Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-11-14

of the crack stables of the country are In
readiness to be shipped to the Washington
track, and owners of celebrated strings of
ruT lers who never before even considered
the Benning meeting are going to try the
racing there this fall
John Madden. that shrewdest of all Amer
lean turfmen. past present, who has
never even been in the city of Washington.
much less raced there is going to take
number of his SWEETEST colts to the Bennin9
track for the approaching meeting.
That new figure of the turf, the young
and abnormally tall. not to say ianky Mr..
Thomas. owner of champions among
eQuines of all ages. will be strongly repre-
sented at Benning Some of the elite colts
or Mr.. Whitneys string will try conclusions
over the new course made by Mr. Lee the
Der ming superintendent of which great
things are being said over here by touring
turfmen who have dropped off at Wash
ington to look at 1t. and a long list of other
famous owners, who have always hitherto
put their stables into winter quarters a the
close or the autumn meeting at Morris
Park, have kept some of their best animals
IN training for the Washington meeting
A good deal of this new drift of sentiment
among the powerful turf owners is no
doubt attributable to the summers mission
airy work of Mr.. August Belmont. The
Benning track is not only Mr.. Belmont's
pi operty, but 1t is his pet. He Is among
the shrewd Americans of wealth and social
eminence who perceive the inevitable es-
adjustment of Washington as the social as
well as the political center of the United
States-a position, indeed, which Ii has
virtually attained already-and he Is desir-
Gus of placing racing on as high a plane
In washington as, for example, 1t has been
placed in Saratoga by Mr. Whitney-of
eliminating. so far as possible. those riot
ouSly speculative features of the game
which tend TO give horse racing such dis
repute in the eyes of the conservative
Many racing men of high social position.
who have hitherto given the Washington
ha -ht- l.ar-..
ed their determination to attend the an
preaching fall meeting at Benning and, as
many of these racing men of society will
take their families along with them IL IL
considered a certainty that there will be a
social atmosphere attaching to the Benning
races this autumn such as. in this country,
Is only characteristic of a few of the New
YORK tracks. notably Morris Park and
Sheepshead Bay. The fact that this will be
the first fall meeting at Benning during a
session OF Congress is also expected to
serve as considerable element making for
the success of the Washington racing sea-
son.
Ruling Off of Ryan.
Mention of Mr. August Belmont's dislike
of the sordid gambling features of racing
leads to the statement that 1t was Mr.
Belmont himself who was directly response
BILE for the ruling off of the turf of John J.
Ryan, of get-rich-auick and ringing" .no-
toriety. who. besides. has been mixed UP
with the bribing of some of the disgraced
officials of the Post Office Department
Nothing seems more certain than that the
era of the race track plunger. so far, at any
rate. as the eastern race courses are con-
cerned is at end
All of the turf powers notably Mr.. Bel
mont. the chief turf authority in the United
States, and Mr.. Whitney, one of the most
influential patrons of racing strictly as a
sport. have set their faces against the ram
pant plunger, and already most of the OBJ
Streperous, notoriety- relishing plungers
have been banished. George Smith pitts
burg PhiD was warned off early in the sea-
son.
His case made great stir. But other
plungers, not so notable, whose operations
often exceed those of Pittsburg Phil, have
been quietly notified to quit during the
racing season that is just closing here and
all of them. to save being absolutely de-
barred from the tracks. have been wise
enough to obey these injunctions.
The turf powers did not even hesitate to
inform such feverishly speculative finan-
ciers as John III. Drake and John w. Gates
that their ring play was fashioned on alto
gether too huge a pattern.
Both of these millionaire turfmen from
the west Illuminated for a while after
ceiving these notifications. and threatened
to withdraw their horses from the eastern
tracks. 1t is not of record that the east
ern turf authorities betrayed any alarm
ing symptoms of shriveling up when they
got this ultimatum. 1t has come to pass.
simply. that the plungers are not wanted
any more.
They do incaIculable damage to horse
racing as a sport by infiaming the minds
of foolish young men, who. after a little
turn of initial luck, proceed to abandon
everything in their frantic efforts to emu
late the turf plungers. Next year. as soon
as a new man begins to exhibit plunging
propensities. he will be quietly but firmly
notified to go SLOW" and every such man
41ss- TIT,
find the gates of the race tracks absolutely
closed in his face. This is the edict that
has gone forth from the jockey club powers,
and, from what has already been accom-
plished this season along the line of ex-
terminating the plungers, nobody familiar
with the eastern turf doubts in the least
that 1t will be enforced to the letter.
c. L. G.