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BUTTERSCOTCH II. MAKES FINE DEBUT. His First Start as a Three-Year-Old Shows Improved Form Over Last Year. By J. R. Jeffery. Saratoga, N. Y., August 21. It was n most auspicious debut that the colt Butterscotch II. made here Thursday in the colors of John W. Schorr. It was tlie son of Radiums first start as a three-year-old, and likewise his first race for Mr. Schorr, who. purchased him from Howard Oots last fall. That Butterscotch II. lias improved greatly over his two-year-old form was the unanimous opinion after he had scored so easily at the first asking of the year. Last year he had none of tlie brilliant speed -which he displayed on Thursday, and the opposition of which he made such a show was far better than that with which he was able to cope as a two-year-old. He ruled first choice for Thursdays race on the strength of a series of sensational workouts In Which his speedy stablemate, Harry Kelly, was. "unable to outrun him. In one of his recent trials he rah a half mile in 47 and followed this up by working five-eighths in 1:00. Tlie case of Butterscotch II. affords another striking illustration of the improvement which English horses sometimes show in this country after having become thoroughly acclimated. By no stretch of the imagination could it have been foreseen last year that Butterscotch II. would develop into such a speedy horse as he now is. lie had not then been in tills country long enough to become acclimated and, like so many more of the thoroughbreds brought here from England, failed to show his true form. Other notable cases of this sort include such striking examples as those of Wilfrid Viaus Omar Khayyam, champion three-year-old of the present year, and Colonel Venule, "the mainstay of Jefferson Livingstons stable. Neither of these crack horses showed such form as two-year-olds as they since have. And their cases are by no means isolated. With two such speedy three-year-olds as Harry Kelly and Butterscotch II. it looks as if the Schorr establishment is destined" to cut some figure in the sprint races to be run here and later on in Kentucky, while Cudgel will be capable of representing the stable worthily in the longer-distance races. Harry Kelly has been working well since his arrival here and is expected to face the starting barrier any day now. In fact, he was entered for the race which Butterscotch II. won, but was declared from it because Mr. Schorr felt confident of Butterscotch IIs. ability to win. Orestes First Get of Tracery to Race Here. Orestes, which raced here a few days ago in tlie colors of John Sanford, is the first of the get of August Belmonts great horse Tracery to race in America. lie is a prepossessing-looking colt, and was purchased abroad for Mr. Sanford quite as much on account of tlie blood Hires of his dam as those .of his sire. Kihlonan, his dam, is closely related to tlie great French horse Verwood. It may be mentioned while on the subject of Tracery that this noted stallieh may soon be brought to this country by Mr. Belmont for service at his Nursery Stud in Kentucky. It is significant that the advertisements of Tracerys services in the English stiid publications for the present year did not include tlie usual announcement that he would be available for return service next year. It is needless to suggest that Tracerys importation would greatly enrich American blood lines. Oscar Lewisohns good horse Benevolent failed to show any of his accustomed speed when he went to the post for his first race of the year in tlie Luzerne llighweight Handicap, for which he carried top weight at 133 pounds. And this in spite of tlie fact that he had worked well for the race. He-was a distant last from start to finish, and it may be expected that he will show improvement the next time he goes to tlie post. There was a general disposition among turfmen in close touch witli tlie inner workings of affairs to look upon the bidding up of R. T. Wilsons Mann-clien and Kilhlee at Saratoga Thursday by M. P. Reynolds as having some connection with the rulings which have barred J. W. Hedrick from participation in the racing on the New York tracks and elsewhere. Mr. Wilson is looked upon as Hedricks representative, and if inquiry develops this to be correct, tlie interesting question arises as to where It will be possible to race these horses. It is learned that the law Which already exists against the Hedrick stable will be extended to include Oriental Park at Havana, where the Hedrick horses raced last winter. Virginia Yell Appears to Be Trained Off. Ruth Law, which finished last after showing keen early speedin .the opening race at Saratoga Thursday, was tlie most highly regarded of the fillies in the juvenile division of the big stable which Albert Simons raced for Harry Payne Whitney in Maryland last spring. She had won her only preceding start at the beginning of the year, and it is natural to expect that she will show improvement when next she races, since she had been on the shelf all summer. Virginia Yell, after having been a keen contender in nearly all of the many races he has participated in since he made his debut in Maryland early last spring, appears to have trained off, having failed to place in his last two starts here. Tom McTaggart, by winning the Red Cross Handicap Saturday decisively disposed of any doubt as to his ability to stay as well as sprint. In yesterdays race he did what few horses will do when he made a successful second challenge after Westy Hogan had succeeded in shaking him off in a well-sustained earlier drive. The horses game-ness was thoroughly tested, and he emerged from the test with flying colors. It transpires that when he was beaten so soundly a few days ago on the occasion of his first attempt to go a mile that he was the victim of repeated interference and that jockey Knapp finally pulled him up instead of persevering with him. George J. Longs high-class mare Kathleen was the cynosure of all eyes while being saddled in the open-air paddock for the race in which she made such a show of her opposition Saturday. She is a real turf queen, both in appearance and performance, and if is evident that just now she is at the top of her form.
