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SUGGESTS OLD-TIME WA1 ■BETTING DONE IN EFFECT BY SUBSCRIPTIONS TO THE STAKES. Interesting Story of Methods by Which the Famous Eclipse -Henry Match Was Financed a Long Time Back. New York. February ." . — Recommendation by the State Racing Commission of legislation permitting pnri-mutuol lietting in Xtw York state is a reminder that something similar was proposed about lour .years ago. soon after the Piping Koek Racing Association !iad led off in the racing revival which i - • ntually reopened all the loading tracks except Shecpshead Ray and Oravesond. At that time the turf writer of the New York Herald addressed a letter to Paul I, Cravath, of the Piping Sack Crab, outlining a system of betting baaed on the principle involved in the historic match for LO.OOO a side between Sir Henry ami American Eclipse at Union course, on baas Island, in 1S3. and suggesting that the legislature might legalize r«uch a system on grounds of public policy, in view of the alarm ing decline in the breeding of horses. Mr. Cravath said in reply that he thought the proposed system of betting much better than the one then and now practised, and expressed the opinion that it would do a great deal to stimulate lacing, but he doubted whether it would be feasible under existing legislation. On this point, however, lie did not express an unqualified opinion. Sine then the courts have construed the racing laws most liberally in favor of the bettors, who were formerly known as bookmakers, but who are now merely lawiimowors and racing stationers in the eyes of the law. and there is ground for belief that equal liberality of construction applied to the proposed system would take it out of the category of peel selling, which the constitution expressly forbids in the same sentence with ookmaking. History of Memorable Match. To give the reader a char understanding of the scheme proposed it is worth while to recount the m ■unisianoos of the memorable match made nlmost a century ago. between breeders and turfmen of the North and the South to test the speed and stamina of rival champions from the two sections in what proved to be the most famous race that has ever In-on run in America. The great sectional match grew out of .1 race between Eclipse and Sir Charles at the National Course in Washington, in lsii:. in which the Long Island thoroughbred defeated the Virginia horse in a dash of four miles. Sectional feeling ran high at the Jockey Club dinner which, according to custom, followed tie-laces. In the exhilaration of the hour John C. Stevens, of New York, arose in his place at the table and offered to run Eclipse, four-mile heats, against any horse the S mtli could produce at the post on the 1iiion Course the next spring fur gM,gM a side. Southern accounts say the ehalleage ASM from Colonel William H. Johnson, of Petarsssrrg Ya.. "the Napoleon of the Turf." and that it was accepted by Mr. Stevens, but. be this as it may. the match was made. "Eclipse against the world." as the northern turfmen put it. Twenty thousand dollars was a mm-h larger sum in those days thu:i it is in these times, and though Mr. Stevens was one of the wealthy men of New York he was willing to let his friends ami the friends and admirers of American Beltpee share in making up the stakes. The upshot of the Matter was that a subscript i jii paiicr was made out on his return to New York, and anylwdy who wanted to participate in backing the old chestnut stud — Bclipee was nine years of age when he ran the race — could put his name dow-i for any amount he HI cd. Subscriptions to Famous Stake. This old subscription paper is still in existence, bearing the signatures «.f the horsemen of nearly one hundred jreara affo, and opposite their names are the amounts they contributed to make up tic stakes. Here is the list, published, it is probable, for tie-first time, after having been preserved almost a century in private hands: John C. Stevens |MM C. W. Van Baast MM Stephen Trice MM William Jaeksea MM David Hosack MM Ralph Patch** 1. hm R. Tillottson MM William Jones .".no S. Purdy ."i00 H. That at sou J. Livingston otM H. Suvdani Mf H. Coster „ BM M. Burahara andi Co KB .1. Bodell ."10 Insley EM Redon MB .1. Hamilton MB Smedburgh •"■00 Representative men arete among the seventeen peraaaa who mule up the fund with which to bach the New York barse. .Mr. Stevens and his family were pioneers in the operation of steamboats on the Hudson, and he was the first commodore of the New York Yacht Crab and the man who took the yacht America to England and won the now famous International Cup. C. W. Van I i .i ii -t was the owner of Eclipse. He had a stable at No. 14 Beckinan street, where lie sometimes kept that horse and his Arab stallion Baaaorah, Mr. Van Baaat in 1SU3 announced that he was collecting materials for an American Stud 35m. k. At a much earlier period lie awaad the celebrated English race horse Mess. -tiger, progenitor of the BCeaeat day breed of trotters, in partnership with Henry ASM**, the older brother of John Jacob A- h r. Other Celebrated Old-timers "Will" .loao was undoubtedly the di.t iiigui~li.il [*■ 1 -lander afterward known as Maim- William •buieF of Cold Spring Barhsr, who SWBCd Mambriiio and Potomac, two of tin- best smis of Meseeagcr, and ran them jii races on tie- old Newmarket course on Hempstead Plains. Major Jones wa the backer of the first horse that ever trotted h mile in 3:00 for a wager. His father. Judge Samuel Jones, was