“THE TOTE” IN BRITAIN.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXVI, Issue 14, 22 May 1913, Page 4

“THE TOTE” IN BRITAIN.

To a very largo number of our readers who are more or less familiar with the racecourse in New Zealand, and therefore with that legalised betting machine—the totalisator—the following, described as an “innovation at a race meeting,” by the “Manchester Guardian.” will be of interest. The racing

correspondent of the journal referred to eavs : The “totalisator,” the well- * • r I known Continental system or co-opera-tive betting, by a device which shows the number and amount of the bets staked on the race and divides the total among the backers of then winner, was introduced to-day at the point-to-point meeting of the Royal Artillery Drag Hunt near Wrotham. A colonial bookmaker who tried at Newmarket last season to do his business on this system was stopped by the Jockey Club as the result of an appeal addressed to that body bv lire bookmakers, but as to-day’s meeting was a private undertaking there was nothing to prevent the introduction of the “totalisator.” which was worked for the benefit of the race fund. For the first race 16-1 tickets were issued for small sums, and after the deduction of 10 per cent, for the race fund there was a' little more than £ll 10s to be divided between the thirty-seven supporters of Burn Park, the winning horse. This meant odds of 3£ to 1, which was half a point better than the price offered by the bookmakers. There was a field of six. Altogether 783 tickets were sold at the meeting. , The bookmakers did not like it, but they could make no effective objection. Following this the Tickham Hunt intimated that, while the “totalisator” would be available at the • Throwley point-to-point races, no bookmakers would he admitted to the course. Is England at last going to adopt the machine?