A SPORT-LOVING COMMUNITY

Evening Post, Volume CXIX, Issue 33, 8 February 1935, Page 45 (Supplement)

A SPORT-LOVING COMMUNITY

GAMES OF THE PEOPLE

"Drop down a dozen-Englishmen anywhere—on an island, in a back-woods clearing, or on the Indian hills—and in a very short time the old schoolboy instinct will out, and the first level sward is turned into a cricket field in summer and a football arena in winter."

nnHE best part of a century has passed since JL the earlier settlers dropped in on Weilington. Little did they and those who followed them realise that the hour of sport in their hard pioneering days was to open the way to fields of play for tens of thousands, excelling at the Homeland games of their fathers and fore•fathers and winning for New Zealand, while it was still a young country, a distinguished place and national status in the world of sport. But prestige overseas is by no means the only beneficial result of this fondness for sport. ; What would Wellington do today without its parks and reserves? They in themselves bear eloquent testimony to the advance of sport in the community. Take the Basin Reserve. The Maoris and the old pioneers knew it as an iml passable swamp in Te Aro flat, a site regarded in the early days of settlement as most suitable : (and intended) for a dock, until earthquakes raised it. Then occurred the idea of having it drained and turned into a cricket ground—a long job. Prison labour was .employed for the cut- ,; ting of the drain, which many old residents will remember, but when "The Post" came into be- ■ ing the ground was still something of a quag- :; mire. Today with its firm foundations it stands as a ground eminently suited and quite well .equipped for the purposes for which it was set apart. It was there that, two years ago, England's Test cricketers attracted on a mid-week day 20,000 people. Not far beyond Te Aro flat in days gone by there was an unsightly area, an elevated uneven clay patch with gorse abounding. On this site, too, there came a remarkable transformation, to give Wellington a magnificent Rugby playing headquarters, the stadium-like Athletic Park, further improved since by the terracing of its banks and the erection of its modern stand. These fields, the Basin Reserve and Athletic , Park, have been made landmarks of an Empire in which sport abounds. Yet, they are but two of many—some even won from the sea—set aside to meet the heavy and ever-increasing demands of a sporting community, with still more being.shaped for future use. All manner of games are played in Wellington. In addition .to the Basin Reserve, the following grounds are municipally controlled:—Newtown Park, Kelburn Park, Karori Park, Kilbirnie Park, Wakefield' Park, Lyall Bay Park, Nairnville Park (Onslow), Polo Ground (Miramar), Prince of Wales Park, Te Aro Recreation Ground (near Te Aro School), Western Park (Karori), Kaiwarra Park, Emerson Street Recreation Ground, Nairn Street Recreation Ground, Seatoun Park, Anderson Park, Tanera Crescent Ground, Pirie : Street Park, iGrawford Green (Miramar), and ; Williams Park '(Day's Bay). In the making, and available for cricket and football next season, are Hataitai Park and Rolleston Street Park. Other areas under the supervision of the - Director of Parks and Reserves include that used as a municipal golf course.' Add to these grounds and reserves those controlled or used by bowling, tennis, golf, basketball, football, I hockey, • croquet, speedway, athletics, cycling, and other sports bodies in town and suburbs, all with their large followings, the college and school grounds, and the playgrounds of the swimmers, life-savers, yachtsmen, and rowers, not forgetting the riflemen with their historic Trentham, and some idea is given of the vastness of Wellington's field of sport. GROWTH OF CRICKET. "The Post" was not able to record the birth of cricket in Wellington; that happened almost ;with the first days of settlement. But it has been able to cover the game in its growth from in:fancy—from a period long before a local controlling body of cricket was set up. It was in • the early days that the primitive scoring method of making notches on sticks was employed. Over :90 years ago there was a Wellington Club in existence as there is today. As a preliminary to ."a true Christmas dinner of roasj: beef and plum ■pudding" in 1842 the old club played a match in which the Reds got 64, and 60 "notches" and the Blues 67 and 59 "notches." The coming of the Home regiments in the early days was ■an aid to the founding of cricket. ' The old "single wicket" game was also played ;in the pioneering days, and it provided "The Post" with one of its first cricket items, which ran as follows:—"A single wicket match be- ; tween five of the Po'rirua district and an equal number of the Lingaries will shortly be played, we believe in Mr. Clapham's paddock." Again, about the same time, the True Blues of the Hutt and the I. Zingari, of the town, "noted for their skill-in this good old: English sport" (the 11-a----side game) were matched on the same ground.; Also frequently used as a cricketing area was ; the Mt. Cook Parade Ground, and here it was that many of the important early matches were ■ played, including the first interprovincial match, , Auckland v. Wellington in 1860. When.Waira- : rapa and Nelson came to, town they, too, played on the parade ground while it remained the best that Wellington could offer. Those and numerous other-matches on grounds in and near the town showed that cricket had become well established in Wellington. Its subsequent growth was remarkable; aided by the setting up of a local controlling body (known early on as'the Wellington Cricketers' Association), by organised competition, by interprovincial matches and by visits from overseas, cricket flourished locally, though eventually it had to give way to Rugby as the national game. ' ■ 'TOURS AND TALENT. It was as far back as 1864 that New Zealand was first visited by a team from overseas, Parr's England Eleven coming across from Australia in that year, though playing only in the South Island. Since then Wellington has been an important centre for the many teams visiting this country, sand it can claim to have had visits from more teams from overseas than any other centre^ with the additional record of having provided the largest "gate," such are cricket's drawing powers in the capital. All these important events and five tours abroad have taken place during "The Post's" lifetime,, and each one provides an interesting chapter' in the history of local cricket. Those who have represented Wellington and adjoining districts on tours overseas are T. C. Lowry (a distinguished captain), E. F. Upham, F. A. Ashbolt, H. B. Lusk, C. W. Robinson, K. C. James, R. W. Hope, C. S. Dempster, H. M. McGirr, M. Henderson, and E. H. L. Bernau. That representation has been small enough for the calibre of the players offering in the exten-

