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TORO NANCY WINS FUTURITY FOR NORMAN CHURCH CHICAGO RACING SCENE SHIFTS TO HAWTHORNE UPHOLDS REPUTATION FOR INNOVATIONS Electric Eye Timing Latest Device to Be Introduced at Cicero Course New Paddock and Stables Built to Replace Those De ¬ stroyed by Fire Virtually Entire New Staff of Officials Plenty of Horses Available CICERO 111 July 28 The barrier lifts at historic Hawthorne Monday to send away the first field of thoroughbreds of a thirtyday meeting the newest chapter in the ambir tious Chicago turf program which has been going forward foe some three months at Washington Park Arlington Park and Aurora Thoroughly renovated to remove the scars of the disastrous fires of last autumn unhampered by the shortage of horses of the top class which has handicapped so many tracks in other sections in this season of racings greatest popularity and with a loca ¬ tion so convenient as to put the thorough ¬ breds virtually in the back yard of every Chi ¬ cago race follower Hawthorne is expected to stage a meeting as successful as any in its long and glamorous history historyThere There have been many changes between seasons at the popular west side race course and they go much deeper than the coat of paint and the new flower beds which are the standard race track improvements There have been physical changes such as the construction of a new paddock beneath the grandstand to replace the old infield paddock the building of new stables and the installation of the only automatic timing system in American racing There have been important changes in the official family And just as important there have been numerous changes in policy policyAn An entirely new set of stewards will be in the Hawthorne stand Monday Chris FitzGerald will represent the Illinois Racing Commission just as he has at the other local tracks Francis Dunne and C W Hay will be his associates Dunne likewise re ¬ places the late Joseph McLennan as racing secretary Jack Hodgins comes back as starter after having been absent from Haw ¬ thorne since the days when he was known as the best assistant starter in that trying business businessThe The changes in Hawthornes racing policy are less tangible but that they meet with the approval of horsemen is evidenced by the fast that some 1100 thoroughbreds are ex ¬ pected to be on the grounds by the time the first race of the meeting is sent away Sev ¬ eral hundred horses have been in the Haw ¬ thorne stables for over a week largely strings such as the extensive stable which C V Whitney sent on from Kentucky at the close of the Latonia meeting All week horses have been drifting over from Arling ¬ ton and with the close of the Arlington meeting Saturday the invasion of thorough ¬ breds began in earnest Continued on ninth page CHICAGO RACING SCENE SHIFTS TO HAWTHORNE Continued from first page Broadly speaking the Hawthorne policy his season is to cater to the horses which race in Chicago throughout the season and for this reason as many races as possible have been arranged for the older horses the handicap division During the first week for instance no less than six handi ¬ caps are in the condition book and so heavy was the response to the Berwyn Handicap at six furlongs which serves as the opening day feature that the handicap program will be continued upon the same basis Because there are to be more capable twoyearolds at the west side course this season than ever before the juvenile will come in for plenty of attention as well The present plan is to stage a series of test handicap events that will lead up to the Hawthorne Juvenile Han ¬ dicap a stake that has in other seasons usually determined the western twoyearold championship championshipAn An innovation this season will be the ab ¬ sorbing of all taxes by the track Grand ¬ stand admission will be a flat 1 clubhouse admission a flat 2 Another will be the closing of betting in each race by the throw ¬ ing of a switch in the stewards stand In other years bettingrhas been closed by the clock at Hawthorne but the installation of the stewardcontrolled Bidwill ticketdispens ¬ ing machines has this year made closing by the clock unnecessary unnecessaryOutstanding Outstanding among the innovations of course is the infrared ray or electric eye that works independent of the starting gate and with the electric chronometer in the setwards stand to make timing abso ¬ lutely accurate and entirely automatic
