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Here and There on the Turf Pimlico Stakes Close. Havre De Grace Outlook. Captain Hal and the Derby. A Wise Maryland Rule. Btakfll for the- Pimlico mooting of the Maryland Jockey Club, which begins May 1, closed Tuesday with a particularly liberal response , from the hors?men. It will be some days before the returns are compilrni, but when they are it will be disclosed that the Preakness . Stakes has attracted virtually every thre?-year-cld of note in both the East and in Kentucky. This big event is to be decided Mty i 8, and it is the second stake race of big importance at the meeting. The first one is the Dixie Handicap at a mile and three-sixteenths to be run on the opening day. The fact that both the Dixie Handicap and the Preakness Stakes are over the same distance makes the big handicap, which has an added money value of 5,000, an excellent preliminary for the 0,000 Preakness to be run a week later. The Dixie is for three year-olds and over, but a goodly number of the candidates for the Preakness Stakes are entered and it is known thit several of them are intended for a start against the older horses on the opening day of the meeting. Chacolet, the winner of the Dixie renewal last year, has been training in Kentucky for its coming running and reports suggest that this good mare is further advanced in her preparation than she was at the same time last year. Then several of the New York trainers, notably James Fitzsimmons, who trains the big racing string of Wm. Wood wards Belair Stud Stable, have thier horses well advanced. Many of these will be shown at the Havre de Grace meeting, which opens Wednesday, and it is there they will have their final preparation for the big opening feature of the Pimlico meeting. For a considerable time stables have been shipping to the Havre de Grace track for the Harfjrd Association meeting and already much of the stabling is taken up, while the rest of it has been spoken for. A big racing establishment of the Xalapa Farm Stable spent the winter at Havre de Grace and James McClelland and Rov Waldron have the horses racing. It has been pos orses going most of the le meeting opens, as at ■ e thoroughbreds will be t is required. The horses the winter and came to asoned have thus far not ge over those that rested and were merely rained for the opening. It is safe to predict that thp same condition will be found to prevail at the Havre de Grace meeting. The opening cf the meeting of the Harford Association will afford the crosscountry division its first opportunity and many a good jumper is ready. This branch of racing promises to b? more interesting than ever before, both at Havre de Grace and Pimlico, from the number of horses that will be found in the jumping strings. Superintendent Ross has all in readiness for the opening and, for a considerable time, one of his chi?f duties has been taking care of the incoming stables. Most of them will be on the grounds by the end cf the week and already some of those that began at Bowie have sent detachments of their horses to tha other Maryland racing ground. News of the plans of Andrew Blakely would indicnte that William Daniels Master Charl.e. the champion two year old of last year, will be ready fcr his early engagements this year. When Master Charlie went amiss early in the year fear was expressed that it would keep him out of the Preakness Stakes and the Kentucky Derby, but the son of Lord Archer has done so well at New Orleans since the closing of the meeting there that there seems to b2J every chance for his making both of these I tremendously important races. The return of Master Charlie will mean much fcr the early spring racing and no trainer j is better able to bring him back. The present j plan will mean that Master Charlie will make his first appearance under colors some time during the Havre de Grace meeting next week , and his racing there should thoroughly fit him for his Preakness Stakes engagement. j The book for the Havre de Grace meeting, ! I which begins Wednesday, is a decidedly attractive one and it will afford many opportunities bf horses in every age division and of every class. The first issue only takes in the first seven days of the meeting, which continues I until April 29, the opening date of the New-York racing season at Jamaica. There w ill be no sterplechase on the opening day, the feature being the ,000 Harford Handicap, at three quarters. But there are four steeplechases in that seven days of racing and that will afford the crosscountry horses ample opportunity. The Philadelphia Handicap, a race with ,000 added, over the mile and a sixteenth distance, is the first Saturday feature, while the 0,000 Aberdeen Stakes, for two year olds, is to be decided Saturday, April 25, and th? Chesapeake Stakes, of 0,000, for three year-olds, is the closing days star attraction. Captain Hal, the A. A. Kaiser candidate for j ! I I the Kentucky Derby, continues to attract considerable attention by the manner in which he is training for the big race. His training would suggest at this time that he may be the best of the Kentucky colts that will go to the post May 16. Much will be accomplished by the various candidates before the running of the race, but the son of Black Toney and Wavering has shown such a steady improvement at Churchill Downs that there need be no fear of his readiness, unless he should have some trouble in his training His mile in 1:43% at Churchill Downs Tuesday was ample to show that he is coming to hand rapidly. Jockey Heupel, who is to ride the colt in the big engagement, is to have the mount in his real conditioning works, and it will afford him an opportunity to become thoroughly acquainted with the colt, a sensible arrangement both for the colt and the jockey. The program book just issued by the Har ford Agriculural and Breeders Association contains some of the essential rules of racing adopted by the Maryland Commission, as wj!1 as track rules that are of decided interest. One of these rules, with which the public is not familiar, is one which prohibits the contract rider for any stable taking an outside mount in any race where his contract employer, or the trainer for his contract employer, has a starter. This is an excellent regulation and I one that should be observed on every race course. It is not intimated that the rider on an outside mount would ride dishonestly in the inter est of his employer, but the accepting of outside mounts, under such conditions leaves the rider open to criticism and that is to be avoided whether or not the criticism is deserved.
