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WESTERN TURFMEN DOWN EAST. A great many reputable western owners who. if conditions now were as they were a few years back, would be racing their horses over the western tracks, are contributing to the attractiveness and prosperity of New York racing through having taken their stables east. They are welcome to the officials of the various racing organizations and are in all essentials the equals of eastern turfmen. The performances of Sir Iluon, Rams Horn. Ethon. First .Mason, Sewell, Phil Finch, Nannie Hodge, Kings Daughter, Colonial Girl. Tokalon, Bad News, lland-zarra, First Premium, Fountainbluo, Dashaway and other western horses have added greatly to the interest of New York racing and altogether the somewhat extraordinary accession of western owners lias been a highly beneficial factor in the way of contributing to the success of the sport on the Metropolitan tracks. But some of the baseball reporters who descrlle and comment on racing affairs for the New York dallies dislike the westerners. One of these newspapers recently published a long attack on western owners, turfmen and Ixiokmakers quite amusing, because of its supercilious assumption of superior morality and honesty in turf methods on the part of eastern turfmen and eastern bookmakers. Most of the article purports to be a monologue delivered by a "big bookmaker" and. In part, is a vicious diatribe against L. A. Cella, who seems to have disturbed and offended some of the notorious "Jlets." Further than to remark that Cella is a person who lias heretofore demonstrated conspicuous ability in the way of taking care of himself, that point is of no consequence to western turfmen, but the narrow-minded provincialism of such an article is. The fact is that the controllers of the turf in the east could, if so disposed, learn much of value from the west in the line or strict discipline, and those who control western racing would be benefited by emulation of the wise liberality or the east in financial affairs. Outside of details of management there is little difference. Eastern tiirfmeu are no lietter and no worse than western turriuen. In both divisions are many men of Integrity and lilli character and in both the Inevitable contingent of black sheep. Any ascription of superiority to those of either section is silly rot.
