Here and There on the Turf: Sarazen the Champion Wise Counsellor Eliminated Where Chilhowee Belongs Browns Havana Plans, Daily Racing Form, 1924-10-28

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Here and There on the Turf Sarazen the Champion. Wise Counsellor Eliminated. Where Chilhowee Belongs. Browns Havana Plans. Sarazen, the swift running son of High Time and Rush Box, must be crowned king of the three-year-olds of 1924, and, .in fact, the turf champion in all the age divisions. Never was there a championship more brilliantly earned than that of Mrs. Vanderbilts marvelous little gelding and the pity of it is that in the early spring he went amiss and was denied his opportunity in the running of the Kentucky Derby. His form this fall makes it clear that it was only the fact of his failing to go to the post fit at Churchill Downs that prevented his being winner of that famous race. "When Sarazen ran his never to be forgotten race in the third International Special at Laionia, finishing out the mile and a quarter under weight-ibr-age in 2:00, he had done about all thai could be asked of any three-Year-old, but he has come back with six pounds over the scale and over the much slower Laurel course, ran a mile and a quarter in 2.-02. What makes Sarazen a real champion is the nature of these two victories. In the third International Special, he closely followed ths dazzling pace set by Chilhowee and ran past him -when his rider was ready. And ChlThowee, as a result of the swift early pace, finished last of the field. In the running of the Maryland Handicap, at Xaure Sarazen followed Sun Flag at a remarkable pace and, when called on, went to him and put him away so effectually that he failed to share in any part of the money. Sarazen has shown that he can match speed with the best of them and he has also proved "himself a stayer. He is capable of taking up weight and that wa3 pretty conclusively shown at Laurel, when, under 126 pounds, he was giving away four pounds to Wise Counsellor, eighteen to Aga Khan, nineteen each to Sun Hag and Rustic and twenty-one to Initiate, the PL P. Whitney fiUy. That tells what sort of a champion Max Tfirsch has developed for Mrs. Vanderbilt The running of the Laurel Handicap defi-nitely eliminates Frederick Burtons Wise Counsellor from consideration as a champion. His defeat was such that Mr. Burton himself, after the running of the Laurel Handicap on Saturday, said that he had come to the conclusion that a mile and a quarter was beyond Wise Counsellors best distance. This means that Sarazen will not be opposed by Wise Counsellor in the Washington Handicap, at a mile and a quarter, to be run November 1. This is a 5,000 added race and it was hoped that it would bring about a meeting of Sarazen, Chilhowee and Wise Counsellor. There has been no intimation that Chilhowes will be sent on from Churchill Downs for the race and, in the light of his performance in the Falls City Handicap Saturday, there would bo little reason for sending him against Sarazen. It is admitted that Chilhowee met with considerable interference in the Falls City, but. making every allowance for that interference, his performance wa3 far below that he had shown in the Latonia Championship Stakes, when he easily took the measure of Mad Play in record making time. It was also far below his previous record making race at a mile and an eighth. Chilhowee has shown himself to be a colt of extreme speed, that was well demonstrated by the pace he set in the third International . Special, but there is a doubt of his game-ness. This is said at the risk of bringing down a storm of protest, but the fact remains that he did not show any gameness when Sarazen challenged him in the third International Special. Chilhowee had made a suicidal pace, but Sarazen was right after him and when the little gelding went to him, he curled up so badly that he finished last. All of this is said with a full appreciation of what Chilhowee has done. It is seldom indeed that any colt with such phenomenal speed will ever have his courage called upon, but courage was required in that third International Special and Chilhowee was found wanting. It has been offered in excuse for the swift running son of Ballot that he was a bit short. That appeara hardly possible, but Sarazen will make any of them appear "short" in his present condition. Chilhowee still has his chance in the Washington Handicap to wipe out the defeat administered by Sarazen and it is a sure thing that he will have a pull in the weights over Mrs. Vanderbilts champion. While one Kentucky idol was shattered Saturday at Churchill Downs in th3 defeat of Chilhowee, there was another that gave an excellent account of himself when Captain Hal was winner at the seven-eighths of the Country Club Purse. This good son of Black Toney and Wavering j has just about raced his way to the top of the Kentucky two-year-old division. The race also had an additional importance from the fact that back of this swift-running youngster there finished some dangerous candidates for the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes, at a mile. It was Kentucky Cardinal that was second, I Swope third and Pas Seul fourth. This made it a representative field and it is remembered that Captain Hal was giving away weight to every starter except Kentucky Cardinal, his race was doubly impressive. Altogether, in these fall days of racing the realization is being forced that, after all, it has not been such a bad year either for the two-year-olds or the three-year-olds. Early in the racing season fears were expressed that we would not have any worthy defenders against the invasion of Epinard. And he was beaten in all four of his starts in this country, and there were many who bemoaned the fact that there was no good two-year-olds. All of this has been pretty thoroughly contradicted in the racing that has come since Labor Day. Although the announcement of the racing plans for Oriental Park in Cuba came exceedingly late, it would seem now there would be no lack of horses to carry through the meeting of one hundred days or more. H. D. Brown, who is back in supreme control, has assumed all the obligations of the meeting and has promised that no purse will have a lessor value than 5600, while there will be handicaps ranging in value from ,000 to ,000. Mr. Brown has continued practically all of the officials in their positions and an additional appointment is that of Goodloe McDowell, who has been serving on the New York tracks during the racing season. Honoring the memory of the late G. D. Bryan, Jr., there will be a Bowie stake named for the dead sportsman. The one chosen is the 0,000 added Southern Maryland Handicap. Hereafter it will be known as the Gadsen D. Bryan Memorial Handicap. Mr. Bryan was associated with James F. OHara in various racing ventures and his fine qualities made him tremendously popular and , his taking off is genuinely mourned. Old Mountain Rose II. i3 no more. The honest old plater was destroyed at Laurel when he broke down so badly that putting him to death was a mercy. Mountain Rose H. will never have his name in the hall of equine fame. He was at best a lowly selling plater, but he was an honest thoroughbred and in his class a prime favorite with the racing crowds. And it is doubtful if B. E. Chapman, for whom the old fellow raced, could think any , more of a Sarazen if he had one .in his string. He will give his old bread winner a burial i and place a headstons over the grave. That j is all he can do to show his respect to his " horse, but it is an admirable sentiment.


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Library of Congress Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/unk82075800