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MORE BAD WEATHER Downpour Again Changes Track Conditions at Fair Grounds. Favorites Win All But Two Races Parke Fails on Thimble, but Rides Three Winners. - NEW ORLEANS, La., Jan. 3. The heavy downpour during the night caused a change in track conditions for this afternoons Fair Grounds racing. The combination of threatening and cold weather, together with the ordinary racing offering, resulted in the attendance being confined to regulars. Betting activities were also curtailed as a result of the unpropitious conditions and the thirty-seven layers, a falling off of five from yesterday, was not overly taxed with business. Lucky for them that the play was a bit light, for favorites were much in the limelight during the day, five of the first choices getting home in front and the two others finished in third place. Two beaten favorites. Thimble and Apology, were ridden by Parke, but that rider made amends for these failures by landing three other winners. Some were inclined to charge Thimbles defeat to poor riding. She contested with three others in the mile handicap and, because of her previous start, in which she showed a smashing performance by landing in second place, she was regarded as having todays race at her mercy. According to rumor Parke was expected to ride a waiting race witli her. But the start found the .youngster hustling his mount along in the thickest of contention. Red Arrow at first carried her at a sharp pace fora half mile and "when he retired Solisa and Lord Granite both made determined challenges. She held to her task in fine style and at the stretch turn seemingly had-disposed of her opponents, but suddenly Solisa came with another bid and, going gamely in the last sixteenth, gradually wore Thimble down- and won by a length. Thimble began sprawling from exhaustion right at the end and Lord Granite beat her by a nose for second place. The early usage she was subjected to might have been responsible for her defeat. Parke rarely makes a mistake, but if-he had waiting instructions he showed poor judgment in subjecting her to the exhaustive effort in the early stages that left her limp and unable to stall off the final challenges of her strongest opponents. Solisa was somewhat of a "good thing" and attracted a good deal of support, but in no wise near the volume that Thimble enjoyed. PARKES BEST RIDING SKILL. Parke displayed his best riding skill in the following dash astride of the non-staying Smart Guy. which by careful nursing, coaxing and hard urging right at the end succeeded in landing a scant neck in advance of Trooper, with the veteran Ettahe only a short margin in back of the pair. With riders reversed, Parke could have landed any one of the two that finished in back of him the winner. Ettahe was particularly unlucky not to win, for he ran as if best and only . the poor riding he received brought about his defeat. Parke also showed a masterly ride on Tan Son in the closing dash. He had ,to hustle him in the early stages and nurse carefully in the stretch when the horse was inclined to swerve and give it up to land in front of Tingling. On Hidden Jewel in the third race it was simply a case of a veteran against a novice, Parke outgeneraling and outriding the diminutive L. Lang on Lorena Marcellia to win by a scant length. Had a strong, skillful rider been astride Lorena Marcellia she might have won. Two-year-olds were given an opportunity in the initial dash, and it resulted in victory for Dress Goods, ridden by E. Pool, which won in a canter and looms as a possible star. She began alertly and dashed into a good lead with dispatch and was only under a canter at the end. Evelyn, carrying the colors of Jefferson Livingston, had a hard time getting up to beat Mabel C. for second place. The Audley Farm Stables My Biddy unseated T. Murray when the start came, and that rider was knocked out for quite a while. He sustained a sprained arm and will be out of the saddle for a while. Tambon, a second choice in the betting, was the winner of the second race. He led from the start, but had to be hard ridden in terrific fashion right at the end to beat Goldmark and Apology.
