SPORTING

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1746, 23 August 1905, Page 30

SPORTING

BETTING MARKET.

CHRISTCHURCH, August 22. Messrs Barnett and Grant report as follows on the

WELLINGTON RACING CLUB. The report to be presented to members at the annual meeting of the Wellington Racing Cub, to be held on the 31st inst., states that the financial position of the club continues to improve. Satisfactory progress has been made with the new course and buildings at Trentham. Of the money received on account of the new course, £18,636 5s 7d has so far been expended. The balance-sheet shows that the principal items of receipts w^re: —Totalisator, £6744 13s Id ; nominations, acceptances and forfeits, £3652; lawn, gates, and railway, £2693 Os 6d; privileges, £IOOS 15s 2d; subscriptions and entrance fees, £634 4s, which, with sundry items, make up a total of £14,791 Is lid. The club paid away in stakes £10,250; salaries, £B5l 19s lid ; printing and advertising, £496 4s 4d; attendance at meetings, £444 15s 6d; general expenses, £464 15s 6d; maintenance and repairs, £450 0s 2d; rent and rates, £255 8s 4d, A sum of £4500 has been transferred to a reservage to cover general depreciation. • Nominations for offices have been received as follows:—President, Mr J. B. Harcourt; vice-presidents,Messrs W. H. S. Moofhouse and R. T. Turnbull; stewards, Messrs J. W. Abbott, James Ames, H. F. Johnston, T. E. Macdonald, M.L.C., N. McLean, D. J. Nathan, W. H. Turnbull, John Wilkins, and C. W. Tringham; auditors, Messrs E. L. Bucholz and D. T. Stuart. All the above named hold office with the exception of Mr Tringham. The only ballot to take place will be for stewards, there being nine nominations for eight seats. Since the last annual meeting the membership of the club has inpreased from 128 to 175. Mr F. Turnbull has given notice to move at the annual meeting that at the opening meeting at the new course each member shall receive a complimentary ticket and two ladies’ tickets in addition to his ordinary tickets. Mr Tringham will move that any steward absenting himself from three consecutive meetings of stewards without permission shall, ipso facto, cease to be a steward. DISTRIBUTION OF TOTALISATOR FRACTIONS. (By “Advance.”) The action of the Ashhurst-Pohangina Racing Club in adopting the proposal of its secretary (Mi] J. H. Vincent) to pay out totalisator dividends to sixpence, and distribute the balance of the fract ons to charitable institutions in the district will be commended in sporting circles throughout the colony. The only persons who can object to the proposal are racing club officials and totalisator proprietors, who usually divide the "odd” money. It is a v atter of surprise to the writer that son** of the more influential clubs have not moved in the matter before now. Racing club officials during the twenty year® the machine has been in use in this colony have not made any spontaneous effort, until the proposal came from Mr Vincent, to assist charitable institutions. What the exact amount of the dividend is or what becomes of the “ odd ” money does not trouble many people who visit a racecourse so long as they hold the winn.ng ticket. Occasionally one hears of a drvi-

dend being paid short, and the amount being banded to the local hospital, a« was the case at the last gathering at Gisborne. There have also oeen recorded cases where money has been paid short, and the mistake not found out until the winning tickets had been collected—too late to be remedied, as the number of claimants would exceed the tickets sold. On the other hand, at one meeting at the Hutt last season an error was made which ran into three figures. The request of the totalisator for a refund, when the mistake was found out, did not meet with much response from those who had received more than they were entitled to.

The machine was first used in this colony during the season 1883-84, when £330,000 was handled. The total for the year which ended with the WfeTlington meeting last July, came to £1,238,159. The “odd” money received during the twenty-two seasons in which the machine has been in use must amount to a considerable sum. Only of recent years have some clubs paid sixpences; many still hold all fractional parts of a shilling. Of the clubs which use their own machines the Canterbury Jockey Club pays sixpences. Last year this club passed through a total of £136,143, the receipts from the totalisator accounts according to the club’s balance sheet being £12,798 9s 10s. The Hawke’s Bay Jockey Club last season had its own machines, and paid for the cost thereof during the year. The amount Sassed through the machine during the sason (of eight days’ racing), amounted t > £48,657. The official figure of the revenue from this source was £4891 Is lid. The Hawke’s Bay Club does not pay sixpences. It is reported that the “cute” (fractions) at some meetings, pay working expenses. S nee the Introduction of the I —2 dividends the fractions have increased.

The Ashhurst-Pohangina Racing. Club holds one day’s races a. year—during Christmas week. At it 6 last meeting the club passed £11,927 through the totalisator. Most of the clubs in the colony—or at all events in this island —are in a flourishing condition. The writer hopes that as the season in the north has not yet begun the officials of racing club® will remember that charity covers a multitude of siirs, and universally adopt the decision arrived at by the Ashhurst Club. If an example is wanted, a good one comes from South Australia, where the pract : se is adopted. Since the machine was reinstated there the South Australian Jockey Club has distributed among charities £5628, and the Adelaide Racing Club £so6s—a total of £10,693.

At the annual meeting of the Waitara Racing Club, the balance-sheet showed the receipt® (including the balance brought forward amounting to £133 3s 6d) to,he £659 9s, and the expenditure (including £IOO paid to trustees’ account )to be £628 17s lOd, leaving a credit balance of £3O 11s 2d. The assets totalled £945 Is Bd, and the liabilities £398 Bs. The estimated assets over liabilities totalled £347 Is. The following officers were elected :—President, Mr W. T. Jennings, M.H.R.; Vive-President, Mr N. King; Judge, Mr R. H. Pigott; Timekeeper, Mr F. Stohr; Clerk of Scales, Mr Beckbessinger ; Assistant, Mr S. McGuinness; Handicapper, Mr J. E. Henrys; Starter, Mr A. W. Budge; Clerk of Course, Mr W. Kerr ; Stewards, Messrs C. H. Stott, J. A. Smyth, J. Finnerty, >T. Buchanan, E. Beckbessinger, J. Telfar, J. Sai'ten, T. Elliot, H. George; Course Committee, Messrs J. Finnerty, H. George, C. H. Stott; General Committee, Messrs J. Finnerty, T. Buchanan, C. H. Stott, J. D. Wylie, J. Telfer, E. Beckbessinger, T. Elliot, W. F. Jenkins, J. A. Smyth, and W. Proctor.

NEW ZEAiaAND COP. 12 to 1 Malm tonga. 14 to 1 Achilles. _ 16 to 1 Quarryman, Maniapoto, Gladstone, Scotty, Paritntn, Meflodeon. 20 to 1 Nightfall, Apologue. Gold Crown, Golden Knight, Noctuiform, Veneer, Sungod, Sir Tristram. 25 to 1 33 to 1 Vladimir, Convoy, Buluwayo, Ghoorka, Jeanne d’Arc, Melwood, Bady Wayward, Boomerang, Porcelain, Cuneiform, Shrapnel, Calibre, Probable, Armistice. 50 to 1 Roseal, Black Reynard, Tirole, Appolodioris, Beau Seaton, St. Joe, Sweet Helen. 66 to 1 Clanburn, Multifid, Mystification, Blythmaid, Byrist. 100 to / 1 Nonette, Orloif, Patronus, St. Michael, General Symons, Notes, Flamen, Gay Spark, Joe Chamberlain, Douche, Thunderer, .Heroism, Royal Crown, Ropa, Stecret Society, Stepdancer, Delarey, Ngatarua, Ability, Heywood, Grenade, Manawaru, King-’s Birthday, Rosegrove, Armamento, Assegai, Boiret, Tteitsihar.