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; 1 OPPONENTS OF RACING HEARD. Annapolis, Md.. March 12. A large delegation of the Baltimore citizens committee which has been formed to light the legalizing of race track betting, appeared before the Senate Finance Committee in vigorous opposition to the Hammond bill creating a state racing commission. The speakers were, in order. Dr. Robert W. John-sou, Henrv F. Baker, a former president of the Merchants and Manufacturers Association; William F. Cochran, business man and reformer; and Rev. John Roach Straton, who was active in forming the committee. Speaker Trippe of the House was an interested auditor during the hearing, which lasted alKiut an hour. The arguments of the speakers were devoted to showing that it would be a bad thing for the state to legalize race track betting by taxing it as is proposed in the pending bill, but some of the questions asked bv Senator Maloy seemed to indicate that he thought- that so long as the betting was to be permitted the state should get some revenue out of it. Mr. Cochran likened the betting to the liquor bus-ines and said that once the state began to get revenue out of it the difficulty of getting the legislature, to abolish it altogether would he increased the more. At the close of Dr. Stratons address Senator Ma-lov asked: "You have said you wanted young men protected from the race tracks. Dont you think the older men should be protected from the stock market?" Dr. Straton replied that there was a legitimate stock market, but it was abused, and he would b glad to see Senator Maloy offer a bill to curb tins evils attendant upon it. Delegate William Purnell Hall has agreed not to insist on the immediate reporting of his anti-race track gambling bill, in order to give the Pim-lico people an opportunity to lie heard in opposition to its passage. It appears that though the bill has been in the House Judiciary Committee for more than a month, neither the Havre do Grace nor the Laurel race track people have concerned themselves about it. The supposition is that they have representatives here who are not known to be representing them and that- they are sure that their interests are being well looked after. The committee has already voted a favorable re- port on the bill, hut it has been held hack at the request of Sneaker Trippe, to whom the riralico people appealed. Under the new rules the bill can be forced out on the demand of fifteen members and the necessary backing, Mr. Hall said today, he could easily get. The understanding is that if there is not a prompt report Mr. Hall will insist that the bill be brought out.
