Sporting Review. THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 1891.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume II, Issue 67, 5 November 1891, Page 5

Sporting Review. THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 1891.

We are glad to see that our contemporary the Canterbury Times takes the same view as ourselves regarding the arbitary way the Committee of the Auckland Racing Club have dealt with pony and trotting racing. In their issue of October 29th they have a leading article which commences, “ The Auckland Racing Club has taken a very extraordinary and we think an entirely unjustifiable attitude towards the trotting clubs in its district.” It then goes on remarking how they construe Rule 20, evidently being of opinion that it is wrong. “ This means either that trotting must cease in the Auckland district or that the sportsmen of the Northern Island must be divided into two sections —the supporters of trotting and the supporters of the legitimate racing. There is no need for such division. Trotting has just as great a claim as flat racing on the goodwill of the public and the assistance of the totalisator, and it is a great piece of tyranny on the part of the Auckland Racing Club to say to the promoters of trotting—We will enjoy our sport but you shall not enjoy yours. We have always sympathised with any reasonable attempt to limit the use of the totalisator, and have occasionally commended the efforts of the Auckland Racing Club in this direction, but we fully recognise the right of the people to choose their own rational pastimes, and we shall oppose any interference which does not make the public interest its first consideration. The Auckland Club has, we fear, lost sight of the higher object in its effort to get rid of troublesome opposition.” As there is no mention of pony racing, we take it for granted that our contemporary is of the same opinion as ourselves that trotting should be a sport by itself, especially as in Canterbury all the meetings are entirely confined to trotting. It may not be generally known that the opposition comes from only a few of the Committee who have much their own way, and we much doubt if even the majority are with them, but we are quite certain that this reading of Rule 20 is against the opinion of most of the members of the Club. It is to be hoped tnat the whole thing will be reconsidered by the Committee before the sportsmen of Auckland are divided into two sections as our contemporary says must inevitably be the case if this opposition is continued. They may have to eat the leek as the V.R.C. Committee had to do, but it is better to do it gracefully, than be compelled to do so.

If any proof is required to show the necessity of having pony racing under proper control one had only to attend the late Otahuhu meeting at Potter’s paddock last Saturday. In the Handicap Maiden Pony Race, Red Rose went off at the top turn. It looked uncommonly like an intentional thing, for as soon as Cupid got well away she came back into the course, but coming up the straight she never seemed to make an effort. There was no notice taken of this. In the Railway Handicap it was quite evident that Red Rose was to win. At the

back of the course the riders of Cupid and Pica commenced to ride foul in order to prevent Vampire, the favourite, whose owner was not in the swim, from winning. The consequence was that Red Rose won easily. The whole affair was so palpable that the crowd hissed and hooted the jockeys, thus compelling the stewards to investigate the objection lodged by the owner of Vampire- Instead of doing so at once, as the case was very plain, they adjourned the hearing until the following Monday evening, when they meted out a just punishment by disqualifying the riders of Cupid and Pica for twelve and six months. If these ponies had been ridden by qualified jockeys this foul riding would never have been attempted, as they well know the penalties attached to such a thing. It is the mismanagement of these outside meetings that bring pony racing into disrepute, and has set the metropolitan clubs against them. Pony racing is enjoyed by hundreds, one may say thousands, wherefore, then, should a committee of a metropolitan club attempt to interfere with their pleasure as long as it is a legitimate sport ? We must say that it is not only a piece of tyranny, but it is a most unfair proceeding. If pony racing was acknowledged bv the Metropolitan Club, and brought under the rules of racing, it would soon be fostered by the suburban and country clubs, who would give good stakes to be run for even if the leading clubs did not like to have pony races on their own programmes. Would it not be much better to see ten or a dozen well-bred ponies start for a fifty sovereign stake than to see a lot of screws start for a race of half that amount ? The powers that be must be blind to their own interests, as they should see from the way the Press, who are the mouthpiece of the public, have taken the matter up. No tyranny will be allowed j if it is continued there will be a strong faction who will support pony and trotting races in spite of the authorities, who in the long run will find themselves considerable losers. We trust that this will be the last time that we shall have to write on this subject.

