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Weighing In By EVAN SHIPMAN BELMONT PARK, Elmont, L. I., N. Y., May 19.— Mamelukes Metropolitan was a big race in every sense of the word. The Mahmoud colt hardly has a leg under him, but he forgot that ouchy underpinning at the head, of the long Belmont stretch last week-end and ran down the favored Battlefield with authority. A furlong out in this mile classic, it looked like Battlefield in a romp. A sixteenth from the wire, it still seemed as if George D. Wideners little chestnut would get there first, but Gerald Porch was really hustling aboard his unsound but classy mount, and the Porch-Mameluke combination were going away at the finish. Weight, of course, was Battlefields downfall, and Mameluke did sneak into this renewal of the Metropolitan very light in contrast to the 125 pounds on the choice. Another who did not look well below the knees in the walking ring was the good mare, Next Move, and we suspect that a near hind pastern may soon give her trouble, if it is not already responsible for several disappointing races. Mameluke did his .running at the end of the Metropolitan, where it counted, and Next Move was the sharpest kind 5f factor for five furlongs. After that, she surrendered to Battlefield, who surged up on- the outside of the field as if he had complete command. Last year, Syl Veitch, trainer of Mameluke, was confident that the colt had a royal chance for the Derby, and he came up to the Louisville race in fine style. On the track, however, Mamelukes suspicious tendons must have stung1 him, because he showed a dismal effort. This Metropolitan, an event that is never won by any but a good horse, must be some consolation for the earlier disappointment. We did not think that Battlefield showed the same resplendent condition as when Bob Horwood painted the little champs portrait last year. His coat, which has grown noticeably lighter, hardly reflected the same sheen, and he had his usual self-willed, contrary mood on the way to the post. Before the start, we heard horsemen say, "Battlefield will be out of the money for the first iime in his career this afternoon," and for a half mile, it looked as if these pessimists might have had reason on their side. When he took to running, he showed us that handsome is as handsome does, and that he is still a tough competitor in anybodys horse race. Making his first start in this country, Mill River Stables Big Dipper II. wound up dead last on Saturday in an overnight sprint. The big Englishman, who topped the Free Handicap in his native land as a juvenile, was a picture in the paddock, and had the long, easy action of a good one in competition, but he is no six-furlong horse, despite breeding that emphasizes speed rather than stamina. Horatio Luro has shown great patience with Big Dipper II., and he may get his reward eventually. This one moves very much like the three-year-old Olympic from the same barn, but he is not as handy an individual. Olympic is hot far off a winning race in this country, but Big Dipper U„ for all his English reputation, has a lot to learn about our way of doing things before he beats an American field of any quality. The old slogan, "They do those things better in France," came to our mind when we received the last copy of LEperon — the illustrated "Revue Hippique." This monthly magazine covers flat races, steeplechases, the harness races and the horse shows, and both text and pictures are admirable. We were particularly interested in the photographs of the recent Auteuil steeplechase meeting because they illustrated the marked difference between that sport as it is practised in France and in America. Over there, great variety exists in the types of jumps, and a well schooled horse is a versatile performer, able to adapt himself to not one circumstance but a dozen. In this country, we ask jumpers to face serious obstacles, but they are monotonous, one fence being just like the next. This criticism is even more valid when applied to timber racing, the most strenuous form of the cross-country game. The jumps in the Maryland Hunt Cup, for instance, are as tough as anything in the Liverpool Grand National, but they are all alike. For that reason, the Maryland classic will always lack the drama of the English National or of the French Grand Prix de Paris. Another contrast vividly emphasized by this number of "LEperon" was between the Grand Steeplechase de Paris, contested at. Auteuil, and the more famous. English Grand National. The picture of the Liverpool race was taken right after the first obstacle, and all you can see is half a dozen T , Continued on Page Thirty-Three i I WEIGHING IN By EVAN SH1PMAN Continued from Page Four riderless horses and half a dozen jockeys spread over the course. It is not unfair to form a judgment based on this photograph because the same thing happens every year. The Grand National, in the opinion of this commentator, is often a shambles, and the winner is the lucky horse, rather than the best horse. We have no doubt at all that Jock Whitneys Easter Hero was far and away the best steeplechaser we have ever been privileged to see. Easter Hero tried twice for the National, but hard luck kept him out of the winners circle. The English care for the race in much the same way that they patronize the Calcutta Sweep, and the gods must look kindly on you to win either of them.
