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ft k i Here and There on the Turf I M. I Improve Washington Park j Better Era Seems at Hand j Belmont Has Fine Eligible List ; Winter Horses Star at Bowie . i . According to an announcement by John P. Harding, president of the new Washing- ton Park Jockey Club, extensive improve- ments are being made in the plant conceived in 1926 by Thomas E. Bourke, and later operated by the American Turf Asso- , ciation. Under the latter regime, with Matt 1 Winn at the head, Washington Park was further improved, and now still further changes are being made in order to make the south side Chicago course a better place for racing. Of vast importance is the installation of the American all-electric totalizator, which has taken the mystery out of the mutuels insofar as the casual racegoer 1 has been concerned, but in many other ways , the new owners of Washington Park are j altering the plant in line with their attempt . to make Chicago racing more popular than ever. The story of Washington Parks improvements can best be told through the eye, and visitors to the track when the thirty-one day meeting opens May 25, will be able to note the improvements made in their be-half. Not only are alterations being made in the grandstand and club house, but paint is being liberally applied to return the plant to its former smartness. The new manager ment is not forgetting the horsemen either, and the stables are being restored to their jbest condition for the reception of horses early next month. The race track proper also is coming in for much attention, as efforts are being made to have the course in safer condition than ever. That a more prosperous era of racing on the Chicago circuit is close at hand is generally felt- by the operators of Washington, Arlington Park and, Lincoln Fields, which have joined in the policy of maintaining a ,000 purse minimum and a lowest stake offering of ,000. With Washington Park now under the control solely of Chicagoans, this feeling that better times are at hand has become widely contagious, and now is felt by the owners and trainers of leading gtables and by the race-going public in Americas second largest community. With more and better horses likely to be available on the Chicago circuit this season, the racing fans can look forward to a much finer brand of sport during the coming summer. This seasons running of the Belmont Stakes, richest of American events for three-year-olds, and only race in this country whose conditions conform to those of the English Derby, has the opportunity to be one of the most brilliant in its long history. Fifty-eight colts and fillies are still eligible to the mile and a half special, which will be renewed June 8, and the purse should gross around the 0,000 mark. These eligibles include a larger number of the more promising three-year-olds than usually has been the case with the Belmont, and as a result the field should be a stout one. Quite often in the past the Belmont field has numbered less than eight, with one or two horses dominating the lineup, but the 1935 renewal can very well bring together a half dozen well matched three-year-olds. Of the outstanding candidates for the Kentucky Derby, only Commonwealth, Mor-pluck, Nellie Flag, Roman Soldier and Try Sympathy are not among the Belmont eligibles. Commonwealth and Try Sympathy are barred from the race because of being geldings, while the others just werent nominated. The Belmont, however, lists among its nominees several fine three-year-old prospects which were not named for the Kentucky Derby, particularly Balladier. Rosemont and Firethorn. Balladier would have been entered in the Churchill Downs classic but for the, fact that he injured his tendon last fall and his connections wish to give him as much time as possible this spring before bringing him to the races. Rosemont and Firethorn evidently were kept out of the Derby because their owners wished them to be prepared slowly with "the Belmont definitely In view. In addition to this trio, worthwhile three-year-old hopefuls among the Belmont eligibles include Omaha, Boxthorn, Psychic Bid, Special Agent, Plat Eye, Preeminent, Count Arthur, Our Reigh, Nautch, Good Flavor, St. Bernard, Today, Chance Sun and Sailor Beware. From this group an excellent field can be expected, even though some of them may fail to train for the mile and a half event in a satisfactory manner. Enough will be left to make the Belmont field one of the Continued on sixteenth page.. HERE AND THERE ON THE TURF Continued from second page. smartest in its long history, and with ideal conditions prevailing for the running, the huge Belmont Park stands should accommodate a crowd of at least near record proportions. Bowie racing so far this spring has not uncovered any smart three-year-old prospects, but that can be attributed more than anything to the muddy condition of the track during the opening week, and to the general backwardness of the spring training period. Winter campaigners have dom- inated the Bowie racing picture with the exception of horses from Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilts Sagamore Farm. Out of the more than half a hundred horses under his direction, trainer J. H. Stotler has been able to send a half dozen or so to the post at Bowie, and in first class condition, too, as was indicated by their steady march to the winners circle. However, none of the Maryland trainers with fair three-year-old prospects have ventured them in competition, although the coming week may find a change. Certainly the Havre de Grace meeting, which follows Bowie, will be featured by the advent of good three-year-olds, the ,500 added Chesapeake Stakes on the final day at the Harford course being their chief objective.
