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ONE YEAR OF RACING UNDER A. T. A. RULES. Judge Trevclyan Reviews the Efforts of the Younger Organizatwn for Cleaner and Better Sport. New Orleans. La., February 22. On Saturday February 10 the City Park Jockey Club celebrated the anniversary of its opening under circumstances that were satisfactory both as to the attendance and the quality of the sport provided. Speaking of the occasion. Presiding Steward Francis Trevelyan expressed the view that racing in the west had. never been cleaner or of better quality than it has been during the past year under American Turf Association rules. "At the beginning of the contest last winter," said Mr. Trevelyan. "the Western Jockey Club made much to do over its intention to parallel the American Turf Association at all points. The older organization came no further towards accomplishing that point than to provide early spring racing at St. Louis, until Governor Folk closed the tracks there, and a short summer meeting at Memr phis, which tunned out to be disastrous in so far as financial results were concerned. The American Turf Association on the other band lias given to tile horsemen continuous occupation during the first vear of its turf government, with the indications that it will be able to to so indefinitely. "Of course the game lias been ;i losing one for both sides, but unquestionably the Western Jockey Club has so far had much the worst of it. I do not think there is any question but New Orleans is the crucial point of the contest you cannot: call it war for it is a happy thing to be able to say that the bit of turf rivalry we have been going through witn has been decently conducted on lioth sides.. The American Turf Association would never have conie into existence except as a matter of sheer necessity. Affairs had conic to a stage .where the older body seemed to have adopted a settled policy of trying to hog things in a racing way. I personally, as well as others now connected with the American Turf Association saw the attitude assumed by the Western Jockey Club, which was simply that they bad constituted themselves a stone wall against which the nieinlvers of the New Orleans Jockey Club could have butted their heads indefinitely without getting any satisfaction. It did not look as though the Western Jockey Club people would have given the New Orleans Jockey Club a square deal at any stage of the game this year, the year following, or any other year. A new Western turf governing body therefore became inevitable. "If you take a perspective view of the last twelve months of western racing, I do not. see where anybody can claim that the Western Jockey Club has been able to make an even break of it, much less gain any noticeable advantage. In New Orleans, which, as I have said before, I regard as the test of this controversy, the City Park people have certainly had the best average attendance in point of class, and with a noticeable revenue from the gate, and less expenses than the old track, they have no doubt fared much better in a financial way. I will say somehting for the Crescent City Jockey Club people, however, and that is that they have made a bold effort to keep up appearances. The lietting ring has been maintained above that at City Park for the most part, but there is no question that the betting ring revenue at City Park has been considerably larger than that at the old track. In other words, a large percentage of the books at the old track have been operated by the association. The gate receipts will not begin to !ear comparison, the net result being that while City Park lias been taking in just about enough money to pay expenses the old track has been running at a large loss, and this has been a matter of so much importance that if general rumor can be believed the component factors in the Club are about ready to disband. "Up the line during the past year the Western Jockey Club partisans had to do a heap of guessing. Eveii with regard to the Libortyvillo incident, where so many men were fooled and had all their plans for that part of the season completely upset they were wondering how the horses were going to earn their oats practically throughout the remainder of the year. Captain Jim Williams ought to be an authority on tbis matter, as the Captain was one of the first to go after the Liliertyville idea to find later on in fall racing that Atlanta and the small Georgia meetings were alone open to him. "With regard to the future, so far as I know, and I mix up as little as possible with turf politics, the Western Jockey Club has no chance to parallel the American Turf Association at any point the coming season, especially with Chicago and St. Louis temporarilv off the racing map., In Tennessee. Nashville can lie put down as unqualifiedly with the American Turf Association, and from the best information I can gather Memphis is distinctly oh tle fence, as even some of its strongest adherents acknowledge. .... -- "With the Canadian circuit as a second resort for racing under American Turf Association rules, there toes cot eeeni to be much, cuahce kat occupation. will he lacking for American Turf Association horsemen during the coming summer season. As to Douglas Park at Louisville, from all I bear I doubt whether the track can be made ready during the coming summer, but if it is it is bound to mix up with all sorts of obstructions, for the reason that Kentucky is absolutely pro-American Turf Association. The people up that way have had all of the Western Jockey Club they want. With complete harmony and a perfect working organization, with the tracks to race on, and the ability to race, it looks to me as though the coming year ought to be one of unexampled prosperity for the American Turf Association and the horsemen who cast their lot with that body."
