RACING IN WAR TIME.

Auckland Star, Volume LXXI, Issue 191, 13 August 1940, Page 6

RACING IN WAR TIME.

In the past, unless recolleetion is faulty, racing clubs have been heard to protest against the high taxes Governments have imposed on them and the racing public. Such taxes, it used to be suggested with some emotion, would "kill the sport." But now all has changed. The president of the Auckland Racing Club, in his comment on racing in war time, almost succeeded in leaving the impression that the main wish and purpose of racing clubs is to act as tax-collectors for the State. His committee, Mr. Nicholson said, "fervently hoped" for large public patronage of the club's meetings, so that the War Expenses Account would profit substantially. Another member said that "quite a large number of illiberal people who would not ordinarily contribute to the State are drawn upon through the tax on racing." If this argument were sound, the Racing Conference would be lacking in patriotic duty if it did not double the number of race meetings—for the greater profit of the State. It was remarked also at the meeting that conditions in England are different from those in New Zealand. The . principal difference, of course, is that in England the danger of air attack is always imminent. But the suspension decision was not made for that reason alone. It was made also because racing was seen to involve a wasteful use of resources, and ! because it was incongruous that horse racing (and dog raeing, too) should continue while men were dying. "To hear the news in the six o/clock bulletins —terrible and heartrending news sometimes—immediately followed by a string of racing results," remarked the "Manchester Guardian," "seemed like playing a noisy game of at the graveside before the mourners had turned away." There is probabiy no necessity yet to suspend racing in New Zealand, but there is a necessity to restrict it to days and hours when the great majority of people are not working. That necessity will eventually be seen by the Government; the pity is that the restriction is not made voluntarily by the conferences and the clubs.