The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-05-26
by j. $. a. MACDONALD.

|
NEW YORK. May 25.-'rhe Jockey
Club is effectually killing off the
plungcr. Five years ago pittsburgh
Phil" Jack Mcdonald. Dave" Cid
con. Joe Yeager John w. Gates,
"Jake" Worth and George Wieelock
would have supplied color to Brook
lyn Handicap running by virtue OF their
mammoth operations in the betting
ring. The recent renewal of the big
race at Gravesend say very little high
stake play a circumstance which did
not fail to attract the attention OF the
old campaigners who watch the trend
of race track speculation with the
same kcenness as the student of Wall
Street observes the rise and fall OF the
| markets. OF course. there was world
of money wagered on the result but
the huge individual bets of bygoncI
| days were missing. There We're no
pittsburgh pills" cleaning up 100000
| to race. a feat he accomplished when
EJohn Il. Madden won tho Saratoga
| Special with Aristocracy at Saratoga
only four years ago. A canvass of the
lbcokmakers' sheets did not disclose n
single $4,000 bet on the day. What q
change! This indicates an interesting
development In the money end of
racing.
| Sentiment and restriction are exter-
minatnG the genus OF the race-track
money prodigal. The hiGh-class sport
ing man no longer cares to be deslg-
mated as "a gambler while the inn
lpcsing OF ten-minute betting period
tupon the bookmakers and the public
DEBTORS. gives little opportunity for the
placing Of big commissions. II an
| operator waits for an expected rise
in the price OF n horse he has in mind
to play he may not be able to get a
lbet at all. so short Is the time for
lmaking wagers to each race. Then
again, the breaking up of the book
makers organization-the Metropolitan
Turf Association--which virtually mo-
Inopolized the market and "syndicated"
the ring in mild way. has made the
game more open one, and conse
tquently the big bettors are bit more
Icautious than In the old days The
Infusion. too. of the Western money
into the ring has given the betting
| market many more uncertain angles"
Ito 1t than 1t possessed some four or
five years ago. /. a. Celia will now
overlay tho biggest New York book
maker point If he wishes to secure
a line of play on any one choice. He
is a new Richmond in the field. for
the bookmakers who could afford to
compete with either BILLY" Cowan or
| the Appleby- Lichenstein book In days
gone by was not dreamt of.
AS late as 1905, John w. Gates would
send in a $4,000 commission on some
to l choice. Cowan, Lichenstcin,
/ Blumenthal, or George Rose would
take the play, but by certain mutual
IL
the plunge at better than s to 5. TO
spread it about the ring in $500 lots
would mean that some of 1t would get
on at to l. and most of it at 4 to 5.
| Generally Gates stood the shave. Now,
i with the big Celia book "Jm" Murphy
and other Western invaders in the play.
Gates could bet his $4,000 at 2 to L.
Booking and playing in the East was
never more open than 1t Is to-day.
The eclipse of the big tent" plunger
is a source of qualification to the
Jockey Club. for the talk of the money
whirl at the race-trncks does more to
arouse an unjust and irrational pre-
i, tudice than anything else
Racing men off tho scene have been
at n loss to understand the ten
minute betting limit" The Jockey
I Club agreed with the head or the re-
form element at Albany N. Y. to Grad
/ icate the pool-room evil of Manhattan
in return for q promise from the re-
I formers in effect that they would not
Il ossail the Percy-C Grey racing law. De-
/ splte q vigorous fight against the pool
L rooms with high canvas screens, KITES
4 etc. the Jockey Club found that lhe
n rooms were getting news service
4 from the trackslde withal. Then came
4 tbo most drastic move OF all me
Il Toc,,ev club withheld the scratches.
l Jockeys. etc, from the bookmhkers anu
Il the public until just ten mlhut.s W
fore the horses went down to the post
~, +ho t,,no the pool-room agents could
smuggle the nows out OF 'i'o wv -
tho race Is now on.
rho polmont Stakes for three-Sea
o,ds nj a mile and three-eights Will pc
nm on next Thursday at Belmoht
pa'k another shift TO Belmont Park
rrnm C;rayesend occurring at the end
"a th,s week, To the owner or the
,,,,pninp horse will go tho splendid
s,,n of sci 900, with $1,000 to the
se,nnd and $1,000 to the owner OF the
+hira. This is ono of the richest ana
nIdast threc-y year old classics on inc
! ,nrf calendar having been run for
the first time just forty years ago last
I MAY 10th There Is nothing OF extra
1 ordinary quality in tho field this year,
barring Salvidere. PAumonok ana re-
4 tnr pan. and there Is no certainty
about any one of these stars going
D so long route. In fact we'll
h known trainer said yesterday, that he
thought Judge Post, Z second-rate
4 colt at New Orleans last winter, might
Y win the rich stake We're he here to
d start for the reason that he can so