RANDOM SHOTS.

[By Zamiel.]

Some write, a neighbours name to lash. _ I gome write- vain thought '.-for needful casu, 1 Sonic write to please the country clasn, And raiso a dm. For me, an aim I never fash— I write for fun.

What do I think of the Financial State. | ment ? There's a question to ask " the idle , dreamer of an empty day " such as I am !;, Why, my dear friends, you will make in. a • too proud if you look up to me as a finan cial authority, and Mrs Z., who is of /an ambitious cast of mind, will immediately be-in to persuade me that I am destc ned to be Colonial Trea.uier, or Manager otjfthe Bank of New Zealand at the.very. J asfc. But since you ask me, I will, witli all diffidence .Lo my opinion f boatJl/uyor Atkinson's financial chick .hatched outf after a fortnight's close incubation. To tortfmndj thcre'stoomuchsmack of »goodi»terfW' about it, and you know, dear readers 1 what kind of pavement those make. It fis the old story of "Live, horse, and yo all get corn," twisted about a bit Tlja |llqar says in effect, "Give ua anotherffiiuj, and then see if we don't retrench ! Pas 3 that bio- deficit to the funded debt, give, us an other two million loan, cut down ed/uc ational and travelling facilities, and then; v? on t we economise?" No doubt, my d-iar; Major; but I should prefer to see you vf leld the pruning-hook now ! The nex'a Governor s salary will be reduced, you rfay; the people's representatves will be /invited to limit their numbers and reduce- their em oluments, and the " Lords " will, be gently 'encouraged to perform the "/happy' dis patch" in similar style ! But pill they do it ? And if they don't, what is left of your retrenchment scheme, but £ 2,500 saved from the Governor's salary, an«d public con veniences docked to make rip the rest ? And,my dear Harry, your whole Statement is too Atkinsonian ; all in the old worn rut and unrelieved by a single L< rilliant flash of inspiration. If there are sf.me things in it that never appeared in a Financial State ment before, they have al'i been suggested to you by the newspapers 'and discussed at a hundred political meetings. I can imagine the "Ice with which Sir Julius noted all the Avcak points in the Statement as yon de li veicd it, and he is svire to make a bold attack upon your proposals as a whole. You have trimmed well, my dear Major, in avoiding the rocks? of offence which threatened to split tho Protectionists and Free-traders in your ranks ; but have you satisfied the country or the English creditor ? I take leave to doubt ib very much. « -it c *■ * *

The Melbourne Cup race has once more been won and lost, the New Zealand Cup day is near at hand, and all over Australia the annual sporting saturnalia has com menced. Some modem Solomotk hits de* clared that the chief result of the sports ot horse-racing is tho production o£ "a, useless breed of horses and a worse breed of men, ' and certes the fact that " speelors" by the dozen have already reached Auckland in preparation for next week's meeting gives indication that tho race of inferior men is on the increase. And yet there are men of uprightness and honesty who arc most intimately associated with horse-racing, and who are, in fact, the chief uj>holder» of the sport men who conic within the category of those referred to by bite Rimmn poet of two thousand years ago :•-

" Many there avc whose ftre.atost lust n la to'get smothcrod with Olympic dust. The unfortunate fciung is that this rape for the Olympic gatco extends through all classes of society, down to the clerk and message boy. who " invest " in a half ticket for that omflivorotes rattnbtttig machine, the " totalizator." So the racing fever is likely to supersede the gold fever for sortie months to come, and in fine excitement people will forget all about the the depression, mid will quite ignore the fall in Bank of New Zealand sliaresand the serious financial crisis through which the colony is passing. Oce tip! Raise a great cloud of " Olympic dust' and let us all be merry : what are we but dust ? And if we lose by onr speculator), why " plank down the dust" and think no more about it! JJum vi>mmu» mmmuH ! Hurrah for the Sport of Kings though it should niako beggars of us all!

*% ♦ * * * Where should the load be placed on a horse's back so as to get the largest amount of speed and endurance out of him? Is it to b*e solely on his fore-legs, or divided to as. to give the hind-legs a fair share of the ■work*/ I was exercised by these queries • while my last soy. was trembling in the balance at the recent meeting of the Paku ranga Hunt Club. The manner of sitting by the majority of the riders seemed tome :to throw all the burden on the horse's necks, jfoc it is a. fact beyond dispute- that in whatever position a body is placed its weight is always exerted plumb. To make this" mechanical expression more easily understood, I will say that if a man in the saddle stretch out his hand with a ten pound weight in it over the horse's neck, without altering his position, the effect on the horse will be exactly the Salne as if he hung that weight on the horse's mane plumb under the spot in ■ which he held it. If anyone doubts this, let him try the experiment with either end 'of his horse on a scale It follows, then, that, when a jockey cranes over the saddle bow, his whole weight is on the horse's neck, If ib holds good that a horse will do better work wilh the burden on his neck, leaving nothing for the hind-legs but to follow with the tail, it Would seem that a furfcherimprove ment could be effected by making the saddle to fit between the steed's ears and a simple enlargement of the snaffle rings , would suffice'for stirrups. No extra charge for this suggestion. I think, howeveiy there is more power in the hind-legs of ft horse; he can smash more framework up with them in a minute than a surgeon can 1 repair in a month, and it seems a pity that they should not be called on to do somet hing in a race. It i? a momentous question well'worth the attention of owners, whether a horse, like a locomotive engine, wants ballast right on the driving power.

