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SOMETHING Of EASTERN BOOKMAKERS OF OTHER DAYS WHO NO LONGER LAY ODDS i JL A- J. + JL A- New York. February ." . — From winning fMlOQfl in one rice to handling live and ten-cent pieces in I moving-picture show is a long step, yet it has been taken by Charley Dwyer. oldest and only surviving son of the late Michael Dwyer. nephew of Phi.lp and possible co-heir to the well-conserved fortune of the president of the Brooklyn and Queens County Jockey Clubs. Dont be alarmed. Charley Dwyer is not broke, even though he has dropped fortunes made by his skill in picking winners and in select ing good horses at moderate prices which have earned him groat sums of money. He is partner with Henry Ktedeker in a . :hi.ixmi house, nt Third avenue and 50th street, within five minutes walk of Fifth avenue and the ultra-fashionable Plasa Hotel, directly in the center of the most thickly populated pan of New York, and in line with the tratlic which is now coin; over the Queeusbofo bridge to Long Island. Henry Stedeker is the sole survivor of ten men who were pioneers at old Jerome Park in the first days of hnokuinkliic here, when laws were enacted against the old method of specu latioii. auction pools. That was in 1S77, and the names ot Stcdekcrs fellow-layers were "Modoc" POx, llowland Kohbins. A. II. Cridse. -lames K Kelly. Join, Barkett. John T. McDougal, Charles Kami. William I.ov.ll. and Henry Stamford. .Mr. Stedeker is sixty years old. nut does not look it by many years. He has long been a staunch admirer of Philip J. Dwyer. and when he saw an opportunity to locate a moncy-makinj; show, he toggested a partnership to Charley, and "Uncle Philip" dree; a check, told bis nephew to go ahead, and if be made good he could have more to extend operation.-. Charley is a perfectly steady, sober young man. happily married, and when I called at his theatre one day this week, at about 4:i0 p. in., he was np stairs m the little enclosed "cubby-hole" in which the lights are managed. F.very detail of the busi ne-s is being mastered by the young man who on • ■ Waa a terror to the bookmakers of l.ngland and America, and both he and Stedeker say that they never read the racing re| orts and dont even know where the racing is going on. "How about vou if we have racing on New York t racks V" 1 asked Stedeker. "By that time I expect to have a breathing spell anil as I think that recent decision at Albany is frrvorable. it looks as if I would occasionally go to the track- again." "Mr. Stedeker has been a remarkable man for affiliations with sporting men. He has backed billiard players, professional pedestrians, oarsmen. bicycle men. etc. With William Sexton, his old partner, he once dominated the billiard world, and out of nine mutches against Slossan. Daly, the Dions. Sbaefer, and others, he won seven. Poor Dick Roche went broke on Sexton in one game. But of all the games or sports Mr. Stedeker invested his money in he now says that the surest returns will he from the moving pictures, which be says have still very far to go before the limit is reached. Reverting to Charley Dwyer : "What is the largest amount you ever won in one dav.- I asked. Titty thousand dollars on Knight of the Thistle. in the Kemptoii Park Jubilee Handicap in 1S5M». The American contingent in Kngland that year mcrod 1 myself, Arthur Lewis brother of Julia Arthur, the famous actress. Charlie Ouinn. and Riley Crannin. We had no f .rni to go on. but simply stuck to Tod Sloans mounts. He was in grand form on the Same dav that Knight of the Thistle won. and the four of us won more than 00,000 on that race. We also back..! I. a F.smerahla. which stumbled and threw Sloan, whose wrist was sprained. The filly wa- r -turned to the paddock, but Sloan insisted on riding her. and she WOB. "Though we won SDxMXlO OB Knight of the Thistle, we droned 184.000 on Desmond, which wad at even money and was left at the post. Desmond is now one of the best stallions in the world. Some cars Pel. .re that Sloan rode Sibola in the Daks for Pierre Uorillard and had JIU.tNiO of his own money on inr. She was practically left. When Harry Reed wa- left at the post that year it cost my father a fortune. When Previous was left at the post in the Futurity, another fortune was burned up. Win n my colt Michael dropped dead one morning in lV.iT. the greatest three-year-old I ever knew died. He had worked faster than Ben Brush at even weight-. When Dr. Cat let t. Don do Oro. and others were working a mile in i :4i; at Graveaead, Michael worked in 1:4$. I have had some good horses since, but none like Michael. "Africander, which ran in the name of the Hampton Stable, cost Sim iK-iniel and myself P.HHi a-a tWO-year-old, and won us 10. Xmi in stake- ml purses. Ixmis V. Bell once offered us 140.000 for him. Yes. he won us b ts of bets, but we also «| a lot. I bad $." .inmi on him wheal Bene beat him in the Standard Stakes. 