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I 1 i i l . g , * J 7 s || 5 1 7 s 1 ? ., • . _ ™ j _ ,; — - v i. . ■t I - i — _ — ~ te y e iv — _ lj — * I" - - |. lt or — IDEFEAT FOR HALL MEASURE Maryland Senate Substitutes for It William I. Norris Bill. a i Action a Surprise to Reformers — May Doom All Anti-Racing Legislation. ■ i ■ * BALTIMORF.. Mil . March Bk- The slate aen-I ale last nighl beat the Hall anti-race track betting bill by nbat Hal lag for it. b] a vote of IS to 1-. and. after four hours of debate, the bill of president William I. Norris. The bill was then passed to third reading and will lie brought up in a feiv days, with its passage believed to be assured. Tl e Norris measure leaves tlie Burke Racing Commission law practically intact, reduces the number of racing days, increases the daily license fee and makes new provisions for the appointment of race officials. This action of tlie senate came as a distinct sur-i prise and shock to those who have been working at Annapolis for the Hall bill. They were confi- dent of at least fourteen votes when the session began. Opponents of tlie measure were not confi- dent of more than twelve votes. President Karris, for the first time during the session, left tlie rostrum and took the floor for his bill, which he offered as an amendment to tlie Hall measure. Prepared with a great chart mounted on an ensel which he placed In front of the senate, and fortified by a desk full of lawlsioks and I pile of records gad paper of various sorts, he began a two-hour exjiose of conditions which he mainlaincd would obtain under the ITall bill. He told of pcr-ona! visils paid to tracks in New York, Indaaaaa and Alabama, where anM betting laws similar to tlit; Hall measure are in effect. He told of placing bets on liorsos at those track* and told how the bets were placed. Be produced twenty-seven original bookmakers charts which he had secured and which lie distributed to membe: s of the senate for ex a mi tint Ion and study after he had placed one of them on the chart. He read each section of the law which the Hall law sought to repeal and argued on the effect of such re pealers. He nrgtcd that these repealers took eat of the local laws of the state every statute that mentioned race t racks and that every one of then local statutes was a regulatory statute, design mI to prevent unlimited and unregulated racing. Fie declared that the Mpeelan opened the way for aalhmited and unregulated racing in every county of the state and in every section of Baltimore. The race track people themselves took little in- tercel in the fight. They were not represented h Annapolis. They did not appear for u single bear ing to oppose the measure either in the house or senate committee. GOVERNOR AGAINST REVENUE CUT. Governor Ritchie was interested In the measure* defeat principally because of the great cut it would have made in state rveiiue and he was working to keep the tax rate down to the thirty-cent figure fixed in the levy law. There was little effort to line up the for cs opposed to the Hall measure, however, until witii; the last two or three days. President Norris ],.il in this effort, with senator Mcintosh, majority flo ■ leader of the upper chamber, as his chief lieutenac. Cplifl forces in the house of delegates reach-d a decision to fight In every manner parliamentary pneedhare permits with the Norris amendment to Hie Hall anti race track betting bill. Just what BBPthed will be adopted was not decided. Two direct courses are open to the Hall-Funk lionser racing antagonists, provided they ran keep their forces in line. One is to refuse to concur in the BBBatte amendment. If the house doos this, the bill will die and racing will continue as under the existing Burke law. The other is to amend the senat" amendment. This, according to Mr. Funkliouser can be done strictly within parliamentary rules to such an extent as to put the bill practically back arhere it was when the house pass-d It. Observers regard it us doubtful whether the nnti- betting forces can be kept in line. There arc some, it is said, who ar- rather favorable to the Norris amendment, which reduces the number of days of racing and tightens the screws on the tracks by bringing them under absolute control of the Maryland Racing Commission. The racing opponents, however, are making their plans on th« theory that their forces will stand pat. "We will fight the amendment in eWry legal way." said Mr. Funkhoiisc:- "It is doubtful if wo will adopt the policy of amending the amendment even though we could amend the life out of the bill as senator Norris amended it. Such a course would bring on an almost endless fight, with out house sending it back to the other. Our course, it is more than likely, will he to kill the bill." "And permit the Burke law to stand as it is?" he was asked. "Yes." It was pointed out that, the Norris amendment came closer to killing racing and consequently betting than the Burke law. and that it seemed logical, therefore, that the Non is amendment would be more acceptable to the anti-race betting people than the law as it now stands Mr. Funkhouser did not agree with the logic of this. T would vote for a bill to kill all racing." he said. "But if we cant puss the Hall bill I urn in favor of fighting it out along the lines we have fixed."
