SPORTS PROTECTION LEAGUE

Greymouth Evening Star, 21 July 1913, Page 3

SPORTS PROTECTION LEAGUE

BOARD OF CONTROL,

ANNUAL MEETING

BY TELEGRAPH —PER PRESS ASSOCIATION

WELLINGTON, uly 19,

At the annual meeting of the Board of Control .of the Sports Protection League, the President, Sir George Clifford, occupied the chair, and there were present the Hon. Dr. Collins and Messrs C. P. Skerrett, J. G. Duncan, J. H, B. Coates and C. W. Tringham. The report and balance-sheet were adopted. Sir George Clifford said that the report was very, encouraging, as. showing the wide extension of the League in the Dominion. The ’support of the community in every section of sport had been given in no half-hearted way, and the advantages accruing from the existence of the League had been made apparent whenever a question had arisen affecting the permanence or interests of any sport.

The Dunedin ranch forwarded a remit asking that the Board should endorse the application of the Otago Hunt Club, which by a deputation recently waited upon the Prime Minister with a request that a subsidy should be payable to each of sixteen clubs in the Dominion of £250 a year from the tax imposed on totalisator investments. It was pointed out that the revenue from this source last year amounted' to £75,611. and it was resolved to lay before the Prime Minister the fact that hunt clubs have a special claim for consideration by the State, because of the encouragement which the clubs give to the breeding of a type of horse of great value to the community in times of peace and of special value to the country in time of war.

The Southland branch submitted a comprehensive scheme of challenge trophies for competition among the various branches of sport throughout the Dominion on similar lines to that inaugurated by its branch in connection with Rugby football. After consideration it was resolved to ask for further particulars. The Auckland, branch requested that the Board should make representations to the Government without delay in the interest of sport to protect Plumpton coursing and gun clubs from a, misleading attack made by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals at its annual meeting held in Wellington in May last, and to take the necessary steps to counteract any legislation that might be brought down to prohibit these sports. The Board decided to act in the direction indicated.

The Dunedin branch requested that practical sympathy should be given to the Dunedin Coursing Club in the event of a prosecution on the grounds of cruelty by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty (o Animals. It was unanimously decided to comply with the request under a certain stipulation which is to be conveyed to the Dunedin branch.