New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-02-10
mann To TEE JOCKEY CLUBS.

Lovers of racing in this part oil the country
IN 10 a busier season this year than ever
before. With the addition OF the ricn anu
well-eouuped New-York Club 70 tne hsc Oh
;Inortant racing associations, with spacious
grounds and ample provision for sport Oh the
Pa Lind the five months between the mddie
- Mo- and the middle of October will be
brim full and running over WIN inpoI,AuO
contests. The prizes wiz NC i"re1 ei'"
America has yet seen, and there VIII % noro
of them. The temptation Tor men oil means
10 90 into racing, not only Tor amusement, ou'
also for proft. will be strong. good three
oay-old that could carry off this year tho
Snlendid new Realization Stakes, the omnibus
tbe I,orillard. and others Of the plumpest prizes
Co. thorougbhreds Of that age at Jerome Park,
Cravesend Sheepshead Bay, Monmouth and
Westcbester could make more than Sl2o,OOO
in n single season for his owner, wnlle n TWO
ycar-old of tho highest class who couid sweep
the board of the Futurity Stakes, the Junior
Champion, the Great American Stakes at
Brooklyn. the Eclipse at Westminster, the
Titan AZ Jerome Park, and few others of the
glittering rewards offered for merit among une
Youngsters, could even exceed this magnificent
total; so it is easy to sec how much money
could be made by the fortunate owner oil a
high-class thoroughbred in America.
All the clubs are making Improvements, are
expanding their facilities and Offering in
creased attractions to the public All have
extensive capital, large possessions, and we'll
filed treasures but they should never forget
that their prosperity is wholly dependent on
publio favor, and that public favor can only
be retained by honest racing. The minor
tracks over in New-Jersey have set their big
ger and richer brethren some good examples
since the regular season closed. More jockeys
and trainers have been ruled off at Clifton and
Gutenberg since October 10, 1883, than were
ruled off at all tho legitimate tracks in and near
New-York during the whole Of last year. Yet
the frauds at the most important courses, at
Sheepshead Bay, Jerome Park, Monmouth and
Brooklyn, were ut times as ilagrant, as con-
spicuous and as infamous as the worst OF those
nraotised at the little mudholes on the other
side of the Hudson River. II Is like calling to
the deaf or trying 10 awake the dead to at
tempt to stir the men in control OF the Jockey
clubs to a sense Of their duty and responsibility
in this matter. Most Of them seem entirely
Indifferent as to how much swinding shall be
practised, in the pulling Of horses, in fouling
by Jockeys. In all manner Of trick and device
in racing, provided their gate receipts remain
profitable. But they viii be touched in their
tenderest point, their pocket, ere long, unless
they take more care TO cleanse their garments
and purge their foul places. No sport can
endure which is not honest through and
through. Racing ought to die and must die
unless it is carried on with more strict super
vision and with more rigid restriction OF
thievery and fraud than were practised last
year.
Another thing which the jockey clubs should
look carefully after is the management OF their
betting rings. At most Of the courses the spec
ulation has been carried on in such way as
to provoke frequent conflicts between the book
makers and the public, and TO excite bitter
dissatisfaction and angry complaint The
only race-course last year where the betting
ring was managed in a manner satisfactory to
ali was Monmouth Park. This was due TO
the exceptional abilities and patience, tho
diplomatic skill, and the conciliatory DISPOSE
ton Of the well-knOwn turfman whom the Mon
mouth Park officials put in charge Of that de-
partment on their track. Other jockey clubs
must initiate this example and secure similar
management if they wish to satisfy the public.
Various attempts have been made at Albany
and Trenton this year by blackmailers to fitch
from the racing organizations part Of their
profits; but the associations are in no serious
danger from strikers. Their operations can
be kept in check while the jockey clubs arc
managed in manner that will earn public ap-
prevail rather than condemnation. Their peril
lies in permitting the pirates and co~eners of
the turf, who so abound at all the tracks, to
ply their operations without fear Of exposure
and punishment. Keep tho turf clean and the
jockey clubs will flourish. Allow the faint
and corruption of last season to spread, and
ere many years have passed the race-tracks
will be poughed under and sown with grain.
SUICIDES or WEEK.