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T----------------------------t Here and There i on the Turf j Australian Highlights "j ! Famous Melbourne Cup j Nuffield s Victory Derby j Ajaxs Fourteen Straight j By Bob Thomson, Special Australian Correspondent for Daily Racing Form. The Melbourne Cup, the zenith of a horses fame and the most sought-after trophy of the Australian racing calender was decided at Flemington, November 1. The Cup which is Australias greatest race carried 0,000 and attracted a field of twenty-one good stayers, to dispute their claim to route-running honors. Cup Day broke dull and threatening, but fortunately rain did not fall until half the program was completed. The 100,000 which viewed the running of the 1938 Melbourne Cup was 10,000 fewer than last year. The record Cup crowd was in 1926 when 125,000 thronged the famous course, but that was at the peak of the postwar boom. Everybody at Flemington on the "first Tuesday in November this year was friendly when the unknown New Zealand gelding Catalogue set the seal on his fame by scoring a runaway victory in Australias richest race. The eight-year-old veteran of the field landed 8,000 of the 0,000 stake, and a gold cup worth 00, for a woman owner. The turf was thick and green and springy in a year of drought in the outside world. Women were all arrayed in new and beautiful frocks, and men in gray toppers and tailed coats that were the fashion in an old England of long ago. Catalogue started at 25 to 1 and carried 116 pounds, and was in closest pursuit of Bachelor Kings pace from the beginning. With seven furlongs to go Catalogue, which had pulled hard in the early stages, slipped away and began the sensational run that was to take him to victory. Shean urged him along and before the distance was reached had established an unassailable lead. Bourbon gave the crowd a thrill when he made a late dash, but Catalogue held him off and passed the post with 3 lengths to spare. Ortelles Star, which had won the Moonee Valley Cup a week previous finished in resolute fashion to gain third placing. Allunga, which was making nis fourth attempt to win the coveted prize finished stoutly and though the heart was willing the flesh was weak and the hardy Sydney campaigner just missed the minor place. The favorite, Royal Chief, and last years two Cups hero The Trump, found the speed of the others too great, yet Royal Chief made up ground near the end and was fifth to reach the judges stand. The Trump besmirched his escutcheon and finished last. Marauder, Australasian record-holder for two miles and a quarter twisted a plate and the Derbys victor Nuffield could not stand up to such a gruelling task. C. B. Kellows brilliant colt was one of the last five to finish. Catalogue ran the distance on a slightly holding track in 3:26, which was five seconds outside Wotans Australasian record. Catalogue is owned by Mrs. A. Jamieson and is trained by A. W. McDonald, who has a team of twenty horses in her Dominion j stable. The jockey, F. Shean, is from Queensland. He rode the winner of the Caulf ield Cup, Buzalong, this year, thus completing the big double of the Australian turf and emulating the feat of A. Reed, who piloted The Trump to victory in the two Cups last year. Catalogues preparation in 1 Continued on nineteenth page. HERE AND THERE ON THE TURF Continued from second page. New Zealand "was supervised by Mrs. McDonald, but as women are not granted a license to train horses in Victoria, A. W. McDonald had to act as deputy for his wife in preparing Catalogue for his Australian triumph. The Lord Quex gelding was bred in New Zealand at the Flaxmere stud, in the Hawkes Bay district, by W. G. Stead, who also bred the 1916 Melbourne Cup winner, Sasanof. A plain angular-looking gelding and totally devoid of quality, Catalogue is a good shouldered, lengthy horse, with plenty of heart room. Last year he won the "Winter Cup at Christchurch, New -Zealand, and the King George Handicap at Manawatu, which was run over a mile and a quarter, the longest distance over which he had won until he was successful in the Melbourne Cup. After winning at Manawatu E. Barnes passed Catalogue on to his sister Mrs. A. Jamieson, who lives at Palmerston North, birthplace of the late Keith Voitre, who was killed in a racing smash at Moonee Valley, in September. Queen Victoria Tired Am-, phora which was destined to become a famous brood mare. She was mated with that fine sprinter Symington when aged nineteen and bore Symbolism imported by J. B. Reid for his Elderslie stud at Oamaru. Symbolism