The proceedings of the Conference of racing delegates that is to be held next week at Christchurch will be watched with interest, as up to th.e present time little has been done at these meetings, except to alter and make more confusing some of the rules, which were bad enough before. There are several things that ought to be settled at once. First of all, is there to be a New Zealand Jockey Club ? When the thing was first talked about we thought it would be of great benefit to the racing world, but we begin to have our doubts, and are inclined to be of the same opinion as the D.J.C., that we can do without it, for as far as we can learn the members of the New Zealand Jockey Club will be chosen from the Metropolitan Clubs, therefore the bulk of the racing population will have no voice in the conduct of racing matters. The whole will be ruled by a clique, and being for the most part wealthy men, they will do just as they like, and when once in office there will be no getting them out. The consequence will be that all who can will take their horses to Australia. There is another thing that ought to be settled once and for ever, and that is regarding pony and trotting races. It is a regular farce the way things are conducted at present. Either include pony racing in the rules and let trotting go by itself , or ignore the two, and let them do what they like. If that was the case these kind of meetings would soon find their own level. At a meeting of the Committee of the Dunedin Jockey Club it was decided that the 1|- per cent, tax on the proceeds of the totalisator should come out of the 10 per cent., not be added to it. At the same time the question arose, was it legal to charge 11 & percent.? After some discussion it was decided that it was not, therefore the per centage remains as it was throughout Otago. We do not profess to be lawyers, but on carefully reading the Act it appears to us that the Government fix the 10 per cent, as the maximum that could be imposed. If you ask any member of the Committee of a Metropolitan, or in fact any other Racing Olub, the question why the commission was fixed at 10 per cent, at thebeginning, they, will either be unable to answer or will tell that, being desirous of getting the most they

could out of the machine, they fixed the maximum Rum allowed. This question should be settled at once, as if the Clubs charge different percentages there will be trouble, and the Government, who at present show great apathy, may suddenly wake up and interfere, either fixing a lower rate, or perhaps do away with the machine altogether. . The Hon. G. McLean and Messrs. Driver and Hazlett—three competent men—have been appointed delegates to attend the Conference, and they are instructed to oppose the creation of a New Zealand Jockey Club, and also to bring under the notice of the Conference that the resolutions passed at their last meeting were published as rules of racing without being submitted to the several Metropolitan Clubs for approval. It struck us at the time as being rather curious that the rules should be published before they were confirmed; but as they have done so many things that were not customary, we took no notice of it at the time. The Dunedin Jockey Club are also anxious to have some of the rules of racing either rescinded or altered. The chief is to do away with the rule fixing the number of races in a day s programme, also fixing the fees for jockeys. These two we agree in. As regards the totalisator rides, We think that .Rules 19 and 20 should be allowed to remain as they are, and that in Bule 21, may to be inserted instead of “ shall,’ ought to be covered by a new rule fixing the deduction at 10 per cent, on the whole amount, taking the Government tax from that, so leaving the Clubs 8£ per cent. By so doing no additional tax would be imposed on the investors. The new rule that is proposed, ‘‘ In the event of a horse or jockey being disqualified on the ground that the horse was pulled or fraudulently prevented from running, the stewards may order all moneys paid for tickets on all horses in that race to be returned, as they may think advisable, less the usual commission,” we do not think would act at all satisfactorily, and it might be the cause of an innocent holder of a ticket losing a good dividend. From what we can learn the Hon. J. D. Ormond and Captain Bussell will represent Hawke’r Bay and Mr. Mitchelsoh the A.B.C. Who the other delegates will be we have been unable to ascertain, but it must be remembered that Taranaki was opposed to the formation of a New Zealand Jockey Club, so it will rest with their delegate and the D.J.C. to fight the battle, and in all probability they will not be strong enough to carry the day. It would not at all surprise us to find that after all is over things have not advanced a bit further than they are at present as regards a New Zealand Jockey Club.