Clear Statement of Track Policies: Judge Murphy Portrays the Factors Leading to Success at New Orleans, Daily Racing Form, 1916-03-10

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CLEAR STATEMENT OF TE.ACK POLICIES. Judge Murphy Portrays the Factors Leading to Success at New Orleans. New Orleans. I. a.. March 9. General manager ami presiding Judge Joseph A. Murphy, al the 1 1 «e of the highly successful lair Grounds meeting, gave out in. following statement: "With the second annual meeting of the Business Mens Bacing Association gone into history, there is nothing in retrospect but satisfaction. We believe without the slightest fear 1 f contradiction that we have forever dissipated the claim that racing cannot be conducted as a clean sport. There have been some reversals of form as there will be reversal-, as long as racing continues. It must not be forgotten thai horses are rteh and blood .just like human beings and it must not be forgotten tha: every persons efocleney and capacity for work is greater some days than Others, Careful Inv istigatiou has shown that only in rare instances was there any sinister motive behind the reversal 1. •The new rules established have worked wonders for the betterment of the turf. The abolishment of the jockeys aint was a distinct step forward. In the Bringhurst-Pan Zareta race the riders did not know until two oclock .hat they were to ride the horses and. with a popular idol overthrown, the r.-.ce left nothing hut em liums behind it. The taking ever of the jockeys by an oflieer of the asso-ciali 11 places them under proper jurisdiction and makes for the betterment of the turf. •lie removal of blinkers from two-year-olds also was a great success. Tile youngsters ran like old horses ami not one was left al I he p isl during the season, nor was a two-year old kicked at the post. In Australia no blinkers arc allowed in races and ih. same rule should prevail in this country. "The selliue; race rule al-o was a great success. There was no public display of ill temper and no horses were run out of line. We will have a tidy sum to distribute for charitable and other emerg-ern I s. "As to the future of racing here, only the legislature can determine. I wish to put myself on record, h.wever. as saying that the legislature should either legalise some method of belting on races in a way thai will resolve all doubt, or it should abolish the sport of horse racing entirely. "There Is no middle ground in racing. If there is to be racing people will bet. just a-- they will wager on any contingency, as long as they are ireated with red bio d in them. In fact, the rial hi ol in mens reins is probably the reformers en--., on the same basis that David Ilariun said. there should he ■ certain number of tleas on a dog. -o that h" would not forget he was a dog. If tie legislature took away from us the right to regulate betting on our course, it would simply ereati intolerable conditions, with tourists tit the mercy of welchcr-. Winn any set of persons state that ii: y are in favor of racing, but want the betting on it abolished, they either arc Ignorant of the KUbject they are discussing, or are purposely clouding the Ksae. We lead of hetless race meetings Just a- we nad of dry states and painless den--,i-;~. but no snch thing exists. "In the Cram! Circuit and Croat Western, the leading harness borse circuits of the Slates, in only one city is betting legal, yet pools arc ■ penlj sold in all except Syracuse and in the capitol of 1 ne of the great States, they are sold overnight in the lobbj "i one ot the hotels. What is tin- answer to :hi-. it i- fat public sentiment is stronger than any law and when a law c litravenes public opinion, i; brings law ami 1 rder into contempt. "We have made good and can go to the people of Louisiana with clean hands. We have been charged with bringing crook- and undesirables t • the city. If so, when are the scars these people Inevitably leave in their wake. In two years of racing search tin- records of the grand jury, look over the tile, of ii,,. district attorneys office, scan tiie dockets of the criminal courts and -how a -mule rase in which race track people are involved. There has not been a pocket picked "ii the r o , course ami the men and w nun of Louisiana wen a- safe there a- if in their own homes. "We have read of the widespread evil of racing. I hue made a careful Study of our crowds. The abolishing of the free gate and the two-dollar ad-missi 11 iimi a very steadying effect on the local at id dance, ami not over 25 per cent of tha attendance was 1 ,ii. Based .n a liberal estimate of l.oofl a day. this i only nae-onarter of one per cent of the population of the city, and those were quite able to pay their waj . "The public prc-s has had experts on cur grounds to fi port the races, correspondent! of outside papen hue sent special articles on them, we have had I tourists from 1 very quarter of the globe and they have carried hack to their homes nothing bu! praise We ha. had the hes that Now Orleans boasts oil 1 our course and the leaders of society luive put the stamp of approval on what we have done. Not one substantial man in this community has raised his voice in protest. If we needed vindication it can b • found in this."


Persistent Link: https://drf.uky.edu/catalog/1910s/drf1916031001/drf1916031001_1_3
Local Identifier: drf1916031001_1_3
Library of Congress Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/unk82075800