THE SPORT OF KINGS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 60, 29 July 1912, Page 5

THE SPORT OF KINGS.

AN HMPHATK! FSOTBST. By Telegraph—Preai Association. Wellington, Saturday. An open letter to Mr. Massey, signed by Mr. J. G. W. Aitken (president) and the Rev. J. J. North (secretary), on behalf of the associated anti-gambling leagues of New Zealand, appears in the morning papers. They regret that the Government proposes to evade responsibility by relegating the question of the number of race days to private members, and .state: "When the Bill, for which you have promised a clear run, appears, we will take the opportunity of letting you and the general public know our mind concerning it."

The letter proceeds to argue that the alteration is demanded neither by the press nor the public, but solely by the outcries of interested parties, that the number of days is in the same proportion as in New South Wales, that the total isator gives horse-owners reveaues far in excess of those in Victoria, and that totalisator investments have reached the alarming figure of £3 per head of population, against £1 in South Australia. The letter also scouts the argument about encouraging the breeding of horses, and suggests that that can be secured bv withdrawing permits from clubs which encourage short-dis-tance racing.