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LATONIAS SIDE OF THE CASE. Cincinnati, 0., October 21. In a statement made after his return from Lexington, Acting President Harvey .Myers gave the following exiwsition of the Latonia Jockey Clubs poiuts of contention in its controversy with the Kentucky Slate Racing Commission: "The commission does not claim that booking is illegal or unlawful on race tracks, and it certainly is not. It is just as legal under the laws of Kentucky to have bookiiiakiug on the tracks as it is to bet by the pari-niutuel system. The act of the legislature of 190S suppressing poolrooms repealed the common law. All punishments for operating poolrooms, or places where betting on horse races was held, were provided by virtue of the common law. as there never was a statute in Kentucky prior to 190S against congregating for the purpose of bet ting. This statute which repeals the common law provides by Section 0. as follows: " The provisions of this act shall not apply to inclosures during regular race meetings. "Judge Cochran held that it was within the pur-View of the police power or the state to enact laws which would apply to particular parts of the state. It necessarily follows, therefore, that bookiuaking upon race tracks is legal. The commission, however, claims authority under the act creating it. to regulate betting on the tracks. My judgment is that they have no such power. Their powers under the act are to "prescribe the rules, regulations and conditions under which running races shall be conducted in this state. The rules, regulations aud conditions under which racing is conducted has a well-known turf meaning, and is entirely disassociated with betting. It means that the commission may prescribe what handicaps are aud sweepstakes, match races aud selling races, and the maimer of holding races, and what officers shall be necessary, aud a thousand other details safeguarding and controlling racing Itself, but not betting. If the commission has the authority it claims that is to say. that we shall use pari-mutuels today they may capriclonsly say that tomorrow we shall use booking to the exclusion or pari-mutuels. In other words, they claim the absolute right to dictate to the race tracks what style and manner of betting shall prevail, and this we emphatically say is not within the purview of their duties, and as both styles of betting are equally legal, we prefer to use the style which the public want, and which will enable us to produce sufficient funds to meet our expenses aud the purses."
