TROTTING

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 74, Issue 197, 21 August 1931, Page 4

TROTTING

AUCKLAND CLUB MEMBERS’ ANNUAL MEETING. REVIEW BY PRESIDENT. LOWER STAKES NECESSARY. In moving the adoption of the report and balance-sheet at the annual meeting of the Auckland Trotting Club on Wednesday, the president, Mr J. Rowe, said that while they had experienced a bad season he was optimistic enough to believe that they had touche-d rock-bottom and that things would now brighten up. The amount of £29,350 paid in stakes for the season was considerably larger than the club’s share of the totalisator receipts and the incoming committee would again find it necessary to use the pruning knife. The club was saddled with very heavy expenses in interest, taxes and levies, which alone amounted to befweon £BOOO and £9OOO a year. The administration of tli'.‘ club’s affairs was, in proportion, the cheapest of any club in the Dominion. It was his intention to ask the committee to reduce further the cost of this department-. He had always been opposed to any curtailment of totalisator tickets from £1 inside and 10s outside, but thev could not close their eyes to facts. While racing was the sport of classes, trotting was the sport of the masses, and realising that the workers of today had not. the money to spend, the club reduced the admission charge ami < introduced 10s tickets inside and 5s ' tickets outside. Tn this it was con- . sidcring the workers’ interests. The New Members’ Stand. The taking over of the Otahuhu Chib had involved the club in very heavy expenses. The financial depression md heavy taxation had brought disaster upon all racing and trotting clubs and they could only hope for an early improvement. In the meantime they would require to watch their finances very carefully. While he agreed that it was the duty of every club to help rt . sister club in distress it was possible that the assistance could be overdone, and the Racing Conference was to be congratulated upon its decision not to allow clubs to race on other than their own course. Take Auckland as an example: There was a limited amount to spend on racing, and if country chibs were allowed to hold their meetings in the city, the city clubs must pay the piper. Ho had been asked by some members whether there was a possibility of the new members’ stand being erected in the near future. The committee was fully alive to the necessity for the new stand and when the financial strain was lighter it would consider building it. The report and balance-sheet were adopted. Delays in Inquiries. In reply to a member, who referred to the payment of £35 a day for handicapping, the president said it had been decided that at the first meeting of the new committee the salary question should be considered. The whole lot 1 would have to come down. Members referred to delays caused by inquiries, sometimes involving the holding-up of totalisator investments. Mr C. J. Schnauer, in replying, said the rules of trotting were very technical and had to be observed very strictly, otherwise the Trotting Association could over-ride all that was done. Jn regard to inconsistent running it was jjecessary to have a finding of fraud on the part of the owner. The more fact of inconsistency i; the runing of a horse was not sufficient, nor was the fact that the owner backed the horse one day and not the other. They had to find that there had been fraudulent intent on the part of the owner to prevent his horse from winning. The charge had to be formulated and writ ten and all the evidence for and against taken down and until they reached n decision the totalisator money had to bo held up. A vote of thanks to the chairman for his services to the club was carried by acclamation. The election of seven committeemen provided the chief interest at the annual meeting. There were 12 candidates, including the seven retiring members, three of whom had been as- 1 sociated with the Otahuhu Trotting Club and automatically joined the committee of the reconstituted club when the merger took place last year. Voting was exceptionally heavy, there being no fewer than 323 ballot papers, a remarkable number when it is considered that the present membership of the club is 426.