14 ON AND OFF THE TURF. 



see five or six races, as the case may be — if tliey 

 befc that is their look out. Bat an owner does not 

 know what he is going to see. He may see some- 

 thing that surprises him very much, such as his horse 

 running last when it ought to have been first, accord- 

 ing to its trials. 



Owners of racehorses have a lot to contend with, 

 and I think they may be pardoned if occasionally they 

 say bitter things when they find themselves fore- 

 stalled in the market. 



Nine months out of the twelve the climate of 

 Australia is all that can be desired, and what more 

 can a man expect. 



The racing year commences on the 1st August, 

 from which the ages of horses date, so that the three- 

 year-olds running in the A. J. C. Derby the middle 

 of September or the V. 11. C. Derby in the first 

 week in November, or the last week in October, are 

 much younger three-year olds than those taking part 

 in the English Derby. So favourable is the climate 

 that flat-racing is going on all the year round, and 

 there is no closed time, as in the old country. 



Occasionally in the winter months it is necessary 

 to wear a top -coat, but even then the sun is generally 

 warm enough to make it pleasant. No biting east 

 winds, or frost and snow, make racing a burden rather 

 than a pleasure. At Christmas it is racing in sun- 

 shine to perfection, and the meeting of the A. J. C. 



