GAMING PROPOSALS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 972, 12 November 1910, Page 10

GAMING PROPOSALS.

DISCUSSED B.V LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. VIEWS OP THE-HON. J.-D. V - . ORMOND. : In juoyjng tho; . second reading of tho ..Gaming Amendment Bill in the LegisJatjye, Council yesterday tho Hqii. ;Dr. !• Fifdlay .briefly '.outlined tho provisions of the Bill. Tho measure, lie said, inthe. stringency of.tho law against street betting, ; and limited the opera- ., tions.pf bpokmaking as far as possible.

The Hon. Mr. Luke: "Ha is not wiped out!" P,r. Eindlay: "Ho is left as small a place for the sole of his foot .as wo were ablo,to allow him, not being ablo to go tlie.f,'.whole hog." After dealing with the ■limitation of the number of race days •and the other principal features of the Hill, Dr. Findlay said he did not intend to [gb into all the' details of ,the Bill, .wliioh had been explained,before. However, ..he. .thought it .was generally eon-, ceded,'-even 'by ..tho friends of racing,that there -were too many race , days in 'Nejv Zealand at- .present. .' Bill wns one which he felt sure, would havea sympathetic reception from members; perhaps tho . only regret possible being that it did . not go further than it did. ■

/The Hon. J. P. •Ormond (Hawke's Bay) seconded the motion, and said that tho Bill in mapy respects jrent iii a way .winch all true sportsmen wished to' seo tho law amended. This applied particularly' to the bookmaker clauses. Tfto bookmaker had got..into the sport, •against the remonstrance of the racing ■clubs; The Racing .Conference had disjsented. from his being -made'a power in ;the''land..' A great,deal of the admin-, 'istratipri in the" future jvas to .rest 'witha commission, instead of with the Rac-. ing Conference, whiciij .very wisely, the Government h'ad in the past accepted. Tho only objection hv had to tho commission was that -they did not know how-it .was to.be formed. ,If it was p.ut into tho hands of men who had no: knowledge .of the duties, it would be ; disastrous to .the sport-. In Great, measure the success would rest with tho men appointed, and ho hoped that tho Government would make a most careful selection. ,

' Dr. -Findlay: 1 suppose the Racing '!;■ Conference would advise them? . i CJpntiniifng, Mr. Ormond said he ; hoped : that ui the selection men, would be chosen who could well perform -s the .parous duties that would fall on ithein. Ho took strong exception "to 'the clause inserted in "another place" . providing tliat ill determining the' clubs , to: which totalisator licenses shall be /granted' preference shallbe given to; clubs, using the totalisator at one meet■iing' only"''.in'any year. -.V Dr. Findlay: I am going to ask the. ' Council t-o strike out ..the amendment ' ; made, in place." /'Sir; Qrmond sjiicl lie-.was very glad »•! to'; hear this! It' would .be absolutely ruinous-.to".tlie sport' in New' Zealand ~:if jt..were kept- in. He did not, think ' raging men. ,as a wdjolo' thought-.the . ;;25C) days was. too low, a number pro- ' 'i, vided the qpmmission did its jrorjc ; / w{tli a knowledge of tho subject.' : If :■;? they -had this they would be able to amalgamate small meetings held within ■ : a close radius. \ At 'this stage the Attorney-General 6aid bad Mm©: amendments to/put into"the Bill, and 'he thought. :'he ought; ,to ' /explainV t-liem //.before tlio , Council, v went .mtp' Coihmittee' pii ■■ the '.Bill. '.' % .The .debate was adjourned on the of tho Hon., J. Rigg, and the " Council rose at- 10 p.m. until Monday afternoon.