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Twenty Years Ago Today Chief Turf Events of Feb. 15, 1904 Racing at New Orleans, San Francisco and Los Angeles. The stakes of the St. Louis Fair Association, which closed February 1, filled remarkably well with a total of 1,149 nominations as against 845 received in 1903. Deducting the Worlds Fair Handicap there is still an excess of 29S entries in favor of 1904, pretty good evidence that turfmen not in the habit of racing their horses regularly at St. Louis have concluded to do so this year. Arch Oldham and Viperine met again today in an allowance race at one-half mile, the filly turning the tables on her recent conqueror, .beating him home by a nose in the most exciting finish witnessed at the Fair Grounds for many days. The meeting of this pair of two-year-olds attracted an unusuaily large crowd for Monday, but those who journeyed to the track were well repaid by the stirring contest between the youngsters. Arch Oldham was installed as favorite by the layers and flattered his backers by taking the lead immediately after the start, holding it until well into the stretch, but the filly would not be denied and, catching him about fifty feet from the finish, dropped her nose down in front as they flashed under the wire. Deans finish on Arch Oldham was weak and with a stronger rider the colt might have won. Jockeys Redfern and Romanelli, who expected to ride for W. C. Whitney this year, are looking for other engagements, believing as they do that the Whitney horses, if raced at all this year, will run in seme other name than that of the family. Redfern has already been talked of as one of the riders for Thomas and Shields, who have already secured H. Phillips, the leading rider at New Orleans. If Redfern is at liberty there will be a scramble for his services, but it is safe to say that he will not earn 840,000 this year as easily as he did last season. Lucien Lyne, whose contract with Messrs. Keene was cancelled recently, has announced that he will ride at the Memphis meeting, after which he will go to the eastern tracks as a free lance. It is believed that he will do most of the riding this season for John A. Drake, with whom he was employed before he went to England with the Keene horses under Matt Allen.
