NEW ZEALAND TROTTING ASSOCIATION.

Otago Witness, Issue 2894, 1 September 1909, Page 56

NEW ZEALAND TROTTING ASSOCIATION.

ANNUAL MEETING. The annual meeting of the New Zealand Trotting Association was held last week, when there were present: — Messrs P. Selig(president), A. L. Myers, R. O. Duncan, W. G. Garrard, W. Hayward, and C. S. Howell —The Late Mr Geo. Payling.— The President said that before proceeding to the ordinary business of the meeting ii became his sad du-t-v^ to refer to the possing away of a gentleman who had for many years been prominently connected with the sport of trotting. It seemed only yesterday that ho was sitting by the bedwide of the late Mr Geo. Payling at the Royal Oak Hotel in Wellington. It was, indeed, only last month when, though far from well, he responded to the call of duty to preskis at the annual conference. Anyone of those present at the conference would readily recognise that their president was ill, but he unflinchingly eat the conference through. This was characteristic of the man. The late Mr Payling'a connection with the spcrt of trotting, as an owner and a club official, dated for back, and it could- bo truly said that ho took a keen interest in every healthy move for its betterment. Now he was no more, and he (the president} desired to move — "That this association tender to Mrs PayJing and her eon its deepest sympathy in their great bereavement." The motion was passed in silence, th« members standing meanwhile. — Report and Financial Statement. — The following report was presented by the treasurer, Mr A. L. Myers: — The result of the operations of the association for the paefc season shows an- allround increaee. The receipts amounted to £1156 4s 3d and the expenditure to £1140 13s 3d. Dealing with the- receipts, the chief item appea.r.l to be licenses, there bein ff 2486 issued to applicants throughout th-e-Dominion, which number constitutes a. fresh record— the highest number granted 1 pieviously was 2330. The fees for registration of horses equalled tho record of last year, to which I referred in my last report. So far as foreign horses are concerned, there was a slight increase over the number imported! last year. The amount received for the new volume of all horses registered with the association since its inception was £47 lls 6d — half the cost of the production of the work, which stands is a liability to be paid duping the comingseason. Fines imposed and received 1 amounted to £102 13s, and are shown separately in tho Provident Fund Account submitted by the trustees in accordance with :he Jules. After paying away £121 16s by way of compensation for accidents, there •emains in the Provkte.it Fund a credit oalance of £500 2s 2d. The items under expenditure- represent the usual disbursements, with the exception of the second rolume of the Stud Book, the publication )f which amounted to £139 12s 6d— half >f which amount has already been received jack in the shape of ealee. The fact ehould iot be lost eight ot that the price of this work is about one-third less than No. II 11 •olume, and I think the increased denaancß or the second volume has justified tha •eduction. The Reserve Fund in the P.O. Savings Bank remains at £600 — the maxinum amount that can earn interest. Aft>r Lllowing for the liability referred to, there ■emains a small balance of £15 lls Id on he veai's operations.

