RACING IN WAR TIME.

Auckland Star, Volume XLVII, Issue 167, 14 July 1916, Page 7

RACING IN WAR TIME.

i. SIR GEO. CLIFFORD'S VIEWS. j HOW RACING CLUBS ASSIST. (By Telegraph.-Own Correspondent) WELLINGTON, tais day. In opening the New Zealand Racing c v^ fe<r f nee 3 morning, Sir George s Clifford Teplied to the critics who ad- . vocate the stoppage of racing in var c rt * i said: —"Once again the din ol battle sounds in our ears as -we assemble for our annual Conference. A war forced by a most wicked crime upon peace-desiring nations is progressing toe wards our final victory. We may be i satisfied that in carrying on during its continuance the institution of racing * we have added to other utilities much * direct benefit to the defenders of our liberties. That we have acted wisely r finds confirmation in the fact that Hi's >- Most Gracious 'Majesty has kept his 1 racing stable in active "commission, supe ported in that respect by Lord Derby '; and other sound leaders' of British 3 opinion. a "I may, nevertheless, be expected to i take notice of the puerile demand for a 1 cessation of racing. It is a cry of the. >. uninstructed. Those who repeat it i little understand the vital importance 3 of a supply of suitable horses for der fence purposes: nor can they have - Tealised that the thoroughbred horse is 1 essential to itheir production. Trench . warfare during one stage of a campaign 1 may put cavalry out of action, but when 2 the enemy is on the run the mounted i arm of the service has its turn, as was J shown quite recently in the Russian . advance into Austrian territory; nor is s horse ■ traction wholly suspended for ; artillery and transport. If the point needed insistence, I could quote Lord 5 Kitchener, whose tragic loss we so I deeply deplore, but it suffices that, except where there may be interference . with railage of troops or munitions. * racing is kept going both in Britain and I Germany. When the opposing clamour does not arise 'from honest ignorance, it ; is (ithe -outcome of dishonest claptrap. ; The intriguer who utilises the national , crisis to promote his otherwise unati tamable end is on a par with the poli- . tician whose vanity seeks a paltry prominence for himself by ill-timed and , unfounded criticisms of responsible .- officials. , "The lesson taught by war goes to the very heart of the value of Tacing. and explains in part why many private individuals are maintaining expensive , studs to secure for the British Empire advantages gained in foreign countries Iby costly establishments at Government expense. It fnxther points to the . necessity for the proper conduct of a I sport which professes and serves such 'high aims. In this respect we can claim that nowhere in the world is racing better conducted than in New Zealand. The absence of proprietary clubs, the devotion of all profits to the sport, the cleansing influence of the totalisator, and the searching investigation of disputed decisions by an elaborate system of impartial tribunals, all contribute to this result. They have also rendered possible the magnificent response of the Racing Clubs to the financial needs of the time. I have been at pains to estimate the bulk of this assistance. 'My figures may nearly apiroach to accuracy for the past, and may enable you to form some forecast of the future. They are as follows: — £ ■ S. d. (a) Voluntary contributions 43,942 10 5 , (b) Taxation paid to Government 260,(500 1G 10 Total £306,612 7 3 Is this the record of a useless frivolity? Let the next brilliant charge of British cavalry reply! Let the permanent help to our maimed fellow-citizens answer! We will leave it at that. "At one time I had ventured to hope that the voluntary payments by racing clubs might be pooled for the foundation of an institute for disabled soldiers, but a prevalent desire to befriend kindred local efforts rendered a national scheme impracticable."