The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-07-05
CWa sbinston starN
l,T7HAT big rake-down which


ftTHAT big rske-down which was
recently made. by scientific wire
tappers on the victory Of the
horse Jack Eatlin at Ls.onia reminds
me OF a similar sort Of dodge which
was put through for big money in the
most high-hying pool room in the state
or California last winter" said trav-
eler from the Pacific coast THE pool
room was located in Sausalito, the
picturesque little town at the far end
OF San Francisco bay and opposite An
gel island. 1t was run by eastern men
and was only for the plungers who
didn't care for the rush and hurry and
elbowing attending visits to the tracks
where the races were being run. Track
odds or better were given in this pool
room. and no bet of less than 500 was
taken, the limit being put that way to
keep out the pikers and small fry. Bets
or $1,000 on the outcome OF a race
weren't unusual IN that room. and
small fortunes were Won and lost there
every day by the mob Of skyscraping
horse players.
A gang of eastern race followers OF
the scheming variety concluded that
that was just about the sort Of a pool
room that would probably stand for a
big tapping. and they spent weeks in
framing up a plan TO get the money.
They rented a small house near the
Oakland track that commanded a first
rate view Of the whole Oakland course
and In this house they had installed
a private telephone. This all fixed, they
rented another house directly across
the street from the plungers' pool room
I'm SausalitO. They had the telephone
company put another private telephone
In this house and connect the wire with
the telephone IN the little house that
they had rented near the Oakland
track
"The member Of the outfit Of schem-
ers who knew all OF the various racing
colors from long experience as well as
he knew his alphabet was stationed at
the Oakland cottage to watch the
finishes The scheme was that the
money should only be put down on
horses that had such a big lead at the
head of the stretch that they would
have to fall down to lose their races.
This was to gain time on the regular
telegraph operators of the track who
sent the results by the Western Union
office. whence they were communicated
to the pool rooms ali over the coast
When the man in the front window OF
the Oakland cottage saw horse lead
ing his field by a bag margin-he used
ield glasses, Of course, so as to guard
against making mistakes in the cOlors
he would simply cali or the name OF
hat horse to mis- pal at the telephone
m the same room with him and even
before the horse with the big winning
cad had won. the man at the telephone
would phone the name of the front
horse 10 the man at the phone in the
Sausali4o cottage. Then the man with
The dough would hustle across the
street 10 the plungers' pool room and
put down a big bet on the horse thai
mad the unbeatable lead in the stretch
THE scheme of only playing the
horses that had the big winning leads
enabled the crafty ones to beat the
teiegraphers, who, of course, never
wired TO the central Office in San Fran
cisco the name OF the winning horse
until the winner had actually got under
The wire. Moreover, they had otter
another time margin to rely upon. fol
the track operators had to send the re-
suits straight to the San Francisco Of
flee, and as a general thing these re-
suits weren't communicated to the poo
rooms for from three to six minute.
after the races were over.
ut was the most profitable rig-uI
that was ever fixed up by racing
schemers in this country. and tn,
sang worked the SaCsalito pool room
for tens Of thousands OF dollars.