GAOL SENTENCE URGED

Chronicle (Levin), 7 March 1947, Page 8

GAOL SENTENCE URGED

-Press Association

Only Way To Reduce Number of Bookmakers

By Telegraph-

WELLINGTON, March (5. Raeeeourse inspeetors have warned 1937 people off racing and tratling eourses in the Dominion since 1921, said Mr. A. E. S. Ward, ehief raeeeourse mspector to the Nevv Zealand* Racing Gonference, when he gave evidence before the Royai Conimission on Gaming today; The average over the past five of six years had been 200 warned off: annually, he said, but in the first 20 months of his work the nuniber had been 000. Mr. Blundell (for the Racing Confer ence) : Do you regard bookmakers as a good or bad inrluenee m racing? — Speaking generally as a bad influence, As a elass they have been regarded by offieials and. others as a corruptive in fiuenee. Asked what his views were about the publieation of dividerids, the witness said that undoubtedly the restrietions were superfiuous. Questioned by Mr. Thomas (for the Trotting (Jonference), the witness said bookmakers regarded fines as licence fees rather than as penalties. He knew that some would rather pay £1000 than do 24 iiours. A Lerm of iinprisomnent 011 a seeond ott'enee was elfecti ve in stopping bookmakers. Ile knew two in stanees of men giving up bookmaking altogether .after serving a prison sen lence. Notwithstanding liceusing oi bookmakers, illegal betting would stili go 011, lie said. Experience in Nevv South Wales had proved that up to the liilt. qhic.st ioned by the (Jhairman, Mr. Jus lice Kinlay, witness said that if persis tent offendcrs as bookmakers had re ceived only seven days' iiuprisonmeni it. would have resulted m a' great re duetiou iu the number of bookmakers. To Mr. Thomas, the witness said that in 1910, when bookmaking was abolished in Nevv Zealand by statute, the retinue of guessers, tipsters, and run ners disappeared. ('an you see any publie benefit that would be eonferred if bookmakers were lieensed? — No. The only persous who would benefit would be Lhe bookmakers themselves? — V es. Big Betting Owners. After questious eoncerning big betting ovvners, Mr. Leicester (for the Sportsmen 's Association; asked if they did not bet. elsewhere in order to lteep the totalisator pru:e up. Witness: Yes, but some of them are disappointed. They wai t uiuil the Jast minute to distribute £3.00 or £400 aniong the bookmakers, aiul then vvonder vvhy the dividend is sinai!. It is because the bookmakers have vvays and means of getting the nioney 011 to the totalisator. Dr. O. (J. Mazengarb: What did you have in mimi by "vvays and means"? — Bupposing that a fevv minutes before a raee £oU0 is landed on a bookmaker, he will telephone, pyobably to Tren tham, and relieve the bimlen by asking someone in his trust to put so much 011 the totalisator. lie would telephone to where? — To Trentham, say, but not into the course itself. He would telephone . to some place outside the course where 1ns agents are waiting. Bookmakers are very sensitive to these things, and they are not going to be loaded with £50u if they can help it. To earlier questions, the witness had ntated that he iiad very little troublc with bookmakers on eourses. There inight be a small man there occasion ully perhaps, but he had no trouble 011 Ihe raeeeourse with the big men. The chairman: They stay away?— Yes. Trainer's Evidence. George Nevv, a trainer, of Awapuni, who said he had seven apprentices and a foreman, and a substantial number of horses iu traiuing, said that tlie racing eontrol iu Nevv Zealand was satis factory and worked well. He had raced horses in Australia, but as far as con ditions for trainers and jockeys were eoncerned, he preferred this country. "With the exception of the big meet ings in ■ Australia, vve have bettei stakes here," he added. " At the smali meetings in Australia the stakes are lovv. ' ' Speaking about the fitness of a horse to vvin a race, the witness said: ' ' My ■j experience is that the public are fairly 1 good judges." This witness and another trainer, T. R. George, of Marton, expressed them sclves iu favour of the totalisator as against bookmakers. This eoncluded the main case for tln Racing Oonferonce, and Mr. Leicester we 11 1 011 to present the Pominion Sportsmen 's Association 's case for the iegalisatiou of bookmakers to handle ofi'-course betting.