sive provincial area (from Taranaki and Hawkes Bay to Nelson and Marlborough), but those players and the following have gained New Zealand honours in matches in the Dominion:— F. T. Badcock, W. A. Baker, J. P. and R. Blacklock, W. S. Brice, A. Cate, D. C. Collins, J. W. Condliffe, C. G. Finlayson, H. Foley, N. Gallichan (of Manawatu), C. Gore, C. Hickson, J. S. Hiddleston, A. R. Holdship, C. A. Holland (of Wanganui), B. J. Kortlang, H. N. Lambert, J. J. Mahoney, F. S. Middleton, F. A. Midlane, D. Monaghan, E. G. McLeod, J. Niven, E. Redgrave, C. A. Richardson, J. V. Saunders, K. H. Tucker, A. B. Williams and J.~ Newman and D. Freeman (of Nelson). THE NATIONAL GAME. New Zealanders are known in sport for their football more than anything else. Rising, as in England, from the seeds of the old "ball" game, Rugby took root, and its growth since it first began to flourish some fifty-odd years ago has already been indicated in the mention of the fact that some 40,000 people went to see the Bri-tain-New Zealand Test in" Wellington in 1930. Wellington early became the stronghold of the game in New Zealand, and the foundations have never been shaken. Old pillars of the game are still to be found in Wellington. There is Colonel G. F. C.1 Campbell, C.M.G.;. he captained Wellington when the first Rugby visit to Auckland was paid in 1880. Long before that the game " had been'played here, though it had encountered opposition. There had been a big. effort to have the game barred, and to influence public opinion Rugby was held up as a fit sport for barbarians. But the public school pioneers who brought it from the Homeland knew it as something more wholesome, and they won through. '■ It soon became evident that New Zealanders were apt pupils and in time Rugby, adopted as the national winter pastime, was played so proficiently that New Zealand was able to lead the world as a Rugby-playing country. That position remained unshaken until the Springbok invasion long after the 1905. All Blacks made New Zealand's highly-specialised game famous. The high standards were maintained until a few years ago, when the latest of many changes of rules and methods with the jettisoning of the traditional formation caused a blow from which the game has not yet recovered, though it still holds its place as the premier pastime.