j was mated with the Spearmint horse Catmint and produced Catalini, the dam of Catalogue. Lord Quex,- sire of Catalogue, is twenty years old and is by the English Derby winner Lemberg, sire of winners in England of over 6,400 from Lady Quex, by Florizel LT., from Gay Duchess. Of the twenty-one starters for the Melbourne Cup, eighteen had at least one strain of Carbine in its pedigree. Catalogue got his dash through Carbines greatest English Spearmint. The total distributed in stakes on Cup Day amounted to 4,000. Catalogue earned 8,-000 for his lady owner. Then there was a matter of ,000 second money, the third horses share being ,000. Totalizator investments aggregated 84,200, compared with 02,870 last year. Advancing to the peak of springtime racing, Saturday, October 29, ushered in the final stages of the 1938 V.R.C. racing campaign, at famous Flemington, show course of the Southern Hemishphere, when the tid-bit of the Victorian turf, the Victoria Derby, the rich three-year-old classic, which carried the princely sum of 0,000 took place. Derby Day was a day of brilliant sunshine, and visitors from all parts of the world mingled with the vast assembly of 65,000 racing fans, who gathered to pay homage to His Majesty, King Thoroughbred. At this period of the year, Melbourne is the Mecca of thousands of sportsmen from the various states of the Commonwealth and New Zealand in quest of the rich prize money disbursed by the leading race clubs. New Zea-landers were here by the score. Nuffield joined a select band when he defeated the Adelaide representative, Tempest, in the Victoria Derby, thus equalling the feat of his owners grand galloper, Hall Mark, which was successful in the two Der-bys. The chestnut son of Australias premier sire Heroic raised his earnings to 8,000 and incidentlly vanquished the cream of Antipodean three-year-old colts to add the 4,000 event and days feature to his record for the year. Caragona raced into a clear lead early and was closely followed by Aeolus, while Nuffield raced along in third place under slight reserve. Darby Munro waited adroitly for a run on the inside and when called on in the stretch for speed Nuffield responded readily and went to the leaders with a rush and snatched victory in the closing strides. He brought about the downfall of the Windbag colt Tempest, which had won eight straight races. Adios, a handsome chestnut colt by the Hurry On horse Excitement closed with a belated run and crowded Kingdom out of third place. Nuffield, which carried 122 pounds and covered the mile and one-half in 2:3494, or three and one-half seconds slower than the record jointly held by Phar Lap and Hall Mark, gave his trainer, J. Holt, and jockey Darby Munro their fourth Derby successes. Since unbeaten Grand Flaneur defeated the favorite Progress in 1880 there have been twenty-four odds-on favorites for the Victoria Derby. Eight of them failed, and Nuffield was the sixteenth odds-on favorite to score. Phar Lap was the hottest favorite in that period, starting a 2-to-9 chance, the previous shortest, odds being on Poseidon, which won the two Derbys and two Cups in the same year, his starting price was 4 to 1. The New Zealand gelding Ammon Ra was a 1 to 5 chance when he failed a few years ago, and Nuffield comes next in the list of odds-on favorites. The Heroic colt was a l-to-3 chance. Nuffield is a light chestnut colt from the Cyklon mare Belle Gallante, whose dam, Isa, was a brilliant two-year-old by the Flying Fox horse The Welkin. By his win in the L. K. S. Mackinnon Stakes, Ajax increased his stakes earnings by ,800, malting his aggregate 2,300. The champion packed 125 pounds and gave a scintillating display of galloping to win with consummate ease from the New Zea-lander Royal Chief and the Tippler horse Silenus. The time for the mile and a quarter, 2:05, was three and one-quarter seconds outside the course record. Ajax ran the last three furlongs in .35. The ,200 Maribyrnong Plate, the "two-year-old Derby," has been v.on by many great performers in the past, and Aurania, a good-looking colt owned by Phar Laps trainer, Harry Telford, was successful this year. The finish was a thriller. E. Preston, the stable jockey, brought Aurania along with a brilliant run and defeated Aspire by half a neck. Zonda, a handsome filly by the Manna horse Manitoba, came from far back and accounted for third money. Aurania, which shouldered 117 pounds and skipped over the five-eighths distance in 1:01, is by Manitoba, one of the best two-year-olds of his year in England, from Rondalina, by Beau Fils son