win this Final Plate, for the good and sufficient reasons that the extra distance won Id be in bis favor, and the improved going would also assist Mm. There was. nevertheless, a considerable fol-r lowing for Hasta. in spite of the fact that she was meeting Bydauil on no less than nineteen pounds worse terms as compared with the Royal Stakes at the Second October meeting, in which. it will he remembered, she Itowled over the long odds laid on the Kingsclere representative. Since then I.or.1 Derbys iillv has had a cut at Pommern — in the Limekiln Stakes on Tuesday — hut although she experienced no difficulty in accounting for Let Fly. she proved totally incapable of making the least impression on tlie Derby winner, which was giving seventeen pounds. lt might have been expected, therefore, that Rydand. enjoying the big pull referred to above, would have some sort of chance of avenging the Royal Stakes defeat, but it was not to I e. anil thus the Duke of Portlands last chalice of avoiding a blank season proved to be a hopeless one. "The great event of the day. however, turned out to be the Oueeiisherry Handicap, which Friar Mar- cits won for his majesty to the accompaniment of most enthusiastic cheering. Friar Marcus has. | er-v Imps, been the most disappointing race horse of the year -doubtless owing to the natural tendency to unduly appraise his abilities iu a classic sense. For all this, however, he was fullv and freely for-s given when he earned an exceedingly narrow victorv over the Wormleightoii iu the Great Eastern Handicap a month ago. On that occasion, th-- royal colt was g.-uerally regarded as fortunate, but yesterday. over a furlong shorter course, he again defeat.il Mr. McMickiugs co.t bv the increased margin of a half length. The news of Friar Marcus victory would be communicated p. the king Mini after-,s wards, and will, it is to be hoped, act as an aid towards speedy recovery from the effects of the accident which befell his inajeslv on the previous "Comment on the remaining races at Newmarket need only he brief. Although none of the c»m|ieti- tors for the Houghton Stakes were definitely known t be able to stay I mile. Grassland was the general choice, and Mr. J. R. Joels colt dnlv scored, though onlv after a terrific struggle with Lord Falmouths Angelina. The well-backed Boui- bita took the Criterion Nursery, and in the absence of Mr Ronald the finish for the Durham Stakes was fought out by a couple of outsiders. Mr. Gilpin. by the way. provided the favorite iu Lance Chest, and the six-year-old just missed a place. Amanthe, as anticipated, won the Two-Year-Old Maiden Plate, aud the end came, as already related, with the dead beat between Khedive III. and Hasta."