In England, the gloomy month of ]STovem ber is annually marked by an increase in the suicide rate, but there is no reason why the month, bringing to us in Kew Zealand, as it does, the first intimation of* summer /gladness, should "bo ushered in by ah ottt : burst of suicidal epidemic. Yet we"' have, ■ within the past week or so, had an unusual: number of people declaring themselves " tired of life," and hastening, their exit therefrom by means of razor, revolver, and rope—these three handy articles apparently constituting the elementary " three RV'of the self-destroyer! Several of these at tempts to hurry up the grim old Reaper [were unsuccessful, and the unfortunates will either have to go to the lunatic asylum or stand their trial on a criminal charge. One of the latest instances—that of three men and a woman burned to death in the wilds of Otago—may be described as a case of involuntary suicide; a clear case of criminal killing, though they didn't mean to do il I need not again revert to the moral and philosophic aspeef 3of suieidd; but there are a few curious refteetioi'Jf* suggested by two recent cases. First, there was that poor woman in Auckland who carefully lard out the house-rent due, s<pt,,the doctor his fees, and having thus paid all her d'ebttfj • proceeded calmly to pay thedebfc ol Nature. It is melancholy to reflect, in,this connec tion, that people who are solvent and con scientious shbald deliberately choose to "shuttle off," while dozens ot scoundrels, bankrupt in purse and yeptttafcfon* live like , parasites upon eoeioty.

Se Jrgeanl} Gamble, Inspector under the Fac' |ories l\pts, often experiences consider able * difficulty in securing convictions agr iinsfc offender. His genial countenance an'- 1& burly'form are known to everybody, and th c creaking of the stairs as ho ascends to tr he workrooms tells of his approach as sure a/ ; 3 fate, aii d off and away fly the little dears i .n wild dii;may into every nook and corner ( ;hat may afford a hiding place. This week, about seven o'clock one evening, the Ser geant was taking a quiefc walk along one of tlve city streets, when he heard ■ unmistakeable signs of work in pro i gress. lie had] dropped upon an estab lishment wherel the girls should have finished work atsp.m. Previousexperience made the Sergeaaib wary, and he took his precautions accordingly. The factory had some half-dozen means of exit, and at each of these, so far as could be ascertained, there were stationed H* members of the force" , pressed into service for the occasion. This done, the Sergerfnt looked through a win dow, and there 'was a great scurrying to ' and fro immediately. He entered the premises, but cowlcl find neither the " boss" nor the girls fcir some time. The former , eventually but jin an appearance, and answered a few questions. The girls, liow ' ever, were not ;to be found inside of the 1 building, and the storming party, headed '■ by one of their number carrying a lantern, sallied out, and a diligent search was made ■of tho yard and outbuildings. Here two ' young maidens employed in the factory ' were discovered in a small outhouse, and their names and other information obtained.

. Mr Edwin Harrow, of Lake Takapnna, is a heaven-born genius, and don't yon forgeb it, dear reader. While all the civil engineers and so-called "practical men" of the district have been (metaphorically speak ing) up to the nose in tho mud of Shoal Bay, vainly endeavouring to formulate a plan for dealing with that large tract of territory, Edwin comes to the rescue like a Dutch uncle, telling us that things aro all of a twist and pointing out the simple and direct method of .solving tho difficulty. In tho courtse of his address at the meeting of Lako ratepayers this week, Mr Harrow pointed out that Devonport was all in the hands of three firms of brothers—the Binders, Alisons, and Mayses ; and by taking the initial letters of their names, he got the key to the Shoal Bay problem —D. A.M.! In these mystic letters Mr Harrow found a lot of other occult properties, explaining tho past history of Dovonport district, and of tho Borough and County Councils, but his ap plication sounded too like naughty cuss words. There was even a suspicious redundance of " big D's " in bin speech when ho said that ho intended to take out a patent for his Shoal Bay dam. Now, while bluntness of speech is excused in a plough boy, I have yet to learn that the license has been extended to a Harrow boy ! Don't do it again, my dear Edwin.

In marked contrast to fehis case was that of the young1 insurance clerk at Wellington, who, being in temporary straits for motley, instead of "raising tho wind" gently, blow oil" half his head and gave his creditors (ho slip till the Great Reckoning. The act of this u'fi raented youth, in Riving two hours' notice of his intention, resembled that of I he Irish man of the story, who, wishing to obtain a cheap reputation for bravery, made a wild demonstration ngninsfc his antagonist, at. tho-fame time lustily bawling- to the hitter's friends-"Howltl mo! Howld mo, or I'll hurt him !' Pftt vtrttS restrainod and his honour .«aved: but tho poor clerk at Wellmjz'ton Wlift not, and he effec tually did himself a mortal hurt. $01110 utilitarians will May that the "winovnr' of Stwh people a* fchosO is no loss to the community, since they arc either mentally derarifred or otlterwißO tmfitted for thts battle 01 life; but it must not bo forgotten that a very littlw help and sym pathy might have saved to fcho world use ful live* —pebplo on whose training a con siderable sum h:id been expended, and who owed services to society which they would gladly have rendered had care boon taken to bring them Into proper accord with their surroundings. But how to prevent suicide is a big subject, which with tho■ reader's permission I will not attempt < -•> grapple with.

A party of prisoners from the Stockade arc, I see, engaged in putting the ground of tho Auckland Archery Club, at Government House, in good fettle for the approaching archery season. When i« this port of thing to end ? This club not only wheedled the Governor into giving them the use of a piece of public property • — with out paying rent, presumably — to tho exclusion of the general public, bub they now mnsb have this ground kopfc in order ab the public expense) They thus escape paying for labour. This, too, at a time when a largo number of good men cannot find work. li«b the prisoners by all means be employed on bova Jide Go vernment work ; but it is about time the arch tricks of these archers were put a stop to.

