TROTTING.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 9 July 1924, Page 7

TROTTING.

NEW ZEALAND CONFERENCE. i anni V ll meeting of the New Zean- ii- Totting Conference was held in XNeningtou yesterday. The president (Mr 11. I<. Mihail) delivered a lengthy a dcliess, the following being extracts: 1 rotting has grown so greatly in popularity <1 wring the last generation, Joth with the public and with those concerned in its active participation, that those in authority carry a responsibility such as was not- the case years ago, when there was little interest taken outside of owners, trainers, and those sportsmen who always gather }'tiei ,e '‘(i r a ho,rse -race is to be viewed, ib-day we have a very large body of the general public with us. and it is essential for the well-being'of all that race meetings should be conducted with the highest possible efficiency, and to do this officials must take their duties very seriously, giving to- the conduct of the meetings where they are in authority the same care and attention as they would give to their own business.

, e have been promised a Claming Bill for some years past- in order to rectify some present anomalies in the m"') and to do justice to both trotting and racing. The Premier is introducing a. Bill this session which will contain some of the provisions for which vre have beOn contending, and which will, further assist us to keep the sport clean and free from evils. I noticed recently that one of our opponents stated there* were more races in -New Zealand than in Great Britain, a statement so ridiculous that one would have imagined that even the most rabid crank would have hesitated before circulating it, the truth being, of course, that there are many thousands more races m Great- Britain than in New Zealand. The same writer, in order to strengthen his case, which was that there was more relative betting in New Zealand than in Great Britain, after being bowled out in his first statement, wrote "that it is estimated £140,000,000 is staked on the turf every year in Britain, and a day or two later I read in the London Daily Telegraph a speech made by the president- of the National Sunday School Union "in London, in which he said that £350,000,000 changed hands every year in Britain in gambling, so one sees how little reliance can be placed in any figures put forward from certain quarters. The Select Committee set up by the House of Commons recently stated in their report that betting was ah established a part of human nature, and that its prohibition was impracticable.

‘‘lt is known to all who care to know that the legalising of the totalisator in New Zealand has encouraged the importation > and breeding cf high-class horses, and that during the Great War it was the horses with thoroughbred and trotting blood in their veins that the Allies looked to foir their supplies, and how important these horses were to them is evidenced by the statement made by the Earl of Ypres at- the unveiling of the cavalry memorial—.that when war broke out Great Britain had 17 regiments of cavalry, and had 150 in. the field when the Armistice was signed.

‘lt is not generally known that whereas in 1894 there* were 53 permits for - trotting in. New Zealand, to-day there are only 37, so that whilst the population has increases by 88 per cent, during the period, the number of permit has decreased by 30 oer cent. To many these figures will sound incredible, but they are supplied by the Department of Internal Affairs,' and more than justify the present- agitation throughout the Dominion for more trotting permits.

“The Rev. IV. Trotter, relating his experiences to the/Dunedin Presbytery 'vitli petition of the ’Council of Christian Churches against the new Gaming Bill, stated that if the petition had asked for the curtailment of the present facilities there would not have been obtained a single signature to the netition.

“A marked feature of the past year has been the very considerable increase in. the importation of higli-class American horses. These horses aire bred from some of the most distinguished sires and America, and their influence on the breeding of trotters in New Zealand is sure to be pronounced.

‘The institution of classic races during the last few years has been a marked step in* the history of trotting in the Dominion. The programme issued by the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club for next season proceeds still further upon these lines, and other clubs are steadily' progressing in the same direction, so that the racing is becoming ever more interesting, and owners and breeders will lie able to rely upon, some recompense for the expenditure and trouble in breeding, rearing, and racing the best horses, which in the past have so often after winning a. race or two in last time been precluded from the opportunity to further earn their oats, owing to being stood on a last mark and having to give away long starts to vounger lierformers.