It was in the seventies that the control o Rugby in Wellington began.to take shape oi properly-organised lines, following activity 01 the part of the Welling- ' ton Club (founded in '■■ 1870), the Athletic i Club, Wellington Col- | lege, and other bodies. : The Wellington Rugby ; Union came into being | in 1879, under the pre- j sidency of Colonel Ed- \ ward Pearce. In its ef- | forts to. further the in- i terests of the game the ! union encountered \ many' pitfalls—the.provision' of grounds al- \ ways, and to this day, I being a big problem— ! but it was never allow- ] ed to sink. The record ] of accomplishment, ] which needs no elaboration, speaks volumes for what the Rugby control in Wellington has done. RUGBY HONOURS BOARD. In the wide field of representative Rugby, Wellington has played a most conspicuous part, not only by reason of its many successes in Ranfurly Shield and other interprovincial contests, but also because of the special attention it has given to helping the game in the districts of the smaller unions. From the national playing standpoint it has also done great service in contributing largely and well to the many New Zealand .teams. The following Wellington players have been leaders of New Zealand teams:—T. R. Ellison (1893), D. R: Gage (1896), J. Spencer (1905), F. Roberts (1910), F. Mitchinson (vice-captain 1913), J. Ryan (vice-captain N.Z;- Army' team 1919), J. T. Tilyard (1920), E. Roberts and G. G. Aitken (1921), H. E. Nicholls, (1923), C. G. Porter (1924-25-26-28-29-30), L. M. Johnson (vicecaptain 1925), and F. D. Kilby (1932-34). F. ; Mitehinson, J.,Ryan (N.Z. Army team 1919), L. M. Johnson, M. F. Nicholls, and J. R. Page have been vice-captains of New Zealand teams. Other Wellington players who have gained New Zealand honours are B. Algar, H. E. Avery, N. Ball, E. F. Barry,- U. P. Calcinai, J. Calnan, A. E. Cooke, T. Cross, E. Davy, E. H. Dodd, J. Dumbell, W. Francis, C. Gillespie, J. L. Griffiths, W. Hardeastle, E. E. Hughes, E. A. Jessep, A. Lambourn, H. T. Lilburne, E. T. Leys, G. Maber, J. D. Mackay, R. H. C. Mackenzie, P. Markham, J. E. Moffitt, D. McGregor, G. McKellar, H F. McLean, J.^R. McKenzie, W. McKenzie, H. G Nicholls, R. Oliphant, D. Olliver, T. Pauling H. R. Pollock, A. Pringlfe, W. Pringle, W. J. Ready, H. Roberts, W. Roberts. C. A. Rushbrook, E. Ryan, S. Shearer, J. Shearer, S. K. Siddells, G. Spencer, A. J. Stuart, K. S. Svenson, J. Swindley, A. Thomas, H. D. Thomson, F. Tilyard, J. M. Tuck, W. J. Wallace, E. Watkins, P. P. Webb, A. Wilson, H. C. Wilson, M. E Wood, W. T. Wynyard, and F. B. Young. RIVALS OF THE CLASSIC GAMES. Cricket and Rugby football may be classed as New Zealand's "classic" games; but they are not unchallenged. Rugby has a respectable rival in the Association game, though the schools, in which Rugby is vigorously fostered, are in general slow to admit it. The Northern Union or League game has failed to acquire a-strong hold in Wellington. In recent years especially, lawn tennis, bowling, and golf have claimed enormous numbers of enthusiastic followers, and hockey, basketball, and croquet are making increasing demands for attention. Tennis, golf, and bowling are more .emphatically players' than spectators' games; and tennis remains exceptionally the great game that can be played under first-class conditions on private premises. All of them have developed beyond the status of mere pastimes, and are nationally organised, so that they provide op-

portunilies for large-scale competitions and inter national contests. Arising but of the war, rifleshooting has achieved a perhaps unanticipated popularity. It is not everyone who can shoot regularly -whh service ammunition, but the "miniature" rifle—miniature only in its ammunition—has led to the formation of many enthusiastic clubs. ' EVOLUTION OF ATHLETICS. It may be said that there have been three stages in the history of amateur athletics in Wellington: the period before the formation of the New Zealand Amateur Athletic Association in 1887, the years immediately following, and tlie period since the institution of the centre system, about 1902. The introduction of amateur athletics in Wellington dates back to the sevenlies, and from that time the Wellington Club has been closely identified with the sport. In the middle nineties, when J. H. Hempton first came to Wellington, the sport was fairly strong, but the principal interest in the nineties was in professional cycling. At the beginning of the present century amateur athletics faded out in Wellington, even though at that time Wellington had one or two good athletes, notably F. Ross and L. B. Webster.. When the centre system was brought into being a centre was formed here, and that was the means of beginning a revival which resulted in the sport developing

and flourishing in Wellington for many years. The second club to be formed was the University Club, and by 1907 there were five clubs altogether. In that year the sport progressed rapidly and the Wellington Centre won the New Zealand Championship Shield, which;'with the exception of 1909 at Dunedin and' 1912 at Invercargill, it held until the 1932-33 season, when it was -won by the Canterbury Centre, which still holds it. :

