BIG FIGURES

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 60, Issue 28, 13 November 1939, Page 3

BIG FIGURES

TOTALISATOR INVESTMENTS. SUM OF £420,000 HANDLED. (Special to the “ Guardian.”) CHRISTCHURCH,This Day. Notwithstanding the poor showing of favourites and smaller fields than usual, Cup Week totalisator betting reached £419,686. This amount was £1047 more than was handled last year and only £740 below the 1929 total the best since the immediate post-war racing boom. The betting at Riccarton was maintained until Saturday, when it declined by £7252 10s, but, at Addington, increases were shown every day. The decline was fully expected as the culmination of a. difficult week for investors. Only 13 favourites won in 56 races. The bettors began the week rather poorly and their ill-luck was sustained throughout. The aggregate cost of betting to the public was £70,821. The Government, by its taxes, collected £39,345, represented by totalisator tax of £20,984, and dividend tax of £18,361. Apart from admission and other incidentals, those who went racing contributed £31,476 to the funds of the clubs. . In addition to betting and entertainment taxes, tho Government also levied £2BB 10s from owners as its share of the stakes. For tho seven days £28,850 in stakes was raced for, the Canterbury Jockey Club giving £16,300 for its four-day meeting and the Metropolitan Trotting Club’s stakes were £12,550. The sums passed through the totalisators last week compared with last year were:

The gambling fever raged after the Great War and big betting figures were recorded in 1920. From then on they declined until 1929, when the £400,000 mark was again exceeded in Cup Week. The onset of the depression seriously affected racing, and in its depth—l 932 —the investments for the full seven days were only £125 more than rvas placed at last week’s trotting meeting. The totalisator is accepted by some as a barometer of prosperity, and, for that reason, the following table of Cup Week betting for the last 21 years has special interest:

Although the two Cups aro run on the opening days of the galloping and trotting meetings, the heaviest betting always takes place on the final days. Contrary to tho experience in the previous four years, the betting this year on Show Day at Addington was heavier than on the final day at Riccarton. The Jockey Club was unfortunate that tho fields thinned considerably and racing on a hard track made form rather astray, when the public selected the favourites for the last day. However, the investments at Riccarton on Saturday were the second highest for a final day since 1922. while the figures for the final day at the trots have not been higher since 1923. The table of final day betting since 1919 is:—

Jockey Club. 1938 1939. £ £ Cup day . 70,2661 71,512 Derby day . 41,289 40,491 Oaks day . 42,975 42,7921 Final day . 75,9521 68,700-1 230,483 223,496 Trotting Club. 1938 1939. ' £ £ Cup day 09,2762 73,276 Derby Day . 45,0491 48,9041 Show day . 73,830 74,0091 188,156 196,190 Contrast with Depression Period.

Total Ricct. Addgtn. £ £ •£ 1919 478,702 259,979 218,723 1920 599,217 340,141 259,076 1921 496,930 271,454 225,476 1922 481,868 259,925 221,943 1923 448,238 237,802 210,436 1924 437,093 237,210 199,883 1925 385,683 207,934 177,749 1926 354,092 197,305 156,787 1927 387,634 204,449 183,185 1928 370,020 194,079 175,941 1929 420,416 219,104 201,312 1930 321,648 161,857 159,791 1931 220,605 109,888 110,717 1932 196,315 86,587 109,728 1933 223,755 110,164 113,591 1934 224,631 115,311 109,320 1935 244,586 141,195 103,391 1936 334,449 183,742 150,717 1937 387,767 214,015 173,752 1938 418,639 230,483 188,156 1939 419,686 223,496 196,190* “ Recovery ” Wagwing

Final Days. Riccarton. f'* Addington £ 1919 .... 68,561 83,684 1920 ... 96,666 91,813 1921 78,154 87,590 1922 70,855 85,021 1923 68,425 77.172 1924: ... 66,256 72,024 192") ... ... 58,792 08.894 1926 55,029 48,812 1927 ... 54,024 66,370 1928 , 52,293 67,725 1929 ... 64,431 69,112 1930 ... 46,149 59,273 1931 31.125 •11,213 1932 25,859 39,069 .1933 38,419 ... 35,774 42,761 1931 39.428 1935 , 48,277 40,984 193G 65,301 59,266 1937 68,128 ■64,906 1938 ... ... 75,952 73,830 1939 68,7004 74,0091