1 won $." .IMNI on Africander when he heat Irish I. ad. We did apt bet much ou hi in iu the Suburban when he won. It was the first time a three-year -old ever won it. We were getting 100 to 1 for OUT starting fee t . the stake b,-ing 0. mh . so it seemed foolish to bet on him. I felt confident there woald be no disqualification. though the stewards took some time to decide. Africander did not actually touch Herbert. The latter b.re out and Africander followed him. I have a picture showing several feet of daylight between them." One disqualification against bis father cost llitn J. + one of his biggest bets. It was the match between Harry Reed and Gotham at Jerome Park in 1S94. Sims was on Gotham. Taral on Harry Iteed. Philip ] Dwyer was one of the judges or stewards, and when. Harry Iteed foaled Gotham, he insisted on a disqualification. Another time at Jerome Park. Ston"-nell was short of weight and Cbncoyne g.it the race. That cost "Mike" Dwyer a small fortune. Other good horses owned by Charley Dwyer were Francesco, Sly Fox. and Ethics. Francesco one year won tile Saratoga Handicap. In his races that season the colt ran one mile and an eighth twice la better than 1 :."2. Sly Fox cost Dwyer ?-..2i.H I and won him 01,000. He was a real good COtt. ! Old Ethics was an iron horse and won him smail i prtunes at short odds. Though Charley Dwyer has won fortunes on the j turf, he does not n coin m end betting as a royal road to wealth. "Who can beat the races permanently V he asked. "When one lands a good wager he at ! once expands his operations ami when the logical ! reverses come he loses all he has won." Henry Stedeker says he has lost every good sized bet he ever made, but of course won many small on"s. Both agree that if jockey Shilling receives a license to ride in England be will attract a lot of attention. He is a No. 1 as a jockey, they say. and is jus: the style of rider that "Danny" Maher is. Other former well-known bookmakers are in bar- ness in New York and are doing well. "Joe" Veil dig is part owner of a garage, and was recently appointed deputy sheriff. Sam oKoofe. once one of j the biggest operators here, well known through his connection with "Honest John" Kelly, is running a ta.xicab company. "Boh" Davis, backer and part- • nor of "Billy" Cowan. has a gold mine in Brooklvn in the shape of a in ovitig picture house. In the .lays of Saratogas greatest prosperity, when the late John W. iates was at his best, his betting opera- tions with "Billy" Cowan were the most talked of of all. Charley Heney is owner of an art gallery in Brooklyn. He is or was a keen student of racing harts and was the most exacting of all critics .is to possible errors In calling positions. He is a powerful man. and in the good days of the turf his tall figure could always lie seen in the center of the betting ring, closely studying the charts, and an swexiiy; with unduviating good nature the questions of scores of men who wanted to know what hors. he figured best. As proof of his ability to beat the game he has a . fortune well invested. He was a dear friend of the late Senator I. II. McCarren. is a close student of political developments, and is biding his time for a renewal of the sport. Many years ago he went to I. s Angeles to recover lost health. I gave him let ters to friends. He has lived to become a stalwart, hearty man. confident in his own ability to take care of himself in any emergency. He is also a clever art critic and buys and sells valuable paintings. George Itose told me four yenrs ago that a lot of his capital was then invested in wineries and J in ships, and I suppose he has a comfortable revenue fr.ui that source. Sol I.icheiistein has been for years actively engaged in a publishing business on Fifth avenue. I wa- in his office a few days ago and saw many thousands of books ready to be sent out to dealers, i Be was in a double-sense a bookmaker. Of course there are no more bookmakers now. John Walters, famous club-house commissioner, is ] joitSt owner with John Cavauaugh of the Casino, a ; theatre at Brighton Beach. A fashionable restau rant is part of the property. With the theatre and . restaurant, an investment of several hundred thou- ] sand d .liars is yielding a good return. Walters has • handled immense sums of money in the club house. He seldom or never refused a l ct. hut accepted and • then sent dozens of employes scurrying to the betting ring to lay it off. All the big men who wagered knew who to go to with their commissions. Mr. Walters accounts are kept in business like style, and bis statements at the close of each day would have made interesting reading. But he is the height of discretion. His clients "are safe in his hnnds. It must lie so. else he could never have retained the confidence of the big men of tbe turf, as he has. He Is optimistic, and to listen to him one would think we will lie racing here on Schedule time. He contemplated a trip to Europe up to the day when the Lambrix decision was made public. Then he changed his plans. At that be may regret not going to Europe, for with the consent of Mr. Whitney he would lie the recipient of "Jack" Joyners information, and there is no doubt that many races will be won this year by Mr. Whitney, and Walters w.uild gladly risk a few hundreds or ttmusauds to -how his confidence |tj the colors of his patron. The first year that the late William C. Whitney controlled the Saratoga track, a well-known club-hous ■ l oaf III Ian loin I showed me his memorandum book and said "I have in here the names of seventeen millionaire- and their wives, for whom I am a regular commissioner." This poor fellow did not have tact, and failed to retain his patrons. George Wheelock I frequently see on Fifth avenue. He does not seem a day older than when I first saw him at Washington Park in lsJtu. Aleck rilman i- oftea seen around town in company with his wife and child. Dick Daggett, former jockey, later a rMaVassaai commissioner, is now an extensive builder. Joseph J. Burke.
