SPORTING.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 9, 5 July 1911, Page 8

SPORTING.

WAITARA CLUB. By Telegrapli—Press Association. Waitara, Tuesday. The committee of the Waitara Racing Club met last evening and decided to send a deputation to the Minister respecting the Commissioners' recommendation which practically wipes the Waitara Club out. As this club has a well laid-out and fenced course, and has had a one day meeting a year, it is felt an injustice has been done, particularly as the club catered for and received the support of the large_ area of settlement of North Taranaki. It also decided to join with the Waipawa Club and others in holding a conference to decide on a course of action with the l view of reinstatement.

THE ASHHURST CLUB'S CASE. DEPUTATION TO THE MINISTER. Wellington, Last Night, Tim third deputation of protest by the country clubs against their treatment in the allocation of totalisator and racing permits was received by the Hon. D. Buddo (Minister of Internal Affairs). It represented the case of the Ashhurst Racing Ciub, which has lost its only day's racing in the year. Deputations of protest from iSJiikoura and Waitara are also to arrive this week. The Minister suggested that the Ashhurst deputation need not concern itself about the general lines of the commission's report, seeing that several previous deputations had discussed it with him. Mr. Guthrie, member for Oroua, who introduced the speakers, replied that the Ashhurst Club was in an unique position. He contended that the commission failed to follow the Act. inasmuch as it had not given preference to country clubs. The House had made it quite clear that justice must be done to country clubs, whereas the commission had taken the opposite course of encouraging long city

| meetings. Mr. D. C. McCarthy, president of the cluh, saitl it had been twenty years in existence, and it paid as much as £1405 in stakes on its one day's meeting. Tim meeting was an annual picnic for a range of country forty miles in extent. The eourse was twelve miles from the Palmerston course. Why had the commission struck out the club's only day, and retained five days' racing at Palmerston and four days' at Woodville, which was only twelve miles from it? ''Confound their unblushing impudence of omission," added the speaker, who, strongly condemned what he termed "the centralisation policy." The Minister declared that if the commission's report was in accordance with the Act lie must give effect to its recommendations, for the first year at any rate. He admitted that, in regard to its contract obligations, the club had a fairly strong case, though there might have been stronger cases which had appealed to the commission. In a few days he hoped to make public the final decision of the Crown law officers, which would set the matter at rest for a year at any rate.

Mr. Guthrie declared that he was perfectly sure the Minister had enough backbone not to accept the report if he found it was not in accordance with the statutory direction that country clubs must nave preference. "I'm -sure you don't want to set a

Minister above Parliament," replied Mr. Buddo, who added that as the report was under the Crown law officers' consideration he would not comment on it.