The San Francisco call., 1899-04-08

terday. There was but one witness exam
ined. w. S. Leake, who two years ago
was secretary of the Pacific Coast Jockey
Club. He was called to tell of the i'm
provements which had been added to the
bare land bought by the racing associa-
ton, and how much of it would become
valueless if racing were discontinued at
the Ingleside track. He also told of the
fortunes the bookmakers pay to be al
lowed to ply their trade in the betting
ring.
Henry Ach, attorney for the plaintiffs,
the poolmen and the jockey club, made an
opening statement in which he declared
the plaintiffs would prove that the pool
selling ordinance was never violated; that
the business of the plaintiffs has been Sc
riOusly injured by the presence of the po-
lice, and that should the attempt of the
defense to stop the plaintiffs business be
successful it will result in irreparable in
jury to the plaintiffs. The contention of
the defense is that it is not the presence
of the police at the track that has caused
the plaintiffs trouble, but their persistence
in maintaining a business in violation of
the law.
Mr.. Leake was secretary of the jockey
club from March, 1896 to March, 1897
During that time the track was built up
from a barren waste to its present condi-
ton, and the witness was questioned
closely as to the value of all these i'm
proVements.
He was asked the value of the grand
stand-what it cost to build. how many it
would accommodate and what its present
value is. Ach's questions then turned to
the paddock, the stables, the clubhouse,
the kitchens and outbuildings. and all
the permanent improvements. Then he
took up the land itself, and found from
the witness that the whole thing, land,
improvements and all, is worth about half
a million: Then Ach showed the object of
his questions by asking what would be the
value of all these If racing were diScon-
tinued at Ingleside.
The question was objected to, but the
court passed it, and the witness answered
by saying they would be worth a great
deal more for racetrack purposes than
for anything else. He could not judge of
would all be Valueless.
Then Ach took up the privileges. He
inquired about the bar privilege, the
restaurant, the kitchen, the feed store.
the harness shop, the programme privi
lege, the candy, the pooboys and the
bookmakers the telegraph, the field
glasses the overnight entries and the
handicappers. He was told the value of
each at the time the witness was secre-
tary of the association and was informed,
too that if racing were discontinued they
would all be worthless.
On. cross -examinat ton. despite the OBJ
jections of opposing counsel, the defense
had the witness tell all he knew of pool
selling and betting at the track, both by
the ladies in the grand stand through the
poolboys and by the men in the betting
800 a day for the privilege of making
books and whenever there were more
than five races in the day they paid pro-
portionately more The witness said there
were from twelve to thirty bookmakers
always doing business in the betting ring
besides two field books which paid $3.50
a day each. There was an average of six
races a day for the season.
Regarding profits, Mr. Leake said that
in the time he was connected with the
Jockey club the track cleared over $175 900.
but that most of this was put back into
the track in permanent improvements.
Since 1897. he understood, there had been
paid a stock dividend of 100 per cent and
a dividend on the actual amount of stock
issued of per cent. The only actual cash
dividend, therefore, has been this 6 per
cent. amounting to about $4,000
Witness was also asked about the car
lines plaintiffs counsel seemed to think
had been inveigled out to Ingleside, and
Mr. Leake stated that perhaps they
would not be so valuable for a while if
racing were discontinued. 1t had been
shown that the gate receipts amounted
to anything from $1,000 a day to $4,000 and
over, figures which represent good many
more people
The trial was not interesting, for it in
cluded much that the defense is willing
to admit It is not denied that the bust
ness has been a large one, but it is not the
racing they are attacking; it is the pool
selling, and no one can deny the fact that
hundreds of thousands of dollars have
come and gone through that same nefari-
Gus business of the poolseler.