“TOTE” WENT BROKE

Evening Star, Issue 23679, 12 September 1940, Page 12

“TOTE” WENT BROKE

MEETING IN PALESTINE An amusing account of a race meeting held by British forces in Palestine has been received in Wellington from a New Zealander serving with the Australians. “ It was the funniest affair 1 have ever seen and I don’t think I will ever forget it,” he writes. “ The meeting was held at Beersheba, which is about two hours’ run by bus from where wo are camped The track was laid out for the occasion, as race meetings are rarely held here. A small area was fenced off and was known as the ‘ enclosure,’ admittance to which was 230 mils (5s in our money). The ‘ outside ’ was free. Tho ‘ tote ’ was built in a tent and was eventually wrecked by the efforts of the crowd trying to back their fancies “ There were about 5,000 Bedouins there, and nearly every on- of them brought a One either a horse, camel, or donkey. Just try to picture the

scene. The first race started about half an hour late, and the last race half an hour early. 1 don’t know what happened to the * tote,’ but after the third race it went ‘ broke.’ While it was operating, though, it was possible to back a horse 10 minutes after the race was run, and this was probably the reason it wont ‘ broke.’

“ The racing was very interesting. The distances varied from six furlongs to one mile, and there was a two-mile race for camels. The jockeys were Arabs, and they rode barebacked with the whips out all the way. The camels went away, from a sitting start. A couple of us were told the winner, but owing to the ‘ tote ’ not functioning were unable to get sot.”