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Weighing In By EVAN SHIPMAN Belmont Never More Beautiful Ideal Setting for Turf Sport Tuscany Buoys Sprinter Ranks BELMONT PARK, Elmont, L. I., N. Y., May 7, — Familiarity has never dulled our response to the beauty of Belmont. We return each spring to the park-like environment of this great track with the same gratitude for the discernment and taste of its builders, Major August Belmont and Joseph E. Widener, and the same sense of relief in temporarily escaping the harsh, uncompromisingly realistic surroundings of ; I the thoroughbred sport as they exist at other tracks. For a few weeks at least, racing will take its place among the gracious amenities of civilized living. Our best horses will compete in a setting that is worthy of them, enhancing their appeal with an appropriate frame. Long stretches of green turf, banked flowering shrubs, expanding vistas of budding, soft-toned branches and the sweeping majesty of ancient trees provide the background for a unique spectacle. The rare combination of dignity and charm, lending something of the quality of a timeless pageant to the daily programs at Belmont, derives, we believe, from the subtle utilization of space. Perspective diminishes the importance of tawdry de- tail, and the spectator, lost for the moment in the generalized mass, takes his place as an insignificant dot of color on a vast canvas. Beauty should occasion a certain humility, and the superb indifference of majestic Belmont to the petty, strident ego restores our sense of proportion. Perfectly adjusted to cloudy skies that, indeed, recall Major Belmonts model for this track in the Bois de Boulougne, the Westchester Racing Associations course was never more beautiful than yesterday for the opening, an opening featuring the traditional Toboggan Handicap. High weight of the good sprinters engaged, Greentrees Tom Fool was expected to start, and if this truly magnificent thoroughbred had actually graced the afternoons proceedings, nothing would have been lacking toward making this a gala occasion. But Tom Fool is likely to show something less than his best over an "off" strip. Out of consideration for a public that would certainly have made the Menow four-year-old a stout choice in the wagering, he was a late scratch, although, as it turned out, his absence robbed the six-furlong dash of little of its appeal. The consistent Tuscany, an invader from Maryland, captured this renewal in a long-sustained tussle involving Belairs unpredictable Hyphasis and the starting favorite, Dark Peter. From start to finish, it was a pretty race, and the winners time of 1:10, considering the footing, ranks well with that of other speed specialists who have been successful down the Widener chute. As nearly as the deceptive angle of the chute allowed the eye to judge, Tuscany, who shared the honors as highweight of the field with Dark Peter and Squared Away, was either in the lead, or only a head off it, from the drop of the flag. His most persistent rival turned out to be Hyphasis, one who could hardly be recommended for his courage, but who has always shown a particular partiality for the Widener chute. At least twice, Hyphasis got to Tuscany, perhaps heading him, while at the wire, under really severe punishment from Eric Guerin, he was coming strongly again. It was a fine race for both the winner and the runner-up, while Dark Peter, only a half length off this pair, also finished with a powerful run. Local racegoers had an earlier glimpse of Tuscany at Jamaica this spring, the Marylander dropping a close decision on that occasion to Sagittarius, fourth yesterday in the Toboggan and, himself, beaten less than a length for it all. This Tuscany, a five-year-old son of Green-trees former handicap campaigner, The Rhymer, from the Pompey mare, Roman Matron, is nothing if not genuine. His record shows him to have finished only once worse than second in three successive campaigns, that single bad effort occurring shortly before this Toboggan start when he wound up unplaced behind Indian Land and Hyphasis. If that defeat showed a defection of form, it was of short duration. Tuscany is a fine j sprinter, a worthy addition to a division I Continued on Page Thirty -Four WEIGHING IN By EVAN SHIPMAN Continued from Page Two that, until his arrival on the local scene, was becoming a little monotonous. Good days are no novelty for Eddie Ar-caro. Nevertheless, our premier jockey really outdid himself for the Belmont opening, taking four races in a row, and this series only interrupted by the steeplechase. Eddies first three victories were merely examples of his usual fine form, but his last visit to the winners circle, after getting Jamie K. home first by a nose, was something else again. The Jamie K. race represented this riders genius in the saddle, requiring patience, timing of the first order, and Arcaros own inimitable power and determination in the drive. Slow to break, Jamie K. was a full sixteenth of a mile off the leaders in the run down the backstretch, but Arcaro allowed his mount to settle to his best stride before making any demand. Between the turns, Jamie K. began to close the gap, then pick up the trailers, while at the head of the homestretch, it was apparent that this three-year-old was very much in the hunt. Conceding considerable weight to the four-year-old, Risque Rouge, on the scale, Jamie K. got up to poke his nose in front in the very last stride, and, strange as it may seem, it looked as if Arcaros uncanny instinct for pace had measured that margin from the start of his long run. Nor was this feat overlooked in the grandstand, and it was to a round of generous applause that Arcaro dismounted. No tribute could have been more richly merited. The turf is lush from all the rain recently, and the steeplechasers will revel in the going they will find at Belmont these next few weeks. An overnight allowance event brought out a small field for the tracks initial offering over the hedges, and a couple who did start were sorely in need of the race, their lack of present condition being evident in the paddock. The winner turned out to be Master Mariner, a five-year-old War Admiral gelding from Jim Ryans barn. This fellow was fit, as are most of the horses Ryan sends out and he did not have much trouble at the end after waiting well off the early pace set by Extra Points. Just before the final obstacle, Master Mariner, Cherwell, who also showed a promising performance, and the pace-setting Extra Points, were all on equal terms, but condition told and Master Mariner drew away in the drive in spite of having plowed roughly through that last fence. Looked at critically, it may not have been too much of a race, but it was good to see the steeplechase horses again, good in fact just to be out in the open once more at Belmont Park
