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DERBY CANDIDATES August Belmonfs Messenger Im N pressive and Striking Horse Stands Sixteen Hands One Quar ¬ ter Inch with Quality Written All Over Him KKW YORK N T March 10 That most of the thoroughbreds quartered at the local tracks were out at exercise on the dirt courses for several days prior to the storni of Tuesday is a reminder that the spring racing season for 1923 is almost at hand handIn In striking contrast to last year at this time there is no sickness and every trainer reports his charges as having come through the winter period splendidly Rough coats are beginning to show that luster incidental to perfect condition and if no setbacks are encountered there will be plenty of horses for racing from the very opening of the sport this year In fact the racing should be of unusual quality as the material for it Is both plentiful and promising promisingNone None of the horses seen at Belmont Park on Tuesday last and fully half the animals quartered there were inspected before the storm assumed the violence of a blizzard Is as near a race as the muchtalkedof threeyearold Messenger in the string of Major August Belmont This splendid colt had a short but sensational campaign as a twoyearold at Saratoga being retired as a precaution after he had brushed the tendon of his off foreleg in the race for the Grab Bag Handicap which he won in such com ¬ manding style That he has apparently re ¬ covered from that mishap will be welcome news to those who admire a good horse That Major Belmont refused an offer of 100000 for Messenger from Harry Payne Whitney at Saratoga is a wellknown fact Should the colt stand training and there is every indication that he will the tendon of the in ¬ jured leg showing no sign of a bow he should richly reward his owner for the courage dis ¬ played in declining to sell The part that sentiment played in the refusal will be un ¬ derstood by those breeders who have pro ¬ duced animals of superlative quality from strains of their own developing developingWIXTEUED WIXTEUED SPLENDIDLY SPLENDIDLYThe The task of keeping Messenger from bo coming gross during the winter was admi ¬ rably met by Louis Feustel who cut the colts rations and kept him going under saddle out ¬ doors whenever possible and beneath the shed of the stable when the weather was bad On Tuesday last the big chestnut was sec ¬ ond in a string of half a dozen twoyearolds and threeyearolds that jogged five miles under cover There were creases in his heavily muscled quarters that were eloquent testimonials of his condition Messenger was perhaps the largest twoyearold in training last year He didnt need to grow any to be a glorious horse and he now stands sixteen hands one quarter inch Though large he is full of quality and will be the cynosure of all eyes the first time he goes to the paddock paddockAnother Another threeyearold in the Belmont sta ¬ ble that will command admiration is High Hand by Fair Play Haute Roche a sister to Hourless This is a maiden of great sub ¬ stance but withal a horse of rale quality He is a rich brown in color and has great length and power Like Messenger he is as sweet tempered as any gelding He has the color of Hourless but is a much bigger and thicker horse than the son of Negofol was at the same age Messenger and High Hand will be the main reliance of the Belmont stabli in this years threeyearold stakes Osprey has been gelded and that throws him out of some of his engagements He has done well through the winter and should win good races Diagram by Fair Play is an ¬ other big fine gelding among the threeyear olds that will wear the Belmont colors this year How Fair the chief hope for the filly stakes is a beauty Most unfortunate in some of her races notably the division of the Jitnlico Futurity in which she took part last fall siie should make amends for former dis ¬ appointments as a threeyearold threeyearoldThere There arc twentyone head in all in Feus tels charge and included in the band are many splendid twoyearolds whose quality will be discussed at a later date dateH H T WILSONS HOPES HOPESOther Other threeyearolds quartered at Belmont Park and whose condition is all that their trainers could ask are Wilderness and Tall Timber of the Richard T Wilson stable and Battersea Hell Gate and Purity in the es ¬ tablishment of Joseph E Widener Tom llealey is always an early bird and he was among the first to be out on the track as scon as the frost began to leave the ground Mr llealey has reason to be proud of Wil ¬ derness and Tall Timber These colts are utterly unlike in type Wilderness is more like his sire than ever a bigbodied horse on short legs His crest is high and there is a muscular quality about him that makes his stud opportunities worthy of consideration There are few more powerful muscled horses anywhere than Wilderness who will be ready for his spring engagements Plenty big enough and modeled to carry weight he should make his presence felt in the early stakes stakesTall Tall Timber Is still a bit high on the leg and hasnt as much bone for the size of his body as some would like He is a preposses ¬ sing threeyearold however with a lovely top line and speed written all over him He will be a dangerous customer in the Withers and other races at middle distances Vigil and Luminist the property of W J Salmon are the other threeyearolds in Mr Healeys care They do not compare in looks with the colts mentioned above but will be useful racing tools Vigil is small but as his trainer says he is one of the toughest horses he ever trained Luminist by Hourless has im ¬ proved some in looks and if he will run in public as he does in private he will win many races There are some fine twoyearolds in the Wilson and Salmon strings but they will have to wait for another day dayTom Tom Welsh has never had so many good looking horses since he took charge of Mr Wideners stable as are now quartered at Belmont Park in his care Naturalist Is to race again this year but is in Pennsylvania as yet Runantell after a years rest is more like his sire Broomstick than any son of that horse the writer has ever seen A round barreled big quartered horse of great muscularity he will be a welcome addition to the handicap division The best horse in the Widener barn is the threeyearold Bat tersea by Mont dOr Sunflower by Rock i Sand Though he ran disappointingly in the I Futurity after a wonderful trial it is evident Mr Welsh still believes in him There are few threeyearolds of more scope than Bat ¬ tersea He stands over a lot of ground and his bone is of the best He is more of a Rock Sand than a Mont dOr Purity by Fair Play has improved wonderfully and is now a real good looking threeyearold His trainer has hopes of Purity whose quality is enhanced by a fine cleancut head and well placed shoulder He is well muscled too his arms and stifles being unusually large Hell Gate by Friar Reck and Knights Bridge by Bridge of Karn have both developed into good threeyearolds also The twoyearolds English French and Americanbred in this stable will be referred to later The Widener string numbers twentytwo head headJohn John Loftus has twenty head for the Oak Ridge Stable Chief among the threeyear olds is Runelise the sister to Morvich A good looking twoyearold she has filled out and muscled in a way that makes her trainer smile when he looks at her This filly always had speed and she will have a chance to show whether she can stay as she is well engaged in all the filly events Runviso will not be trained until late and Drogheda being of uncertain quality the hopes of the estab ¬ lishment in the threeyearold events will be centered in Runelise and Sakah by Dr Leg go Sakah is a big strong colt that showed good form last fall The Oak Ridge twoyear olds are a fine bunch Their trainer has high hopes of them The quality of the juveniles In this establishment will be touched upjn In a future article
