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Leaders of Canadian Turf Attend Horse Of Year Dinner in E. P. Taylors Honor Owner of Bull Page Extends Tribute to Daily Racing Form For Its Contribution to Sport By FRANK ARMSTRONG Staff Correspondent TORONTO, Ont., May 24. Daily Racing Forms first annual Horse of the teox dinner in honor of E. P. Taylor, held here last, " evening at the Royal York Hotel, assumed proportions of the social event of the Canadian turf season with a notable gathering which included racings "top brass" representative of every phase of the turf sport, in addition to government and civic dignitaries. Highlight of the evening was the presentation by publisher J. Samuel Perlman to the honored guest of an oil painting of Bull Page who was voted Canadas Horse of the Year in 1951. The masterful work of equine art, by Toronto artist C. W. Bill" Kettle-well was a subject for admiration. Taylor in accepting the painting paid on enlightening tribute to the contribution of Daily Racing Form arid associated publications to racing and breeding throughout America. He sincerely complimented publisher Perlman on his untiring efforts to aid the turf sport, not only through the medium of his daily publications but with the statistical data made available through Daily Racing Forms monthly chart books and American Racing Manual. "A library of these publications," he said, "is of inestimable value to breeders and horsemen. It provides a ready reference for whatever may be their requirements in the knowledge of Horses which is necessary to the successful operation of the business. Mr. Perlman has been unceasing in the promotion of perfection and accuracy of the publications under his direction." Taylor dwelt at some length on Perlmans personal contribution to the sport with reference to his many constructive suggestions presented in speeches throughout the continent. "I believe Mr. Perlman to be one of the outstanding men on the continent hi offering leadership for the best that is in racing." Taylor indicated that he and a group of his friends are working to bring about improvement in trie standard of Ontario racing facilities. "All of our tracks are outmoded and inadequate to the present day racing. We need improvement in racing itself, better conditions for horsemen, and more facilities for the public. This can. only be accomplished with modem racing plants." Asking indulgence for the expression of further opinion, he said: "There has been some progress made to reduce taxation, for which we must be thankful, but the present structure is still excessive. It should be lowered so that race tracks will have a higher percentage in order to provide higher purse distribution. The establishment of the Ontario Racing Commission is the best thing that could have happened for our racing. We have succeeded in having more races for two and three-year-olds which contributes to the stimulation of the breeding industry. The totalisator method . : . " 1 : ; of wagering is in force at one of our tracks, and I believe it should be adopted at all tracks." Taylor concluded his remarks with a compliment to artist Kettlewell for his work, and a summary of the pedigree of Bull Page. Head table guests along with Taylor and Perlman included: Honorable Dana Porter, attorney general of Ontario; Col. K. R. Marshall, president of the Ontario Jockey Club; magistrate S. Tupper Bigelow, chairman of the Ontario Racing Commission; "George C. Hendrie, managing director of the Ontario Jockey Club, and member of the Ontario Racing Commission; J. E. Frowde Seagram, director of the OJC; Vincent J. Sheridan, president of the Ontario division of the HBPA; R. James Speers, noted breeder, owner and race track im-pressario of the Prairie provinces; Donald A. Macintosh, member of the Ontario Racing Commission; Charles Taylor, son of the guest of honor, and Nelson Dunstan, Daily Racing Form columnist in the role of master of ceremonies. Dunstan in his own inimitable manner introduced the head table guests, spicing his introductory remarks with subtle. humor. He called upon Col. K. R. Marshall as the first speaker. The OJC president congratulated publisher Perlman on the inaugural of the horse of the year dinner in Canada remarking that apart from its social aspects, it served a purpose in the interests of breeding and racing. Col. Marshall, a breeder and owner in his own right, continued on the theme of breeding. "Improvement of the breed," he said has been a times, a term which has been abused, but no one will doubt that we in Canada are producing better arid better horses and there is no question of the improvement of the breed. He congratulated Taylor on his extensive breeding operation at his two farms, refrerring to him as Canadas leading breeder, with a sotto voce offside remark to R. James Speers, "I mean Ontarios leading breeder." He congratulated Frank Conklin and other breeders on their determination to bring the most fashionable bloodlines of the thoroughbred world to this territory, commending them for following the tradition of famous devotees of a past era, such as the Seagrams, Hendries, Dy-ments, who were the earliest pillars of the industry. Magistrate Bigelow acknowledged at some length the cooperation of DAily Racing Form which he considered an invaluable aid to the Ontario Racing Commission during its formative stages. "Whatever we may have required from Daily Racing Forms vast store of statistics which was so necessary to our operation, was readily available," he said, adding with a smile, "and nothing was ever asked in return except our good will, which they will always have. We are most appreciative." Continuing on the theme of breeding, he added his congratulations to the breeders for their efforts and declared that the commission would be unceasing in support of the highest quality of sport and the rigid conduct of racing. Speers, as usual, tinted his speech with a degree of humor. Having been introduced Continued on Page Thirty-Seven Canadian Racing Leaders At Horse of Year Dinner E. P. Taylor, Bull Pages Owner, Honored at Gala Tqrontd Affair Continued from Page Five as the leading breeder in Canada, with winners of more than ,000,000 having been produced at his western! Canada breeding establishments, he opened his remarks with: "I am about to be demoted. I fear that I cannot keep pace with Eddie at his present rate of sending winners to the races." He recalled his earliest acquaintance with Perlman some 30 years ago in Winnipeg, when he was a Free Press sportswriter. "He has gone a long way since then," said. Speers, "and I must congratulate him on his success." The honorable Dana Porter admitted that he was unacquainted with racing, while expressing an admiration for the men in the. sport. "To my observation," he said, "racing establishes the will to win, which is a characteristic tba often lacking in other fields of endeavor. If racing can do this, then it must do good. Furthermore, I know Mr. Taylors abounding enthusiasm for the thoroughbred, and obviously there must be something admirable about it all, when a man of his many duties can devote his time as he does."
