THE TOTALISATOR.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 926, 20 September 1910, Page 6

THE TOTALISATOR.

i-v . \WWS' OF'SIRIGEO.;. "", . .'A:memorandum, has. been issued;by-Sir George-'Cliffcud, president Zealand ''Racing ..Conference,■;. baring; 'on.' the':proposed legislation -'for-: the' abolition of Witotalisator. ■•' He %as\ forwarded ..to ; thevHouEe;'bf ; ;K«pr&sentotiyes. ;petition6: . against ' the' legislation ■; proposed,'.. by... 501 [trainers, whose employees' number 1018, "dependents number-1964, ; making .a total of .3183.!' He h'as also prepared a-.table.shoeing the. expenditure for '.the season: o£'.cl,u}>s (including all';totalisar tor.; clubs, raoing! and: trotting,; and''a number: of 'the non-totalisator clubs,,'"ex'olusive',of stakes and taxation)'. : .In the coiirse;of the' memorandum;"'•", Sir Georgo statesj^-''■'•-."..V'V.'■■■'■■,,'•'.■'■■ : ' ■'- ''''■'■^■■■■■"■'■■' : : .': "This' sbows'that' ,the amount.' paid in actual wages is lis!: lid., and that of other expenditure, not including stakes and .taxation,' is ■ ,£1(19,418 lis. fid., making a grand total of ,£160;9p4 : 3s. '* sd: :. ;ln. addition to'; this "'.there"; were' 2010' horses registered .under: the.> Accident. Fund :last season,' and-it.is a conservative,estimate to ,put:the cost of straining, entries, etc.,at '.£3 per week' ;for. each ■ horse," which; makes ah experiditure'-of .£318,240 'per annum.,'l have' ascertained :that, the number of trotting horses registered last . season was, about 1000,; which, at. ;£3: per week each, would mean .£156,000, ; so I :'that 'if racing' is, to rbe.', abolished; expenditure .' would .be • ; . reduced.' by JEG35,144, of which the',; greater portion . goes; to the. worker, 1 in '; fact; . practically the.''whole of it,r because none' of; this work, nor, in fact; any of,its accessories, such .as horse feed, leather,. and innumerable 'other things,...are,', independent •', of, labour. When; the .travelling,' hotel, 'und other.. expenses', of.' the visitors to - the;' dif - ; ferent'race meetings' are; taken into consideration (I..'estimate 'that'; at "least .£50,000 is spent ..in Christohurch. alone;in race and,show'week),' there cannot be less than ,£1,000,000 per annum, ' all. of: \jnioh" would' be withdrawn from;,circulation." There are 10,391, members of .: racing clubs alone, and the estimated maximum .attendance fronueach club for. one day is, when totalled up, close' upon' 240,000 people., "Allowing .that 40,000 of 'these are, persons who ". attend more ' than' r.ohe meeting,; • and .adding ' those who ' attend trotting and mot Tace .meetings, it is fair. toassume there are more; than 200,000 people; in, New Zealond who are habitues of the racecourse. ' "I 6hould , like ■ those of our enemies who consider that the community of New Zealand is degenerating through addiction to gambling to consider tho actual results from these figures. The total amount' invested in the totalisator :for last year - .was ,£1,804,584, which,, divided by. the 200,000, leaves an . average of X 9 10s. per annum each, or about 3s. 6d. per week, and as there are, on an' average, over . seven , races per. day,. tho gambling per head works- out at less than a, penny per, raco."