of Son-in-Law, from Donna Caroline, by the St. Frusquin horse Don Reynaldo. Aurania is likely to prove one of the leading candidates for the Derbys. next season. Although "Ladies Day" at Flemington lacks the glamour which surrounds Cup Day, excellent racing is witnessed, and Oaks Day this year was no exception. Nine well-bred fillies came out to contest the Oaks, which is run over the Derby distance, one mile and a half and, collectively, they were a fine lot. The race was fought out by French Gem, Talkalot and Gay Dell. After trailing the field on the stretch turn, French Gem closed gamely and showed her superiority by out-finishing Avengers half-sister, Talkalot. Gay Dell struggled on gamely ahead of Lady Montague. The Decoration, Sylphide, Acheron and Lambent. The winner, carrying 122 pounds, negotiated the distance in 2:35. Bred by C. and N. Meyers, French Gem is by Beau Fils, sire of Waltzing Lily, one of the most brilliant mares Australia has produced in the past decade, and last years Oaks victress, Prairie Moon. Fission, the dam of. the Oaks winner, was by either Valais 8 or Chrysolaus 43. M. McCarten rode French Gem, which sports the colors of G. W. Bad-man, of South Australia. Ajax, Heroics magnificent son, has gone through the fall and spring seasons unbeaten. He gave one of the greatest performances of his record-breaking career when he severely trounced New Zealands ace route-runner, Royal Chief, in the ,000 C. B. Fisher Plate. Riding his usual fine race, H. Badger had the red horse in a commanding lead and, under 126 pounds, reached the end of the mile and a half well in hand. Aitchengee saved third from Allunga. Ajax was a 1 to 6 chance in the betting and covered the journey in 2:31. He ran the last half in :48lA. Ajax has now won fourteen races in a row, equaling Phar Laps record, which is surpassed in Australia only by Gloq-ming 19, Desert Gold 19, Carbine 15, and E. L. Baillieu, A. W. Thompson and Constables grand galloper has won 7,900. Ajax has proved himself a champion in the true meaning of the word, and if he comes back in the fall fit for the fray no doubt he will increase his winnings considerably. Already he has passed the total of Wakeful, Strephon Poseidon and Chatham. Ajax is now 23rd in the list of great Australasian stake winners. St. Constant, performing under the colors of the Sydney conditioner, J. W. Cook, who purchased the Constant Son horse for after he had disappointed A. V. Cooper as a two-year-old, was. a driving winner of Victorias richest mile race, the Cantala Stakes, which carried 0,000 in added money. W. "The Champ" Cook allowed St. Constant to get balanced and after being second last in a well-strung-out field of sixteen sprinters, unwound a brilliant run in the stretch to defeat Judean and last years winner, Mohican. Equine racing idol Gold Rod quit after racing prominently for three-quarters. The winner, a grand looking four-year-old colt, carried 115 pounds and skipped over the distance in 1:37. Phar Laps one remaining record went by 1 the board when the beautifully parented, Manolive, son of the famous Manfred and equally illustrious Sister Olive, herself win- ner of the 1921 Melbourne Cup, shouldered I I 119 pounds and easily smashed the "red ter-1 I rors" mile and a quarter record of 2:02 j by half a second. The battle for second hon-1 i ors was more spirited, with R. Thomas 1 1 1 I I I j i 1 1 i unlucky Heroic horse, Othello, finishing just a narrow margin before Footmark. The total wagered in the machines during the four-day meeting, ,325,308, was a decrease of 5,450 on that of the corresponding carnival last year, when the four-day total was a record. Stakes amounting to 45,000 were provided for winners and placed horses at the spring meeting. F. Shean, rider of Catalogue in the Melbourne Cup, was laid ,000 for a win, ,600 if the horse finished second and 00 for third. As Sheans winning percentage was ,420, he would earn ,400 for the three minutes and twenty-six and one-quarter seconds. For widespread interest there arc few if any rivals in New Zealand to the New Zealand Cup, run at Christchurchs picturesque track Riccarton Saturday, November 5. The finish was a thriller and with two furlongs to go twelve of the eighteen runners had chances. Arctic King won by a head from .The Buzzer and Milford. The others were closely bunched. Arctic King carried 113 pounds and covered the two mile in 3:24. C. Wilson, who handled Arctic King in his usual fine style was associated with Sir Simper when the New Zealand horse won four races in a row at Victoria four years ago.
