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_P__P_____ ---jtffeL ; MM 4 f t — : ; ; ; England • _ Rochfort Case Again Main Topic; Miss Daniels Processes Stewards — By CLTVE GRAHAM- » LONDON, England. — The Jockey Club fine imposed on Captain Cecil Boyd-Roch-fort, and the suspension of his jockey, Royce Burrows, has been the main topic for the last week in racing circles over here. This was the sequel to the race for Hurst Parks Winston Churchill Stakes, when Premonition, at odds of _P__P_____ ---jtffeL ; 1 1-8. 1-8, beat beat Osborne* Osborne* ► : — — ■ 1 1-8. 1-8, beat beat Osborne* Osborne* Burrows, an outsider at 25-1 in a photo finish. The two horses are "both owned by non-betting brigadier W. Pi Wyatt and trained by Captain Boyd - Rochfort. It seemed obvious from the stands that if Burrows had given his mount mount a a dig dig in in the the MM mount mount a a dig dig in in the the ribs, he would have beaten his illustrious stable companion, who raced sluggishly and without his usual verve. The Jockey Club stewards were quite fair and reasonable in suspending Burrows until July 3, but their action in fining the trainer was, perhaps, politically expedient rather than morally justified. There would have been an outcry if the comparatively unknown Burrows had had to shoulder all the blame. A A A The shades of Mrs. Malaprop must have been haunting 15 Cavendish Square when the stewards drewvup their report. Part of it read, "They informed Captain C. Boyd-Rochfort that he had neglected his responsibilities as a trainer in not giving Burrows concise orders in accordance with rule 139." "Concise" is defined in the dictionary as "concentrated, brief or terse." Of course, this was exactly the form in which the captain instructed Burrows! So the trainer is held guilty for not being verbose, or, at any rate, precise. Captain Boyd-Pvochfort, a personal friend of the three stewards concerned, was hurt and angered at their decision. He blew off steam when interviewed, and the steam settled into good, solid, banner headlines in the national press the next day. AAA The upshot of this case, however, ,is some serious consideration on our rule 139, which states, "Every horse which runs in a race shall be run on his merits, whether his owner runs another horse in the race or not." Owners hopes are not coupled in England for betting purposes, as they are in America and France, and it seems more than likely that this rule will be revised before the year is out. The present situation relating to pacemakers certainly requires clarification. When the late William Woodwards Black : — — ■ ► Tarquin ran for the Ascot Gold Cup in 1949, he was opposed by three horses in Lord Derbys ownership — Stockbridge, Benny Lynch and Alycidon. AAA Lord Derby and his trainer, Walter Earl, realized that their only hope of beating Black Tarquin lay in ensuring a strong pace from end to end. Stockbridge, therefore, made the running for the first mile, and then gave way to Benny Lynch, who carried on for the next six furlongs. These tactics succeeded in sapping Black Tar-quins fund of speed, and enabled Alycidon to win. It cannot, however, be maintained that either Stockbridge or Benny Lynch were running "on their merits." This instance, coupled with the Hurst Park affair, will provide reformers with some heavy ammunition. / AAA Our Jockey Club stewards are having a busy time right now. Miss Zena Daniels was so incensed -when her Boreas was disqualified after winning the City of-Birmingham Cup last week that she has had papers processes? served oh all and sundry, and has .engaged the eminent attorney, Sir Hartley Shawcross, to. defend her interests. Subpoenas have been served on several bookmakers who were operating at the Birmingham races — for no better purpose, it can be assumed, than to show that one or other of the stewards concerned had a financial interest in the race in question. Objections under English rules have to be made within five minutes of the winner weighing in. The rules have not been revised to cover contingencies arising from a photo finish as occurred in the Birmingham Cup. There appears to be a legal loophole here. If there is, the irate Miss Daniels is fully prepared to stick the muzzle of her bazooka through it. AAA Ascot events will have to wait until next week for coverage. Most important event decided between . Epsom and the Royal meeting was the Manchester Cup. This was won easily by Chatsworth a four-year-old Chanteur II. colt under top weight of 133 pounds. The result did credit to the Queens Aureole, who beat Chats-worth very easily by five lengths in the I Coronation Cup.
