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Foreign Turf News ENGLAND. Large Entry for Warwick Reopening There has been an entry of 758 horses for the first post-war Warwick race meeting to be held next month. The entry for the spring meeting of 1939, the last prewar meeting to be held, was 414. All Warwickshire Mayors and Mayoresses are to be invited to a tea party to celebrate the reopening of Warwick race course. Son for Douglas Smith Mrs. Patricia Smith, wife of the Newmarket jockey, Douglas Smith, gave birth to a son in a Cambridge nursing home recently. Both mother and son are doing well. Mrs. Smith is the daughter of the Southfleet, Kent, trainer, Fred Winter. 80,000 for Race Course Owners Allocation of this years totalisator surplus by the Racecourse Betting Control Board was discussed at a meeting held recently by the Doncaster Race Committee. Councillor Herbert Martin, chairman of the committee, said the sum for disposal would probably be ,960,000, of which race course executives would probably get 80,000, to be devoted exclusively to rehabilitation and improvements of courses. A suggestion that 80,000 should go to maintaining added stakes on the same level as in 1948 was not likely to be adopted. Eph Smith Takes Rest Eph Smith will not ride for three weeks as the result of his fall at Wolverhampton. The thumb of his right hand is fractured in two places and his wrist is broken. Mid-Week St. Leger Likely Doncaster Race Committee at their next meeting will discuss the possibility of holding the St. Leger this year on a Thursday or Friday instead of a Saturday, now that the ban on mid-week sport has been lifted. Receipts when the St. Leger has been held on a Saturday have been down badly compared with the old day of Wednesday. Councilor H. Martin, chairman of the Race Committee, said "Football competition is very strong with its much cheaper admission charges." No Bid on Solario Stud No bid was registered when Mrs. F. M. Broomfields fifty-five acres Solario Stud! came up for auction at Newmarket recently. The auctioneer asked for an opening of 8,000 but there was no response. Remarking that the stud would probably be disposed of privately, a reserve figure of 8,000 was disclosed. Grand National Winner for Sale John Proctors horses are to be sold at the Northern bloodstock sales on June 27. They include Sheilas Cottage, who won the Grand National for Proctor last year. Sheilas Cottage has been at stud since her Aintree triumph. Death of Racehorse Owner The death is announced of Roger Bow-nass, the well known racehorse owner of Windermer, aged 87. He had many good horses in the North of England, his flat racers being trained by M. Peacock at Mid-dleham and his jumpers by the late Tom Coulthwaite at Hednesford. Among the best horses which carried his colors were Young England, Pactolus, Windermere Laddie, Happy View and Lucky Flight. The most important races he won were the Liverpool Autumn Cup and the Ormonde Stakes with Young England, and the King George VI. Stakes and the Earl of Seftons Plate with Pactolus. His best jumper was Windermere Laddie, who won twenty-two races under National Hunt Rules. Richards to Ride Royal Forest Gordon Richards stated that he will ride Major Macdonald Buchanans Royal Forest in the Derby. This followed the announcement that the stable companion, Faux Tirage, had jarred himself while running at Newmarket and was a doubtful runner. Royal Forest is a 7-to-2 favorite for the Derby. He will be Gordons twenty-fourth mount in the race which he has never won. He has finished second three times and third once. Oldtime Jockey Dies T. H. Dunn, the ex-steeplechase jockey, who rode many winners in France and frequently came to England to ride in important races, died recently at Lewes, aged 69. For the last thirty or forty years, Mr. Dunn had acted as the Press Associations racing correspondent for the Lewis district. English Entries for Grand Prix Lord Derbys Swallow Tail, second favorite for this years Epsom Derby, is among the many English entries for the Grand Prix de Paris, to be run in France on Sunday, June 26, over about one mile, seven furlongs. Other prominent English j entries include Lord Portals Northern Star n., James de Rothschilds Negresco, HJR.H. Princess Royals The Thruster, Maharajah of Barodas Makarpura and Nazar Baug, Aga Khans Hindostan and the American-owned pair, Lone Eagle and Brown Rover of William Woodward. Proposes More Jumping Fixtures At a recent meeting of the National aunt