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SPECTACULAR FINISH Masked General Wins 26th Running of ,000 Harford Handicap. "15,000 Spectators See Temperamental Four-Year-Old Beat Jay-Jay by Head Clocks Third. HAVRE DE GRACE, Md., April 16. Brandywine Stables Masked General, temperamental four-year-old gelding, which made things unpleasant for War Admiral in the Pimlico Special at the Maryland Jockey Club course last fall, earned his first stake success of 1938 when he raced kindly in his first start of the year to account for the twenty-sixth running of the ,000 added Harford Handicap, six furlongs sprint that topped the program of the Harford Agricultural and Breeders Association at Havre de Grace today. With 15,000 spectators crowding the Susquehanna course to look on, Masked General, an outsider in the speculation among the eleven sprinters, registered his important success that was worth ,900 in one of the most thrilling finishes of this old fixture to beat Jay Jay, star of the Howard Bruce barn, which toted top weight of 126 pounds, by a short head. Third event went to Clocks, winner of the Hialeah Inaugural, and he was only another head away as he led Grand Slam, one of a pair that performed for the Bomar Stable. The others under silks included Sun Egret, stancnly-backed choice of the number; Isolater, Finance, King Pharamond, Billy Bee, Appealing and Higher Cloud, which was left. INTERESTING SPORT. The twenty-sixth running of "the Harford . was easily the best offering furnished for the first Saturday of the meeting at the Harford County track and it was a day of interesting sport for the large assemblage on hand. Overhead conditions were not of the best, clouds hanging over the courst most of the afternoon. The start in the Harford was a good one, but Higher Cloud, a notorious bad post be-haver, was in a temperamental mood and refused to break with his field as Clocks and Appealing led the way out of the stalls. Appealing had the most speed and he sped into a lead of three lengths in the first quarter mile as Finance and Sun Egret led the chase of the Motor City Stable five-year-old. At this stage of the running Masked General was in fifth position, just a short distance back of Clocks, which was racing on the outside of the leading trio, and jockey Joe Wagner had the Pompey gelding well in stride and showing a disposition to run kindly. CHEER SUN EGRET. Appealing was setting a fast pace as he led the field, but at the final turn his margin had dwindled when jockey A. Shelhamer sent Sun Egret up on the inside as the crowd cheered. With the stretch reached Appealing, which later broke down, surrendered , the lead to Clocks, but Masked General had driven up beside the L. E. Ogle horse and he swept past nicely to meet the final closing spurt of Jay Jay. Continued on eighteenth -page. SPECTACULAR FINISH Continued from first page. It took the winner 1:12 to run the distance, which was the best time set since 1933, when Pompeius sped the distance in 1:11. Grand Slam and Isolater, fourth and fifth, were heads apart for those positions as they came from a rear placing and they were just one length back of Clocks, which lasted for third. No excuses could be found for the others, al though it was a costly try for Appealing, which went amiss in the running after carrying the bulk of the pace for five furlongs. Six three-year-olds measured strides in the co-feature that was styled the Old Post Road, a test of six furlongs ui.der allowance conditions, which was the fourth. This brought Crepe, a consistent winner in Florida, into action for the first time here and it saw the B. F. Whitaker sprinter making a show of the three-year-olds that opposed him by dominating the race to score by four lengths. Handled by jockey Kenneth Mc-Combs and backed into favoritism, the flashy son of Omar Khayyam took command with the ring of the bell and never left the result in doubt after the first half mile. Going along smoothly before Now Then and Dorothy Rock in the first four furlongs, the Whitaker colt widened into a lead of four lengths midway of the homestretch tl zn coasted to the end to maintain his advantage. GHOSTFLYER GRADUATES. The silks of the Brandywine Stable were victorious in the initial offering of the afternoon, a test at four and a half furlongs for two-year-old maidens, when Ghostflyer, a ,500 yearling, turne.. in a front-running triumph for his graduation. Neglected in the speculation, the son of Flying Heels and Spooky drove to the front directly after the start, met strong opposition from William Elders Hardy Jim from the beginning and at the end had a length to spare as jockey J. Wagner drove the colt out sharply. Four lengths away Top Staff, lukewarm choice of the number, took third, while Bold Lad led the others in the field of limit size. j A dozen cheap three-year-olds supplied the contention in the mile and seventy yards of the second race that was the first of the I long distance races and it brought victory I to Blox of the W. Zakoor stable for his second victory in three eastern appearances. Coming from tenth place in the field of limit size and obtaining racing room on the inside when the early leaders, Sought After and Sickle Lass, came fan-shaped into the front lane, the daughter of Lase Reveille drove up in the last fifty yards to snatch victory by a head. Sickle Lass, after going in chase of Sought After from the beginning, fought it out nicely to land the place by a half-length, while Lovick finished five lengths before Day Is Done to I?nd third. Little Shaver, shifty four-year-old sprinter from the Bomar Stable, came out of winter quarters in fine fettle to account for the third number, another dash at six furlongs that attracted one of the smallest fields of the day. Ridden by jockey A. Shelhamer and moving into a long lead directly with the start, the unsexed son of Jean Valjean scored over Winning Chance of the Mills-dale Stable, leading that gelding over the line by three parts of a length, as Master Lad overhauled Mattapony in the stretch drive for third. Time Signal was the only other member of the party and cut no figure in the running. J