Vtdm dMctrssiftg funeral undertakers to agitftt^n^ aboM cemeteries' is not a very de cfd&l change : ami fhe fact that the ceme tery question* is liow engaging popular at tention i'tf nOC tf promising sign of having got rid Of thd "depression.'* People are still frowling about fche Waikomiti graveyard : Sut it is noticeable that those who have once uJed it make no complaints. Any way, the accommodation is ample, and as ■ to the feelings of the survivors, let me oft'er a cogent argument. No nation under the sun pttys SO much reverence to their dead a? the Chinese, and yet on Sunday last a Celestial stranger was buried at Waikomiti, "all the same European." And if Gone Roon (or whoever he yfssis) should be moved from that rural spot, ib, will not be because of dissatisfaction with Waikomiti, but simply in Order to carry his sacred remains to tlie land of his fathers. #** * * *

The Anglican community show great re spect for their dead, which is proved by the many beautiful graveyards which they have secured, and these are so much envied that some sentimental folks have gone i the length of leaving other denominations and joining the Anglican Church simply to secure the privilege of laying their bones in a quiet little God's Aci-e, where at the great resurrection they will not be pushed and jostled by all sorts and conditions of ghosts. But the softest possible murmur o? complaint has reached me regarding the latest scheme for an Anglican graveyard—that, of St. Thomas's cemetery at thtf Tamaki. The fees proposed to be charged there; are, I am told, fixed at a rate which will wake the cemetery a strictly select one: For space to bury a child or adult £5 is to be charged, against £1 10s charged for space for an adult tit Waikomiti. A little calculation brings out the wonderful result that the little fifty acre cenietery will thus fetch the handsome price Of £270,000!

Before I leave this lugubrious topic, let me give a parting word to the funeral under takers of Karangahape Road. They hax'e done well in modifying their display of coffins and other parapher j Italia of the tomb. One of their number 'evidently wishes to make "Zamiel" an advertising medium, but I would simply acknowledge his latest poetical, effusion •\vith the information that I'm not to be "had" by An undertaker until lama fit " subject" for such gen try* By way of farewell to the doleful- topic, here is a sug gested epitaph for a funeral undertaker :— Ob, Death, you are surely a cruel deceiver To claim as a victim good Johnny McKocver I By Death did he livo. and 'twas cruel, oh Death, To Stop iho roaa'eHVitiig by stopping bis Weath t

SPORTING NEWS.

[By Sauntekek.]

RACING FIXTURES.

November 8, 9, and 10.-Canterbury Jockey

Club'sSprincr. , . ... n i , November 9.—Wanganui Jockey Club. November 9 and 12.-Auokland Racing Club s

November 26.-Island Bay Jockey Club. November 26-Takapuna Spring Meeung November 30 and December I.—Wellington It. C. Spring.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS.

Inquirer, —fronton was scratched for the Melbourne Cup on October 6, at 2 p.ru

The V.R.C. Spring Carnival.

The great sporting events of the year are all over, tho Derby and the Cup have been lost and won, and there is now an end to all the anxiety and excitement attendant on the two races. lam mire that whether a winner or a loser by the result, there is no one sport who is not thankful that the Ist of November, 1887, is past. Last week I hazarded some remarks on the various horses engaged in the Cup and Derby, and now the two races aro over, and we can by their running in those races road the form ot thn horses aright, I will briefly refer to tho again, and will first touch on Tho Derby. I plumped for Niagara to win the Blue Ribbon, and I am quito satisfied with the position he hold at the (inish. I did not mention The Australian Peer, because being guided by public form I attached too great importance to his running afc llandwiclt; but I am now inclined to think that tit as he evidently was when he ran there he was not wanted in the A.J.C. Derby. What a splendid colt ho must be has now been fully shown, and his victory in the Derby and running in the Cup point to the fact that his victory over Trident at w.f.a. may be attributed more to his own sterling merit than any want of condition on the part of tho Hon. J. White's champion. When the Australians allowed Darebin to leave their shores they did a very foolish thing, and thoy have never ceased lamenting it since. Their lamentations are likely to be doubly loud now that his pro geny are turning out such clinkers. Maggie, the winner of the Nurnery Handi cap tor two-year-olds on the Cup day, is a, Darebin out of Margaret, and will stand watching now, as she put down a proved ilyor in Salisbury. Australian Peer had no walk in for the Derby, and J fern inclined to think still that in spite of their respective running in tho Cup, if Niagara had been ablo to continue his preparation uninter rupted ho would have Beaton Tho Poor for the Derby. What ft grand colt lie must bo to run tho race ho did, and all will look with impatience for fuller details than the cable has given u.s. Tho almost universal opinion over tho othor Bide a week before tho Derby was that its was A gift for Abercorn, but how uve the mighty fallen ! Niajyara could nob be mon fcioned in tho wane breath with him at that time, but in epito of short work he made ft (load heat for second place with the crack, and that after trying to bolt at tho back of tho course. Now Zealand may well be proud of her representative*. Tranter, ac cording to his trainer, should haves won the Derby easily, but on rounding thwhor.i© turn ho fell on his knee*; bat, lievertholeae, | (hushed well up fourth. This may be, but his running in the Cup docs not bear out the supposition, and my own opinion iis that Tranter, it he ever could havo won the Derby, left bin race behind on tHe training i-faok"; in fact, ho was given too much work. Hiifilade, Xordenfeldt's brother, did naught to raise tho reputation of Maoriland, run ning last, this being tho second Derby hi fains done .so, but I expect to hear of Muskafe'B eon doing grout things before he is* many months 01-ser. All the other horses that started were evidently out classed in spite of tho support accorded to • one or two of them.

