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SAME OLD LIBERALITY Westchester Racing Association Offers Increased Purses. ■ ■ Belmont Park Program Book Reveals Generous Offerings in Addition to Rich Stakes. MOW YORK, N. Y., May 2.— The stake and overnight program just made public for the spring meeting of the Westchester Racing Association shows a continuance of the liberality that has characterized the organization since its inception. It was thought In some quarters when the extensive plan of beautification and improvement, recommended by Joseph E. Wide-ner to his associates on the board last autumn, was adopted, that there would be no material change in the prize money offerings for this year. The work, now nearing completion, will come close to ?-250,000. A perusal of the stake book and overnight program, however, dispels any misgivings, and those who race at Belmont Park at the meeting which opens on Friday, May 22, and runs to Saturday. June 13. will find increased purses all along the line. Many handicaps of a value of ,000 will be offered. All races at a mile or over will have a value of ,500, while the handicaps at three-quarters of a mile will be worth ,200. No condition race for two-year-olds will be for less than ,200. President "Wideners interest in the promotion of cross-country sport, shows itself in the announcement that none of the fifteen overnight steeplechases carded for the meeting will be for less than ,300. With the fine stake offerings, which include the 0,000 Charles L. Appleton Memorial, and the International Corinthian and Meadowbrook, each carrying an added value of ,500, starring the jumping division of the program, the wants of the steeplechasing division have been well cared for. The quality of the horses that will be seen in the selling and claiming races through the field, should therefore be greatly enhanced. As a matter of fact owners of jumping material owe the Westchester Racing Association their allegiance, in return for what lias been done for them by the management. Jumping races are popular in New York, and racing secretary Schaumburg has made an excellent program for them. If the horsemen do their part, the best cross-country sport in years should be the outcome. The course at Belmont Park is one of the finest on the continent, and was never better than at the present time, superintendent Pels having given it his closest attention, ever since the frost has been out of the ground. TWO NEW RACES FRAMED. Two new races on the Belmont Park program that will attract attention, are the Select Handicap for three-year-olds and upwards at a mile and a sixteenth and the Rising Star Purse, a claiming race for three-year-olds and over at one mile. The former is exclusively for winners of a race of a value of ,000 or more, and was suggested by handicapper Walter S. Vosburgh, who thought it would be an excellent preliminary to the Suburban Handicap. The Select will be run as the fourth race on Saturday, May 3d Decoration Day. The Suburban which closed with a superb entry list, including Ladkin. Sarazen, Ordinance. Altawood. Wise Counsellor, Chilhowee, Aga Khan, Mad Play. Our General, American Flag, By Hisself, Captain Hal, Priscilla Ruley, Spot Cash, He-phaistos, I.ee O. Cotner, Dunlin. Big Blaze, Chantey, Hedgefence, Sunsini, Sting. Phusla, My Own, Serenader, Transmute, Candy Kid, Hamadan, Wilderness and Prince of Bourbon will be run a week later on Saturday, June 6. It will be interesting to note how the Select is patronized. It rests largely with the horsemen themselves whether this race takes on the dignity of a stake fixture with increased value another year and occupies a permanent place on the Belmont Park card. Making it for horses that have won ,000 or over guarantees a high class field. The Rising Star, most happily named, calls for horses to he ridden by boys that have never won a race. There have been races of this character at the various courses before, some of them with a reward in cash of a minor trophy for the boy, but the rider of the winner of the Rising Star will receive a gold watch from the Westchester Racing Association. While nothing exceptional in the way of jockeyship may be looked for in these races, they are needed to develop riding material. Winning a race