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CHICAGOS RACING REVIVAL State Law or Supreme Court De ¬ cision Necessary for Perma ¬ nency and High Class Sport What are the real prospects for a revival of highclass racing in Illinois IllinoisThat That question is frequently asked the Tribune on the assumption we may have some inside dope on the situation We have not Our opinion is that immediate revival of the sport on a pretentious scale is dependent on passage of a bill legalizing supervised speculation Without a protec ¬ tive law we may still reestablish racing but the upbuilding process will be slower slowerThere There are two ways of securing a law One is for agitation and demonstration of an overwhelming public sentiment in favor of the sport with assurance that back of racing will stand responsible sponsors The other way say those more experienced than we in such matters is for an emissary to take pencil and paper and write down before a stakeholder some imposing figures with the dollar sign in front of them themSeveral Several of the men interested in the pro ¬ jected country club with polo and other so ¬ ciety adjuncts have told the Tribune dis ¬ tinctly that they do not favor buying legislation that it is not the right way to start They will not proceed without a law So much for that thatThe The Riverdale backers with Judge Joseph A Murphy as adviser think they have a system of oral betting which is not illegal under present laws They are willing to build a track and undertake racing Until test case have reached the Supreme Court their status will be more or less uncertain They may conduct highclass racing if of ¬ ficials do not harass them but they cannot build for the future until opinion of their attorneys is sustained by a court of record recordHawthorne Hawthorne is advertising a spring meeting Hawthornes meeting of last fall proved Chi jago wants racing To determine that ques ¬ tion was its announced purpose It served that purpose Horsemen were paid in full although there are rumors some other obli ¬ gations are still outstanding Hawthorne alone in our opinion will not bring back the old days of turf sport sportRecapitulating Recapitulating we think race meetings will be attempted in Chicago this year Wo think a state law or a Supreme Court de ¬ cision holding some form of oral wagering not unlawful to be necessary before Chicago has the class of racing to which it is en ¬ titled Harvey Woodruff in the Chicago Tribune
