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HEARTY INDORSEMENT Harness Horsemen Favor Newly Proposed Illinois Racing Law Horse Review Editorially Ap ¬ proves Measure and Advo ¬ cates Its Enactment There is one powerful factor that may count heavily in influencing the Illinois legis ¬ lature favorably when the new racing bill comes before it for consideration The thor ¬ oughbred is best known to the big centers of population and virtually unknown to the smaller communities But the trotter and pacer is well known and highly popular in every county of the state through the county fair associations Heretofore the trotting horse people have taken little or no interest in measures to promote thoroughbred racing It is different this time There is ample and cheering evidence that they are disposed to heartily advocate passage of the bill prepared for the legislature through the Chicago Washington Park Club ClubThe The Horse Review is probably the leading publication of the country devoted to the trotter and pacer It is conducted with sin ¬ gular ability and its opinions weigh heavily with its army of readers Its approval of the new bill will count influcntially in lit firor Its advocacy of the measure is wholehearted Witness the following clearly and ably ex ¬ pressed editorial in its latest issue issueElsewhere Elsewhere in this issue we present the full official text of the racing bill to be intro ¬ duced into the Illinois legislature at Spring ¬ field whose enaction into a law is desired by the proponents and we feel sure by all others aware of its conditions and informed upon conditions in this state stateO O HASTY MEASURE MEASUREThe The present bill is no hasty measure It is the fruit of long and careful deliberation and the most conscientious and fairminded study of the situation The most prominent prominentpersons persons in the state identified with not only turf but fair and breeding interest were called into consultation during its framing and their desires and viewpoints given studi ¬ ous attention As a result the bill in our opinion embodies the most earnest and broadminded effort ever made to obtain obtainsimilar similar legislation in this state if not in any It is therefore our sincere hope that it may become a law How it will fare at atthe the hands of the states lawmakers and providing they pass it at those of the gov ¬ ernor remains to be seen But there are legitimate hopes that it will safely pass both houses of the legislature and duly receive the governors signature Signs have not been wanting of late to in ¬ dicate the fact that the people of Illinois and andparticularly particularly those of the City of Chicago would welcome a renaissance of racing Chi ¬ cago has hail none worthy of the name for nineteen years past and the appetite for the sport long starved and denied by unwisely repressive legislation is now demanding a legitimate means of gratification gratificationRacing Racing on the grand scale it is universally recognized is impossible without the revenue derived from public speculation J e the betting privilege In many respects Ameri ¬ can conditions as regards this are curiously misrepresentative of the real wishes of the ma ¬ jority In practically every other country in the world racing with betting is recognized by law In our country this is true of only a scattering few states Elsewhere if it goes on it is due to local option which virtually defies state ordinances or else is so carried on as to violate the spirit but not the letter of such ordinances ordinancesKEFORJIEUS KEFORJIEUS IX CONTROL CONTROLIt It is the popular belief that in America the majority rules but that is by no means al ¬ ways the case So far as racing is concerned a wellorganized minority of professional re ¬ formers socalled and similar organiza ¬ tions has long been able to dominate the situation by working upon the weak side of the citizenry Moral skeletons have been rat ¬ tled and ethical precepts perverted for the gaining of these ends Enlightenment always comes slowly in these cases but in Illinois there is hope that it has at last arrived arrivedAny Any person who takes the trouble to read the provisions of the new racing bill will find them characterized by reasonableness con ¬ servatism anil good sense The bill if it be ¬ comes a law and that law is elHciently ad ¬ ministered will make racing possible in Illi ¬ nois under conditions markedly favorable for the nourishing of both the turf and the breed ¬ ing industry It provides for ample safe ¬ guards against abuses which in time past have besmirched the good name of the sport and brought upon it undeserved odium And it promises the realization of a splendid revenue for the support of the agricultural fairs of the state thus doing much to stimu ¬ late one of the worthiest institutions of the commonwealth and relieving the public from direct taxation for their support to a possible extent of 1000000 annually annuallyThe The only form of betting which it is con ¬ templated to legalize is parimutuel by means of machines The bookmaker and the pool seller whose operations have in the past wrought the turf KO many disasters will not be tolerated The profits of the promoters of race meetings arc rigorously restricted and at every spot and place the authority of the State Racing Commission which it is pro ¬ posed to create will be deferred to toBoth Both harness and thoroughbred racing is carefully looked after by the provisions of this bill in a spirit of fairness to each and all It will in no way interfere with the established system of racing at county and other fairs but will add to their strength and success It will make impossible merry gorounds of any description It is in fact planned to insure racing of the highest pos ¬ sible type conducted in the best possible manner and making it appeal to nothing but the best instincts of the sportloving public publicThe The Horse Review wishes to make it plain that this bill has nothing in common with numerous previous socalled racing bills that have in the past decade been publicly agi ¬ tated or even introduced at Springfield The Raid bills have usually originated in the camps of professional gamblers and received no motivation from real sportsmen AVith the present measure these bills had nothing in common This new bill has not originated in any such manner It is the work of sports ¬ men men who have no questionable motives and no unclean alliances Its sponsors in ¬ clude many of Chicagos and Illinois repre ¬ sentative citizens men high in the public and private life of the city and state men of honor and probity everywhere esteemed and respected whose association with such a project is a guarantee of its splendid character characterAlmost Almost without exception the Review has found it advisable to oppose the previous racing bills introduced at Springfield It is therefore with unconcealed gratification that it declares itself able to unnualifiedly indorse the present one It has our sincere support and our heartiest wishes for suc ¬ cess We take pleasure in recommending it to all horsemen throughout the state to all persons interested in healthy outdoor sports and to all thore who are engaged in pro ¬ moting its live stock and fair industries It presents to them a great opportunity which it behooves them to take immediate advan ¬ tage of ofWe We therefore advise all our readers and friends living in this state all its horsemen stockmen and fair men to write to tiieir representatives at Springfield and urge them to support and assist in passing this bill as well as to use their influence to secure for it the signature of Governor Small if it comes before him for the final action necessary to place it upon the statute book
