Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1895-01-25
THE RACE TRACK COMPROMISE

The compromise effected at Rich
mond on Wednesday, by which the Old
Dominion Jockey Club will suspend
racing at the Alexander Island track
during the month of. February, and the
/ s.. Asaph track will stop book making
and pool selling during that month,
was the stepping stone toward further
compromise between the Old Dominion
and the Virginia Jockey Clubs, and i.
has been definitely settled, though ar
engagements have not yet been consum-
mated, that the two clubs will race On
alternate days, beginning on March 4.
March l falls on Friday, but the Old
Dominion people will probably not race
until Tuesday, the 9Th, when they will
resume the sport with a programme of
six races each day. This arrangement
was reached after long consultation
between representatives of the two or
CARNATIONS at Richmond, after it was
decided not to take the injunction case
into court.
The Alexander Island people say that
the more the matter is considered the
more apparent it becomes that they are
10 a better condition, under the agree
ment made in Richmond on Wednes.
day, than they were before and than II
no suit had been brought, because the
Injunction cannot be revived and made
operative until 60 days previous notice
has been given. Even ifsuch notice we've
given. they say, it is not certain that
an Injunction would be granted, Judge
Keith having in similar case refused
such an injunction.
The representatives of the State, on
the other hand, express their satlsfac-
ton with the result, saying that their
object, the stopping of winter racing.
has been accomplished.
The Richmond Times OF yesterday
has an editorial on the agreement which
was on Wednesday reached in the A
exander Island case, in which it says:
1.-THE so-called compromise with the
Alexander Island gamblers is a mere
surrender by the State. This was to
have been expected, as all the ability
of our admirable Attorney General is
not sufficient to make wise and just
judge give judgment against the plain
statute law, and the gamblers had the
law on their side. The legislature did
such damage that the court could not
undo it. But the language of the com
promise is unfortunate, when it as
sumes that the defendants-the gam
blers-could possibly conduct their
business orderly, without offence and
without creating a nuisance The
whole business is an offence, and as such
a nuisance. Monte Carlo, with its rou-
let tables, is not a more hagrant
and outrageous violation of the sense
of morality and right of the Virginia
people than are the St. Asaph and
Alexander Island 'roulet' horse games
and their local and foreign boards as
the bookmakers' plays are called. The
infamy lies with the legislature, and
those who authorized Virginia to be
made the dumping ground for the
abandoned men and women, who roost
in Washington. and, like carrion crows,
come daily over the Potomac to reyel
in those orgies which nowhere north OF
the Potomac are tolerated. We will
Just have to endure this miserable,
humiliatiug spectacle until the legisla-
ture meets, which the whole accused
growth, as John Randolph said of wild
onions, should be cut by the roots,
burned and exposed to hard FROST
The State says A prominent mem
Der of the Legislature, who had much
to do with the passage Of the bill, said
to-day that the bill was prepared to
suppress pool-selling at gambling shops
where there were no race tracks and to
break up gambling at Jackson City.
But that after the bill had been pre-.
pared, objection was raised by several
distinguished members that if the bill
should become law in its original
shape, it would break up legitimate
racing and seriously injure the stock
raising business in Virginia. Accord
ingly, the bill was remodeled so as to
allow legitimate racing at agricultural
fairs and the like and in that shape it
passed. 1t was scrutinized by the com
mittees for Courts of Justice of both
branches, after having been previously
scrutinized by subcommittee of the
Senate committee to which it was refer