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Thirteen Seek International Chase Native Dancer Wins With Authority Withers Has Fine Field at Belmont BelmontThe The Mast on Edge to Defeat European Jumpers Greentree Entry Choice in Mile Stake By BOB HORWOOD HORWOODStaff Staff Correspondent BELMONT PARK Elmont L I N Y May 7 The seventyninth running of the Withers Mile for threeyearolds and the fiftyseventh edition of the International Steeplechase at about two miles are the highlights of Saturdays decidely gala pro ¬ gram at beautiful Belmont This year per ¬ haps because the International is just that for the first time in its long history the steeplechase has been accorded the fea ¬ tured sixth spot on the card while the Withers which brings together 14 capable sophomores including a few potential champions will be the fourth race raceThe The colts who may yet prove to be among the leaders of the generation of 1951 in the Withers are in order of probable favori ¬ tism Greentree Stables Palm Tree James Cox Bradys Artismo and Maine Chance Farms Jet Action and Black Metal The International this year has attracted six invaders from England and Ireland plus another Irish star who will carry Canadian silks They will be opposed by the cream of the locally owned chasers headed by Mrs J R H Thourons The Mast Brookmeade Stables His Boots and James F McHughs Sundowner The AngloIrish contingent are to be ridden by invading jockeys who are more familiar with the horses than with Belmont Parks steeplechase course which is considerably more severe and tricky than it appears to tha casual eye In eyeIn both the Withers and the Interna ¬ tional all of the starters carry equal weights with the exception of Morris H Dixons Palaja who receives a 10pound apprentice allowance in the International having the maiden jockey E Deveau in the theContinued Continued on Page Five PRINCE OF DEVON The Irishbred will carry the colors of Mrs Vernon Cardy Cardyin in the International Steeplechase at Belmont Park today The son of Deconian DeconianQueen Queen Helen will have Sun Shower as a running mate Thirteen Meet in International Chase Withers Engages Fine Field at Belmont The Mast on Edge to Defeat European Jumpers Green free Entry Choice in Mile Stake StakeContinued Continued from Page One Onesaddle saddle The Withers candidates carry 126 each while the jumpers pack 153 which is four pounds below scale scaleGreehtree Greehtree Stables Palm Tree and Diving Board who will be ridden by Ted Atkinson and Hedley Woodhouse respectively loom the choices in the Withers with the Maine Chance Farm entry of Jet Action and Black Metal also attracting strong support No riders have been named for this pair Artismo who will be ridden by Dave Gor ¬ man has the best background of any of the Withers field but showed so little in his recent debut against older sprinters that he will hardly be better than third choice choiceFavoritism Favoritism in the International is ex ¬ pected to go to The Mast who was voted Steeplechaser of the Year in 1953 and turned in an excellent race for his seasonal debut on April 26 to be second to L H Nelles Extra Points trying to concede 18 pounds They meet at level weights tomor ¬ row Brookmeade Stables His Boots who beat The Mast in last years Belmont Grand National which he also won in 1949 fin ¬ ished six lengths behind The Mast on open ¬ ing day here while Sundowner was between them in third place Sundowner came back to score a hollow victory on Monday his only capable rival Cammell Laird falling at the 10th fence fenceLast Last year The Mast who will be ridden by Bob McDonald won the Georgetown North American Broad Hollow and Brook Steeplechases and finished second for the second time in the Grand National He was heavily burdened in all of his starts His Boots won the Hitchcock and Grand Na tional last year and placed in the Charles 1 L Appleton Brook Beverwyck and Sara ¬ toga chases The sixyearold Sundowner who was excessively rank much of last year only succeeded in winning the Bel ¬ mont Spring Maiden and an overnight race but placed in the Delaware Spring Maiden Shillelah North American and Broad Hollow and was third in three other stakes Elwood Carter will ride His Boots while Earl Phelps will be on Sundowner tio has steadied down appreciably Palm Tree comes from an impressive victory here last Monday in which he had tle trouble beating King Ranchs High 3un by three and a half lengths while jetting three pounds The Shut Out colt skipped a mile and a furlong through the ilop in a sparkling 149 and got the mile n 136 which is a fifth faster than Native Dancers 1953 Withers His running mate Jiving Board closed with a furious rush o be second to the seasoned Full Flight n a sixfurlong sprint for