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y , 1 I j i I REVIEW OF FRENCH RACING 1 ♦ — f-m Year of 1921 Brought Excellent Sport but Poor Returns. ,_ , * • — -i Baron E. de Rothschilds Horses Won 67,465 ; Viburnum, Star. of Stable, 0,000. I 0 -H .APIS. France, December 15. — The following re. view of the 1921 flat racing season in France was written by "E. A." for Le Jockey: The flat racing campaign in France during 19Jl was carried on under the most favorable conditions possible. The season closed November 12 at Saint Cloud and it ran be said t-uthfully that to the cud it was Messed by favorable weather. The consistent dryness and heat was not without its inconvenient features, however, as it tended to interfere seriously at times with the work of conditioning the horses. Tet the various racing grounds for the most part struggled with considerable suc-■ e-s ogaiaat the ravages of the unrelenting sua and their condiii n through the long season reflected credit on the caretakers. Our great international stake events served to demonstrate once more the marked handicaps which the war and its aftermath have placed upon our breeding industry in toaaparisoa with similar ac-tirities in neighboring, countries. The Grand Prix de Piris and the Prix du President de la Republique both Cell to foreign horses, but these, it may be sai.i. were but pasvj.ie ahaolows on the French racing picture, for our representatives were destined to recover their lost laurels in the Pri:c de lArc de Triomphe and the Prix du Conseil Municipal. If. however, the resell of the 189 campaign was of the first order, so far as --port was concerned, as much, unfortunately, cannot be said of the financial tea tares. A aaarked falling off in attendance figares anal la the receipts of the pari-mutuol was noted. Tnis condition is serious in that it threatens both the future of French raeing and French breeding. Probably the bags tax on the mutuels was one of The chief influences in bringing about the decrease. After this necessarily brief general review of 19"J1 racing we may devote a few words to the chief winning stable of the year. Bat m E. de Rothschilds fine stable holds the top position with winning- of 67,466. In winning this -um the Rothschild horses chalked up tizty-ono victories — the mom t..imiier of wins, in other words, as the stable has horses in training. SUCCESS OF ROTHSCHILD HORSES. Tt is scarcely necessary to emphasize the competence of the two Botlise.ihi trainers, Wat-on and Clement Dnval, to era ■ the horsea were intrusted. Viburnum alone won 848.068 for his owner, winning 818.468 of this total ia the Grand Prix la Nice. Viburnum proved hinuwlf ■ hor-e of high quality, a aiy by hia victories, but by finishing among the placed horses la the Prix du President de la U pnbU |ue i ad In the Prix des Marechaux. The throe-year-olds of the stable showed themselves generally to be Qsdte BSefal raeing tools — in varying degrees, of ronrse. Only one of them, however, proved of sufficient quality to deserve rating close to the fir-t rank Unfortunately for inm Taeitna has not always received rewards pro-portiouate to hia merit Iti fact, be finished first, in only one I the great stakes in which ha started— the Prix Greffnlhe. Twice in the Prix Hocquart and in the Prix Lupin— he finished soe-ond to Ksar. In the Colt Trial Stakes he went dewa to defeat before an opponent unworthy of him. Le Trsqott la the Grand Prix de Paris lie finished fourih, behind Lemonora, Flechois and Harpocrate. Before leaving the horses in trainer Watsons stable we must mention Vatel. whose chief claim to glory was his dead heat with Ksar in the Prix Edgar Oillois at Tremblay. CLEMENT DUVALS BIG STRING. Clement Duval had under bis direction n baud of equal importance with those iu Watsons charge. Abri. Nephthys, and Vespertillioa carried the bluo and yellow- cap with the greatest success during the seassa and it can safely be said that Nephthys, which, like Tacite and Vatel, is numbered among the progeny of Sans Souci II., earned her place among the" best fillies of her generation. Nephthys is a racer of rather cold but courageous temperament, ller failure in the Prix de Diane was not without plenty of excuses and in the Filly Trial Stakes she scored an impressive victory over some of the heat fillies of the year, including Samic. Doniazade. Gueiriere II. and Xanthis. She also won the Prix Gontault-Biron at Deauville. Abri ran no less than fourteen times, winning six races and figuring as a prominent contender in almost all of bis other races. He won about . -000. Vespertillion also raced often and well. Watson and Duval also had in their charge no less than forty two-year-olds at the start of the season. Of the youngsters in Watsons charge Arrhidee. Colophane." Vertefeuille. and Zapanie may be mentioned as the most promising. Duval has several good prospects among his two-year-olds. Chat Fourre. daughter of Bay Cherry— Justitia, and Honeysuckle, by Bay Cherry— Honey, may be men-tioned as the outstanding ones of them. e *
