East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1905-01-12

The most fearless scourging ever
given the great Eastern race tracks
and their hordes of depraved de-
votees, is contributed to the January
number of the Cosmopolitan. by Da-
vid Graham Philips, and is in part,
as follows:
Delusion Of the Race Track.
There are less than 80 race tracks
in the United States less than 10000
horses kept in readiness for the track,
less than $4,000 persons directly in
terested in tracks and horses; proba-
bly, the total investment of capital is
considerably less than as MILLIONS.
But in results, in dividends, no other
activity, not even the liquor traffic,
compares with racing. For, as a
judge recently pointed out, the race
track is directly the largest agent and
the most successful, in recruiting for
the criminal class. 1t makes more
thieves, more murderers more moral
wrecks, than any other. And to de-
prave and debauch is its chief object.
There is a movement in this coun-
try toward improving the breed of
thoroughbreds; but It has only an in
cidental, practically an accidental,
connection with racing If there were
not race track, not a racing stable,
not a patron of the turf" in the
country, the fine horses for riding and
driving would continue the improve
ment of the breed of the thorough
bred, for which that demand alone is
thus far responsible. To say that
racing is the cause of fine and finer
horses is like saying that the con-
sumption of milk punches is response
BILE for the improved breed of cows
and that II no more milk punches
were made, we should soon have only
the COW that gives the pale blue milk
If we had to look for the develop
ment of our breed of horses to the
race track, with its killing speed and
its rnerciiess sacrifices of 2-year-olds
we should soon have a retrograd'
breed, weak, deformed, short-lived.
This brings us to the chief. the rea
object of the race track, That rea
object is gambling. Not at all TO
the improvement of the breed of thu
thoroughbred horse. Partly for tn
Improvement of the breed OF TIT
thoroughbred "gentleman"-in tn
unmanly, un-American. European
sense of the word.
And chiefly for the improvement o
the breed of the thoroughbred rasca
for. of the many breeds of rascal
your gambler is the most thorough.
Breeding Place Of Vices.
In his nature all vices breed a
naturally as maggots in rotte
cheese. In his heart all the virtue
inherent in mankind are swift
stifled. A practitioner of any othe
vice may retain some virtues, ma
make them flourish even. But tn
gambler becomes wholly debaucheC
And the worst of it is that becaus
the outward and visible signs of tn
utter rottenness within are often lack
ing, his fellow men who do not gan
BILE or gamble only "for fun" do nc
realize the ravages of this lust fo
gain without toll has made In him.
We hear procurers, cheats an
debauchers, spoken of as "Hone
Johns" and Square Dicks!" An
book-makers who hide under an al
of prodigality the instincts and prac
tices that would shame the paw
brokers of fiction, are called goo
fellows" men with the "highe'
sense of honor"
A few of the owners of race horse
are rich men of character, with MOI
or less amiable weakness for imita
ing dukes and earls and prince
And some of them, through custom
carelessness or selfishness, blir
themselves to the infamy they a
and abet
The most of the owners are me
whose secret thoughts would mai
daylight shudder. They use the
horses as the proprietor of a swea
shop uses his slaves. They are coldl
mercilessly, unscrupulously ION Il
make"
Snowy Kind of Honesty.
OF course, being shrewd and Gale
lating, they have the snowy kind
honesty that is the necessary part
their business assets-they pay VIII
they owe, pay it without write
bond. since their entire business is u
lawful. But to praise this, to call
real honesty, is like eulogizing me
chant for not employing highwaym
and pickpockets to ply upon the Gu
toners that enter his shop. An
aside fro mthat compulsory Writ