The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1937-01-21
LADIES AT THE RACE
TRACK
BY FRANK CONDOR


- forbidden to do almost any.
thing in this precious country
Of ours, the spirit of reform
was in the saddle, the bluenoses were
at the steering wheel and life was
pretty gray for people with liberal
views. Now everything is changed
and you can do as you please and are
the released and famished citizens hav-
ing fun! They are indeed. Take horse
racing.
Not long ago, horse racing was
scowled at and looked upon pretty gen.
orally as cardinal sin. You were
forbidden to make wagers on the
horses as they Hoped around the track,
but recently the law-givers switched
over. State after state has legalized
hoss-racing, and what is more impor-
tant, wagering on the galloping be-
zarks.
Instantly new vistas opened up to
the long-starved Americanos, who love
to gamble, the same as the British,
the French and the Dutch, and the
opening tracks brought forth brand
new class, an unsupported group of
spectators, that you might call the
quiet women folk, or the ladies' who
used to stay at home. 1t turns out
they are hearty gamblers, and nobody
knew 1t.
Now, then, in those days before boss
racing came back so joyously, the or
binary American housewife didn't do
much betting, as there was no place
for her to gamble respectfully. The
big cities had their racing ladies and
feminine gamblers, to be sure, but they
belonged to a different social layer
and the homestaying women used to
read of them in amaZement. So far
as they were concerned themselves,
they didn't even know they, too, were
gamblers at heart. They thought they
were mothers or housewives, or what
ever it said in the city directory.
With the spreading advent Of boss
racing, these same women are cheer
fully taking fathers money out to the
local track and trustfully trying to run
two dollars up to a small fortune. And
it may be a good thing that so many
new tracks are flourishing in so many
states, for the faded housewives have
ut length found happy and exciting
way of spending the afternoon. If ex-
amined, it will be seen that there is
no sense whatever In the methods or
systems by which these inexperienced
danes bet on the horses.
They are not the hard-faced veterans
Of the track. They are not the emo
tionless Pittsburgh Phils of the bet
ting ring. They know nothing at all
about records or information sheets,
but are rapidly learning. Up to now,
they are pop-eyed crowd of guileless
and enthusiastic imbeciles, betting
small sums on the running horses, and
astonishing as it may seem, they Oft
en- win, to their own delight and the
boredom Of others in the family, who
now must listen to the tales Of tri-
umph and disaster.
In the old days, 1t was father and
his golf. He came home evenings from
the golf course, and even the cook could
tell how he had Jared in his joustings
with the boys by merely looking at him.
It was bit tiresome to mamma and
the boys, but those days are ended.
Mamma is now speaking at dinner,
having either made or lost So at the
track that afternoon, while father was
winning the daily bread at his office.
it is mother who relates with shining
eyes how she had So on the nose, the
nose belonging to Flying Fishcake, who
galloped in second by a whisker, and
if he had only galloped in first, mother
would have enriched the family by %
bucks, gold clause money.
It now takes the old lady about
40 minutes to describe properly the
thrilling fiscal items Of the afternoon,
and every one seems interested, ex-
cept father.
If those states that have not as yet
legalized racing proceed to legalize rae
ing, then we may as well give up the
ghost, for the home-staying female
population Of our sainted land is al
most certain to step right into the
game. We have always depended up
ON the sterling character Of our wom-
en-folk, but it appears that their weak
spot is gambling, and especially on
horses running. They are all innate
speculators, though millions of them
conceal the vice beneath a cloak Of
austerity, and the less they know
about any given racket, the heartier
they whirl In and take a crack at IL.