“The big field problem is .still witli us. and until the law is amended to allow a race to- lie run in divisions there will always be grave danger of accidents. The Government's attention has been drawn to this matteir, and probably some relief will be afforded in the Gaming Bill. “The general management of meetings continues to show a steady improvement, and officials generally work efficiently to carry out their respective duties, but there is still some lack of the supervision, that- can only come from skilled observation and knowledge, and it is evident that at some meetings too much attention is paid to detail, and not sufficient to the larger issues of trotting. 1 would again stress the absolute necessity for all stewards to keep a steadily observant eye on such matters as careless driving and riding, and on inconsistent running. The example of some of our clubs who have sternly dealt witti. offenders under these headings, should he followed by all, and already a decided improvement has been noted, consequent upon the punishment inflicted upon two or three of our prominent reinsinen for misbehaviour in a race. Some stewards appear to consider that only wilfully foul or reckless driving should be visited by disqualification, but I wish to impress on all. that careless o.r erraticdriving should also he severely punished. for those riders and drivers who are careless in a race, in view of the big fields contesting events, and the •speed at which the horses travel, are equally a menace to the sport, and carelessness must he dealt with in such a manner that others will not err in the same direction. During the past few months there has undoubtedly been an improvement in the riding and driving tactics of reinsmen. “The matter of inconsistent running is one not so easily dealt with. Inconsistent running can be inquired into under Rule 314, at any meeting held within fourteen days of a previous meeting. There is nothing like the amount of •not running a horse out to win’ that is often talked about. Horses are no more consistent m their form than a human' being, and if wc look luund at any sport we see tile same

strange inconsistencies in form from one day to another as we see in- horse racing. We see a noted cricketer make a big score one innings and a duck in the next, a footballer play a good game one day and fumble the hall badly the game following, and so on with athletic and other games. We cannot expect horses always to maintain the same form, and it is only when surrounding circumstances suggest fraud that action can he taken. If a horse is deliberately pulled in a race, it is almost impossible to escape the attention of an expert supervisor, and if the authorities found that the stipendiary or control stewards were not competent to detect such occurrences it would be their duty-to replace the official or officials in question. *‘Tlie thanks of all clubs are due to our paid officials lor the'. painstaking and honest service rendered "during the past year. There is still room for improvement on the part of the stipendiary stewards in the steadier concentration on the more important affairs at race meetings, and tins aspect of their duties is not being overlooked by the Stipendiary Stewards’ Committee. “At last year’s conference a new rule was adopted making it compulsory for all handicap races to be started on the yards system, and events have more than justified this decision. The standard of starting has improved out of all knowledge; riders and drivers now know what they are doing, all ’have an equal chance, and the professionals as a body are better satisfied than they ever were before under the old regulations. It only remains now with the clubs to see that their starters are properly qualified. “Consideration will be given to the new rules on the order paper, and I will only briefly comment on one or two of these.

‘‘lt is proposed that no person interested in the ownership of horses shall be appointed to a. Judicial Committee or as a track steward. Such a rule will, in my opinion, be a retrograde step. By excluding owners from such positions some of our most valuable assistants in the control of trotting will be lost.

“The New Zealand Trotting Association has on the order paper a suggested new rale for the branding of horses, but I understand from their vice-presi-dent that the Association only puts this forward for consideration, and is liot pressing for its adoption. Personally I am opposed to the suggestion. I do not consider that in order ,to prevent iringing-in branding is necessary. In no other racing or trotting club in the world, so far as I can ascertain, has this step been taken, and with the keener observation that will henceforth be bestowed on competing horsds, not only by the officials, hut also'by the riders and drivers themselves, such frauds as have been recently exposed should be extremely difficult- to perpetrate again. I wo-iild suggest that the whole question should be left to a- subcommittee of the Conference for further consideration.

The newspapers have given to trotting a great deal of notoriety of late, and this has naturally caused a certain amount of unrest and distrust in the minds of some people. The members of the_ New Zealand Trotting Association have spent a great deal of time, and gone to a lot of trouble in thoroughly sifting the cases that have been brought under their notice, a ltd Mr J. H. Williams, the vice-president, assures me that they have now about completed their labours in that direction, and all interested can continue to derive the same pleasure in our sport, with every confidence that the management is well able to ensure good racing and clean snort for ail concerned. “There are so many affairs to he considered —-the interests of the public, of owners, trainers and club members —that a firm and wise administration of the laws, a never-ceasing vigilance to detect wrong-doing, and a keen, and thoughtful control of club affairs, finance and expenditure are essential, soi that we may continue to warrant the goodwill: and respect of our patrons, and that trotting may flourish and grow in the future as it has done of late years. We need men of courage and ability, and with a knowledge of the sport they are to control, and all clubs should make the effort to see that their committees and stewards are representative of their ’ district, and will give the necessary time and thought to the management of the club affairs. We do iiot need to apologise for our sport, we are one and all proud of the standard trotting has reached in New Zealand. We are proud to be associated with it, and proud of the general management of meetings, and of the conduct of tfie general body of our owners, trainers, riders and drivers. We know there are weak points here and there, and these we are steadily rectifying and strengthening, and trotting as it is to-day will compare favourably with any other sport, business, or profession, in the way it is carried on, and on the steady progress it is making, and in the determination of those in authority to maintain and still further improve upon the standard already achieved. ,