his only start lis year but has trained impressively nee then However like most of the off ring of Devil Diver he is undependable The same may be said of Palm Tree Treeaced aced Well in Flamingo and Blue Grass GrassOf Of the Maine Chance pair Black Metal irned in good races in the Flamingo and lue Grass Stakes then ran a bad one in ie Kentucky Derby for which he was quipped with blinkers that didnt help ois frequently wayward colt in the least et Action on the other hand turned in intruly truly impressive race here for his only rt this spring scoring a handy victory seven furlongs over Mrs R J Maloney Jrs On Flight who was trying to give him five pounds poundsJet Jet Action started only twice last year then escaped from his stall at Saratoga and ran loose in the stable area and part of the town before being recaptured cov ¬ ered with cuts and scrapes His owner Mrs Elizabeth Graham who first raced under the nom de course of Mr Night ¬ ingale became a Florence Nightingale for the occasion and personally attended Jet Action healing his wounds with her own medications His recent seven panels in 124 on a sloppy track suggests he may be a firstclass colt coltArtismo Artismo won the Sapling Grand Union Hotel and Hopeful Stakes in brilliant style last year and finished second to Porter ¬ house in the Futurity turning in a fine race while running in isolation on the inside rail He was fired for a suspicious knee during the winter but had been tram ing cleverly before his sophomore debut last Friday in which he coud finish no better than seventh in a sixfurlong sprint won in 1 12 by Ruthred The Son of Goya n was reported to have been jumped on in that event but has worked well since the race raceThe The others in the Withers are Wheatley Stables Quick Lunch and Ogden Phipps Privacy an entry J B Ryans Buttevant Joe W Browns Mel Leavitt William Zieg lers First Watch Hal Price Headleys Pinetum and Llangollen Farms Ordained The latter is presumably entered in the hope of rain Quick Lunch and Buttevant finished second and fourth in the Swift Stakes won by Gigantic in a modest 125 for the seven furlongs Privacy was un ¬ placed in that event Mel Leavitt showed nothing in the Kentucky Derby while First Watch and Pinetum appeared com ¬ pletely outclassed outclassedBoast Boast Excellent Foreign Records RecordsThe The six invaders in the International all boast excellent records in England and Ire ¬ land but face a difficult task in the view of local steeplechase devotees English and Irish chases are normally run at a much slower pace than ours and the fences while more spectacular are no more se ¬ vere They also require some knowing on the part of their riders ridersOf Of the invaders Miss Dorothy Pagets 11yearold Prince of Denmark Mrs M M Griffins Louis Seize and Leslie Brands In View won their last starts Despite his advanced years Prince of Denmark would appear to have considerable speed having won a hurdle race under 162 pounds at Cheltenham on ApriL 14 while he won three steeplechases last fall Louis Seize has not been out since winning a steeple ¬ chase at Leopardstown on February 6 while In View won a chase at the Ward Union Hunt on April 20 20The The other three invaders are H J Ver rails Campari G G Lawrences Rose Park and Mrs GZ Verneys Nice Work II Campari won a steeplechase at Hurst Park in January and finished unplaced in a hurdle and a chase since then Rose Park finished third under 174 pounds in a steep ¬ lechase at Cheltenham on April 15 quit badly in a race before that and was an easy winner under 172 at Sandown on February 13 Nice Work II won three in a row last summer but was beaten in three Irish hurdle races this spring the most recent on April 17 at Phoenix Park ParkDavid David Victor Dick will ride Prince of Denmark but Mr John Richard Morris Bunny Cox the only amateur in the race who will be on Louis Seize tops him in the name department at least Pat ¬ rick J Doyle leading Irish jump jockey this year will be on In View Richard Stanley Francis will be on Rose Park and Patrick Taaffee will guide Nice Work n The assorted Wexford Devonshire New ¬ market and Curragh accents in the pad ¬ dock should add considerably to the en ¬ tertainment of television viewers if prop ¬ erly picked up by the sound men menThe The International field is completed by Mrs Vernon G Cardys Prince of Devon and Sun Shower Prince of Devon who was purchased after being invited to represent England or Ireland won six of 11 starts last year but was recently reported injured injuredPrince Prince of Denmark arrived in this coun ¬ try early Monday morning and was fol ¬ lowed later that day by Louis Seize In View Nice Work II Campari and Rose Park who were forced to circle Idlewild for more than two hours before landing
