Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1922-03-29
MARYLAND KILLS
ANTEBETT|NG BILL
Senate Substitutes Norris
Measure, Providing for
Increase in Fees.

opeciai Dispatch TO The Star
ANNAPOLIS, Nd, March eth.
Hall anti-race track betting bill was
beaten in the state senate last night
and that legislative body substituted
! the Norris racing bill. which limits
meets to seventy-two days a wear.
raises the daily license fee to $40 900
and makes the racing commission sv-
preme.
Inc latter measure was passed to
.hiro reading and Will be brought up
The Norris measure leaves the
buTke racing commission law practi-
caiy intact, and in addition to re-
duclns the number of racing days and
increasing the daily license fee
makes new provisions for the an
pointment of race officials
rms action of the senate came as a
dlstlnct surprise and shock to those
VINO nave been working at Annapolis
Tor the Hall bill. They were conf
cent OF at least fourteen votes when
measure were not confident of more
IMAM twelve votes. but the vote by
which action was taken was is to ~.
Record of Roll Call.
The roll call on the motion to sub
stitute the Norris bill for the Hall
bill follows:
heas-Baltimore. President Norris
81 8d1. Blggs (d), Frick CD, Fox (d).
Arundel, Brady Id. Calvert, Parrsn
~. Carroll, Snader G). Charles,
Mitchell (d). Garrett Mccullough (dl'
fiarford. Tydings I'D. Prince Georges,
Sasscer td). Queen Anne. Legg ID.
M;ss na day peyerly td). Washington,
Nays-Alleeany Rohb I-, c,..,,
Lo~eis lr). Cecil, Cantwell Cd. Dor
chester, Byrn (d). Frederick, GoodelI
". howard, Wolfe CD. Kent, Russell
lol. Montgomery. Jones (d). Somer-
SCI, robins (r). Talbot, Mcdaniel (dr-
Wicomico, Disharoon (d). Worcester,
Harrison (d). Total, IL.
PRESIDENT Norris, for the drst time
curing the session, left the rostruro
and took the floor for his bill, which
ne onered as an amendment to the
cnart, mounted on an easel which he
placed in front of the senate, and
fortlhed by q deckful of law books
and a pile Of records and papers OF
various sorts, he began a two-hou11
expose Of conditions which, he matna
bill.
He told Of personal visits PAID I'd
tracks in New York. Louisiana and
Alabama, where anti-betting laws
SAaiii!Sf 70 the HAN measure arc
in effect. He told of placing bets ON
horses at those tracks and told how
the bets were placed. He produced
tWenty-seven original bookmakers'
charts which he had secured, and
which he distributed to members of
| the Senate for examination and study
after he had placed one OF them On
the chart.
Effect OF RepeaIers.
He read each section of the law
| which the Hall law sougitnks<ge aI
and argued on the effect - such re-
pealers. He argued that these repeal
ers took out &c the local laws Of the
state every statute that mentioned
! race tracks, and that every one of
those local statutes was q regu-
latory statute designed to pre-
vent unlimited and unregulated
| racing. He declared that tho repeal
ers opened the way for unlimited and
unregulated racing in every county Of
the state and in every section Of
Baltimore city.
The defeat OF the Hall bill by the
senate followed similar action by the
legislature on similar measures gpon-
sored by the same forces at the SEES
sions of 1914, 1916. 1918 and 1920.
When the present session opened
the hackers of the bill declared that
they had heavy majorities in both
branches. and that its passage this
year would be effected with littel or
no trouble.