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REFLECTIONS By Nelson Dunstan Illinois Racing Board Fearless Body Makes Punishment Stern for Offenders Kentucky Breeders at Arlington Today Mereworth Has Fine Yearlings to Offer OfferLEXINGTON LEXINGTON Ky June 19 19With With each year it becomes more obvious that the Illinois Racing Board is a fearless body that will crack down on those vho violate the code of honest racing in its state They will give anyone accused of an offense a fair hearing but once they are convinced he is guilty they hand down a decision that will make others think twice before they commit the same error In the case of trainer An gelo Cilio whom they found guilty of drug ¬ ging a horse with benzedrine the license was revoked and the case referred to the states attorney of Cook County for such action as he may deem essential We do not know what that could mean under the laws of the State of Illinois but we do know that as long as the present Illinois Racing Board continues to function all the political pressure possible will not get Cilios license back Former offenders in Illinois have had friends go to the governor but the chief executive of the state has solidly supported this trip of men whom he appointed to his commission These commissioners should be given a world of credit for in the performance of their sworn duty they are making the punishment fit the offense offenseWarren Warren Wright and Henry H Knight left Lexington today to be at the Arlington Park opening Monday Wright is planning to fly east to sec the LouisWalcott fight on Wednesday then will return to Chicago to see his powerful stable in action during the 67 days of racing at ArlingtonWashington Parks Knight who is one of the busiest men in the industry had little to say on the possibilities of he and Dale Shaffer erecting a modern race track in the Detroit area But he did say Whether our group or some other group builds a new track I be ¬ lieve that Detroit is a city that should have a track that will reflect the best traditions of horse racing Knights yearlings have topped the Saratoga Sales for the past two years and on the night of August 13 he will offer a group of 20 colts and fillies that have just as much appeal as those in his previous sales Which of the 20 will bring the high dollar is a question but it is our guess that it will be a filly by Bull Dog Aphaona AphaonaFor For the past week this writer has been hopping around the Kentucky breeding farms and for a few days our traveling companion was Ralph West trainer for the Jaclyn Stable one of the bigger buyers of yearlings in recent years Within the next few weeks trainers from other prominent stables will be arriving here to look over the colts and fillies who will be auc ¬ tioned by the Breeders Sales Company from the afternoon of July 26 through Thursday evening July 29 Naturally at this time there is speculation as to the market and how it will com ¬ pare with the sales in individual prices and averages with those of former years Recently we made the guess that the 1948 yearling sales would be about the same in averages as those of last year and since our arrival in Kentucky we have heard such veteran breeders as Arthur B Hancock and Tom Piatt utter statements to substantiate us Arthur B Hancock whose accomplishments as a breeder for the past 40 years is an ab ¬ sorbing chapter of breeding success said There is no reason why sales should drop this season Stake and purse values are at the highest peak of all time The quality of the yearlings to be offered is an important factor but from close observation we can say the youngsters are on a par generally with those sold in former seasons seasonsThe The first breeding establishments we visited to see yearlings was the Mereworth Farm of the New York realtor Walter J Salmon They will offer a group of 38 colts and fillies that will have appeal to buyers in all price ranges In recent years Mereworth has sent many mares to stallions at other wellknown breeding arms with the result that the youngsters by their own stallions are offered along with others by Whirlaway War Ad ¬ miral Hcliopolis Count Fleet Reaping Reward Sun Again Roman Unbreakable Questionnaire Jacopo Blue Larkspur Bimelech Jamestown Bolingbroke and Phara mond II Mereworth does not race a stable so as a mar ¬ ket breeder their diversified group has a wide range of appeal to owners and trainers seeking a babe by a par ¬ ticular stallion At a later date we will review the Mere worth youngsters more fully and also give facts and figures on the accomplishments of the yearlings from this farm in former years yearsWhen When a thoroughbred racing fan hears the name of Dale Shaffer he naturally associates it with Coldstream Stud and the stallions Bull Dog Heliopolis and Reaping Reward But down here at the Kentucky trotting track Shaffer has Rollo in train Ing and such a competent harness man as Alex Gordon tells us that Rollo will not only be the favorite for the Hambletonian but that he has a royal chance of winning the classic at Goshen Rollo is a threeyearold by Volamite Ruth M Chenault and was the best twoyearolds of the 1947 season Coldstream bred Rollo his dam and granddam He is being trained by Tom Berry one of the best trottinghorse drivers in the world After one race In the North he will be pointed for the Goshen race that in the harness realm is comparable to the Kentucky Derby in the thor ¬ oughbred field
