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Here and There on the Turf Offense of Workman. How Victorian Lost. The Foreign Jumpers. That New Championship. ♦ 1 Victorian was surely not to blame for his defeat in the Brooklyn Handicap. The son of Whisk Broom II. and Prudery had good reason for his failure and it can mainly be charged to "Sonny" Workman, who had the mount. The veriest tyro could have won with Victorian from the last eighth post to the finish. But Workman had made many a mistake up to that time and had disobeyed his riding orders. Workman was instructed to save his horse and make no move with Victorian until the stretch was reached. Instead of that he went out with Filemaker to run the first quarter in :23%, the half in :46% and the three-quarters in 1:11%. That was about enough for Filemaker, but Workman sent Victorian light along and reached the mile in 1:37%. Even with all this, victory was in his grasp for the asking, but he actually eased the colt up, put up his whip and was worse than useless in the final drive. Filemaker was in the Brooklyn Handicap to force or make pace for the benefit of Diavolo and Twitter, the stablemate of Victorian, was in the race for the same purpose in his behalf. She was to make or force the pace for Victorian. Victorian was to wait, but that did not suit Workman and he rode Victorian his own way and to defeat. The even pace made possible the rush of Black Panther, which had been saved from the sprinting, but the greater skill of Maiben would have availed nothing if Workman had used intelligence and energy in the final eighth. It is always unfortunate to have the best horse beaten in such a race as the Brooklyn Handicap, and when that defeat comes from the disobedience and mistakes of the jockey it is doubly to be deplored. Workman has a particularly comfortable berth with Mr. Whitneys stable. He has good horses to ride and aside from the contract price he is paid It is a stable that gives a jockey every opportunity to add to his reputation. He will "add nothing to his reputation unless he rides to proper orders and his exhibition in the Brooklyn Handicap was one that it will take him some time to ride down. An apprentice might, be excused for such an exhibition, but it is inexcusable in the first jockey for the Whitney stable. Just what the revival of steeplechasing has done to encourage the importation of foreign jumpers has been frequently shown, and this year the outlanders are coming into their own, thanks to the many successes that have come to the Thomas Hitchcock stable. For the steeplechase of Saturday at Aqueduct there was evidence of the number of foreigners taking part in the sport when five of the nine that were entered were imported. Folisson, Ke-Kon-Boy and Sire de Bessan were all brought over from France, while Herod Antipas and Tony M. were bred and raced in England. That band was not a particularly fashionable one, but in the best of the steeplechases the outlanders have been cutting a truly important figure. Some of the importations that are engaged this year are Bangle, Devil Kin, Belphegor, Signal, Louqsor, Polisson, Danopio, Erne II., Ceremonial, Lochshee, King Bird II., Barlick, Madrigal II., Eihelred, The Sirdar II., Eider, Damoiseau II., Rubigny, Greenhorn, Laufjunge, Rabcl and others that cannot be brought to mind at this time. Some of these have not yet really found themselves, but there was a reason for bringing each one over and the fine manner in which those that have mastered the conditions on this side of the Atlantic have been racing it is natural to expect that others of the outlanders will come to hand handsomely. Steeple-chasing seems to have come back to stay and the races through the field this far in the racing season have been tremendously popular with the racing crowds. The new race that is to be added to the fall list of features at Arlington Park has surely been given a high sounding name when it is dubbed the American Thoroughbred Championship. The added money value will be 5,000 and the conditions, as announced, are a mile and an eighth for all ages — that is to say, the two-year-olds are invited to enter and race a mile and an eighth on Sspt. 1 against the older horses. Races of high value are always to be commended. The big awards are always a great incentive to breeding and they attract many to the turf who are a credit to the sport. Any championship, naturally, has a strong appeal, but thus far the complete conditions of this big race are not known. To attempt to decide a championship that will take in every age division is an innovation. And, of course, a championship must only be decided at weight for age and with no penalties or allowances. A mile and an eight is not an adequate ! distance to determine the best horse at three years old or over, while it is a particularly severe test for a two-year-old. For the other divisions than the two-year-olds, the distance should not be less than a mile and a half, while the cup distance of two miles and a quarter is really better. On the other hand, the two-year-old that is asked to race a mile, among those of his own age, on Ssptember 1, is set a task that is about the limit for his tender age. Such a value would suerly attract some notable nominations, but for the good of the breed it is sincorely hoped that the two-year-olds are not asked to race a mile and an eighth against older horses as early as September 1.
