Los Angeles herald., 1905-06-26
LOCAL MEETING WILL OPEN
CALIFORNIA CIRCUIT
HIGH CLASS SPORT ASSURED
Association Will Make Every Effort
to Furnish Clean Racing-Ore-
gon and Washington sta
bIes Coming

day, when the Los Angeles Harness
Horse association will open it's first
meeting at Agricultural park and the
California circuit at the same time.
That the approaching meeting will mark
the beginning of one of the most sue
cessful years of sulky racing that has
ever been enjoyed by the breeding in
terest of the west Is firmly believed by
those who are familiar with prevailing
conditions. The local association is
composed of business men of known
standing, men to whom the mere win
ming of purses is but an incident and
who are willing to labor increasingly
for the upbuilding of the sport upon
clean and honest basis.
Trainers from oregon. Washington
and Idaho have been shipping their
strings of trotters and PAGERS to the
local track and the middle west will
also be represented during the six days
of racing. By the first of July 400 or
500 horses will be stabbed at the local
track from all sections of the west.
No better appointed track can lie
found anywhere, and it would be hard
to discover more enthusiastic harness
racing public than that of Los Angeles.
One of the best managed and largest
driving clubs in America is located in
Los Angeles and its matinee racing has
been famous for years. The worlds
champion trotting mare, Sweet Marie,
2:04%, was the champion of the local
club before she entered upon her re-
markable eastern career, and many
other horses that have won money and
fame east and west received their first
lessons when being driven by the
amateurs of the local club.
The newly organized association
which has arranged for the week OF
racing next month for 1000 purses IS
composed of gentlemen who are nearly
all members of the irving club and
their enterprise and money has made
the meeting possible.
1t is fortunate for the sport that the
circuit will have such an auspicious
opening as the Los Angeles meet is
certain to furnish.
The beautiful grounds, splendid track
and large fields of horses leaves moth
ing to be desired and with the hearty
support of the harness racing public
the approaching meet is bound to be
remembered as the most successful that
has ever been held in Southern Cali
fornia.
Harness racing enthusiasts will be
glad to learn that the first of the series
of race meetings of the Pacific Coast
Trotting Horse Breeders association
will take place at Fresno on the dates
originally fixed. Some apprehension
was felt that the total destruction of
the grandstand by fire recently would
make necessary the abandonment OF
the meeting or a change of dates. An
nouncement is made, however, that the
regular meeting will be held the third
week in July, as originally planned.
The program for the four days racing
shows a total of $4,000 in purses. The
prompt action of the Fresno men in
promptly erecting a new grandstand
will be appreciated by the harness
horsemen, particularly as the Fresno
meeting follows Immediately after the
close of the local races.
A discussion of the ringing" ques-
ton prompted the following tale of an
old harness racing man as he hung
over the Agricultural park rail the
other morning:
ut was out in the middle west in the |
old days. A brace of men who didn't
wear medals for honesty worked three
rich sporty young chaps, each of whom
was the owner of fairly speedy half
mile running horse, into n match. The
race was for $3.50 a corner and was
set far enough ahead to allow a good,
deal of excitement to be worked up.
While the talk that usually preceded
such an event in a small place was go
ing on farmer who lived in an ad-
joining county and also owned a run
ner was let in on equal terms. This
man. 1t is needless to say. was con-
sidered reliable" by the promoters Of
the job. 1t was known by them and a
few others that he had horse that
could outfoot easily the three others.
Finally the day for the race came
and the town, so to speak, was out 20
see the horses run. There was a great
hubbub. Everybody had money and
everybody wanted to bet. Men who
rarely had dollar had wads of money
that day, furnished, it was naturally
supposed. by the wealthy young bloods
to put on their horses. And the sharks
had their friends and emissaries out
greedily swapping it up. They were
sure they had in the country horse
what we would now call pipe for
it was reported to them from time 10
time that he was in great condition.
''To make a long story short the
horse owned by the young man whom