The balance sheet showed: — Beceipts, £1156 4s 3d; expenditure, £1140 13s 2d; credit balance, £15 lls Id. The assets were £862 4s Id, and the liabilities £95 16s, credit balance £766 8s ldL The Provident Fund account showed : —Receipts, £623 18s 2d; expenditure, £123 16s; credit balance, £500 2s 2d. On the motion of the president, seconded by Mr Howell, the report aw 1 statement of accounts were adopted — President's Address.The President, in his annual address, said he had already referred to the lose sustained by the death of Mr Geo. Payling, «nd then went on to state that trotting, as a sport had lost an ardent supporter earlieT in the season' when Mr Victor Harris passed away. That gentleman, like the lat© Mr Geo. Payling, was one of th* early pillars of trotting. Nearly 20 years Ago he was a steward of the Canterbury Trotting Club, and be was the founder, and for years chairman, of the Lancaster Part Amaiteur Trotting Club, from which the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club developed, and of which he was the first chairman. He was one of the strongest advocates for the Canterbury Trotting C'^v merging itself-, into bhe New Zealand Mstropolitam Trotting Club," winch, after come difficulty, was successfully brought about. Mr Harris was a delegate to the old • South Island Trotting Association. He was at one time a prominent owner, but. there, was no doubt that where he <fid his best work for trotting was in the early days- of the .New Zealand \ Metropolitan Trotting Club, for which club ho was one of the most progressive I workers. In addressing the board last I year, he (the president) had occasion to } refer to the multiplication of clubs. The | fear wag expressed that clubs were being { brought into existence not solely with the '. object of supplying a legitimate want and j fostering the sport. The passing of the I G*min.» Act, which authorised clubs to i Hoense bookmakers, had, it was evident, been an incentive to the formation of cea> ' tain clubs, the fees from bookmakers pro- | viding, from a revenue point of view, a sub- • evitute for the totalisator. During the eeason the board, in its wisdom, saw fit to refuse applications to register from five clubs, while ' ibey granted thrse, the Oamaru, South j Canterbury, and Southland Clubs. The | certificates of registration of two clubs in ! the South Island hat? been cancelled, one i ior the reason that its status was anything i but satisfactory, and the other because it j <ould not offer the required amount in ' prize money. The status of three other t.-!ub<3 in t'ne South feland had been under co.nsid-sra-tion, the board being of opinion that the small prize mon-3y ' offered in each case seajoely \yarranted the registration of these clubs being continued. This would . be a matter for the incoming board to deal with. While he favoured the legitimate country meeting — the annual sporting fixtare of the- district — which, as a rule, pro- i vided a jnoat enjoyable outing for the resi- I dents, anything ir the shape of < what was termed a "pub'lichouee meet- j in.g" should not be tolerated by that ' Board. "'During the season there were in ' all twenty protests' lodged with clubs, the ' groUnds being chiefly inconsieteni: running, , crossing, and galloping With one exoep- i tion the stewards dismissed the complaints. On the evidence being placed before the Association, the action of the cluib in each case was upheld. The solitary case of protest which was not dismissed was that with respect to the horse Conocrah. The owner of the second horse protested on- the grounds j that Conocrah wa^ fraudulently run. It i turned out on inquiry by the Forbury Park ! Club to be a very glaring case of what was commonly called "ringing-i-n." and the club imposed life disqualification on five of isie connections, and disqualified the owner for five years. There was great expense | attached to sbsetiner home the charges, and the association decidted to recoup the clubs concerned half the outlay. The r.ew board would -have before it all f £o papers in the ' case, and i€ it were in agreement with the I opinions of the board as at present con- ! •tituted, the matter should be taken to the • law courts. Som© years ago a criminal ] prosecution in a similar ease proved a salu- i tary lesson The new board should in this i connection take into consideration Mr Dun- . can's suggestion to appoint agents to act for the association at terminal points, where ■ all trotting horses entering or leaving the , Dominion might be examined, as they were in America, .before being f urn-shed with the association's certificate. There hac 1 been only three appeals to the association, which would appoar to show that the soundness of the clwbs' judgment in. the maiorftv o£ cases was accepted by the interested parties. ' The betting stewards Had, he regretted to say, been somewhat in evidence judging from what had come before the association, and on new clubs in particular he would impress hhe importance of appointing under ■ ifhe rules a 6et of judicial stewards from i their non-betting members. To keep the confidence of the public those who were responsible for the proper conduct, of clubs must be entirely free from interested motives. This, he was sure, it would be universally admitted, was of the utmost im- > • porta.noe to the welfare of trotting as a frt»ort. It was likewise as important that all inquiries snould be conducted strict!