noon
Second money was not enough of a temptation to the owners , who could see nothing but the Australian mare , Auckland . The opening prices bore out this belief . Auckland was quoted at 1 to 5 , a prohibitive figure ; Baron Brant , the hope of the California contingent , at 4 to 1 ; The Maori at 8 to 1 ; Ambrose Churchill at 12 to 1 , and Pharaoh was held at 15 and 20 . The bookmakers had heard that the Curry horse had been taken from the car at noon , and wondered at the obstinacy of his owner in starting him , stiff and cramped from a long railroad journey . `` Must be figuring to give him a workout and a race all at once , '' said the chalk merchants . All these things being known , a certain elderly gentleman did not have to beg the bookmakers to take his money . He passed from block to block in the big ring , stripping small bills from a fat roll , and receiving pasteboards in exchange .