New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1859-09-14
FROM PHILADELPHIA.
THE SPORTING woRIp-PRIsoN EXPERIENCES
AGRICULTURE-sUNDAY TRAVEL AND COL
ORFD PASSENGERS.
meeting adjou

THE SPORTING wORID-PRISON EXPERIENCES
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. TRAVEL AND COL
oRED PASSENGERS.
From Our ow, Correspondent.
PHILADELPHIA, Sept. 10, 1859.
tbs manifest that the appetite of our people Tor
horse race is irrepressible not to be sooshed by
preaching or restrained by legislative penalties.
The general sporting world, including the rowdies
and .bouderhitters, and other fancy men, is large
enough to make those men rich who publish sport
ing papers for their qualification. All our agrcal
tura exhibitions now find their trotting courses an
indispensable sppendage, and they would turn out
failures if not provided with them. People flock to
them in thousands, not TO see fat cattle, big pump
kins, or patent mowers, but to stand for hours
round the ring wherein the trotting horses pursue
their fosmiDg career. Even the women take
especial delight in these exhibitions of speed, and
may be seen gazing with equal interest on the dis
play All these are mere race.cOurses IN disguise
The Legislatures having abolished the od-fashoned
race course because it was VIGOROUSLY the rendez-
yous for cheats and gamblers, have legslized the
trotting not open to the same grave o1Jec
tons. We have four such institutions here, and,
Judging by the way they are patronized, the crowds
~,
quent them the legal change has been triHing as
to satisfy the whole sporting fraternity. Last week
there was q famous tIOttiDg mafch at Suffolk Park
between Flora Temple aud Princess, whose reputa.
ton is worldwide, at which an immense crowd
attended. Our laws prohibit gambling and betting
on these occasions assuming them to be mere trials
of speed, ont of which nobody must make anything.
But those who moved about among the crowd
could testify that the law was everywhere treated
as a dead letter. A dollar was charged for sdmis-
sion, yet at this high figure a large number
Of persons entered the enclosure. The bet as to
who should win, was 81 5O0-best three in har-
ness. The trotting ground was accessible by two
of our passenger railroads. over whl,h the rush
was tremendous. People also came in countless
numbers from all the Deighboring counties, from
New-York, New.Jersey, Delaware and Maryland,
and thousands were on the ground at an early hour
in the morning. As to private carriages, they were
90 numerous to make it difficult to find places in
which to anchor them. Probably not less than
1900 persons were thus drawn away from their
homes and business at a cost Of probably $50, OOo
to witness this single race There were hundreds
of women in the crowd, many Of whom were
seated on the stand, where band of music was
performing. When the time for starting arrived
tie race ground was found so densely packed with
people, that the horses with great difficulty found
room to make start At Al O'Clock the word was
given and of they went Flora having the inside
track and leading about three feet. Very soon
Princess made bad break, and when she came
again to trtt it was found she had made great Ice.
way, SO much that she would have lost the first
heat had not Flora been purposey held back to
BILE her to come up. She came in about three
lengths ahead making the mile 10 2.4lt minutes.
Immense cheering followed this result, and then
came the second heat, which Flora won 10 235.
She won the third also; doing it 10 g % minutes,
about as good trOtting AZ there is on record and
winning it by nearly quarter of mile. Princess
broke up 20 badly that many persons supposed it
was intended she should lose, and though the bet
ting was very extensive, yet many old sporting men
played shy and refused Flora was the favOrte
from the start. No sooner had the race been con.
cluded, than there was wild and frantic ru.h Of
the crowd for the passenger cars. The mass which
had been all day collecting, now struggled to get
away in few minutes. Such a rush and jam and
crOwding has not been seen here for years. The
women who got into it had their hoops mashed up
into cooked hat, while some lost their shawls and
bOnnets, nobody seeming b care for or pity them.
All who witnessed tie scenes at this race came to
the conclusion that the new form Of racing in bar.
ness Is quite as dem0raizing and vicious the old
one without it.
The friends Of Prison Reform have held Con
vention here, to consider what is the best system
Of discipline for cOnvicts-what system of labor is
best calculated to impress sense of Justice and
light on the mind Of the convict, and at the same
time remlnerate the public for the cost of keeping
him-what ia the most economical mode of man.
agiDg prison, consistent with health, and what
should be the capabilities and moral character of
the subordinate officers placed over conyicts This
meeting was tolerably well attended, there being
delegates from the Prison Institutions and Prison
Societies of Massachusetts, New.York, New. Jer.
.ey, Maryland, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin. and
Pennsy But what it lacked in numbers
was made up in the interest taken in discussing the
hume rous subjects which occupied its attention.
DIT. Glenn, keeper in your Sing Sing Prison,
stated that as to a reform Of the conyicts there
under the coDgregate system, =" it is impossible.
" They go from this institution only 10 return
" again. 1t isa common thing when convict
:" leaves, for bis fellows to say: Oh, he's only
" gone down to New York to take a ride and
/" come back again. He thought the Pennsyl.
van. system was the only one by which criminals
could be reformed. The recommtments to Sing
Sing were about IS per cent Mr.. Glenn stated
that out Of l,OO prisoners there last year. 20 had
become insane; while of 400 at the Eastern Peni.
tentiary here. only 5had become so-thus showing
that the solitary system produced lees insanity than
the congregate. Mr. Seaton of Michigan had re.
garded the New-York prisons as models, and he
was sorry to hear such an account of Sing Sing.
H0 aafis6od NJ Aafaets 80, ~. -