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i I I i 1 i j ! ! I i 1 j ; j 1 1 ] j , j 1 j j I I j . 1 1 ■ 1 LAURELS FOR BE FRANK Earns Title of Long Distance Champion of : West by Defeating Muioiber. TIJUANA, Mexico, April 17.— From this far western country goes out the word that a, ; combined Mercury and Sampson edition of thoroughbred will take a lot of beating in his eastern campaign next summer. If he runs in his class under scale weight his ; form of Sunday proclaims that the cream of the eastern runners must reckon with him and woe be to the horse which concedes him any appreciable weight over a, long distance of ground. This is Be Frank, which won the long-dis I tance championship of the western turf by showing Mulciber the way every inch of the mile and an eighth in the special contest that was the feature of Sundays racing. Owner George P. Fuller sent a rejuvenated Be Frank to the post to vanquish his rival, Mulciber, which had made him look extremely amateurish in the running of the 0,000 Coffroth Handicap of this year. It probably would have been difficult to | have set the stage for a match race with ; more appropriateness by having any other , thoroughbreds as contestants. Great has been the rivalry between Be Frank and Mulciber since owner G. R. Allen brought the ! latter here from New Orleans. The orange : and black colors of owner Fuller were in-! gloriously trailed in the dust when Mulciber and Be Frank hooked up in the Coffroth Handicap, and this despite the fact that the ; latter had won this feature of the western turf in the 1921 winter season. In exactly one minute fifty-two and one-fifth seconds the big strapping son of Sir . John Johnson, which as a three-year-old wen the Latonia Derby and the Latonia Cup, took the measure of the black son of Vulcain. and j lie did it impressively enough to dispel all doubts as to which was the better horse over , a route when equally weighted. The weights were 115 pounds for each and while su;-h poundage was a light impost for Be Frank ; undoubtedly was appreciated by him. It seems well established that the winner could j have given Mulciber quite a concession in 1 weight and still have been returned victorious. ANOTHER BIG CROWD PRESENT. Interest in match races would seem to 1 never die in this winter capital of the thoroughbred • sport Here it was Sunday being ; manifested at every hand, evvn though tiie 1 meeting has been a long one, and tangible i proof of the hearty support given the horse 1 here is gleaned from the officials records 1 that on this, the 121th day. the attendance ■ was the third heaviest and the speculation in 1 the mutuel machines was also on a par • with that for the Coffroth Handicap, which [ established a record for Tijuana. The charm of a "day at the races" could [ not be other than irresistible Sunday. A . card of ten races, a match race to decide a . championship and two other handicaps proved an offering in quantity and quality which even the most bored follower of the runner could smile on and patronize. It was Easter weather. Bright and early a benevolent Bon peeked from the heavens, , a gentle breeze flitted across the green fields ; of Mexico from the immaculate white of the ■ beaches along the Pacific and as early as 1 9 oclock milady had decided that the show ■ place of the day would be the Tijuana race ■ track. Each train arriving at the gates 1 brought a big crowd and in the interim a 1 steady stream of motor cars added numbers i to the gathering. The promenade and the l clubhouse were a pocket edition of Fifth Avenue and whether the smartly -gowned at ■ : ; ; I | ; , ! : ; . j , ; j 1 1 • ; 1 i 1 1 ■ 1 • [ [ . . tracted more attention than the horses under their colorful silks is a debatable question. Certain it is that the exponents of fashion were in evidence and that admiring glances were given them except by the few who were so thoroughly interested in King Horse that they were totally oblivious to anything but prices and winners. STORY OF THE RACE. The story of the championship race is briefly chronicled. Be Frank, the choice at 3 to 5 and Mulciber held at even money, breasted the tape and were away on equal terms in a moment. Jockey Ray Carter, who shared with Be Frank the limelight of the day. took his mount right to the front and displayed unexpected shiftiness in negotiating the first turn. Be Frank set the pace under restraint with Mulciber varying in distance behind from one to two lengths. As the two gallant thoroughbreds turned for home Be Frank went a trifle wide and here jockey C Duggan on Mulciber made the most of the only chance he had. He kept his horse close to the inside rail, but, despite the added distance that Be Frank traveled, jockey Carter had the horse under him. In the stretch run both jockeys went to the whip, but Be Frank, never losing any appreciable part of his ad- vantage, was winner by one and a half lengths. Motion picture cameras turned la with the rounds of cheering for the winner and a few minutes later the greatest match ever held in the West in the last decade could be classed as history. Jockey Carter, a western rider, whose engagements have been limited at the meeting on account of poor health, usurped the saddle honors for the afternoon, for, in addition to Be Frank, he had winning mounts on Diland, Toombeola and Sunnyland, the lat- ter also being from the Bronx Stable, which is operated by Mr. Fuller. The victory for Sunnyland came in the fifth. a handicap at three-quarters mile. He had speedy sprinters to measure strides with and was considerably outpaced to the last turn. Here he moved up like a meteor and, choosing a path on the outside of his opponents, : teadily mowed them down. A sixteenth out he showed his head in front and. under vigor- ous riding, he won by two and a half lengths over Arctic King, which in a resolute iinish outstayed Kinglike. After winning important stakes here East Indian, installed favorite in the other handicap of the afternoon, which was at one and an eighth miles, was forced to bow in defeat to three others, for this son of Delhi finished fourth. Glen Well, which was winner in a smashing effort Friday, moved up fast alter turning for home. He answered quickly to the call of jockey Thomas and wore Veteran down to win going away. Breeze, which was hard ridden throughout, was third and as for East Indian, lie did not appear at his best and the concession in weights to the others probably had much to do with him racing somewhat disappointingly. It was announced Sunday night by Mr. Fuller that Be Frank would leave for New York Monday.
