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_ 1 1 Here and There 2 on the Turf I j 5 5 6 Classic Quality Hidden. 7 Devonshires Speed. Shipments to the East. Memorial to Fleischmann. « 1 ___ ____ _ 2 i Unless the weather becomes more settled in , 3 Maryland, the racing at Havre de Grace will 4 not offer its usual early line on the ability ; of the three year-old aspirants to the larger stake races of the year. There are many at 7 the course that are looked upon as potential candidates for the Preakness Stakes and the Kentucky Derby, but the weather and track conditions have prevented them from showing their wares in actual contest. The Chesapeake I Stakes, to be run April 29, will of course I . bring out some of these good ones, no matter | 4 what the condition of the track. The Chesa • peake Stakes is a race with 0,000 added. , But with this important race and the 0,000 7 Preakness Stakes, that follows on May 8 at Pimlico. it is sma.l wonder that trainers wait for favorable track conditions before sending their star three-year-olds to th? post. Training reports continue to be decidedly promising, but ; even in training the track condition has been 1 a bar against speed workouts. There remains : ample time to put the finishing touches on those preparing for the Preakness Stakes, but it is usual at this time to have a better line than has been possible this spring. One eligible that has been shown, and one that may prove a real contender, is Walter J. Salmons Devonshire. This is an imported bay son of Gainsborough and Fortuna, by Spearmint, and was one of the high priced year lings of the Newmarket sales, where he was purchased by Mr. Salmon. He was only raced three times last year and finished that year a maiden. What he lacked as a two-year-old was an ability to be under way quickly enough for the short two-year-old races. In his one start this year he demonstrated that he knows how to sprint and, if he is also able to maintain that speed, as his sterling blood lines would suggest, he must be given some eonsid eration in estimating Preakness Stakes possi bilities. Devonshire has not shown enough to be compared with thos? of established reputation, but there is even reason for his being a good colt and, now that he has learned to run fast through the first part of a race, it is entirely , I possible that Mr. Salmon made no mistake when he paid a hieh price for him as a year ling. Already horses that have been training in Kentucky are heading for the East to meet engagements in the Dixie Handicap and the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico, or t He on hand for the opening of the New York racing reason at Jamaica on April 29. One of the most important i f the ship ments is that of the Joseph E. Widener string in the care of G. EL Keene. Altawood, winner of the Bowie Handicap, and th« 1 imlico Cup i Handicap of last year, is one of the compar atively high weights in the Dixie Handicap and the three-year-old Hamadan is an elig ible for this big race. Hamadan was not named for the Preakness Stakes, though he is an eligible to the Kentucky Derby. With 1 B— dc riding for the Widener Stable, the pop ular colors are sure to have an altogether new-importance this year. It has been promised I that Sande will be one of the attractions M the United Hunts meeting, to be held at Belmont Park April 25 and April 27. Another shipment from Kentucky is that A f the II. C. "Bud" Fisher string, in the care l of Alex Gordon, who has been using Douglas . I , i 1 I f l . Park as his training ground. The Fisher eligible to the Preakness Stakes is Swope, the sturdy son of Fair Play and Alburn, that ratv l well last year. Alex Gordon took the 1924 Preakness Stakes for the Fisher stable with the filly Nellie Morse and at this time he considers his chance with Swope better than he did the Nellie Morse chance at the same time last year. Johnny Maiben has begun his campaign well as leader of the jockeys at Havre de Grace with five firsts out of eleven mounts for the first four days of that meeting. Maib:n did not do much riding in Miami and he did not have many mounts of importance at Bowie, but he is still one of the most skillful of American jockeys and is sure to be right up in the first division throughout the year. Maiben ridss with his head as well as with his hands and heels and that has always been a most important requisite for success in the saddle. 1 It was a thoughful tribute to a dead sportsman when Thomas H. McCreery offered a! | piece of plate to go with the Cotton Exchange Steeplechase, one of the features of the United Hunt? meeting at Belmont Park on April 25 and 27. This plate is offered in memory of Julius Fbischmann, whose sudden death on the polj field at Miami last winter shocked the turf world. It was Julius Flcischmann who gathered the string of imported horses that will be raced by Mr. McCreery this year and there sjaj no ; I more ardent turfman. He spared no expense! j in gathering the thoroughbreds that were to carry his silks and no sportsman took a keener interest in the prepaartion of the horses. His sudden taking off, while he was playing polo, was a severe loss to the turf and it is fitting 1 that there should be this tribute to his memory. It was unfortunate that there should come a spell of unseasonable weather at this time to halt some of the training operations, but it ■ ■ better that it should come at this time than j I later in the racing season. Most of the horse3 , , that are in preparation for the big spring ! I offerings have progreed un.U this cold snap | ; I j 1 ■ j I , , ! I | will have no really harmful effect, though it undoubtedly would be a real handicap had it come on the eve of the race. While My Colonel was verifying his Miami form at Havre de Grace, Elon, also of the Carl Wiedemann string, died at Louisville. This colt showed his worth at the Florida course and his lose is a severe one to the blue and white colore. And that is not the only mis- fortune in the stable, for Gamester, the stable Kentucky Derby eligible, is seriously sick. Hopes are entertained for his recovery, but there does not seem to be a remote chance of [his being brought to the post for the Derby.
