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New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume III, Issue 125, 15 December 1892, Page 4

A very interesting case of racing law was adjudicated upon in Melbourne the other day. A pony named Bullenana won the Turkeith Handicap at Moonee Valley on November 4th. He happened to be a pony that had been disqualified by the Australian Jockey Club, and when he won at Moonee Valley, the owner of the pony that ran second to him entered a protest against him on the ground that he was a disqualified pony and was therefore improperly nominated. The stewards actually took legal advice over the matter (!), and acting on such advice, dismissed the protest. The owner of the second pony Eldorado then appealed to the Committee of the Victoria Racing Club, who upheld the protest, and awarded the race to Eldorado. Where the point of argument came in was that though the pony had been disqualified by a Sydney suburban club, the Australian jockey Club, as they took no cognisance of pony racing, had not apprised the Victoria Racing Club of this disqualification. But the Victoria Racing Club recognise pony racing under their rules, and therefore it was argued with a good deal of reason that if Bullenana were not disqualified it would be open to any owner disqualified in connection with pony racing or owning a disqualified pony to cross the border from New South Wales and compete at any meeting in Victoria. The Victoria Racing Club, unfortunately, have no rule like that in the present New Zealand code, which reads : — If any person wilfully enter or cause to he entered or to start for any race, a .horse which he knows to be disqualified, every person so offending may be warned off the course and other places where these rules are in force.

It will be noticed that this rule even is open to exception, 1 for the use of the word “ may ” allows a loophole of escape to any offender. After this Bullenana case there is, it appears, every probability of the new code of the Victoria Racing Club containing a rule something similar to that appearing in the New Zealand rules, but we shall be much surprised if the word “ shall,” instead of “ may,” is not used in any rule on the subject the V.R.C. may introduce.