The Australian Puor in d[)pearanco is anything bub a taking customer ; in fact, he might be termed a very common Colt, a fcraifc which follows all the Darebins, but for all that ib would take an artist; to pick him to pteeeff, and there is every reason to be- Hove he possesses all the qualifications of his illustrious sire, who. unfortunately, has been exported to /\ mcrica. _ Ho was "bred by the Queensland Stud Company, and therefore, litee Le Grand, hails from the northern colony of Australia. Below will ba found a tabulated pedigree of The Australian Peer, from which it will be seen that some of the most valuable strains of blood are combined in his veins. By Daicbin, out of Stockdove, so it reads ; Darebin, himself a gieat performesi", was by The Peer, out of the Isew Zealand flyer 'Lurline, and tracing their pedigree back wo see on the one side King Tom and on the other Melbourne arid Touchstone, strains so well known as to need no recommenda tion. Stockdove, his dam, is oufc of Anonymu, a daughter of Stoekwell, whose blood run* in the yeitra ai come of the bosfc

horses on the Australian turf. , ""?| lllninplirciyjCoinua »»' Clinker ClinkeHM 3 Melbourne!1 —•"•'' ■"^-L— <^~ .2 iMor))oth's Cervantes .g dam D'ug't'rGolu'pua « (damoi'tne iouchfato° Banter £ Marquis) ' '——• a g Brocade BombazinO ■£ . __j .. ■ % & The Libel Pantaloon q v Pasquinade ■ *• Traducer Arethusa rA 2 (dam of Elis 3 EH . , Ifernhill) Languid . $ -2 Mermaid -— ——^ H' x \xr«>*™>i'u Fltint? Dutch'an J _^5 _ Wacrwth Evening Star rinrtintnr Artisan p _ Gladiator Panline as '2 Sweetmeat — | joco Pantaloon g^_ " ? Pnn i. n . Master Henry o Banter Boadicoa ' 3 ihe Baron Echidmi 33 Stockwell '— r> nnn l. n v>f> a GrlonCOO j- Pocahonts Marpef , ga a Gladialor p^iine 2 Miss Sarah -—-—— -* Eastor wagtail The Cup.

Flemington must have presented a most animatedßcenolasfcTuesdtty, when thousands of people, gathered from all the colonies, and even from the remote mother country, assembled to see the Melbourne Gup for 1887 lull. Each year the interest in the race becomes greater, and though there was a smaller field than has ever before contested it, I doubt whether there has ever been a better race. Eighteen horses faced the starter, and of these Jebusiie, The Charmer, Pakeha, Meteor (though' first favourite at the post), Tranter, and Sard!us were com pletely out of it. The Australian Peer, after his victoiy hi the Derby combined with the defeat of Trident at -Rand wick, was installed one of the public fancies, and high hopes were entertained that he' would repeat the performance df Chester, Grand Flaneur, Lantern, Brisottf, and Mar tini-Henry arid aiino* both the Derby and the Cup ; butbia backers' Hopes wore dashed to the ground when Dunlop and Silvermine fought out bhe finish up bho straight and Silvdrmino got' toft, tfho running* of these

two horses is very instructive.. Dunlop, on his running in the Metropolitan Stakes, when he carried Bst 21b, had no show, and, though he beat Algerian in the Waverle'y Handicap, at the weights ho should have gone under to the son of Goldsbovough in the Melbourne Cup. Cranbrook put both him and Silvermine down with consummate ease at weight for age at Caul field, but iri the Caulfield Cup he ran well up, and with Qstinthe saddle ran a good third toOak leigh, Remus being second, while Silver mine, evidently not on the job, judging by his running on Tuesday, ran nowhere. A complete reversal of form took place in the Melbourne Stakes, iri which Silvermine beat him at level weights. It is curious to note that when Sheet Anchor won the Cup he ran second to Trenton in the Melbourne Stakes with the same weight up as Dunlop carried. When I come to look at the racing of these two horses, Dunlop and Silvermine, in the Cup, I Cannot help thinking that Dunlop ab Bandwick and Silvermine at Caulfield were nob wanted. But that is neither here nor there. What I want now is the race. With speedy goers to make the pace tho race wasi a very fast-run one right from the drop of tho flag, and the horses were kept going all the way. I plumped for Silver Prince and Algerian in my tip, and I must confess that I was altogether out, and my horses were beaten right out of the finish. Algerian is not such a great horse as his admirers thought him, unless he was troubled with pencil fever, and he could not go a fast two miles. lam perfectly content to abide by my Silver1 Prince. Ho raoa great horso and though badly beaten at tho finish his position in the betting market and his running in the Melbourne Stakes show that it was evident to everyone that tho horse was not himself. He had left his race behind on the training track. Read the training notes for a fortnight, before tho race and soo the work he was given, and that at the finish of a long preparation when the horse was supposed to be wound up. He v/as done for with overwork, and no wonder he could not go the two miles in 3mius. 38isecs. Australian Peer and Niagara finished in the same position in regard to each other a? they did in the Derby, but The Peer had .7Jbs tho worst of the weights. One cannot get over figures like these, and they go a long way to show what a really brilliant colt Tho Poor must bo, better at his age I fancy than even Trident was. Tho Derby field Trident defeated last year would not compare with the one that op posed The Peer this year. I would dearly have liked to have man Niagara go to the post fit; if ho had done so ho would havo had a far groater cay in the finish than he did. Meteor started first favourite, but was beaten out of tho running, and I fancy wo havo scon tho beat of him; His name suits him veny well, for he darted on our vision as a brilliant Rtar for a short time, but is now darkened by the appearance of horses greater than he. Cranbrook is reported to havo finished next behind Niagara, and his position there fully bears out the idea that* ho U a grand colt and one wo will hear great, things of yot. Remus was prominent for a part of the race, but Oakleigh and Thunderbolt seem to have been completely out of ifc. Tho public could not have been very great gainora by the victory, for Dunlop went out at the long odds of 20 to 1, and it would just .suit clio books to aT. The time is sulh'oient to show what tho r'aCo must have boon like, 3inin?. 88Jaoc9.—the fastest on record —gsecs. faster than Sheet Anchor's previous host, and Dunlop earned a pound more than Sheet Anchor did. Mr Cooper's proverbial luck attended him into second place again, and it i« Well for the ring that it did, For if Silvermine had won they would have Bad to part to a pretty high tune. By looking abth* ftccompanylng tabula ted podigrtlo of the Cup winner it will be ileen that he-has strains of some of the best running blood in the colonies, including sfjveial that ate to be fbtitrd in Tho Austra lian Peer. Toudifsfcone, Sweetmeat, King Tom. and Melbonrno arc all there, While by his e<ire and dam he has a double strain of Sir Hercules.

