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... I. .L SOME VIEWS OF AN ENGLISH EXPERT Sceptres Daughter a Freak of Breeding Plea for Recognition of Hanovers "Worth. It might have been accounted almost certain that Swynford, with such a mate as Sceptre, would sire something at least as big and heavy as himself, for Sceptre herself is pretty massive, after the style of her sire Persimmon, and Swynford is by John oGaunt, whose stock are mostly distinguished for size and weight. Nevertheless, the two-year-old filly by Swynford Sceptre is a marvel of quality and" erring, if at all, on the small side. It is clear enough that in her case the La Fleche blood of John oGarunt has nicked with the St. Simon in Persimmon, and this is the more interesting because neither John oGaunt nor Persimmon have proved to be pure dominants as regards color. Sceptres Daughter shows clearly enough that St. Simon charter can be transmitted, all the same, and it is, perhaps, worth noting in this connection that Sceptre herself has proved to be a pure dominant, although she is by Persimmon a Bend Or mare, whereas Collar, which was by St. Simon himself, dam the same mare, got almost as many chestnuts as he did bays or browns. It might, perhaps, be reasonable to anticipate from this that Sceptre inherited more of St. Simon than did Collar, whose stock seldom, if ever, had any St. Simon about them, to look .it, and hence it may be that the La Fleche touch, through John oGaunt, brought St. Simon to the front again. I wrote just now that Sunstar may be the best mate that has been hitherto selected for Sceptre and notwithstanding this 6,100 guineas for Sceptres Daughter I am still of the opinion, for this beautiful filly is almost in the nature of a freak to be so bred, and a brother or sister to her might be of elephantine proportions with the most fleshy of joints. It would be odds against the St. Simon "nick" striking right home a second time, being, as it is, on the third, remove on both sides. Sunstar, of course, represents a complete outcross for Sceptre, except in so far as he, too, is a tail-male descendant of Vedette. Hanover Blood. , It has happened more than once that the Speculum and Galopiu lines of Vedette have come together with first-rate results, notably in the case of Flying Fox, but perhaps the most valuable part of Sunstars pedigree is his Herod dam, Doris, which came like badly wanted rain in the midst of a Darley Arabian drought, and was eagerly assimilated almost at once with the best of winning results, of which Sunstar and Princess Dorrie are the principals. It is, unless I am vastly mistaken, for a precisely similar reason that Hanover blood, through Orbys dam has been so successful in this country, where the Glencoe, through Pocohontas, so badly needed relief. It is a great pity that the stewards of the Jockey Club, when they made their last ruling as to the stud-book entries of imported stock, did not exercise a dispensing power in favor of Hanover, which I have always recommended as a suitable exception from any exclusive rule, by reason of his supreme merit as a racehorse and as an individual, and also because he was a tale mail descendant of Glencoe, through that horses best son. Vandal, to which also he was inbred. Moreover, Hanover was from a mare by Bonny Scotland, son of Queen Mary, and this again gave him a free line of blood that has been almost overworked through the lines remaining in England. A horse like Sir Martin ought not to be kept out of the General Stud Book because his dam was by Hanover. It ought not to be forgotten that the same rule would have excluded Orby. I am all in favor of the rule as a general principle, but have never, since I saw Hanover in 1SS7, failed to state my opinion, for what it is worth that he, at any Rite, ougt to be treated as an exception to any such rule and on that point I have less doubt than ever, now that Orby has proved to demonstration the extreme value of Hanover blood. This subject is one which the stewards of the Jockey Club and Lord Jersey might do well to consider carefully. I mention Lord Jersey, because he was mainly instrumental in bringing about the stud book ruling as it at present exists. His lordship may, perhaps, remember that in discussing this question, before any decision was arrived at, I always pleaded for an exception in favor of Hanover. It Will not be long now before we shall have many runners by Sir Martin, and it will cause great confusion if they are not in the stud book, while Orbys runners are, and it will pass the wit of most men to explain such a phenomenon, as both horses are sons of Hanover mares, and, in Sir Martins case that is the only American line in his composition. W. Allison in London Sportsman.
