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Here and There on the Turf Washington Park Racing Racing Fight in Kentucky Fairmount Derby Prospect All Good Ones Present The altogether unseasonable weather for the opening of the long meeting of the Illinois Jockey Club at its Washington Park course naturally had its effect on the attendance but the crowd out for the occasion was surprisingly large and the enthusiasm with which the thorough ¬ breds were welcomed back left no doubt of the future success of the racing The sport will grow and improve as the meeting progresses and with the coming of seasonable weather the track will become tremendously popular popularWashington Washington Park is essentially a warm weather or summer race course and the season selected for the racing of Homewood naturally was one when such weather was to be expected The cold spring surely cannot last much longer and with the coming of bright sunshine and the corresponding rise in tempera ¬ ture the big stands will have their capacity tested on all special occasions occasionsIn In the building of Washington Park regular Chicago crowds were anticipated and the sport that will be served up by the newly organized club will bring just such crowds The book of the meeting is one that will attract the best horses and already reservations are numerous for the racing of June 18 when the American Derby is down for decision decisionThis This big event following the Fairmount Derby to be run at Fairmount Park to ¬ morrow and the Belmont Stakes to be run at Belmont Park June 11 affords the threeyearolds an ample opportunity to fill all three engagements Not a few of those that will start in the Fairmount Derby will be shipped from the Collins ville course to Washington Park to pre ¬ pare for the American Derby while some few others will be taken to Bel ¬ mont Park on Long Island before being returned to Illinois and Washington Park for June IS But in any event it is assured that the American Derby will bring out a truly representative field Although Kentucky produces about forty percent of the American thorough ¬ breds racing has another fight on its hands for existence in that state Of course there is nothing new in this for everywhere that there is racing it is at the cost of constant vigilance There are those who will always oppose the sport for one reason or another and the pity of it is that many of the attacks on the turf are not sincere sincereKentucky Kentucky of all states should foster and protect the turf by reason of its vast breeding interests which have attracted men of wealth from all over the country The production of thoroughbred horses in the state is an immense industry and if for no other reason there should be a preservation of the turf Breeding is absolutely dependent on racing for rac ¬ ing is the only test of the thoroughbred and it is the chief incentive to breed better horses No racing means no reeding of thoroughbreds and no breed ¬ ing of thoroughbreds would hit Ken ¬ tucky harder than any other state stateOther Other attacks on Kentucky racing have een successfully combated and there is assurance that the fight that is to be made will bring the same result but it las been just one battle after another to maintain racing in this greatest of all states in the production of the thorougk bred horse horseTime Time was when Tennessee held a proud place in the production of thor ¬ oughbreds and there are still good horses bred within its boundaries but the stamping out of the sport at both Memphis and Nashville almost wiped out the breeding industry in the state In California while there are still several thoroughbred breeding farms of im ¬ portance the state has nothing like the importance it should enjoy in thorough ¬ bred production by reason of the pro libition of racing racingThis This is a part of the turf that the law ¬ makers of Kentucky should carefully consider before they enact any laws that are aimed against the turf It means robbing the state of a considerable revenue from breeding as well as racing and even if they are dead to the glory of the thoroughbred horse it would be bad business for Kentucky to banish its rac ¬ ing ingWith With Whiskery winner of the Ken ¬ tucky Derby Osmand Joseph E Wid eners good gelding that was such a close second and Edward B McLeans Jock the one to finish third in the Churchill Downs feature all to start in the Fairmount Derby that race has a peculiar interest There were many who saw the Kentucky Derby running who expressed the opinion that Jock might have been the winner had it not been that Lang made such profligate use of his speed all through the early racing He was really only beaten through the final eighth after being rushed into a long lead Then there are others who express the opinion that Osmand has improved while of course Whiskery with his vic ¬ tory over the pair will surely have his big following Altogether if only these three went to the post the Fairmount Derby would be a remarkable race raceBut But there are others that must be seriously considered in the light of what they have accomplished since the run ¬ ning of the Kentucky Derby and two of these are Rolled Stocking and Fred Jr to say nothing of Royal Julian Then there is Walter J Salmons Black Pan ¬ ther of the invaders that is expected to give a great account of himself He has been carefully fitted for the running of the race and the fact that Whiskery has to give him eight pounds as in fact he has to give each of the ethers and that difference will make for a better race raceWith With anything like favorable weather and track condition the running of the Fairmount Derby cannot fail to be a notable one