—■ !r«« Coin d lon Margaret £ WiW Day- ... — ■~ roll KllonMid-IJayMiddloton a dloton Myrrhit 2 JBirdo'tchT g^'Jllo9 H 'd Al'OßUOl'tt —■ ~ £& Pooah'ntas^'7®, g 2 Ilarkaway D , tci , aJ)o ,, ?lish « | King Tom | **. — I iMclboumeH'^a^ - n Giraffo — | I "oily £^ff p | , " jGladiator g-tisan w g Sweetmeatl ■ 1 jLonypop i^ar Yoltair Q*\ W'crninm Lottery veruiam W isebyWaxy Gruyen ——■ tnvmnin ToUchstoile Jeimala EtMma t Ssheef- Lottery X | anchor Morgiana . SW.koi ■ - I".- • -^ ' <- wu.i r,,i*xui- I w*ay te. s^r g I'larion gg* § Dinah ' O? • RfiiPi-«h Sir Hercules RfebeLMi d gain .Hebecca SPORTING GOSSIP. Mr Oxenham has bought Teddy Yuille from Mr A. Drake. Lonsdale, the winner of the Maribyriiong Plato, is a full brother to Ringmaster. I A full brother to the mighty Maluft has seen the light of day. Of ninety-three horses handicapped at i the South Canterbury Meeting no leas than eighty accepted. The Victorian Racing Club would not ! grant Mr A. Drake a license to bet ab their -meeting. Fair N"ell has visited Taeman, both' St. George and Vanguard declining thfi honour of her acquaintance. A gelding by Darriwell from Typhoon has been named Paikaikariki-r-a bit of a teaser for some of the bookies. Musk, by Musket-Perfume, has broken his leg and so cannot go for the Hurdles nest Wednesday. ' All the tipsters #er6 out in their selec tions for the winner bar that Waikato man, but Several allotted Dunlop a place. If all accounts are true as to the form displayed by one of George ttright's Stable, the K-tursery Handicap i^ ffS gOfid as ovof. The Hon. J. WhlteV Volley, by Miisket —Lady Vivian, has ,started work at Rjirid" wick. KangarOd, the Tnnner of the Cautfields Steeplechase, is one of the finest fenoiers iii Australia. He is by Mariuku. Gorry, the rider Of Oakleigh, received £600 for his share of the success in the Caulfield Cup. N"ot bad for a lad of seven teen t The tip of the sporting writer of the " Waikato Times" was : Dunlop, 1; Sar dius, 2 ; Meteor, 3. Darebin, the sire of The Australian Peer, is owned by Mr J. B. Haggin, who owns a stud farm near the town of El Pasco, Texas, U.S.

I have not heard of any of the dreamers having been on the job this time. Dunlbp evidently had no friends in the land of spirits to give him any attention. It is worth noticing' that all the Cheaters over two years of ago who hays started yet are whiners1 -—a bf* feather this in the caps of Both breeder and trainer. , , When' the Press Association -'^ reported that Th 6 Australian Peer h-1 ' ltert goriati in a ferial, tho majorit % its felt

inclined to say, "All my eye and Betty Martin," but the result of the Derby and Cup proved>the pressman to have been right foi' once. . ■ Dunlo'p was* a splendid borse for the local mefcallieiang generally, but they did not all get off scot free, a couple being taken down pretty heavily. Silvermine and The* Peer were the bad horseß for the ring, iihd there would have been softie wailing if either of these had come in fiYsfc. Mr W. Gannon, of Sydney, has issued a writ against a Victorian bookmaker for the recovery of several hutidretls of pounds, the balance of a commission in fayotir of Arsenal for the last Melbourne Cup, and it is hinted that several other ringmeh will be brought into unenviable ndivbnety. Theire has been a gteafc n6is& at the local betting centre thid w6ek. One of the book maker* stood to lose heavily over a double— the two Peers—and the taker carelessly letting settling night go by for some stiff tack he had, the bookmaker came down on him sharp and got the Committee to author ise th'B scratching off of all wagers. The metal lician acted quite within the rules, and the Committee could have given no other decision than they did, but public opinion deprecated the action of the bookmaker as ing too smart for the case. The death of the famous sire Maribyrn ong is reported from Hobartville. Mari byrnong, who has been one of the most suc cessful sires on the fcurf, was by Fisherman (imp.) out of Rose de Florence (imp.), by the Flying Dutchman Bbardingsohool Miss, by "Plenipotentiary—Marpessa, by Muley, etc. ; Fisherman by Heron— Main : race, by Sheet Anchor—Bay Middleton rtmre, etc. Amoncj tho noted horses which have sprung from his loins, Imperial, Cala mia, Richmond, Bosworth, Woodlands, Palmyra, and Segenhbe, may be mentioned. At the tim© of his death Maribyrnong was 94 years old. .Aremarkable leap, which is authenticated by an eye-witness, is reported from Kim borley r South Africa. The performer was a pony, named Punch, who jumped a gate 5 feet 8 inches high, with 0 touch. After this feat Punch jumped over three ponies placed side by side. Punch only measures 9 hands 3 inches. The ponies were all bigger than ho is, and he could not run straight at either jump, as it took place in an ordinary circus ring. It is probable that the pony was riderless ; but it is mar vellous that so diminutive a creature should have cleared an obstacle 2ft. sin. higher than himself.

