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RUDOLPH SPRECKELS OBJECTION TO RACING The reasons for tlie retirement from racing of Uudolph Spreckels owner of the Sobre Vista Stable are given in full in his nuwspaiicr the San Fran ¬ cisco Call as follows followsMy My decision to retire from racing as an owner bus been reached only after careful consideration Under proper conditions I enjoy horse racing im ¬ mensely and to me it is n mutter of regret that tho sport is falling into disrepute as a result of tho prominence that the gambling feature of it 1ms been allowed to usurp Racing associations whose duty it should be to foster the sport with a view to per ¬ manence luive allowed commercialism to Influence their methods of management with the result that while they have reaped material temporary gain the future of the sport has been imperiled and well nigh destroyed Instead of promoting racing for the zest and enjoyment it affords in itself as in the primitive days of the American turf we have l ecn treated to the spectacle of greedy and rapacious capitalists squeezing enormous dividends out of the sport at the expense of Its future The bookmaker has been encouraged to such an extent that he oc ¬ cupies altogether too important a place and it is lie who is largely resjwnsible for the hue and cry raised against the turf during the last few years 1util such time as sagacious management relegates gambling to the rear and makes it an incident rather tban the principal consideration racing will continue to be held in disrepute disreputeMy My views on this subject are shared by at least a minority of those in control of racing in our own community but apparently there lias been little disposition to take decisive steps calculated to put the turf on the enduring basis that would follow the subservience of the speculative and commercial elements to that of sport for sports sake So long as tin jiresent policy of our jockey clubs manage ¬ ment is continued racing necessarily will find itself ou the defensive and the question of whether or not it shall be permitted to continue will rise as a harassing specter with each succeeding session of our legislature legislatureI I do not care to pose as a puritanical reformer aud I desire it to be understood that I entertain no fanatical Ideas on the subject of whether or not a man should ho allowed to make a bet but I do believe Unit racing should be conducted In a man ¬ ner that will dispense with the necessity for the political manipulation that is required today to keep Ihe race tracks from being closed by an aroused public sentiment While my interest iu horse racing continues as keen as ever I can not conscientiously continue to participate in the sport as it is at pres ¬ ent conducted conductedThe The horses In the Spreckels string include the four yearolds St Klmwood San Alviso Sachet and Milpitas the threeyearolds II Tremor and San Olino aud the twoyearolds Provedore and Detec ¬ tor The lastnamed duo made their debut at the recent Seattle meeting and are not yet sufficiently developed to demonstrate their capability All of the others have shown ability to win races and II Tremor exhibited sufficiently good form at Seattle to warrant tlie belief that he would be an extremely useful performer here during the winter
