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NEW ORLEANS GOSSIP Fair Grounds Meeting Half Way Over and Paying Visitors From Abroad Not So Nu ¬ merous as in Recent Years Good Riders Lacking NEW ORLEANS La January 21 Half of the Fair Grounds meeting terminates with Mondays racing and the management has cause for congratulations over the wholesome brand of sport that has been furnished True it may not have approached the standard of several former years when an abundance of good class racers were here but consider ¬ ing the material that has furnished the con ¬ tests the racing could not be bettered The one outstanding feature has been the total absence of criticism hostile to the racing in any quarter Not alone has this applied to the Fair Grounds but also to Jefferson Park It is generally accepted that vigilence is the watchword at both tracks That the racing officials are ruling with a rode of iron and than the slightest established infraction would meet with a speedy accounting and punish ¬ ment for the offender offenderOrdinary Ordinary horses are by no means machine like in consistency and form changes have occurred but their improvements or fail ¬ ures in form have been attributed to natural racing causes lack of good class or to in ¬ experience on the part of their riders It is marvelous that there have not been more reversals considering the overabundance of inexperienced riders that are plying their vo ¬ cation Of the hundred odd riders that are here not over ten can be termed jockeys of real ability And the good riders occa ¬ sionally make grave mistakes and contribute to the defeat of their mounts Earl Pool last week lost at least three races as a result of his inability due to weakness from having reduced too strenuously to make weight He returned to the scales room last Thursday after road work in a fainting condition and finally collapsed He insisted on filling his engagements for the afternoon In spite of adverse advice from the doctor and it caused the PendergastCahn confederacy to lose two purses the result of Kennmare and Chiva being beaten because of Pools weak riding and his failure to get away from the post properly The following day Pool lost a purse on Keunmare because of his condition He was too weak to ride out all his engagements that afternoon afternoonLAXG LAXG OVERCAUTIOUS OVERCAUTIOUSLang Lang McDermott Corcoran and Owens show flashes of good riding form and then undo their good work with a faulty display Lang is beginning to display overcaution and seldom will guide his mount next to the inner rail railThe The Fair Grounds has recently been ex ¬ tremely fortunate in the matter of weather It has been perpetual summer here since the opening and the only rain that has fallen has come during the night time or on Sundays SundaysThere There is not the large number of visitors of former years The attendance is not up to previous winters standard Particularly is this true of the women patrons The sale of ladies tickets has dropped considerably at the track this year Some contend that the attendance would be larger if a lower admission charge was made The cost of admission at the Fair Grounds is 3 plus war tax In some quarters it is held that the admission should not exceed 2 and that this would bring here a larger number of racing visitors visitorsThe The Fair Grounds management is by no means operating at a loss but it will not earn the amount expected unless there is a healthy improvement In attendance There has been an average of fiftytwo layers in line since the opening The greatest num ¬ ber operating was fiftysix and the lowest number fortythree fortythreeThe The expense is heavy for layers and back ¬ ers alike and there are no outstanding win ¬ ners Several of the heavier opperators began with losses but several recent breaks in their favor have about evened up their transactions for the meeting Tom Shaw and Frank Shannon continue to lead the ring and handle most of the heavier betting indulged in There has been no material increase or for that matter loss of local attendance at the track It will probably average 25 per cent local and 75 per cent foreign visitors This is a subject for those who maintain that racing does not benefit New Orleans to ponder over The liolcls continue well filled something that would not be if there were no racing here hereThe The work of starter Snyder continues to be on a par with that of starter Hamilton who officiated so brilliantly at Jefferson Park Both young men are destined to have a successful career as presiders at the bar ¬ rier It Is thought to be certain that one of these young men will succeed the late A B Dade as starter on Kentucky tracks