11 Augur," referring to the recently imported Charles I. (by Prince Charlie — Morevale), says: — "At first eight he reminds one a good deal of Malua, for he is nearly the same dolour, ha? a white face and three white feet, thotigh he is built upon a little larger scale. He stands over 16 hands, but doesn't appear to be so high. A bloodlike sensible heaa in well set on to a very muscular neck, which is let into stroibg, well-placed shoulders. No exception can be taken to his nicely-founded barrel, and his muscular quarters and sound-looking logs are just what are required in a thoroughbred sire. Added to these excel lent qualities, he is, without exception, one of the sweetest-tempered horses I have ever seen, and being a good bred one with stout performances alsp to recommend him, I hope some of our Victorian stud masters will secure him." Lochiel is a son of Prince Charlie.

Nelson is neither better tior worse than when we last wrote, bufc he has done much lea* work during the past fortnight than he got through in the corresponding period before the last Cup, in which he rim Such 3 great horae. Artillery, too, has been treated rather leniently for Some days, but will probably be little the itdrse for this, as he did plonty of galloping in the early JSpriftfj and carries a lot of condition. Hermitage is looking beiStei* than Sextant arid Giply King, although there is tferf little fault to be found with ;th'e fetter, and we should not be surprised to see the uhltfcky sort of Cadogari repre'settting tha Racecourse Hotel stablfe. Lochiel is selected by the public from Mr Stead's trio, aftd we fancy this is th* Animal on which the Yaldhurs'fe people Will rely ; bat Maxihl is 1 undoubtedly a strong card, and if sdnie'thing better is played on aceotiiit 6t th£ yellow jacket it will be a very good one indeed. MoanaiS certainly a much improved horse, and ho gets over the ground a good deal faster that* Some of his detractors will admit j but he has not yet given a gallop quite up td Cup form. Regrina has* ridt found! much favour with local critics, bub we^ confess to some sort of regard for this great strapping daughter ofCassivelaunus, and are satisfied that she is as fit as any honfe in training at Riccarton. Lorraine has been under a cloud for some v time, but he is not so hopelessly amiss as sofnG of KW frieiids would have the public believe, and Should he' go to the post he will see a much shorter price. Beresford remains the mystery he has. always been, but, if started, we think it will be in the interests of one of his stable companions. Among the doufctftil Starters we may number Torrent^ St. Clair, arid Ruby, but there is nothing here at all likely to iower the; colours of the favouritefij— Canterbury "dDimes." ■"

ATHLETIC NOTES.

(By ■ Absjwifil *i ± •t'it:Tk tit

SENIOR CUP. , .October :& and November 6—Auckland. (A) v. Holland; Auckland (B) V. GoMdn; Fafnijli V. United. FIRST JUNIOR CUP. November 12—Auckland v* National} Gordon v. Alpha; Holland v. United; Onehungav. Waitemata. SECOND JUNIOR CUP. October 29 and Nbyember S—A,C. and G-.S. v. Holland III.: Stnndttrd v. Wanderers; Gor doa HL v. Oriehunga United; . ' AQUATICS. Noy<smb~er 26.-^cnllm|? championftnip of the world; Beach v. Hanlim, on the Nepean River. November 29.—Intercolonial eight-oared race at Adelaide. . ~ . . January, 1888.—World's sculling and double sculling races on the Pafamatta. . ATHLETICS.'' November 12—Senior and Maiden gig races* Potraoiiby R.C, v. West NdRO. November 19.—Amateur Athletic Club's Sprinß Mqetinfr. ~ .:..,- November 26.—5t.. George's R.C. Trial Fives. November—Piokering v. Goodllffe (sprint) for ttio Championship of Auckland. JaUuary—Ma'thews y. Laing (boxing) for the Wanganui Championship and bolt. '■

CRICKET.

The cup matches started last Saturday,and gave" great promise of a brilliant season. the Auckland--Hdlfarid match attracted the largest' amount of attention from the public,1 and some fine ei'icket was shoton on both sides. George Mills, and Morri son Were the shining lights of last Satur day's match, as they did all the bowling. Auckland were dismissed for 46, G. Mills takings wickets for 25 rntis^ judging by which performance he must have wintered well. His bowling was well backed up by the fielding, and the Hollands have bufc liiitle to loam in that directiion. R. Whito sido, wlio was playing for them, by a splendid catch in the outfield dismissed Neill before he became dangerous. Momson, 11, was the only one to rlftachaduble1 figures; and he had hard line's in being run oxifc as he was. On the Hollands going in to bats ihey lost 7 wiofcets for 46, thanks cfiiefft to the siteady batting of Thomas, 18; DMkley, 8; ■ and Whiteside, 9 Mor]fis;ori obtained o, of the wickets for a vdry small number of rims. The fioldtng was' nbti so good a^ might be expected oven for so: early fn the! seasbn, and the fdrm of Barton especially deserved notice, as he repeatedly made ridiculdtie blunders.

