New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-07-22
JOCKEYING AT FLEETWOOD.
QUEER WORK DONE AT THE MIDSUMMER
MEETING.
sEAT BETTING AND AVOIDANCE OF TAKING A
on THE FAST rRorrERs AND PAGERS.

ON THE FAST TROTTERs AND PAGERS
When poolN.lling was prohibited In this State by
,Se adoption OF the new Constitution. one Of the
.,,ef incentives to fraud In harness racing was
,.moved but the experiences of last week at Fleet
GOOD Park have demonstrated pretty clearly that
,otves still exist for pulling horses and that the
slstinctvey American sport is still endangered by
me commercial element that lacking the first
usl Of genuine craftsmanship is "in the game for
what can be made out OF 1t by hook or crook The
midsummer meeting given by the Driving Club OF
New-York proved to be a financial success, owing
"a the large number Of entries secured. but from
the point of view of the sportsman it Will go
record as being about the worst failure ever known
during the twenty-five years that Fleetwood Park
has been in existence. Unless ninety-nne out OF
avery one hundred horsemen are mistaken. there
sns more pulling and more crooked work of all
sors going than anybody ever witnessed in the
.ame length of time at Guttenburg Gloucester
IN the palmest days of the Big Four and BOSS"
thompson
The perncious practice Of betting the result; OF
Zach heat independent Of the result Of the race.
gas doubtless responsible for n good deal OF the
.uspicious work When a driver is permitted openly
70 fleece the public by betting against his own
horse for the heat. and then making no effort TO
win or. in plain English pulling him. 1t is not at all
strange that the public has a poor opinion Of the
standard OF honesty in on the trotting turf.
For years the Fleetwood managers. as we'll as
other driving clubs. not only permitted this busi-
ness but invited 1t by selling the privilege OF maxi
ing books on the heats 10 the highest bidder. The
rlible public. who bet the results of the heats.
set next TO no protection whatever. II being the
Almost universally accepted doctrine that so long as
intention to throw the race cannot be proved
against driver he may LAY up or pull his horse
in as many heats he pleases. and that although
ne does so openly and plainly bets on the horse for
the heat will not be declared off. few turf writer's
practice Of heat betting since It came into
vogue but without effect. The revenue derived
from the booknakers on tracks where the sale or
betting privileges is not unlawful seems TO be more
desired than clean racing and fair play and neat
betting is still on the increase Probably ninety
per cent of the betting at Fleetwood last week was
on the result of the heats. In n recent Issue OF
THE Horse Review a stan writer thus shamelessly
and candidy voices the sentiment OF the CONNER
cial element in defence OF pulling heats and skin
ming the public: III driver who lays up heat
Is a thief. from whom does he steal? Why, the
gambler of course. Does Mr.. Simpson think that
While heat betting was. no doubt, at the bottom
q far greater proportion of the pulling was appar-
emily due to the desire TO avoid taking fast records
From the first day Of the meeting II was plain
that number Of horses Were Out iGi w oi ana
out winning a heat ana shouldC rins a record that
would force them into faster class FOR the future
IN the stand. it soon became apparent that the
drivers could do about as they pleased and on
sented when one Of the reinsmen drove his horse
with one hand. holding his watch in the other; so
When II came 10 the finish he looked al his watch.
and seeing that his horse was troitng three or
stopped driving right under the of the judges
letting another horse come on from me rear r and
insulting hit of pulling that occurred during me
whole Sa h Sre Ses h he osas
permitted TO 80 through without 80 much as
ens"ss month hence H Grani Circuit VIII
on az Fleetwood and ysi,ins noEsemen VIZ dS %
York people DO not turn out to see The ,rottersr'
The answer OF local sporismen is nke;y 10 be, be;
honesty Of ,rotting races at Fleetwood Park"
The Grand Circuit meeting a, saginaw last week
aiing 20 the crack rottcrs and PAGERS IN The free
ior-a division W,h AK unable TO ssa, :oS, IN
as necessitaie his withdrawal from the free-for-
made vi" daughter q cSmes laid up for res, or re-
at me- lie Sas en-
horse tina, has started against MIN thus iar THIS
phoebe wRes and other fast and has ro,c
in .o7A wthou, being extended The only horse
the biz 9stornisn ses is William n Penn a whom
many Eastern horsemen believe to be the fastest est
two cracks will come together before the date Of the
G Sev c 6 Ss ssns the %G4 ts
for-a. Azote starts at Detroit next Saturday In
the 2d6 class against Fantasy Dlrectum' Hulda ana
three or four others William Penn Is entered al
the meeting In the 2Il class. where he VIII
meet the fast horse klamath. 20siz Nightingale
Aunt Delilah and Carbon. among others.
The performance of Robert J. at Saginaw laet
week indicates that the little OF Hartford is
better horse this year than in 1884, when he set the
record az 2:0li. After Ed Geers had driven him In
200 at Saginaw. letting him pace the last half IN
lD0A. the Tennessee reinsman is said TO have made
the prediction that Robert j. will touch the two
minute mark before the close Of the present cam
paign He looks like certain winner OF the 1900
iree-for-all race. to be paced at the New-York
Grand Circuit meeting. although both Joe Patchen
and John r. Gentry have shown good form this
year.