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I JUDGES STAND fy Charles Hatton Combs Closing Alibhai Negotiations letter Self Stars and Stripes Prospect Irazilian Sportsman Visits Stud Farms Wine List to Await Saratoga Features " LEXINGTON, Ky., June 29. Leslie Combs II. may be prepared to announce the syndicate that havo bought Alibhai by the time you read this, and in any case, he tells us that the son of Hyperion is to be shipped ta Spendthrift about Sept. 1. "The vets seem to think that this would be an ideal time to bring him here," Combs said "Because of the- humidity in this area were he shipped earlier in the Summer." He added that Abe Hewitts examination of Alibhais stud record for 1948 shows that 30 of the 38 mares bred to him are presumed to be in foal. Oddly enough the eight who did not catch are .Mayer Stock Farm mares. However, the splendid Busher has reverted to Mayers ownership, and she is said to be in foal to Alibhai. Of this mare Combs ehthtisra "T saw her at the Mayer farm and she certainly looks like a million dollars. I tried my best to buy her, but I was not successful." Earlier there was some vague talk of a trade involving several high class mares and Busher but nothing came of it It is our understanding that Mayer and Combs each will have three shares in Alibhai, who is estimated at about 00,000 in the transaction. According to that informative work, The American Racing Manual, the previous, "all time high" is the 48,000 for which Stardust was syndicated in England in 1945. However a group of U. S, breeders were prepared to pay 1948.sh00,005 for the French horse DJebel a few days ago but found that ha is not for sale at this time. By the way Combs tells us that he thinks there is far more interest on the Coast in the Keene-land yearling sales than ever before. Bob Kleberg might wish that his colt Better Self were twins. At any rate the son of Biinelech was made eligible hist May for the 0,000 addied Dwyer at Aqueduct on July 5, and more recently he was .named for the ,tfJ0 Stars and Stripes Handicap at Arlington on the same date. Neither race is expected to attract Citation, his Nemesis of the Belmont Stakes. Up to now Better Self has confined his activities to the East. His most conspicuous success came in the 0,000 Yankee Handicap of a mile and a quarter at Suffolk Downs. Strangely or not no three-year-old has won a Stars and Stripes since its introduction in 1929. Eternal Reward has been so good to Augustus and Nahm of Louisville that they have obtained his seven-yearrold brother Your Reward and placed him in the stud at Warner L. Jones place near .Goshen, Ky. As if you didnt already know Your Reward is by Reaping Reward out of Forever Yours, and he ran for ,500 last season. We suppose that in time Eternal Reward will be retired to the stud, perhaps at Jones Hermitage. By the way Jones reports that the new foal crop at his farm numbers 35, and is about equally divided as to colts and fillies. Of his own foals Jones said "I like particularly a colt by Whirlaway out of Cash Book and a filly by Hash out of Valdina Gold." Jones has added several mares to the Hermitage band in late weeks. One of these is Marie J., who is by Xalapa Clown out of Marie Jean, a winner of 27 races and the dam of Mel Eppley. There is also the mare Patent, who is by Johnstown out of Strange Device, and never ran a,s we recall. Jones repeats Hash in good fettle at the end of the-breeding season and of course this son of Questionnaire is incomparably the best sire in service in the Derby Town area. Maj. Louie Beard of the Grentree turf interests recently had as his guest here Senor Oswaldo Aranha, the Brazilian delegate to the United Nations. Aranha was much interested in the fertility of the soil and elements in the water of the famed Blue Grass region, and Beard showed him a rood many of the local farms. Aranha made some notes and was provided with statistics. The native South American grasses are of course best for the soil and climate there, but Aranha may have picked up some useful information. Aranha is a sportsman as well as a diplomat and has a racing string and stud in Brazil. Several years ago Jock Whitney made him a gift of the Blandford horse Valedictory, who he had purchased in England, as a sire prospect. Valedictory had won some long races abroad, and Aranha now is racing quite a good son of Valedictory in South America. Turf ana: Public response to this much of Arlington is rather gratifying to Ben Lindheimer. . . . Dixianas high class, filly Four Winds seems quite near a race. One of Americas leading studs may adopt a policy of selling all its colts, retaining all of the fillies, some of them to be offered privately. ... Charley Kenney is in New York, for a few days, .. . . Greentrees good colt Wine List is reported in splendid fettle by Maj. Beard. It is not intended that he shall race again until Saratoga; . . . One of the nicest of more than 100 foals at Claiborne Farm is a colt by Fighting Fox out of A. B. Hancock, Jr.s, mare Pigtails n. . . . Hancock, Sr., is out and about again after a check-up a Str Josephs Hospital here. . . . Three of his four 2-year-olct fillies now have won. ... Among the new mares at the W. L. Jones place is a half-sister to Piet. . . . Pounditouts owners may race a two-year-old filly in 1949.