Unless Parnell haye < sopie*b,ig hitters they, hav6 not; tidiich. Chande of pullilig up United'S k6bt6 of 149f0r BAyickets. A. Me Cormick, 31, batted iii fine form, while/ Lynch, 39, and Testro, nob dut, 61, promise to. be as good as ever they;Were'. Gordon gttVe the Auckland B eleven an afternoon's leather-hunting,totalling 130, of which the chiei scores were Kisslihs 37, Williams 23, H. Lush 14, Newton 21, and extras 17. Two of Auckland's wickets are down for 17.

In the Junto Cup Holland beat Auck land by 9 runs, United beat National by 8 runs, Gordon beat Onehunga by 7? runs, and the Waitemata put Alpha through by 82 to 34. ;■; ' ,;;:'

In the second Junior Cap Gordon is leading Onehunga United, and Holland the Gnmmar School by 20 funs, while the Standard were beaten by an innings by the Wanderers.

In thd National-United match, Gilmouf, df the former eleven, called out to his partn* to run, but he did not respond, and Gilmour was unable to get back before the ball wfll thrown in* The wicket-keeper, Swanson^ held the ball in one hand trium phantly, and with the other he knocked off the bails. Gilmour gob back to his. grease and appealed that he was "nob out," but the umpire gave it against him; He cer tainly deserved to be out for the foolish attempt he made at running, but the rules should be upheld, and by them he certainly was not out* for the rule referring to the matter says that the bails must be knocked off by the hand or arm " ball in hand.".

I have to acknowledge the receipts of a programme of the Cup matches for the pte sent season. They are very nicely got tip in a convenient stee, the work r the Star jobbing room. T. Horan, the well-known Victorian cricketer, played a fine innings of 154, not out, for East Melbourne against Richmond on October 15bh. ■ On the same day R. S; liouston scored 101 for North Melbourne against St. Kilda, the Northerners making 347 before being got rid of. A Novel Trophy.—Mr J. J. Powell, of the " Evening News" Office, has proittised a novelty in the way of cricket trophies to the members of the club in that office. He offers-to give a pair of prize ducks to the batsman whohas recorded against his name the largest number of " duck egps " during this season. Will not the batsman who achieves this unenviable distinction be able to chuckle ovOT his misfortune as he settles himself down for a fair and.impartiai discussion of " the duck trophy ?"

"What is the use of & man tryingto} make the ball break if such play is allowed?" said the Yorkshire trundlers, Poel and Wade, who had a lot of work on the ball, when Mr J. Key stopped their best deliveries with his pads. There is rib use at all, as & matter of fact, and the onty remedy will be to alter the rules, so th ; at any ball which in the opinion of the umpii^ Would hit the" ball shall, if it strike the.batg-: man and not his bat, cause him to be out Lugg's lob bowling is spoken highly o| by the Home sporting .papers, and great things are expected of nim.- . English sporting papers are commenting on the distinctions made in the cricket: fields and their precints between gefttlenlen and professionals. Fancy a " gentleniail/' tlie only on 6in an English county team,' waiting unfcil all the professionals were on tho field before he could start on his majes tic course to the arena.' Rev. J. Ri Napier, of Preston, goes in for !muscular Christianity. He : played, on 1 August 17fchj against the Garrison* bowled 5 wickets for llj and then scored 172 not qofe ' against them. His next performance, was on th« following Saturday, when he scored, 96 against East Lancashire, whom his side ; defeated by 226 runs. ,

Playing at Lord's on.August JL9th, Lord Harris followed ft bait rotmdi hit agaifepsfe the' hMd 0f a; oUt^m&itt; who had charge of fche^ickeifj,Whence.. it bounded into tn&, an 1, and was caught by " his reverence." A? head like fcbato wdutd hate- beent invaluable; at IDoonybrook. . . The question has often been debated as to the grflat©sb distance a cricket ball : has been throwtf. A Queensland aboriginal is said to hay&. thrown' one 14? yards, and the authenticity of the record is vouched for by several gentle*tnen of repute in the locality. In England Bonnor threw the ball 13Q,=: yards easily, and at some sports at Keri- U sington Oval made three throws running,of H6i 117, *fid 219 ; yards. It has been re ?: marked by EngHsh crieketera. that the. Australians threw -better : and: more ac curately than, the Englishmen though.it would "be difficult* to find a cleaner and* more accurate return from the long..field than Gunn, the Notts orieketeri who came to Australia with the last English eleven. > ~L. E. Myers, running at Botany* New, South Wales, established/ tshe Australian quarter of a mile* record. „ He covered 440 yds in 48 3-ssec, which is equal to' his English and American records. * . The wrestling match, between Gannon, and Connor has been broken off* the former paying forfeiti v v An instance of fast scoring occurred at Upper Clapton (England) on August 20tE The Hampshire Nqndescripts, in their, match against JETpger v Clap^pn, made 82, runs in 37 minutes, and 113 in the hour/ ~I cslip the following firom "St. James Gazette.":--.-,. ;,:■'..., '. ■■ •■.• ■/< •■ ;-:**» f £ One Object in bowling: with & break, js, to get the bafcsniah. Caught if he play the ball. Every, bowler Who' iinderstands his business does; not aim merely at hittiiig the wicket, but tries to call in the aid of his colleagues by inducing, the. bafcsman to hit up, and thus; to give chances> Mr p ■ G>. Grace,ha,s SQmetinles adopted these tactics with brilliant success. In one match he Sent Gilbert,to the assistance of his younger brother afc long-leg—Frederick Grace being, by general consent, one of the finest outfields that ever lived — and got no fewer than 'five mett: caught there. Of course, it is not everybody tihat can d© this so cleverly, Butthereis no doubt*that a great deal may be done towards winning a, match by adapting the field to the.bowling and the bowling,to field j atid the man who intelligently follows the plan is likely to oome out at the end of the season with agpod /analysis. One can rarely watch a game vvithqut being stiuck by the number of wickets tohatfall to balls that are a little wide. Tho«igh he may play straight bowling in faultless form, .a batsman will.of ten be tempted to hit out m cautiously at a b^ll which does not appear to be coming in the direction of the stunips ;■ and for this reason it may besaidwith some confidence that there are no more dangerous balls than those that rise fast rather wide pf the off-stump — the slightest mistake-in playing them may mean a catch in the slips. There are comparatively few batsmen who •can resiab the temptation, of .'slogging.. »* a ball which is not straight.or weill-sitchea,,; and when Wo men are becoming s«t a wary captain avUI •Irequently put on^the^ worst bowler in the team in tho hope that.ne.wi" persuade his opponents to hit recklessly. He-knows tAat they wiU see the worthless ness of the bowling, and guesses.. ofWn correctly, that in treating it disdamtuliy they will jeopardise their wickets.

