The record-union., 1898-01-05
A TURF JOURNALS OPINION.
At SUSTAINS THE TROTTING
BOARD OF REVIEW.
The Chicago cheeseman's" Criti-
ctsln Of the Woodland ASso-
ciation's Action.

Ine Chicago "HOrSen1an, a recog-
nlzed authority in racing matters, has
ths to say of the course pursued by the
woodland Trotting Association In IT'S
recent treatment of Messrs. Buckman
& Carragher of Sacramento regarding
Its futurity stake announced IN 1871:
"A JUST RULING.
In 1894 the District Agricultural As
sociation No. 40 Woodland, California,
opened a district futurity purse for
trotting colts and fillies, foaled that
year the race to be trotted in 1897. The
entrance fee was fixed at $50, payable
in the following installments: March 10,
1894, 81 80; October l, 1894, 81 90;
April i, 1895, 81 80; October 1, 1895,
81 90; October l, 1896, 81 80; April l,
1897, 81 30, and July /, 1897, so 80.
The stake was closed in accordance
with the conditions, thirty-four nomi-
nations being made. These were grad
ually reduced, as owners let them lapse,
until only about five final payments
We're made, the total amount paid in by
nominators being, July /, 1897, $50.
July 10, 1897, or fifteen days after the
date on which the final payments had
been made, the Directors of the asso
citation declared the stake off, giving
would entail their suffering a loss,
which would prevent their giving any
meeting at all, and mailing to each Of
the nominators that had maintained
their entries in force a check for $15,
the amount each had paid in.
-Four of the five owners who had
made final payments accepted the re-
turn of the entrance fees, but the fifth,
Messrs. Buckman & Carragher, pro-
prietors of the River View Stock Farm,
near Sacramento, California, declined to
be a party TO any such arrangement.
This firm denied the right of the Wood
land association to make any such dis
position of stake funds, notified the
Directors that it would hold them re-
sponsible for the full amount, kept on
preparing their entry, Fraulein DeX-
ter, for the event and informed the as
sociation that the filly would be on
hand ready to start for the money on
the advertised date.
'At the Woodland meeting and on the
date specified, this firm sent its filly
Fraulein Dexter onto the track noti
fled the Judges that she was ready to
start in the futurity stake, and her
driver was weighed in, in accordance
with the rules, witnesses being present
while that formality was observed. The
Judges replied that there was to be no
such race, abandoned the stand forth
with. and the filly was driven over the
course.
"A demand was then promptly made
by her owners for the amount Of the
stake and when this was as promptly
refused. steps were at once taken to
lay the whole matter before the Board
of Review through its Pacific Coast
branch. September 21st that body met
and took action on the protest and
claim, supporting the contention of
Messrs. Buckman & Carragher, but
modifying it to the extent of holding
that, as the Secretary of the Woodland
District Agricultural Association had
not notified the other four nominators
who made final payments of the inten-
ton of Messrs. Buckman & Carragher
to present their entry and demand
start on the day of the race, and of the
fact that that firm had declined to ac-
cept the return of its entry fee, each
of these four nominators We're entitled
to pro rata share of the purse.
In other words, the Pacific Coast
Board Of Review of the National Trot-
ting Association decided that the total
this futurity stake should be equally
divided into five portions and so dis
tributed to the five nominators who
made final payments, in strict accord
ance with the published conditions Of
the stake The Woodland association
then appealed to the Board of Review
from the decision Of the Pacific Coast
branch, but, subsequent to the session
of that branch last September, some
sort of an agreement seems to have
been entered into between the parties
belligerent Messrs. Buckman & Cara
CHER at first claimed the entire control
of the 81 800 stake, but later agreed TO
accept their entry fee of S15 and $500
more.
After the case had been decided
against the association, it sent its
check for $75 to Messrs. Buckman &
Carragher and thereafter countermand-
ed the order by notifying the bank not
to pay the check. Something inter
fered, however, to prevent the carry
ing out of this order, for the check was
cashed by the firm to whom ii was
drawn. On the hearing of the appeal
made TO the full Board of Review in
New York three weeks ago, the action
of the Pacific Coast branch was fully
sustained and the Woodland assoeia-
ton ordered suspended until the funds
had been disbursed a. decreed.
THE strangest thing in connection
with the entire incident related above
IS that the Woodland association should
have been so bold as to adopt any such
hdgh-handed way of dealing with stake
funds. The Board Of Review has from
the very beginning held that associa-
tions opening stakes are merely tenn
porary custodians acting in a fiduciary
capacity for the nominators making en-
tries and paying entrance fees. The
board has also held that no part of a
stake fund belongs to an association
and hence. how the Woodland associa-
ton could have thought that its plan
would receive the Endorsement of the
authorities is more than can be di-
vined
IF the Board of Review should have
indorsed such procedure, 1t would
have uncovered the earliest possible
method by which associations could
make money When the five nominators
made their final payments, it was evi-
dent that If all of their entries came up
TO the score for the word, the associa-
tion would have received in return for
its outlay a genuine race in which the
public would take much interest. 1t
voluntarily fixed the value OF the stake