THE HILDA CASE

Observer, Volume 3, Issue 70, 14 January 1882, Page 276

THE HILDA CASE

The Committee of the Auckland Tattersall's Club held a special meeting on Friday last to consider the question of bets on the Grand Stand Handicap, and decided (as all sensible men anticipated they would) that the backers of Hilda must pay up. From the first, I felt confident no other decision could possibly be arrived at. Eule 15 of the Club laws, says : —

When the rider of any horse brought out to run for any race is weighed, all bets respecting such horse shall be play or pay. This mandate is decisive, and if the Committee had stultified themselves by ignoring their selfchosen regulations, they would have been the laughing stock of sporting men^ throughout the colonies. Now, however, that the temporary question has been decided, it may well be asked whether in reality Rule 15 works satisfactorily, and is one that should be permanently retai.. xl amongst the laws of TattersalPs ? For my own part, I don't believe in the regulation at all, nor can I discover on what precedent (save the Christchurch Tattersall's Laws) it was adopted. The Rule in vogue at London Tattersall's, at the Victoria Club, and at all betting resorts throughout the United Kingdom is of a widely different character. It, too, is numbered 15, and it runs thus : — When the riders of any horses brought out to run in any. race are called upon by the starter to take their place, all bets respecting such horses shall be play or pay. Now, this rule has common-sense to recommend it, and bears the reason of its existence on the surface. I cannot, however, see a particle of common sense oz- faii-ness in fclie Auckland rule ; for, if it is right that backers should have a run for all bets made in the paddock, the mere accident of the jockey weighing out ought not to oblige them to pay up. After all, the lad weighing out on the 2nd was a pure accident, and yet that accident had the effect of putting a tidy sum into the pockets of the Ring. Now that this sort of game has been started, and Rule 15 confirmed, I shall not be surprised to hear of a number of similar occurrences down South. By a little collusion between an owner, or trainer, and the bookmakers, the latter will actually be able to lay backers a dead 'uti in the paddock — a thing that (save in the cases of pulled horses) has up to now seemed impossible.