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ILLINOIS RACING COMMISSION DEFERS DATES ACTION HEAR CHANGE PLEAS Sportsmans Park Strongly Advocates Rearrangement of Schedule. Lincoln Fields Offers to Surrender Five Days if Given Labor Day-Threaten Court Action. The Illinois Racing Commission Monday at an open meeting heard the arguments of attorneys for Sportsmans Park, Aurora and Lincoln Fields on the change in racing dates proposed by Sportsmans Park, which is dissatisfied with the dates allotted by the commission for the season of 1936. After listening to the pleas of the lawyers and accepting evidence as to why a change should be made, the commission announced that it would take the matter under advisement and announce its decision later this week. Lincoln Fields, through Bruce A. Campbell, East St. Louis attorney, offered to give up five of its allotted days if the Commission would change the dates to restore Labor Day to the Crete schedule, the five days relinquished to go to Sportsmans Park, giving the Cicero track twenty-three racing days instead of the eighteen allowed it under the present schedule. Lincoln Fields, under that arrangement, would then have only twenty four days instead of twenty nine, but Campbell stated that this was a concession in the interest of harmony and to prevent possible court action. In making his proposal, Campbell called on the other big tracks to make concessions also. SPORTSMANS PARK. EVIDENCE. Evidence was submitted by Sportsman3 Park, showing the value of its purses last year,, the fact that no claiming price lower than ,000 was written into, the conditions of its races, the report of the commission steward, Christopher J. FitzGerald, on the class of its meeting and the safety of its half-mile track; the report of Oscar Bach-mann, commission director of pari-mutuels, and testimony by Billy Myers pertaining to expert care of the track itself received under his personal direction. The commission listened to testimony from Col. Robert S. Eddy, one of the owners of Exposition Park, Aurora, on the financial outlay of the present operating company, the class of horses expected at the forthcoming meeting, and his connection with other tracks throughout the country. Robert S. Shelley, general manager at Sportsmans Park, testified as to the average purse distribution of Sportsmans Park and, during his presence on the stand, attorney Samuel Markman, representing the National Jockey Club, presented and had Daily Racing Monthly Form Books for May and October of 1935, introduced as evidence in support of Shelleys testimony. The session was the first open meeting in the history of the Illinois Racing Commission. Chairman Peter S. Carey presided, Leo Spitz being absent. Walter C. Peacock is the third member of the commission. ARLINGTON NOT REPRESENTED. Arlington Park was not represented but John P. Harding, president of the Washington Park Jockey Club, was a latecomer and remained only a few minutes, departing quickly with the remark that he was not needed. Hawthorne had no representative present. Col. Matt Winn headed the delegation from Lincoln Fields, the two attorneys, Maurice Galvin and Bruce Campbell, accompanying him. Campbell acted as spokesman for the Crete course. Ed OHare, principal owner of Sportsmans Park, was present at the proceedings and consulted frequently with Attorney Samuel Markman, who objected frequently to the testimony of several witnesses being overruled on occasions by the commission and at other times winning his point. Interviewed after the commission had made its announcement that it would consider the matter, OHare and Markman stated that they fully intended to take the matter to the civil courts if the commission did not see fit to allot it more racing days. All the other tracks have signified their .Continued on tivcnticlh page. ILLINOIS RACING COMMISSION DEFERS ACTION ON DATES Continued from first page. acceptance -of the dates as assigned, although both Col. Matt Winn and Col. Robert S. Eddy, said .they were not entirely satis-field with the date schedule, but neither had any idea of court action.