Committee in London, Sir Edward EEanmer. senior steward, regretted the j 1 dearth of fixtures in the North, particularly in view of the increased number of horses in training in northern stables. It was hoped, he said, that next year northern race courses would do their best to increase the number of fixtures, and that the inclusion of meetings at Ayr and Newcastle in the fixture list would materially assist. The stewards undertook, at the request of the committee, to form a sub-committee to examine the whole question of point-to-point racing with a view to recommending any necessary alterations of the National Hunt regulations for point-to-point meetings. Sir Edward Hanmer, on retiring from the senior stewardship, nominated Lord Mildmay, of Flete, as a steward, and F. E. Withington nominated Major Ian Straker as his successor. The six stewards are now: Sir Humphrey de Trafford, Lord Lewes, Col. R. Thompson, H. Llewellyn, Lord Mildmay and Major Ian Straker. FRANCE. Targui to Run in English Derby The French colt, Targui, will run in the Epsom Derby, it was announced in Paris by his owner, M. Marcel Boussac, who also said he would not have a runner for the Oaks. Targui finished second of four runners in the Prix La Forge, over one mile, two and three-quarter furlongs, at Long-champs recently. Boussac refused to comment on who would ride Targui. British jockey, E. C. Elliott, who usually rides M. Boussacs classic candidates, is understood to want to ride Nimbus, the British colt, on whom he won the Two Thousand Guineas at Newmarket last month. Pari-Mutuel Returns Up Pari-mutuel the French tote took 22,000,000 pounds sterling in horse racing bets during 1948, compared with 17,000,000 for the previous year, states a Paris message. As bookmakers are illegal in France, the pari-mutuel has an almost complete monopoly of betting. Jockeys Again Threaten Strike French jockeys are again in dispute with owners and have threatened to strike unless negotiations now taking place lead to a satisfactory solution. Roger Bates, the steeplechase jockey who often rides in England, has resigned as president of the French Jockeys Union and has been made honorary president. Jean Laumain will be the new president. Refuses to Sell Derby Hope Marcel Bernier, owner-breeder of Highlander m., winner of the Prix Juigne at Longchamp and a likely challenger for the Epsom Derby, has refused an English offer of 0,000 for the horse. Highlanders next engagement is in the Prix Horquart at Longchamp on May 3. My Love, last years Epsom Derby winner, won this race last year. French Entries for Hunt Cup Three French horses have been entered in Paris for the Royal Hunt Cup, running over seven furlongs at Ascot on June 15. They are Marcel Boussacs Golestan and Nirgal and Baron Robert de Nexons Drakkar. R. Bates to Settle in Britain R. Bates, the French steeplechase jockey who has also been riding in England, said in an interview with the Paris racing newspaper, "Sport Complet," that he intended settling in England. Bates is taking a holiday in the South of France at present. AUSTRALIA. Russia to Be Retired to Stud Russia, eight-year-old champion weight-for-age stayer of Australian race tracks, is, to be retired to the stud, his owner, Gordon Leeds, told Reuters in Sydney. Russia was recently put back in training after 10 months at stud, and won three races and was placed second in three others. During his racing career, Russia ran eighty-eight times and won twenty-three races, including one dead-heat. He won the Melbourne Cup with 126 pounds in 1946, equalling the course record for the two miles. He started five times in the Australian Jockey Club Plate, over two miles, two furlongs, winning it twice, finishing second twice and third on the other occasion. Another Cook for England? A message from Sydney states that Billy Cook, the Australian champion jockey who is riding in Britain with such great success, may be joined shortly by his brother, Reg. Reg Cook recently returned to Sydney from Colombo, where he established himself as a top-flight jockey. Record Aggregate at Sydney Sales A record aggregate of 304,845 Australian guineas ,024,280 was paid for 539 yearling thoroughbred horses at the Sydney Sales this year. The average was just over ,864, but two years ago the record average of ,368 was established. The leading sire at this years sales was the Australian - bred, Ajax, who is now standing at a stud in the United States. Thirteen of his progeny were sold at an average of ,500.
