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ANNUAL GIMCRACK DINNER Lord Hare wood Substitutes for Lord Rosebery Caustic Comments. Drastic Steps Taken by Stewards of -English Jockey Club to Stamp Out Doping Evil. Special Correspondence LONDON, England. "The stewards of the English Jockey Club intend to continue next year to take drastic steps to stop the evil of doping. It is forbidden by the rules of racing, and it would be absurd to maintain a rule if there were -no means of enforcing it. There are means." These caustic words were uttered by Lord Harewood, who will be senior steward of the English Jockey Club in 1932, when making the "keynote" speech at the one hundred and sixty-fifth annual Gimcrack dinner, held at York. Lord Rosebery, as the owner of Miracle, winner of the Gimcrack Stakes last August, would have been the guest of .honor at this ancient celebration but for the .recent death of his son, Lord Dalmery. JHe was unable to discharge a duty which in normal circumstances would have given him much pleasure. General regret was expressed for his absence, and his health was drunk in silence. Continuing his speech, in reply to the toast of The Jockey Club, Lord Harewood said that, speaking generally, the sport of racing is as clean, if not cleaner, than it had been for many years. In spite of bad times, this sport has held its own in public fancy, and, "If I may judge from the posters which I see," he added, "racing forecasts and results appear to be the best possible advertisements for selling newspapers. " SPEAKS ON SWEEPSTAKES. "I should like to say a few words also on the subject of sweepstakes, which has been agitating the racing world. "There waa more to be said against gigantic sweepstakes than in their favor. The colossal sums of money which change hands give opportunities for bribery and corruption on a larger scale than -would otherwise exist. It is only fair to say that we have not yet had evidence that anything serious on those lines Has happened, but it is also obvious that the size of the field for the Manchester November Handicap was increased to unwieldy proportions by reason of the sweep. "It is even possible that this evil may become more pronounced in future years as owners "become tempted by the possibility of getting their winters keep out of ticket holders. "The promotion of great sweepstakes have in the past modified their conditions as a result of representations made by the stewards of The Jockey Club, and if, as I hope, we can devise a scheme which will neither hurt the Irish hospitals or prejudice the interests of racing, I am confident the promoters will be ready to listen to us again." Lord Harewood said that the stewards of The Jockey Club would be warranted in asking for a good owners stand, particularly on courses which did not allow owners as such to enter their members enclosure. He also said that some owners are not always reasonable in their requests to clerks of courses for free admissions. Speaking of the breeds of British horses, Lord Harewood said: "Every year I have made a bet that an English horse would win the Ascot Gold Cup. Since the war, I believe that only one French horse has won the race. Within the history of the race only ten foreign horses have been successful. "For the last two years," continued Lord Harewood, "I have not had a single bet on any horse which was not in my own stable. While I have not been a loser, I must admit that the profits have not been such as I would have liked." He expressed the hope that The Jockey Club would retain the confidence of the racing public, and what he believed to be the greatly increasing betting public, and that with their assistance they would continue to uphold the honor and integrity of the turf. Gerald Deane, in the course of his speech, suggested that the finishes of all races be photographed, and that flat racing under Jockey Club rules should be limited to professional jockeys. "The angle at the winning post at Newmarket has for years been the cause of a good deal of discussion, but some of the results this fall caused much controversy among the public and, I believe, among some members of The Jockey Club, that surely the time has come when photographs of the finish should be taken at Newmarket and on all other courses," said Deane. "This is done abroad. It causes no delay and, I believe, our judges would welcome it." Deane also suggested that the hospitality of the racing executives might be a little more lavishly extended to visitors from overseas, as it bears unfavorable comparison with what visitors from England receive when they go abroadj
