THE SPORT OF KINGS.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1945, 31 December 1913, Page 5

THE SPORT OF KINGS.

RACING IN 1913, £

THE NATIONAL VAI/t'E OF THE THOROUGHBRED. : , - LESSONS OF THE STRIKE, ' In dilating on tlio affairs of tlic Turf in New/, Zealand' it is usual to do so when tho statistics arc prepared at the dose of.-'..tlio racing season, .July IH. Put sinco that, dato 0110 or two rather important ijuiistignsj liavo been raised affecting the racing world, and now as the old year is rapidly giving way to tlio new, a brief review may not- be out of place. For tlio majority of chilis, holding meetings in tho Dominion, tlio year has been prosperous beyond expectations, nnd wiiilo ownors aro looking forward to tho coming months as a ?>eriod when stakes will ho oil tlio increase, tho general racing public can rest assured of an all-round improvement in tho Sport of Kings. Tho King and Racing, Fortunately tho grcatj pastime can still in truth bo called tlio Sport of Kings for although idle reports were last season circulated to tho effect that King George intended to sever his connection with tho Turf, thenj was no foundation for tho ivmmir. As a matter of fact, His Majesty is as kowi as was the lato King EdWrd in his interest in rearing thoroughbreds- and racing them. As yet the present Sovereign Ims owned 110 classic winner, hut his colours havo been carried to victory in several events of note, and,, during the past year, his horses havo .won races v j?' U0 ' ,l *' 10 ."SSregate of upwards or £5000. His Majesty occasionally graces tlio more important meeting's with bis presence, and it is generally be- ; iiered that Ifo knows of no .greater ghjoymcnt than is afforded him in Jiis unceremonious visits to these gatherings. He certainly lias 110 more loyal sub* jects than those who i/niko up tho racing world,

Legislation. The influence of tho Royal patronage seems to bo having a healtliv influence 011 the sport throughout the Englishspeaking countries, and here m New Zealand there has been experienced a gradual breaking down of that prejudice, which for several ,years hits curtailed tho scope of racing and hampered its management, \yhile followers of the sport were slow to combat the agitation of the would-be spoilers, and while they did not rally against t'hs opposition until ail kinds of restrictions had been placed upon them, t-he.y mow appear, to be absolutely determined to win back their iost ground and to destroy for ever the present opposition, firstly by legislation in the racing parliament io improve tho pastime and give it a. still greater grip of popular supand secondly by uniting at the elections and returning to the general Parliament members who will right the wrongs inflicted by the hasty, ill-con-sidered legislation of the past Government. As a resalt of tho former ii!°ve, members of the racing community have Keen -tho institution of the system of stipendiary stewards, a more efficient control of the jockeys' weighing and dressing roams; and various improve* moiits in tlie management of club's raco meetings. As the outcome of tho rally of sporting moil at tlio last general election, Parliament expressed (during tho past month) an opinion strongly in favour of restoring in different country districts certain meetings of a purely ■sporting character, which had been wan* tonly obliterated by a former Parliament, pandering to an imaginary pnblicbellind a few loud-mouthed agitators. The restoration of these race meetings in tho country districts referred to will probably be an accomplished fact before the end' of 1-914. Apart from this, oth-ei 1 advantages have accrued from the election of a broad-minded Parliament, and during tho year the Department- Controlled by the Minister of Railways has certainly showed some appreciation of flip' fact that the State reaps a large amount of revenue from racing.

Thoroughbred Stands for Law and order. But standing out clear above everything else, the moat important event from tho Dominion point of view in the racing history of 15,13, occurred in connection with the striko riots, wlicu. tho value of the thoroughbred breeding industry to the nation was clearly demonstrated. "If we are to be guided by the history of the past," said Sir. J. ,B. Harcourt in his presidential address to members of the Wellington BucinjJ Club just tlirco mouths ago, "tho day will come when our colonists will have cause to-be thankful thai the best class of liorse is available, and tho credit will bo due, and due alone, to the policy adopted by metropolitan and other largo clubs in tho ■ encouragement of classic races." Strangely enough tho time did eonio and not live weeks later when many a thoroughbred, "the best class of horse available," was used for tho maintenance of law and order, and a groat example was afforded the whole community of the value such horses would bo in times of greater disorder. Where, indeed, would a country such its this W without tliem? True some of tho larger breeding establishments have gono during recent years, but others Eavo come and are coining in their places and proof is not wonting that tho slump in bloodstock prices, during tho last couple of years, will bo succeeded by a steady advance. In England and Australia in recent years; _ prices have advanced beyond all previous records and as high-class horses aro being bred here year after year, tho period of prosperity for breeders cannot bo far off.

Cs&neral Improvements. Everything is tending that way. For general improvements in tho racecourses and in tho management of meetings liavo brought increased public patronage, prosperous times have brought pub* lie money to tlio racecourses, tho natural conscfjucnco lias' been enormous in totalisator revenue, ami that has been followed by big additions to tho stakes. This will surely, in tho ordinary course of things, give rise to a still botter_ breed of horse, and a natural rise in values; An instance of what clubs- arc doing to eider for tiro public is given in the current season's prograinmo of tho Wellington Racing Club. For several seasons past tlio c!nb iias not only been adding considerably to the stakes, but has been gradually lengthening the distances of races. This season it launched out with a bold policy, and besides .retaining tho New Zealand St. Leger Stakes, which it had previously decided to abolish, it instituted two new weiglrt-fov-ago events—the Waterloo Stakes, of 500 sovs., one mile, and tho Trentham Gold Cup, of 100(1 bovs., two miles—anil matto a general increase in tlio distance of tho handicap events. Thus, where tho club a few years ago had only fifo flat races (including tho St. decided over a longer course than ouc mile, it now has no fewer Sbau nine, of which live arts ono inijo and three furlongs or more. *1 his is proof that raciug' clubs are coining to recognise that the spectators lo see good horpes attracted to a meeting and raced over decern!v lohr courses'. The fivcfuriong flutter, wiih its unfair start, its scramble, its oloud of dust, its shout, and its rush for the totalisator will happily lw very soon nothing more than ■ * painful memory.