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AUSTRALIA TO REGULATE Moves in Two States Toward Reduction and Taxation. New South Wales Bookmakers Eail General News and Live Gossip. SYDNEY, X. S. W., Australia, .Tanuary 4. In "Victoria ut present the state cabinet is giving the regulation if racing consideration, but it appears the subject was only lightly touched upon, and will he gone into "thoroughly. It is generally accepted that in New South Wales there will be a return to pre-war conditions, but that is not the intention , in Victoria. There will, of course, be many more meetings limn last year, but it is the intention if the government to avoid over-racing. The Melbourne Hirald thinks that there was a possibility of tho cabinet -deciding to permit two-thirds of the maximum number of meetings in the Metropolitan nrea.pmvided-for by the lwlice offenses act, and of givingMr. Botvser a discretionary power respecting country meetings, many of which are said to be ploke gatherings. "So far its racing in and alout Sydney is eon--erned it is possible the clubs just outside the metropolitan area will come to an arrangement hy which they will race on fewer days than actually permitted by the act. The wisdom of such a step is apparent; but if it does not appeal to the principal shareholders in some of the clubs the old condition of over-racing may be the outcome. A return tcj -an average of something over four meetings a. week in anil about Sydney is undesirable. Ifj Queensland Mr. Sillies, assistant minister, announced last week that he had no desire to shut down na racing. in that state, so it is fairly certain Hubs there art; going to be liberally treated in the matter of dates. However. Mr. Gillies is preparing a bill to give the government greater control over mejng in Queensland, and intends that the state shall receive greater revenue from the snort. In this connexion Mr. Gillies has mentioned the taxa-tlon" of bookmakers in the same manner as in Xew South Wales; lie is shortly visiting Sydney, and with the object of learning anything that may benefit Quensland, the control of racing in Xew South Wnh;fi is one of the matters to receive his particular attention during his stay here. BOOKMAKERS XOSE HEAVILY AND FAIL. Finmark and Desert Gold, at odds-on. got several big bettors into trouble at Melbourne, and the Leader is responsible for the statement that two Vickers who had plunged heavily on the horses named failed to meet liabilities aggregating over S50.000 the following Monday. One account was subsequently paid, and the backer concerned, says the race course has seen the last of him. It is estimated that 00,000 has yet to be collected by the bookmakers, anil it would be safe to bet that man- accounts will never be paid.. For the current financial year the Xew South AVales treasury will receive a substantial revenue from betting. Last year Its receipts from that source wen; .97,977, 83,967 being practically the bookmakers contribution and .11,010 that of the totalisator. This year the tote return is likoly 1o b;; at least doubled. For the five months ending Xovcmber 30 It has given the state 87,010. against .03,145 for the corresKinding period last year, and during the ne.t six months there will be many more race meetings than there were from January 1 to the end of June this year. There has also been a great advance in the amount received, from betting taxes. From the beginning T July to the end of Xovcmber last year the total was .9,185, while for the corresixmding five months this year it was 35,5G5. an increase of 7,88k Betting in various forms has given the treasury A:S4,835 for the past five months. The English St. Leger winner Night Hawk arrived in Sydney November 1!5 on the Italia and is now undergoing the usual term of quarantine. He landed surprisingly well after the long spell of thirteen weeks and five days at sea, and there is no doubt about this good looking son of Gnllinule being a decided acquisition to Australian thoroughbred breeders. Night Hawk would certainly have never come our way had it not been for the war and the fact of-Colonel Hall Walkers stud being taken over by the British government. The National Stud, as it is now termed, was so plentifully supplied with Callinule blood that they decided to sell Night Hawk. GENERAL NEWS AND GOSSIP. A. P. Wade last week bought the good horses Estland for ?15,000 and Finmark for 5,000. Both are richly engaged and among the first flight of Australasian horses. V. and F. A. Moses of the Arrowfield Stud, Hunter River district, have bought in Kngland the chestnut horse Valais, 1915. by the Derby winner Cicero, dam Lily of the Valley, by Martagon Humptonia. Valais was a good performer, having won the Newmarket Windsor Stakes, ,500, one mile and seven -eighths, beating Furore, Flaming Fire. Call of the Wild, etc., and was placed fourth in the Derby won by Fifinella. II. Chisholm and Co. have also bought in Kngland for Australian breeders Parsifal, 1915, by Friar Marcus Prim Nun, by Persimmon. He was bred by King Ccorge. The same bitvers siIm import Chrysolaus. 191, by Itoi Herodt Chrysis, by Childwick, bred by Lord Durham. There were 1C0 starters for the eleven eveuts at Canterbury Park New South Wales December 11. At Fitzrov the starters numbered 153 for fifteen events, while at Aspcndale the six races brought out eighty horses. The next Doncastcr Handicap will carry 0,000 ulded monev and the Sydney Cup 5,000. This is S2.500 more for the mile and 0,000 more for the two miles than last season, and with the war" over inl the totalisator us an additional source of rcve-"iu the probabilities are that the Australian Jockey i.ltibe prize money will now continue on the upgrade. The Rajah of Pudukota. who won with Kilfoylo it Aspendale. is contemplating a return to India and may sell his horses here, except Ids famous steeplechaser Old Mungindi. It is quite likely that his highness will send a. team to France when regular racing is resumed in that country. T. A. Stirlon. owner of Cotigne. lias purchased the Australlitn Jockey Club nnd the Victoria Derby winner lilplnne, now in New Zealand, for 5,000. 4 Wellington, New Zealand, writer says quite n number of farmers in the Wuverley, New Zealand, district are devoting their time to the training of liorus, it being nothing uucoiumou in those parts for several settlers fo have two, or three horses each in work. Surveyor and Killwyne made their recent records ut. the Rietiirtou course of Clirlstchurch. New Zealand, with a gale of wind liehind them, and writing in the Weekly Press The Rook states Umt it was under similar conditions Conqueror and Machine gun did their fast time at four and five-eighths many years ago.