Good athletes come in cycles, it is said, and during the past few seasons the sport here has suffered a somewhat lean period,' compared with the prosperous times of only a few years ago, when athletics in Wellington was on the crest of a wave of popularity, but Mr. A. C. Kitto and other enthusiasts keep on, and there is, even though there be few twinkling stars today, still plenty of life left in the athletic corpus.' The Wellington centre has been a very big district at times, and out of it since have been carved the West Coast (North Island) Centre and the Hawke's Bay-Poverty Bay Centre. Of those associated with the centre in its earliest days, Mr. R. W. McVilly is the only one actively connected

with it today. Visits from athletes from Australia and further afield have played an important part in the development of the sport. There is not space to give details of them here, but most followers of the sport are familiar with these tours, particularly those which have taken place within the last twelve or thirteen years. The Wellington Province has had some notable athletes, bur the most outstanding among them have been perhaps Harry Wilson (hurdler and sprinter), Randolph Rose (distance runner) Dr. A. E. Porritt (sprinter), and W. H. Pollock, the greatest all-round man New Zealand has produced. He won events off the scratch mark from 50 yards to seven miles. BOXING AND WRESTLING. For many years Wellingtonians have found a place among their sports interests for activities in the "squared ring" and there are men in the city .who will long be remembered for what they have done to advance boxing or wre«tlin" Thirty-two years ago on March 13 next a meeting of enthusiasts brought the Wellington Boxing Association into being. In those early days it was not merely a question of winning the public support—boxing had to be placed on a legal footing. In this regard a great debt of gratitude is owing to the sitting president of the Wellington Association, Mr. R. W. McVilly, leader of his side in the negotiations which

culminated in boxing being made a lawful sport in New Zealand. It can safely be said that the trust thus reposed in the controllers of the game has not been abused. On the active side Wellington produced a man who probably did more than any other to bring boxing into the position it ultimately occupied in the boom year of 1930.' Tim Tracy, now a shrewd trainer and ringside general, will never be forgotten as Dominion lightweight champion, and formidable opponent to American and Australian importations. In recent times Wellington has supplied New Zealand's only Olympic champion—Ted Morgan, in addition to two Olympic representatives, A. Cleverly and H. Thomas. A Dominion controlling body was constituted' in Christchurch in 1902 and in 1924 was transferred to Wellington. Recently boxing has had a rival to contend with in the form of modern professional free-style wrestling which, as interpreted by American performers, has secured a strong hold on the public favour. Wrestling, both locally and nationally, stands as a tribute to the organising work of Mr. H. D ;i Bennett,, of Wellington.

RACING IN WELLINGTON

Wellington cannot claim to be the true cradle of the "Sport of Kings" in New Zealand, for Canterbury, Nelson, and Auckland have right of priority to that honour; nevertheless, Wellington has had its racing almost as long as it has had its name, and it has the honour, too, of having staged what is probably the first recorded equine contest in the history of the new colony.. Since that early day, over ninetyfour years ago, tftougb with fluctuating fortune till the birth of the present Wellington Racing Club in 1873, the sport has held its, place as an, integral part of the life of the settlement, borough, and Capital City, and the records show that there have been very few years without at least one or two race gatherings.

Wellington witnessed its first horse race on January 25, 1841, as part of its first anniversary celebrations^

Prior to this, a Jockey Club was formed, and drew up a set of rules, but after a couple of years it seems to have gone out of recorded existence. It was -re-established in 1865, then again finally and permanently in 1873. In the years between these historical landmarks, however, there were still plenty of equine battles, mostly in the nature of match races, and they were conducted "According to the rules of the Wellington Jockey Club," so that it seems always to have been felt that there was a Jockey Club in esse, whether or not it was always possible to point to such a body. SETTLEMENT'S FIRST RACES! The racing on January 25, 1841, must have been rough and ready in the extreme, but it nevertheless marked the birth of the colony's premier recreation. The first horse had been landed in the country either towards the close of 1839 or early in 1840, and the first thoroughbred, 9 two-year-old coif named Figaro, by the English-bred Operator, had come over from Sydney late in 1840. The anniversary celebrations began on January 22, and a hurdle race by four horses over some level-ground at the back of Pa Te Aro (npr the present Taranaki Street) for a purse of 15 guineas was held on the third day. The winner is recorded as having been the black horse Calmuck Tartar, ridden by Mr. Henry Petre. > The first racing. that may be classed as a meeting was held; on the Pito-one (Petone) Beach on October 20, 1842: The "course" was the hard sandy foreshore between the mouth of the Hutt River and Pitp-one Pa, and it pro- - , vided a stretch of about

