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J U D G E S S T A N D CHARLES CHURCHILL DOWNS Louisville Ky April 30 The Derby has not drawn a large field but each of the entrants is almost literally one in a thousand That is approximately the ratio per foal on this side of the Atlantic in 1945 In a few hours now the mellow strains of My Old Ken ¬ tucky Home will float across the Downs and the throngs will cheer the field on its way to the post at the head of the home stretch that little little piece of dirt where the race of their lives is run It is there centuries of breeding and years of experienced training and jockey ship are reduced to thrilling split seconds And it is there most of the crowd expects Citation to show the class which enabled his grandsire to win the Epsom Derby and his granddam to win the Oaks This observer is inclined to go along with the popular opinion There are some who prefer his rapid little stablemate Coal town and nearly everyone is agreed that they are a doublebarreled cinch a circumstance which may re sultin a short pool The Easts game My Request strikes us as the Calumets stoutest rival He has not been hanging out those dazzling time figures which mark the favorites races but then he has been beating better horses We think that if there is any element of under breeding and overtraining in the field for this Run for the Roses he will find it out outA A A A Downs visitors will see the fortyseventh Bashford Manor while the Derby colts are warmingup We suppose you know that this is the clubs traditional spring feature for male twoyearolds and that it was lamed for the late George Longs oncefamous stud near Louisville It always has taken a fast colt to win a Bashford Manor and we should say that Irish Sun is the speed of the candidates we have seen up to now William Veenemans tall Sun Again colt is fairly tight for a twoyearold in April and went through a gap coming back after the My Request Looms Calumets Stoutest Foe Irish Sun Speed of Bashford Field Mystery Lady Reared by Coldbred Mare Derby May Increase Preakness Interest InterestLafayette Lafayette which he won ridden out several unnecessary lengths but he certainly is a runner Trainer Douglass has enjoyed remarkable success in past Bashford Manors We think he broke and developed Murph and Sky Lark ¬ ing for Milky Way and he saddled Phar Mon and Tweets Boy for Veeneman One sometimes hears it questioned if youngsters who are clever enough to win these early stakes can havemuch future and yet the Bashford Manor winners Hawthorne Worth Escoba Billy Kelly Black Gold Roguish Eye Coldstream and Roman beat the JohnriyComeLatelies JohnriyComeLateliesA A A A AMrs Mrs Ada Rices filly Mystery Lady who won Jamaicas Rdsedale not long ago has a background which would delight feature writers It seems that S D Riddle offered some Man o War mares at Keenelands Fall Sales a few years back and among them was an aging and barren mare called Ship Ablaze Coldstream wanted a Man o War mare to breed to Bull Dogr and bought her lor 3200 She got in foal and produced a filly but promptly orphaned her Of course this was Mystery Lady who was adopted by a white nurse mare that some of the boys call Calamity Jane which is rather apt Mystery Lady grew into an attractive yearling and the Rice talent scouts were so taken with her that the Chi ¬ cago sportswoman paid 15000 for her You will not find Calamity Jane in the Stud Book or the matriarchy of the turf If she has any thoroughbred blood she is hiding it says Charley Kenney but she demands the best hay and gets it and she has reared a stakes winner Just now she is rearing Mrs Carruthers orphaned filly by Count Fleet out of Nursemaid The result of the Derby will be of interest all over the world and particularly on Baltimores Old Hilltop where the Preakness is to be decided two weeks hence Occasionally the Maryland race has advantaged from following the Derby for close finishes here stimulate interest in another encounter of the principals at Pim ¬ lico This was the case last May when Jet Pilot Phalanx and Faultless ended the Downs classic two heads apart Never within our memory has the Triple Crown events resolved themselves into virtual walkovers any more rapidly than in Count Fleets year Nine opposed him in the Derby three in the Preakness and he won the Belmont Stakes by no less than 25 lengths at odds of less than 1 to 20 We know experts who have a notion Citation is about to eliminate the wheat from the chaff at the same rate this spring but we shouldnt care to wager anything on it Some years ago Bubbling Over won the Derby by five casual lengths and seemed a genuine standout A few days later it was learned that he had bowed and he never raced again Morvich swept through the Derby unbeaten then met Whiskaway and his Waterloo War Admiral and Assault won off in the Derby and one week later wdn the Preakness in photo finishes It is such occurrences that make ones views conservative and ones interest in the Triple Crown throughout the entire series seriesA A A A ATurfiana Turfiana Citation will catapult to a position among the five leading money winners if he can bring off the Triple Crown New Yorkers arent the only turfgoers who have seen a splendid exhibition of horse art in recent days Back at Keeneland the club walls were covered with Stulls that Maj Louie Beard had located some ¬ where It must embarrass trainers to saddle horses beaten off as far as many have been in Kentucky this spring It certainly embarrasses their backers Buck Weaver fancies that Free America will assume high rank among the threeyearolds in late season route races