} in accordance with the rules". During the sea^n there had hero come laxity in this respect, which remark applied to one or more racing club<* that had approved trotting events on their programmes, as trvA ««s to trotting clubs. A year h*d expired since the rule relating To stakes for trotting horses was adopted, ft must T>e looked upon, he thought, as only the commencement of a movement to save the pureg&ited one. From what Tie had [>er«onKlly seen tihis season, sonv 1 of the mest. interesting races had been tnose contested for by pure trotters, and he hoped to find tliat olufbs would liberally interpret the ruW with Tespecr to prize-money for the trotting horse this season. Hopples were pro: £ibited in trotting races in America years ago. There was an agitaF.ion goJn*r on there at present to have them taken off the legs of pacers. In what were called oott stakes— the Futurity Stakes of this Dominion — it bad been suggested that no ■ boppled colt should -start. AnotJi&r sug- ' /festion was that in class races pacers wear- ; me hopple should be penalised by de- j clucting a portion of their winnings and giving it^ta those who did not wear them. | One or more Of the leading clubs might: do a little more in tEe interests of the i stamina of the trotElng horse by adopting j what appeared to him (the speaker) to be a j valuable suggestion offered by a member of j the association. He referred to the 6ug- { gestion of Mr Duncan to clubs to include^

a three mile race- on, say, * three days* programme. Surely such an event would in itself be a. great attraction to all sportsmen. Here was a chance for that wealthy and flourishing institution, the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting 'dub- With its proposed increased stand and other accommodation the convenience of the public- was being studied; the club, by enlarging its racing track, was considering owners ; it was only in the natural order of things that the prize money should go on increasing, and the inclusion of a three-mile event, richly endowed on, say, its November programme, would indeed be further evidence of the club's desire to cater for the highest form of sport. Then, why should not the Auckland Club (who bst season offered special inducement to owners of stallions and nraies), and the Forbury Parlr Club (now making a progressive move in providing a nsw course]; and other progressive clubs, do something in the direction he had indicated? He hoped clubs would at least give the suggestion their serious consideration. With one exception, the association was responsible for the whole of the notices of motion brought forward at the annual conference, which he attended as president of the association. An important addition to Rale 185- waft J»ade, making a person liable to disqualification whe knowingly employed as a racing stable-hand, or in connection with the training of trotting horses, any person whose license had been withdrawn or .refused. During the year a. well-known trainer was refused a license. He was subsequently engaged by an owner, who stated! that he was not employing him ac a trainer, but simply as a stable-hand. He thus obtained the services of a person (under the name stable-hand) whom the association regarded as unfit to be associated with the training of trotting horses. The new rule now prohibited that unless permission was first obtained from the association to employ such a person, a-nd in the erent of such permission being granted no penalty or disqualification would be incurred. Four suggestions went forward from th» association seeking to alterthe rules regarding amateur riders and drivers. Two of these appearing at the last moment likely to work somewhat harshly in some cases, hs agreed to withdraw ; the other two dad not meet with favour. He pointed out to the conference that the association was strongly of the opinion that some action should be taken in the direction of making the amateur rules more stringent. Events for amateurs had developed into something that was never intended. It was th© intention that anyone (not a regular trotting man) owning a horse and training it himself should have a chance of competing, eav in bracelet handicaps, against his own cla-ss, and Tiot with professionals, and ieased horses of note or horses professionally trained. It seemed to him that clubs would in their own" interest have to devise conditions that would bring nbout the end they .fjesired. One rule that called for particular notice was that making the registration of colours compulsory on and after first January next. It was also important to note the adoption of the association's regulations for the establishment of New Zea'-and trotting and pacing standards. In this connection a conference between the i\Vw South Wales land Victorian trotting bodies with which they Had reciprocal relat'cns, Had been arranged, and would probably take place in the second week in November. Before leaving the work of the conference, he should mention that the - vexed question of totalizator permits was once more discussed at length, with the usual result that the previous yew's allocaion was adopted for the now season. Tinis might be considered satisfactory by those clubs who held the permits, but