Two of these localties soon singled themselves out as the most suitable at which racing should be staged. They were Burnham Water (Miramar) and Hutt Park.

Burnham Water was the area orginally occupied by a lagoon of some 200 acres: in ex-

tent on part of the territory acquired by Mr. J. C. Crawford m 1839, and artificially drained into Evans Bay through a tunnel about 100 yards in length. A grandstand was erected, and Burnham Water became what was, probably the .first racecourse proper in the colony. What stories might have told about the racing in those days of the late forties and early fifties, but unfor-" tunately those who could have related them have long since gone, and the stories have passed untold with them.

Hutt Park was granted as a> reserve for racing purposes in 1854, and since then it has always been one of Wellington's main testing grounds, during Tialf a. century for the gallopers, and more recently, and up till the present for the trotters and pacers. Racing on the Park in the sixties was something the mind of the modern racegoer; accustomed to the relatively luxurious: appointments of present-day courses, would find it difficult to imagine. The running track was very rough, with rushes growing in all. directions and a dram right across the course, over which there were culverts covered with river gravel. These culverts were .crossed.twice, in a mile race, and, according to one old-timer, "the stones used to fly. like bullets." The road or track leading to Waihui-o-mata ran across the course, and when a race was being run the gates had to be shut, and, of course, all the traffic there might be was stopped.

At about this time the need for a Jockey Club under whose direct auspices the racing should be conducted was again "being felt, but it was not.till April 11, 1865,. that the Wellington Jockey Club was actually re-established. Tn almost all populated parts of the colony jockey clubs had been constituted well before this time, and Wellington had evidently lagged a long way hehindv most other centres in its "sporting instinct" during the fifties and sixties. Probably, this was because it was the Capital City, and its citizens were'kept too busy in other ways to occupy themselves to any large extent 'with recreatipnal matters. ,

The Wellington Jockey Club was, however, now in.being: again, and in the autumn of-1867 it drew up its-first programme of events. .-It was at this meeting, held on March 26 and 27 that a race first called the Wellington Cup appears to have been contested, and it was won by a four-year-oIH named Policy, owned by Mr. Day. They went to the races in those days on horses and in vehicles of all descriptions, from the aristocratic dog-cart to the humble dray; and

the s.s. Ahuriri took its quota "up harbour" to the Bcene, with "the pretty little steamer Alpha also contributing to swell the numbers congregated on the racecourse."

In the April of the following year (1868) another Cup Meeting was held, the races being postponed from early in March till after the arrival of his Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh, who was visiting the colony that year. The second Wellington Cup was won by a horse ? named Numa, who scored very easily from Policy and two others. 1

Interest waned after that meeting, and another Jockey, Club lost its identity. There was racing at Porirua, Pahautanui, in the Wairarapa, and in other surrounding parts, but none at Wellington. Occasional matches and informal meetings, as in the past, were held, hut these did not provide .general sport for the citizens. In April, 18/1, The Post" had the following to say on the position in that'year:—"Now that the season is past, everybody is askina why it is that there have been no races. ... The fact is our races nave waned in popularity from their not being good enough in quality and tone We often hear our racing men sigh over the past glories of Burnham Water. "Is there no chance of this once popular course being again available?"

