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Here and There on the Turf Fainnount Derby Today Opening at Latonia How Pompey Has Failed Courts Uphold Turf Ruling Fairmonnt Park is to have its biggest day of the meeting this afternoon with the running of the Fairmount Derby which had its first decision last year with Joseph E Wideners Haste a win ¬ ner from Edward R Bradleys Bagen baggage and Boot to Boot respectively winners of the Latonia Derby and the American Derby For this second race for the Derby that came into instant prominence with its initial running last year the prospects are exceedingly bright and it will be another of those delightful sporting rivalries between the Middle West and the East That is a rivalry that has meant much in the Kentucky Derby interest year after year and it will mean much to the Collinsville feature featureAnd And the race has likewise attracted turfmen from afar For days there were arrivals In SL Louis for the big event and many of these will remain for more than a taste of the racing That is always one thing that the big races do to advance the turf They are races that have a peculiar appeal and races that year after year bring out those who know little or nothing of racing They show the sport in its best guise and in so doing exploit racing in the manner that does the most good goodElaborate Elaborate preparation has been made for the management of the Derby crowd by the Fairmount Jockey Club and much has been done for the comfort and con ¬ venience of those that will journey to the Collinsville course There comes a change of the racing scene in Kentucky with the opening of the Latonia meeting this afternoon Churchill Downs brought its twentytwo days of sport to a successful conclusion with the racing of Wednesday and the horsemen were afforded ample shipping time to reach Latonia The Churchill Downs meeting was an eminently suc ¬ cessful one though frequently handi ¬ capped by rainy weather which has been a handicap to all racing this spring but right through the meeting the attendance and the enthusiasm was up to the best standard of the famous old course courseThat That Latonia is in for a good meeting is reflected by the entries made for the first day of racing at that beautiful course And it must be remembered that with all the other bids for patronage the manner in which Latonia is sure to hold her own tells of the constantly growing popularity of the American turf Illinois Is beckoning with its excellent racing at Washington Park there is the racing at Fairmount Park near SL Louis and of course BelmontPark in New York holds its proud place Then Canada with its tax relief has taken on a new charm until the racing there attracts more than it has in many years yearsVerily Verily the turf is enjoying bbom days and there is an abundance of patronage and an abundance of horses to fill the constantly increasing demands for thor ¬ oughbred racing Pompey has failed again W R Coes colt that has been promising so much ever since his first appearance as a threeyearold was soundly whipped at Belmoht Park on Wednesday in the Greenport Handicap at a mile and a six ¬ teenth in which he was only asked to take up 117 pounds not much of an impost for a fouryearold of supposed high class And he was whipped by a filly ridden by an apprentice when H P Whitneys threeyearold daughter of Man o War and Frillery Frilette took his measure measureThis This same Pompey has fooled many of the best judges by the brilliance of his morning trials and after this latest failure just about all of his stanchest admirers have been forced to come to the conclusion that he is a counterfeit morning glory gloryThere There was reason for the longcon ¬ tinued loyalty to the son of Sun Briar and Cleopatra In the first place the mating of Willis Sharpe Kilmers horse with such a mare as Cleopatra seemed to be an ideal cross Then on top of that Pompey was a truly brilliant two yearold in 1925 After winning three overnight races in his first year on the turf the colt went on to win the East View Stakes at Empire City the United States Hotel Stakes and the Hopeful Stakes at Saratoga and he wound up his twoyearold campaign by beating two such good ones as Canter and Chance Play in the running of the Futurity at Belmont Park Through that year he was required to give away great lumps of weight and in both the Hopeful Stakes and the Futurity he shouldered 1 127 pounds poundsi i It is small wonder that in 1926 he was hailed as the threeyearold champion before he appeared under colors For a time it was decided that no effort would be made to fit him for a race as early as the Kentucky Derby but he trained so brilliantly that he was sent to the post by Karrick In fact he was raced in the Wood Memorial Stakes before the Derby and when he won that race it advanced his Kentucky Derby stock considerably Then in the Derby of which Bubbling Over was the winner Pompey was well beaten He won some races as a three yearold but he was far away from the top class Then this year it was prom ¬ ised that he would redeem himself from the manner of his work but he has slipped back even further until he seems to be hopeless He has long since shown that he is unable to maintain his speed for any worthwhile distance while he has even failed at sprinting sprintingIt It is always to be regretted when af ¬ fairs of the turf find their way into the courts of the land but it is always cheer ¬ ing when the courts uphold the rulings of the governors of the sport The most recent victory for the turf came with the decision of the United States District court upholding the ruling against Richard D Williams and in voiding a similar action against Peter J Williams WilliamsThe The ruling against the Williams broth ¬ ers which banished them from the turf was made following the investigation during the winter of 19252G They were adjudged guilty of offenses for which the Kentucky State Racing Commission ruled them off and this recent court decision upholds the ruling of the commission It will be remembered that several jockeys were implicated and punished at the same time in rather a sensational shake up upAt At the time there was a long and care ¬ ful investigation before any action was taken and the court decision would make it appear that the Racing Commission made no mistake The drastic ruling against the Williams brothers had a salutory effect on racing everywhere and now that the ruling has been upheld in the court it is doubly beneficial to the turf turfFortunately Fortunately there are infrequent rea ¬ sons for any such action against any turfman but the only way in which the turf can be kept above reproadh is to have swift and severe punishment for the offenders