with the increase in the number of clubs there was a natural increase in the number of applications for totalisator permits, which, as they were aware, were by law limited in number. While it remained legal to license bookmakers, the clamour for totalisator permits might not be 6O parsistent, but he could not help feeling that it was only a matter of time when a redistribution of permits would take place. Two important works published bj the association during the year were the No. 2 Volume of the Stud Book and the new voluir.o of all horses registered' with the association, since its inception. It was three years since the first volume of the Stud Book was published. Ths association, having, at the request of trotting authorities and enthusiasts, had the work compiled and published at great expense, hopefully looked to clubs to support it H« (the speaker) referred at come length in the course of his remarks to the clubs the board was elected to control. He now wished to cay something about the Board of Control itself. .Members might have become tired of his annual reiteration of the opinion that this judicial body 6hould comprise members who were in no way connected with the organisations whose actions bad at timos to come under review, but he felt bound once more to give voice to that 'pinion. While saying this much, he recognised the plain fact that endeavours made ip the past to securo tho services of gentlemen entirely disassociated with clubs had proved futile. In the absence of entirely disinterested persons, the next bc=t thing was the wholesome !a,w that prevented a T.embor of fha board sitting on a matter that the club which he might he connected with was interested in. Next to that was the confidence- of t-he clubs <>n-d patrons of the sport, which he believed- the boar<J possessed. He regretted to find that the name of Mr E. Clarkson, one of theM- oldest members, was missing fiom the list of those nominated, which he coukl not help thinking was the result of an c\ plight, more espeeiallv as he un<Lerstco<3 half of the clubs entitled to do so 'lid not cend in a nomination. Before- concluding his remarks, he would like to point out that tha,t day thoy commemorat-e-d the passvng of the first decade of the life of the association Looking hack from the time of its foundation, during the whole of which period he had the honour of bei.ig their nresidpnt, he tho'i ' i*" co"!d b • fairly cliimed, when -rotting in th" 1 early c'ajs was compared with tue high character of the sport at the present time, that tha work of administration, not forgetting that of the former governing bedy, had not altogether been in vain. The association, he had no hesitation in saying, was entitled to take some of the credit for the phenomenal strides that had beon made in trotting, and for its now great popularity. But the satisfactory position of the sport as a whole to-day was principally due to the good management of clubs ard the character of their member* and officials. But go far as good or bad government

" went , the association was held responsible,' and it had been gratifying to him, as their representative at various meetings and functions of kindred bodies, to hear the felicitations to the members of the board on their work. He was sure it should be very encouraging to the members who ha<? given so much time and labour 1 throughout the year to the cause to know that their work was appreciated. For himself he might say candidly that it had been a distinct pleasure to have presided over a body of gentlemen who had not only given him great support but had accepted his rulings with a spirit that he could hardSy fail to appreciate. — (Applause.) Referring to the question of hoppling mentioned by the president in hi 6 report, Mr Myers expressed the opinion that the j practice should be suppressed. He pointed t out that a slight manipulation of the straps . might be th© means of a horse losing a raoe. Mr Duncan said it would be a great help if the clubs could put two or three events on their programme fcr unhoppled pacers, or penalise hoppled horses, as w«6 done in New South Wales. It was absolutely unintelligible to him why the conference had decided to allow certificates io be granted hoopled horses. The President agreed that the remedy lay chiefly in the hands of the clubs. The Jiecussion then dropped, and a hearty vote, of thanks was accorded, the president for his_ able address, which it | was decided to hare printer arid circulated I among the clubs. „ — The New . Board. — The following board was elected : — Messrs P. Se%, C. F. Mark, J. H. Pollock, R. O. Duncan, W. G. Garrard, W. Hayward, C. S. Howell, A. L. Myers (all re-etected), and H. F_ Nicoll. — Misoellanac'ss. — In connectior with the dispute over the horse Kamil, it was decided to lwommenid that th© matter was one for the interested parties to settle in a court of law It was decided to secure an enlarged photograph of Ml _E. Clarkson, an exmember of the association, for hanging in j the association's rooms. Eulogistic refer- ! enees weTe made to Mr Clarkson's services I on the board { A hearty vote of thanks to the president i for the capable manner in which he had carried out his duties during the past year was passed with acclamation. A vote of thanks was also accorded the newspaper press. The meeting 'then terminated.