does more to establish confidence than riding a hundred trials in the morning. There will be great rivalry for the possession of the handsome time-piece and every good apprentice thai has not yet ridden a winner will be seen in the saddle. EXPECT CREAM OF TCRF. During the twenty day period of the Belmont Park meeting, every good horse in the the East, whether his scope is limited to the flat or cross-country, should be seen in action. On the opening day the best of the handicap division should parade under colors i in the Metropolitan Handicap, the weights for which were announced early in the year. Willi Sarazen. Mrs. Yanderbilts gallant little J gelding, holding pride of place. Other eligi- | Mm in the four-year-old and upwards division include Ladkin. Ordinance, Wise Counsellor, Chilhowee, Wilderness, Dunlin, Big Blaze. Spot Cash. Shuffle Along, Aga Khan, I Priscilla Ur.lcy. Bracadale. Cherry Pie and! I.aurano, last years winner. Three-year-olds of quality in the same nee are: Chantey, Hedgefen -e, Young Martin. Flying Ebony. I.ee t. Cotner. Qowdtand, .y Hisself, Silver Fox. Candy Kid. Maud Mull.r, Mother Gojse, Hamadan, and Our General. The Withers Bad I.elm nt Stakes, the chief fixtures for three-year-olds to be run during the meeting, give promise of developing tremendous interest. The ehewil 11 of Master Charlie is to be deplored, hut there is still an abundance of good material in the list of sixty-one cligiMcs. One ,f the most-talked of colts that may make his first appearance on a New York course in the Withers, which will be run on Thursday, May 2S, is the Qraeatree Stables Chantey by Pennant — Enchanting by St. Yictrix II., and the next dam Crinoline II., by Broomstick. This colt was purchased by Payne Whitney from his brother Harry, who bred the youngster at Brookdale for the reported price of 0,000. Chantey made his first start recently in Maryland and ran like a good colt. He was originally entered in the name of Payne Whitney in all the stakes, but was subsequently transferred to the Greentree Stable. Chanteys stable companion Hedgefence, winner of the Tiajuana Derby, possesses merit also, so that the popular Greentree colors of Mrs. Whitney will have strong representation in both the Withers and the Belmont. Other Withers eligibles include Noah, Candy Kid. Overall, Campfire Tales, Sunny Man, Sunsard, Silver Fox, By Hisself, Saratoga Maje, Brown Supar, Cloudland, Nicholas. Coventry, Flying Ebony, Young Martin, Turf Idol, Chief Uncas. Laplander and Marconi. Though the Withers is a substantial turf prize, it is dwarfed by the Belmont Stakes, to be run at a mile and a half on Saturday, June 13, the closing day of the meeting. The Belmont Stakes, besides being almost the oldest fixture for three-year-olds in the country and the one conforming most closely to the conditions of the Epsom Derby, will be worth more than 0,000. This splendid prize had an original entry of 439, when it closed on November 21, 1922. Nine of these have become void for various reasons. Declarations reduced the remainder to 5tj eligibles, and of this number at least 15 to 20 look worthy to be sent to the post. Going down the list in the order in which they appear in the book we find: Kentucky Cardinal, Young Martin, Coventry, Cloudland, Swope, American Flag. Hedgfenee. Chantey, Single Foot, Almadel. By Hisself, Quatrain, Captain Hal. Sunny Man, Sunsard, King Nadi, Candy Kid, Felix, Hamadan, Senalado and Prince of Bourbon. So many of the above seem to have a chance that the field will surely be a big one. The West is strongly represented with Kentucky Cardinal, Captain Hal, Almadel. Quatrain and King Nadi. all training kindly and showing stake class. The Coaching Club American Oaks in which the pick of the three-year-old fillies are engaged, is another Belmont lark big feature. Among ttie eHgtMes are Beatrice, Bbrnonla, Bobbed Bandit, Maid at Arms, Blue Warbler, Lightship, Florence Nightingale, Bun Sabre, Brown Betty, Idiosyncrasy, Etograltte, Sar-zana, Chrysalis, Martha Martin, Swinging. Mother loose, Elf and Chatterer. The events discussed above are only a few of the appetizing fixtures for which the racing appetites of turf followers hereabouts will have been keenly whetted by the splendid sport inaugurated last Wednesday at Jamaica.