ATHLETICS.

I would'dra^ the attention of all athlete* and cyclists co the fact that on Monday night tM entries close for the Amateum Athletic Sports. ','....'' , j^h Last Saturday's ran ofjbheW.B,C.^ over rough scoria St. ael^ er» s- They pulled iif ** a farmhouse, and en joyed milk ftnd limeivuce that the ladyjt tbe house kindly ofored. then turned bacfe, and rode .to Panmmg and home. Meihbers ai-6 at work tvaimn^ on the Doift'ain, only varying the monotony by breaking their machines by croppers» tdOriehutfga t6 Itou .Tb* uighJJ *J»^ gbod for Hding, itfd all; bands enjoyed 'themselves.

handsome. J tC| 9 ptizejl^i- 1 and oldTil^^^i'c: ... | nJt° rclarct >?£ s'lJe r ß^3: j .MrP. J. Osmond on the 2-i|. 't ''" j belong to the \V.B. Club ' Wy *>>*| K' 6 & Off cir i 0 Cb^?°«i The magnificent performance I 1 American champion, VV. Bvrd-pL ■* 1 marvellous jump df 6ft. 3iin SSfl it does every previous reocfl|H9 aid professional, is iio^ , t luatteJSS accomplish a performanca'which^ias i repeatedly expressed himseli so &£ '•! effaced from the memory of -No^li/liiiv the pleasure to be present 6ft; i^' f \ ingly htird linco,afterdoing^uAt JSB performance, to have to put. up •%■■'■ Z ]pize, premier liqnoor-tifeln^mffla Club, who was in receipt of an : 15in., so that Page would hu\ >! ad t !. ously decided to award Mr fajk mm extra prize, value ,620, a >, A \ ciation and rew,im tor h<. maghififty* A correspondent has written t, ■■■ whether .i m, ,'■ h:• hi '-I i putiflgi meant the wan who ia absolu ■ . - mark—not the man nnivn tVfrfllfi past we Lave said a " i ■, ■• h maßi^ffi however, that many of tiir . i( have decided that he shalllp | ■_. V making a man run, say, 152 yards.-':- ii advertised 150 yards racfy :it§9^H^ gome definite and universal • . - x± ] be come to on th& 'matter S>y tmn| committees. It is jusfc its Wwjsmmi or, in the alternative, t]i -. ri ' the English amat€ur, was aboaf t a*~% numbered between li>.','U> . "'.' v'':i There are about '100 remitters ;'. a ', United States ""WmmJ^MMhW p toria four-in-hand tafidem, v\i ;'. E« Buckingham, x. jriidewoll, .S. ■ "^ F. Robinson up, uit'i a ''''^Pfl^S" Cleveland,! .0., on August lM^ui i? ridden in America on a quarter mi :'« ; ■'.'■■ The fever for record country seems to be catchin^f^jjS| feeted even Frenchmen, ' jP^jf« : has succeeded in eclipsing aj]T- ■fes=iiorial records rroin 3 imlef '^f% r This man's times are rrii;-'^l^S|| still. I give below som< °''^Ha^F1 distances with the timi of prows \ ■. ■ . ■■:■■■ . ■ ii .... i, *■*■■■: v ..' i- ■ -3"'l ' ■"" "'; :, 7 -ai c -':;- 1556 . 5 I '."'' Wj' . "'■'-''■raiSjSr IK ■■■ ■ ■ ■:■' 20.: ;■„ . , M7f ;.---' Msec. ' '■■ ■ ■ :i>l":' ■ "■■ «tteSt^races for tto Kjg;^ Squadron's Cap and uho 1, W- , fh ,. j lee Cup were decided that (iß>- **« English scullef. cham? ; -'■' '.The Ten MileSwffl»mn- p of America w^onby^obert, Sivegoldmedaiso^Champjn P Jt their nextregatte- • n!)]V f. A-

« THE AUCKLAND EVENING STAB, SATUBPAY, KTOV£MBEB -■ 6, 1887.

2