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GOOD PROGRESS ON LAUREL TRACK. Grading of Course Completed and Other Work to Be Rushed to Early Completion. Washington, D. C, August 12. The past two weeks has seen the work on the new racing plant at Laurel, Md., progress with great rapidity. The lumber for the building of the stand, the stable and the paddock has arrived, and with the number of. men now at work it will not take long to complete the plant, which will be of the most up-to-date order. The stand will be over 300 feet long and will have a seating capacity of 5,000. It will be patterned after the stand at Moncrief Park, Jacksonville, which was up-to-date in every way. The ring will be directly under it as at .Moncrief Park, while the paddock will be at one end or the stand, which will enable those who care to see the horses saddled conveniently to do so. The ring will be an open one and will accommodate fiftv books. It will be managed by Arthur Elrod. The grading of the track has been completed and all that is now left to do is to apply the top dressing before it will be ready for the racing. The track and stables will be ready two or three weeks ahead of the opening day, which is Scheduled for October 2. This will enable horsemen to ship before the meeting opens, ami many will go direct from Montreal. Several of the larger strings, as well as many smaller ones, have already signified an Intention of racing at the new plant. II. 1. Brown has spent the greater part of the summer In Havana. Cuba, looking after the building of the new plant there. He will come to Laurel within a short time to remain until the Maryland plant is completed. Ho will be there to manage the meeting and will afterwards go direct to Cuba to put on the finishing touches there. The meeting at Havana is scheduled to open Thanksgiving day, November .10, and everything will lt in readiness long before that lime. Charles C. Campau, who has been In Montreal all summer, will go to Laurel within a short time to look after the clerical work. Joseph McLennan, who will lie II. D. Browns assistant Will join him after the close of the meeting at Toronto and will be at work on the program liook lefore the end of the present month. Mr. McLennan was successful in his work with Manager Brown last winter aud is sure to supply a book for all classes or horses. Starter Dade will likely be at Pimlico during the racing at Laurel, and either William M. Murray or James Milton will do the starting at Laurel. Joseph A. Murphy will bo the presiding judge, witli P. A. Brady as his assistant. The Havana pioposition is taking well with horsemen and there will Ie no scarcity of good horses and riders at that ioint. H. D. Brown is now" at work on the stake book and the events probably will close on or about November 1. There will he two stakes each week during the meeting, to bo run on Wednesdays and Saturdays. These will constitute a tempting array, while the values of the overnight purses and handicaps will surpass any ever given on any winter track. Hamilton. Out., August 12. II. D. Brown, who is promoting the new tracks at Laurel and Havana, was a visitor at Hamilton this afternoon, having arrived from New York this morning. His mission here is to inform horsemen and race-goers just what had been accomplished at ltoth place?. The plant at Laurel is well under way and will be fully completed in time for the opening in October. Work is also being rushed on the new track in Havana. The place has been cleared of brush and leveled and the little grading that needs to be done has been completed. The soil of the Havana track will be a mixture of clav and sand and it is the intention of the management to oil the track which will eliminate the dust, which was found objectionable in the past. The Havana course will be in readiness for opening on Thanksgiving Day. Mr. Brown wishes to announce to horsemen that a wrong impression has gone abroad concerning the price of feed in Cuba. It is his purpose to install the same firm in charge of the feed store in Havana that had charge at Jacksonville last winter. The price of feed will he but little higher than at Jacksonville, the only extra cost being the freight from New Orleans, which is about ten cents per hundred pouuds. Mr. Brown, while here today, announced that T. C. McDowell will be one of his officials at the Laurel and Havana tracks, also that A. B. Dade will do the starting at Havana and also at Laurel, except on days when the dates for the latter track conflict with Pimlico.