ltd order of New York in 1789 and was styled the father of the New York bar. S. Purdy was Samuel Puriiy. the amateur ride* who mounted Eclipse after h - had lost tin- lust beat of the great race and by incomparable fechsy-shi;i snatched the victory from Sir Henry when be seemed to have the race won. Mr. Purdy eras a l-romiuent man in ,Ntv York in those days. His tomb is in St. Pauls churchyard, at Rroadway and Kulton street. The Thanes, Livingstons. Suydams. Patehens. Costers. Redells and Hamiltous were likewise notable names in old New York and vicinity, and such were the backers of Eclipse, only MM of whom had any property interest in the horse. When the race was over the subscribers to the fund had a profit of hB0,000 to divide. They first deducted the cost of keeping and training Eclipse for the race, then put usfde a substantial sum for the rider — it is all set down, on the back of the old subscription paper — and the remainder they distributed among the subscribers, according to the amount each had paid in. The suggestion made to Mr. Cravath was that all races might be given under such conditions as would permit similar subscriptions to the stakes. But for one provision in the present laws of New York it would seem to be feasible for an association to give a race in the nature of a sweepstakes, under conditions which would enable any admirer of a modern Eclipse to contribute a certain sum of money or multiple of that sum to the stakes, and share proportionately in the distribution of the prize wmi by such a horse. Limits Wagers to Ownership. The present racing law almost makes possible such a system of backing horses entered in races. One section of the statute provides that not only owners of hors-s but others who are not owners may contribute to purses or stakes, but it also provides that: "No person other than the owner of a horse contesting in the race shall have any pecuniary interest in the prise or be entitled to receive any portion thereof after the race is finished, but the whole shall be allotted in accordance with the terms and conditions of the race." To strike out this last provision, limiting the one before it. would lie 1o make each subscriber or backer a party in interest with the owner of tin-horse and legalize a relation which was reoogniz-d as ltgitimate on the American turf long before the words "pool selling" and "bookmaking" were ever heard of. It would permit nothing more than Mr. Stevens and his associates were justly lauded for doing on the occasion of the memorable race between Eclipse and Sir Henry, which attracted governors, senators ami other distinguished men from ;.ll parts of the country, anil which ushered in a period during which American breeders, north and smith. produced tiie stoutest thoroughbreds the world has ever seen. Under such a system the amount of revenue to lie derived by subscribers in any race might lie uncertain until the subscriptions had closed and the race was run. the total sum depending on the number of contributors and the amount of their contributions. As for the bsrse owners share of the stakes, it Might be deeaaed wise to set aside a small percentage of the total fund for him. regardless of his iwn contribution to the slakes, just as the backers of Eclipse did to compensate Mr. Van Ranst for the risk and expense of fitting his horse to run the race. It would be feasible, too. to set aside a small percentage for the breeder of the winner, and i«-r-baps for the rider, and there would be nothing in tiie way of taking out a tax for the state, as was done under tin- original Percy-Gray law la the interest of the agricultural fairs. One Important Decision on Record. The Court of Appeals has already decided People vs. Fallon, and People vs. Lawrence that the provision of the Percy-Cray law. which permits non-owners to contribute to purses and stakes, is not unconstitutional, and there is reason to believe, lawyers say. that this provision would still stand the test if the clause forbidding such contributors to share in the stakes won were repealed. In the present critical condition of the horse-breeding industry it may well be doubted whether the Court of Appeals would not look upon a law permitting the participation of the public in a sweepstakes race with quite as much favor as when it decided People vs. Lawrence that a law which limited the penalty for bookmaking to liability for the amount of the wager, to be recovered in a civil action by the loser, was held to satisfy the constitution though it practically permitted public betting on licensed race tracks. The system here outlined »» only tin extension of the principles involved in the historic race of 1*23, Bad to hold that men like Mr. Stevens and his associates were engaged in "gambling" or "pool selling" or "bookmaking" when they backed "Eclipse again.-t the world" and brought lasting renown to this state as a horse-br-eding all thai, would be. in the eyes of horsemen, at least, reducing the law to absurdity. To comply with the law. if such a proposition were encouraged, it would be necessary to have a rule published in the condition books and on the programs, based on the following suggestions: "Participate!! la all races run at this track can be procured by anyone wishing to sab-s. ribs sums of not less than .$ to the participating fund, they to receive a pro rata share of the win-Blaga after the natural disbursements to owners. trainers, breeders, jockeys, charities and other expenses have beeu deducted."
