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News From England Royal Ascot Meet In Unique Class By CLIVE GRAHAM London Correspondent, Daily Racing Form LONDON, England, June 26. — There is no race-meeting anywhere in the world which can equal the significance of the 24-race Royal Ascot program. Every event is a stakes race, in the full mean- :" HHPIL -ing of the term. And MKk furthermore, owners, , JmL, trainers and jockeys W?t-i$£Wand team together for an jPP, all-out assault on the W jLL Imjf various prizes. It fol- ,, liW lows that any horse %ZJm who can run first, sec- JmmZ~ ond or third at Royal Ascot is not there on - J||p sufferance. Even the minor places carry with them a cachet un-equaled at any other track. Honors this past week were spread over many participants. Manny Mercer topped the jockeys, with three winners. Jack Jarvis trained four, while the Astor-bred Fair Trial horse, Court Martial, was the only stud-horse to have as many as two winning representatives. French victories were limited to three — Marcel Boussacs Argur, the Aly Khans English-bred Skyraider, and Baron Guy de Rothschilds Guersant. The most memorable feature of the four days was the terrific finish to the 2 y2 -mile Gold Cup. The big Boussac five-year-old Talma II. and his Hyperion contemporary! Eastern Emperor, were preferred in the betting:. Talma II. had the Pharis colt, Aram, for pacemaker, while Le Flamand was on a similar mission for the "other well-supported French challenger, Feu Du Diable. These two subsidiaries went away clear, with their lead gradually dwindling: as the two -mile mark was reached. Here, Le Flamand faded from contention, while Arams jockey politely deviated from the rail to let Talma II. come through. French jockey Doyasbere, on the big: chestnut horse, urged him in vain. There was little response. "Go on," he shouted to the pacemakers rider, "and keep going." Meanwhile, the veteran Charlie Elliott on the Epigram horse Souepi had been nursing this five-year-old for a late dash. He joined issue two furlongs out, passed Le Bourgeois, took a head lead from Aram, lost it, came again and once more lost the lead a stride past the post. Bookies asked for 1 to 10 on Aram while the photograph was being developed and Marcel Boussac was not the only spectator to execute a jump in amazement when the judge declared Souepi the winner. The photograph confirmed that Elliott now in his 50th year had put Souepis nose in front of Arams just when it mattered most. Nearula, injured before the Epsom Derby, came back to winning form in the St. James Palace Stakes a mile. He hung away from the whip in the last furlong and Britt had to pull it through quickly to his left hand to straighten him. Happy Laughter by Royal Charger confirmed her superiority at a mile over the other three-year-old fillies in the Coronation Stakes. Rain marred the spectacular side of the meeting and made the straightaway mile course treacherous to horses and the students of form. Ray Bells strongly-framed colt The Pie King was able to bear Darius by Dante and a Coventry Stakes field, which included Mr. Walter Jeffords Woodcote Stakes victor Blue Prince II., easily from the low side. Most of the other winners came from the high-numbered post-positions. vWith .intermittent showers and heavy morning dew, it became impossible to evaluate performances from timing. The Pie King must be highly regarded, although sprinter-bred High Treason by Court Martial from a Gold Bridge mare was the fastest-looking two-year-old winner we saw. And Pat Beasley produced a Royal Charger colt called Royal Challenger at the Heath meeting on Saturday which might be the star performer of the year, in our two-year-old section. • There were enormous cheers for the Queen when her Hyperion colt, Choir Boy, won the Royal Hunt Cup. The purple and gold were carried with less distinction by Gay Time, who quit the struggle against Guersant in the Hard-wicke Stakes. To judge by the way his sides heaved while the saddle was being removed, an observer could have had the suspicion that this embryo English National Stud stallion is suffering from a heart condition American spectators found visibility and amenities quite hope- Continued on Page Forty-Three 1 - Graham Reports Continued from Page Two less in Tattcrsalls during the meeting. We were thankful to be able to sneak a shy but deserving couple up to the press box on the Friday — "Oidipus" and "Hyvania" watch out for a soul-tirring piece from either or both of these, as soon as they find some place to buy a dictionary. These well-known American racing characters were fascinated by two minor facets of the Ascot scene — that extra-ordinary long loose-rein hold of Gordon Richards, and the amazing vitality, self-confidence and strength exhibited by Charlie Smirke, especially when he drove home French-.bred Lord Fox to win the famous Queen Alexandra Stakes of two and three-quarters miles. Note for intending visitors to the Ascot July meeting. , If you want to get into the members enclosure normally only accessible to holders of badges or special vouchers, bring your passport and the equivalent of . The passport is more important than the nine bucks, but you will need both — and maybe more of the latter.