PRESENT CLUB FOUNDED. . Two years passed before the next meeting was held. Early in 1873 several enthusiasts met and drew up a programme of races for March 6 and 7in that year. The gentlemen who were' principally concerned in reviving interest were i Messrs G. Crawford, C. R. R or l a se, R. Barton, K. Collins, A. Brailhwaite, M. W. Jackson,-W. ? Lowes. H, Owen, and Major Brent, and they acted as the stewards. The meeting was held at Hutt Park, and there was an attendance of nearly : 5000 on the first day, when Mr. H. Redwood, Father of the New Zealand Turf," scooped the pool with his two horses, Simplicity'and Maivina. -. ■ • : - ■ ■■ .. •■':

On settling day. (March 11) for that-meeting, a resolution was passed—"That the stewards of the late meeting form themselves into a committee for the promotion of a Wellington Pro--vincia Jockey Club"— and the club that we now' know had its birth in the resolution This rebirth of the Jockey Club infused new: Me into the sporting community of Wellington,' and it was soon evident that the club was goin-i to embark on a much more successful and last-i" ing career than its predecessors had enjoyed.^ It took the name of the Wellington Jockey Clubj and its first president was his Honour the' Superintendent, Mr. W. Fitzherbert, M.H.R. The! nrst meeting was held on March 5 and 6 1874 i and it was an outstanding success. There was? an attendance of about 4000 each day, and the guests of honour were his Excellency the Gover-! nor (Sir James Fergusson), Lady Fergusson, andi his Excellency the Governor of Western Aus-i' traha (Mr,F. A. Weld). The iirst Wellington! Cup on the present club's record was run on' the hrst day of: this: meeting, and was won byj Mr. R. H. Campbell's three-year-old colt Cast-! away,witn the same owner's three-year-old fillyDelusion second, beaten only by a neck -'" ' Annual meetings followed, sometimes in' December and sometimes in March or February,? and the stability of the new club' was soon assured. During the eighties the club added Us other meetings, till at the close of that decade the four regular meetings had been established. • v "^w °f lhe club was changed to its present title, Wellington Racing Club," in 1879.. The totalisator was first installed at Hutt Park in 1880, and it was an object of great curiosity An account of the 1880 meeting includes:— The machines (there were two- of: them) fairly frightened the listmen (book-, makers) away: The success of the totalisators" was complete." .

During the eighties the Wellington Racing Uub had to fight opposition from.several other clubs w or about Wellington, but this competition was ousted before the nineties began. Forseveral years the Island Bay Racing Club, a proprietary concern, held meetings on Anniversary Day and the following day,.hut in. 1883 the Wellington Cfob obtained a lease of the Island Bay course and thus got rid of its most *enous rival- In , 1888 the Hutt Hack Racing Club had an ephemeral existence of a single meeting, and so did the Island Bay Hack Racing' Cub in 1890.;.'Trom that date the Wellington Club had the .field; completely to itself. "; THE MOVE TO TRENTHAM: [-, In 1890 considerable improvements were made at Hutt Park,'including the erection, of a }fieW grandstand, and this.stand still remains as one of the main buildings at the Park. ByMe early years of the present century; however^tne Hutt Park venue was becoming; inconvenient, because of access difficulties and. the Jack of room, for expansion, and the stewards began to consider whether it might not be advisable to move to more commodious quarters nearer the city or on a main line of communication. The decision to transfer the club's activities to a course to be formed at Trentham was finally taken in 1904. .At'a special meeting ■of ■members in August of that year the ; proposal of the stewards to acquire a freehold course fouhd unanimous approval, and the property, .at Tretitham was secured and a start made on .the laying out of the new course and its appurtenances. . . -

The 1905 Cup Meeting was the last at the Park, and on January 20," 1906,.the first'day's racing, was conducted on the new Trenthain course. It was a gloriously fine day, and there was an attendance of nearly 9000. It wasthe day on which Ropa won his Wellington Cup. The club's 1906 balance-sheet revealed that the full cost of the change to Trentham was £39,112 19s Id. The club had stepped off Hutt Park with live assets valued at less than £1000, and it was able to set up at Trentham only through the aid of guarantees.

■The success of Trentham was immediate. The attendances were regularly large, and the club, being on its own freehold property, was receiving, as it had not done at the Park (a public reseryei. the full benefit of the racecourse betting. The way of prosperity continued unchecked, till the days of depression set in four years dgo. In 1921 and 1923 the original stands were scrapped and the great concrete structures that, are now such a feature of Trentham were erected, giving the club what are still the most modern appointments, in the Dominion. _The progressive policy of the stewards has also provided Trentham with the only barometer totalisatbrs yet in use in the country. The club's history was kaleidoscopic in its early years, but now a stable period has come, and, when the prolonged bufferings of the depression have been safely weathered, the club may view itself as proud leader of the "Sport of Kings" in this favoured unit of the Empire.