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Here and There on the Turf Some Derby Eligible s. Short Grass Stud Mares. Influence of Tanforan. Success of Callahan. There is an additional interest to the three-year-old races at the Fair Grounds just now in the bearing they will have on the Louisiana Derby, to be decided at the Jefferson Park track on March 17. There have been several j eligibles that have come to the front during the meeting and there have been many changes in original estimates. One of the latest to come in for attention was J. C. Milams King ONeill II. His victory in the Rex Handicap Saturday gives his stock in the Derby a decided boom, for he took the measure of the Greentree Stables Rinkey. a filly that by reason of her excellent recent form had raced to real importance in any consideration of Derby possibilities. Of course, the Rex was only over three-quarters, but Rinkeys victories had also been in short races and in the Rex King ONeill II. caught her and beat her home. The filly was taking up 116 pounds to the 113 carried by the celt, but even with that advantage his was a good race. Like Rinkey, the Milam colt has been confining most of his racing to sprinting, but all of these races have their uses in making ready for the Derby. Both seem to have earned a right to try for the 5,000 race. Lester Doctor, Pathan and Idle Thoughts have al had Derby aspirations and finished back of both King ONeill II. and Rinkey Saturday. One Derby possibility changed hands in the racing of Friday when Waukulla was claimed from L. Thompson for ,750, going to" Mrs. A. Swenke. She was beaten by Deronda at a mile and seventy yards and, although it was a claiming race, it would not be surprising if both of them cut an important figure on March 17. It is just a little bit hazardous to start a good one in a claiming race, and that may have been the mistake that was made with Waukulla. It was a thoroughbred transaction of some importance when the Short Grass Stud passed to the sclc ownership of Mrs. Emil Hcrz. It has an additional importance when Mrs. Hcrz has announced, her intention of srl"ing six of her choicely bred mares to help make up the purchase price of stock that gave hsr sole control of the breeding establishment. This offers breeders another opportunity to replenish their stocks of matrons, and the list from which selections may be made is a decidedly attractive one. One of the most prized is Triple Crown, a daughter of Star Shoot and Miss Kearney and accordingly a half sister to the champion Zev. What makes this mare of great additional value is the fact that she is in foal to The Finn, which is an intermingling of the same blood that produced the Ran-cocas Stable star. All of the other mares from which selections are invited were carefully chosin and were mated with such stallions as Wildair, Spanish Prince II., Star Hawk, Peter Pan, North Star UL, All Gold, Short Grass, Jim Gaffney, Pen- nant and Chicle. Such matings should prove tremendously successful, and there are so many sires represented that breeders will have many from which to choose It docs not appear possible that the Culver City meeting will be reopened as had been promised. The creditors of the Southern California Jockey Club have chosen a most inop- portune time to force Richard Ferris and his j promoter associates into bankruptcy. The only chance for a racing association to make good debts that may arise comes in the conducting of a meeting," and any action that makes the holding of the meeting impossible at ones de- j prives the club of its onlv chance to pav debts. : Probably there was considerable money lost in the Culver City venture that was brought ; i to such a sudden termination, but it is prob I able a lesson was learned in that failure that would make possible a more successful meeting. J In any event there can be no revenue in an j idle race course. J While Culver City is experiencing al these! troubles, plans are still going forward for an-; other meeting at Tanforan. That "betless" j meeting was carried through by the sportsmen that there might come a California revival, ! and it did great good in the campaign to re- j store the thoroughbred sport to the Pacific! Coast. The gentlemen who financed the racing at Tanforan knew when the track wasj reopened that it was going to cost a pretty 1 penny, but they paid and were so well pleased with the results that they will pay again. It was a meeting that already has done much to revive racing interest in the far Weet. It was! an experiment to prove that racing was tre-! mendouily popular, even without the oppor-j tunity to bet openly. There probably never j will be a chance for a race meeting to be aj financial success unless there is some method I of wagering permitted, but just what has been accomplished by Tanforan proves that with i any sort of permitted wagering racing would I come to a greater prosperity than ever existed ! in the palmiest days of Oakland and Ingleside.! In due course there will be a strong appeal j made for pari-mutuel bitting in California, and if it is backed up by definite expression of the popularity of the sport by the public there will be an infinitely better chance for such a law to be enacted. California is a natural -racing ground. Its racing is an interesting chapter in the history of the American turf. There is no more suitable state for the production of the thoroughbred horse and the gentlemen who are seeking to bring back racing arc men who will ever see to it that it will never become a reproach. California should surely have its racing back. "Johnny" Calahan is a striking example ot the success that attends the cle2n-living jockey. There are few of the present-day riders with as long an experience in the saddle as Callahan, and he is riding in as good, or probably better, form this winter than he did at any time in his career. It was Callahan just as much as Frank Browns Hephaistos that won the Pimlico Cup, at two miles and a quarter, last November at the Baltimore track. The son of Vulcain was opposed by H. P. Headleys Chacolet, conqueror of In Memoriam in the running of the Kentucky Special Handicap and the best staying mare in Kentucky. The oth:r two were Sunsini and Exodus. Those who saw the running of the Pimlico Cup think that Chacolet should have beaten Hephaistos, and she would have surely beaten him had she been ridden with the skill shown by Callahan on Frank Brown6 colt. Ths race was run over a sloppy track and, while Exodus rushed away into a long early lead, Sunsini and Chacolet raced after him, while Cal!ahan saved Hephaistos far enough back to escape the flying mud from the heels of the leaders. After Exodus had raced himself into exhaustion and Sunsini began to tire Chacolet took command. It must be said on behalf of "Chick" Lang that he tried to restrain her, but his methods were different from thoss of Callahan. He was swinging the mare first in and out in his desire to conserve her speed. Callahan gradually moved up on her with Hephaistos, but as he moved he was careful to keep his celt in a path where he would not be directly behind the mare and suffer from the flying mud. As Lang swung her across in front of the colt Callahan would each time carefully ease his mount just far enough over, one way or the other, to still escape the mud, and that was the order until tha last quarter was reached. There he called on Hephaistos and with one rush the race was his. It was a beautifully timed ride from barrier rise to finish. Then this same Callahan at Oriental Park Saturday won three races over short sprinting distances. It was the alert sprinting Callahan, wher3 speed is about all that is desired. These two performances tell of how well "Johnny" Callahan has held to his form in long years of riding. He had ever b:en a clean living boy and now is a clean-living man, reaping the j fruit of his clean life.
