RACECOURSE RUCTIONS.

NZ Truth, Issue 240, 12 February 1910, Page 4

RACECOURSE RUCTIONS.

A HOT TIME AT THE HUTT.

Another Flutter of "Pigeons."

BALANCER HAS TO BOLT.

A Scandalous " Fix-up."

The Military Called Oat!

Things were - doing at the last ponymeeting held at the Hutt racecourse, and "Truth" esteems itself fortunate that it has not to chronicle, the fact that a racecourse "balancer" way kicked to death by an infuriated mob of victimised punters. Indeed, it but required a lead from one of the victims, and despite the presence of a nuiuuer of policemen, the Hutt Park would have been the 'scene of blood-shed. As it was, the "balancer" «m question escaped with his life, and was told by the police that unless he settled, he must hold himself responsible for what happened to him. Punters, particularly pony punters, have (since the disreputable sport of spielers got a hold m Wellington), suffered much. They have not always suffered m silence, . though, and more than one aagry demonstration has been made against palpable crookedness. Invariably, the noisy disapproval has been ' directed against the officials who have winked or connived at open dayiigfit ' rotttoery, and, incidentally, it has been against rogues, official and otherwise that "Truth" lias turned its attention. Connected with pony racing m Wellington is as choice a gang of thieves and spielers as it would be possible to find outside the. four walls ol a prison, and pony clubs are providentially catering for this very undesirable class by licensing them as hookmakers and permitting them, on' the payment of a fee; to pluck and plunder tiie punter goose. Happily, this spurious brand of sport is dying a slow but ' suie death. It has less than two months to live, bu^ into that two months it. can be prophesied that much excitement, villainy, and robbery will bjs compressed. As a general ruie, the Hutt poay meetings, though far from free of shady transactions, have been tolerably Well conducted at that course; because 6b> environments are such as to/makp ',jae meeting more attractive than elsewhere. Certainly there have been:, compiaiats atd. a scene or two, but Wednesday's aoi»gi, beat all previous records. In jdstice xo the management, . "Truth" wishes to mention that it was. no action of aay o&---cial that was responsible for vthzi 7a, j nothing short of a riot.

A programme of five races was presented, and everything went well c»" tha Petone Handicap, for which Miss Ruby was the "pea." The mare was ndd-jn by Mallowes, and weighed out at Bs< "»lu. The good thine led from start, to jnish, and when weighed m was found to tje 9ft light. Then came trouble. The explanation proffered is that alter Uzllowes had weighed m his lead-bag was lightened by 9ft. This fact stems to have been whispered around, and one or two. bookmakers took liberties with Kiss Rub-y, One m particular, a notorious crook, who probably trades under v.-n alias, hit up against it left and right.

Miss Rttby having landed, the weighmgin room was invaded by punters, spiders, "whisperers," "tiek-tackers," etc. etc., and a pandemonium started. One aoo'smaker's clerk made himself particulars y obnoxious m the weighing-in room, aail the officials seemed to be helpless. Anyhow, this chap's hostility can b« accounted for by reason of the fact that he backed a loser, and had" relied oi,» tbe stewards disqualifying Miss Ruby on account a! light-weight. ' Everything was m an uproar and everybody, was uproarious. Bookmakers' were' tfarneu* by t.h«c runner— the übiquitous "Bluey 1 — not to pay out, aad the "Books" accordingly sat tight, and urged on the cry to wn-e the Rubyites out.

Punters got angry ; the stewards decided that the books must pay out, and' Bob Coneys, the secretary, from the stand made the announcement. Several bookmakers at first refused to do anything of the sort, but after a while they decided to pay out, no doubt fearful of the consequences, as the mob had become unruly and threatened to break things. Then "things were only middling." An angry crowd gathered round one - Bowling, a bookmaker who had hit up against Miss Ruby and who could not pay up, simply because he had not the means. The police intervened as the crowd thickened and threatened danger, and suddenly the clarion note of a bugle rent the air, and a volunteer force then m camp were called oat to prepare for any emergency.

The police were helpless," and it is perhaps fortunate that no daring spirit suggested the "boot," otherwise Dowling th'o balancer might have shared the fate of McLeod the welsher, who a couple of years ago was kicked to death on the Plemington racecourse. The police gave Dowling every assistance. He was recommended to refund, and having done so was escorted off the course. So far as the day's racing was concerned it ended with the Petone Handicap

"Truth" is not going to solve the puzzle of how Mallowes was lightened of his 91b of lead. It was done certainly and secretly, and it seems that the clufc officials were not m the "joke." This business is an old racecourse came, and it is apparent that a thieving " gang were at work, and that some of the bookmakers were parties to the crookedness. I"c is hard to see where racecourse roguery will end, and Wellington's unpleasant rvperience is that since pony -acmy -\as been started here, it has had a surfeit of dirty, low, cunning, unscrupulous tricks of a degraded turf. We are m the unenviable position of having m our midst the worst of all rogues, viz., the racecourse spicier, and he must , be suffered till pony racing dies off. Then we must trust to the police to do their duty, and oiriisecutions for vagrancy should be fre ueno While pony racing goes oh this state ol affairs must exist, , and .'it is onlii natural that within the short time m which p<.ny raeimg will be legal m Wellington, the thieves and thugs of the turf will redouble their energies to pluck tbe poor punter pigeon. "Truth" has tired of endeavoring to warn "mugs" of the d:in*ers of a pony racecourse. Those who go punting at pony races must be prepared to be rooked and robbed right and left, because the law at present provides no remedy. In the meantime, "Truth" trusts that the police will, at future pony meetings be present m strong force, as it seems that their presence will be greatly needed. We understand that the clubs have requested the nolice to warn undesirables off the courses. Such a request is almost a comical one. because if these pony courses were robbed of the undesirable element, there would be no pony races. However, there is to be a meeting to-day at Miramar, and for fear that disrderlv scenes and demonstrations shall take nlace, "Truth" trusts that the police wiH be on hand and keep the "crooks" eternally under control.