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Judges Stand — By Charles Hatton 1 ■ Turfs Big Show Goes on Road to Pimlico Ghouls Move Finish Pole at Old Hilltop Hidden Talent Reveals Quality in Ky. Oaks CHURCHILL DOWNS, Louisville. Ky., May 2.— On to Pimlico, through the storied Cumbeiland Gap, along "The Trail of the Lonesome Pine," to the nostalgic course on the hilltop. That is the halfway station on the higliway to the American Triple Crown, more familiar in our set than any road charted by Rand-McNally. A number of the classicists seen in the eighty-fifth Derby here today will set out upon it. in vans, railroad cars, planes and a spirit of high adventure for the 50,000 Preakness, richest of the Triple Crown races. Indeed, this one is too rich, in the opinion of the Thoroughbred Club of America, which is like contending one can have too much money. Among others expected to join the Triple Crown road company are Troilus, Rico Tesio, Festival King and possibly On-and-On up the Jolly Roger. After the chart of this afternoons Derby is given a fast mull Tomy Lee and others of the Californians may venture to the crabcake country. A plane is poised at Standiford Field to take off Monday with Royal Orbit if he runs encouragingly. First Landing and Our Dad go to New York. A couple of Downs residents who never saw the Derby but may participate in the Preakness are Quantrell and Harry Trotseks charge, Oceanic. The Reubenses colt nickers in French, indeed, was second on the French Free Handicap at 129 pounds and is physically up to the Baltimore race. He is to break from the stalls with the gates closed fbr the first time Monday. Uncover Early History Accidentally Cholly Johnson was doing a little Underground work here today. In fact, he became downright ghoulish telling of the necessity to exhume two bodies from beneath the finish pole in order to move it and increase the stretch. It seems the remains were of founding fathers of the MJC who had requested burial by this fated pole, where generations of fond hopes have found realization, and bright dreams have, raveled out into unrealities. We do not doubt it. We have ourselves stumbled over tradition at Pimlico, where it is a very tangible thing. Those ninth races rescued Laurel from a decrease in play and doubtless will do as much for Pimlico s meet, which begins this Monday. The Preakness follows the Derby by two weeks, and Ben and Herman Cohen will offer Free Staters a renewal of the wistful old Dixie on the intervening Saturday. Future anthropologists will be interested in the behavior patterns of resident and visiting turf folk Preakness week, judging from Lhe round of social and sporting events planned for that period. It is often complained the Kentucky Oaks is given far less importance than it deserves, except in the satellite world of bloodstock breeding. We suppose this is inevitable, a natural consequence of its juxtaposition to the Derby, though it is fully as antique as the "Run for the Roses." Across the years we have seen such as Waterblossom, Sunbonnet, Princess Doreen, Two Bob, Black Maria and Alicibiades give it luster and certitude as a criterion of "class in the dam." In times gone by it was decided well after the Derby. But then the ingenious Colonel Winn was inspired to build a Derby Week around the sports centerpiece, to rescue the meeting from becoming a "one-day stand," and there is no thought of departing from this fruitful format. We can assure Winn did not deliberately mark down the Oaks. On the contrary, he always said the Oaks • and KJC Stakes were his favorite races, apart from the Derby, of course. Fridays Oaks was held in comparative semi-privacy, with some 24,000 Derby Eve celebrants in attendance. But those who "came early to the party" were treated to two lively races in this Derby for fillies, as it was split for the first time. Wedlock Avenges Trial Defeat The lesser half was won by the Florida -bred Wedlock, a fugitive from the ,500 claiming ranks. She had developed delusions of grandeuf finishing third to Ruwenzori in the Oaks Trial opening day, and Friday scaled the heights by leaving the gray filly up "the stretch with no excuses. It is a microcism of the whimsies of the sex that Rich Tradition, beaten inches in the Oaks Trial, "came up empty" as the favorite in the second and more demanaing half of this Oaks. The winner here was Harry Guggenheims Hidden Talent, and she appeared to us deserving, though the stewards debated this after she and Indian Maid gave one another a "boscoulade" about the eighth pole. After all, the Ashland winner conceded Indian Maid five pounds and was obviously her superior, drawing off conclusively at the end. Guggenheim likes winning these filly features. He has a profound appreciation of their relevance to the stud. He had won the Oaks with Lalun in 55. Now he may look forward to again bidding for the Coaching Club American Oaks, whieh he won with Hows sister, Cherokee Rose, not long back. Hidden Talent is a homebred, by Dark Star out of the Nasrullah mare Dangerous Dame, and she has the substance and bottom of a filly who may win other honors in her division.
