94 IOWA DEPARTMENT OP AGRICULTURE 



None of these matters should have been included in the call for the Meet- 

 ing. They are too general and in a way "cover too much territory." If 

 Point No. 12 Mrhich I have purposely skipped and will take up in a few 

 moments is adopted, it would be an easy matter to take care of the matters 

 included in the above five points as far as possible. 



Speaking of "covering too much territory" reminds me of a story I 

 heard relative to President Wilson's famous "14 points". 



A friend of Premier Clemenceau of France came to him at the time our 

 president enunciated his famous 14 points or commandments to the world, 

 and asked him what he thought of them. "Fine", said the Premier; "Fine". 

 "But don't you think," said the friend, "that he has gone pretty far in some 

 of them?" "Don't you think that he is covering considerable territory in 

 proportion to the part that America has taken in the war?" "Well now," 

 said Clemenceau, "perhaps he has, perhaps he has. Now that you mention 

 it, I do recall that he is a little strong. Christ you know only made ten". 

 Now that is the way that these five points strike me. 



No. 12. "No more penalizing by the Parent Trotting Associations 

 without representation." I think this is a very vital point, and one that has 

 more force than any of the others. This is an age of Democracy, and one 

 of the most important subjects to be worked out at the peace table in 

 France is that "Government of the people must be by consent of the 

 governed". This rule should apply in the harness world. As now con- 

 stituted, the sport is governed by the representatives of the tracks only. 

 This is not right. It has been continued so long in this unjust way that 

 little thought is given to it. Any fair-minded man can see that the inter- 

 ests which go to make up the personnel of the sport should be represented 

 in its management. I think that the American Association of Fairs and 

 Expositions should go on record as favoring such changes in the By-Laws 

 of the Parent Trotting Associations as to permit of the election of at least 

 three members to serve on the Board of Appeals of each of them, by the 

 Horseman's Protective Association. 



These members to be elected by them and certified up to the Parent 

 Association. These to be in addition to the directors now elected by the 

 representatives of the tracks. It would be a great step in advance in my 

 opinion, as it would stop the continual grumbling, make for fairness, and 

 put all interested parties in a position to do what they could for the benefit 

 of the sport. 



No. 14. "No more unorganized sport." This is not fact. The sport is 

 organized but it is organized by the tracks only. They have two parent 

 organizations, but owners or drivers are not admitted as members. Only 

 owners of tracks are and they make the laws and rules governing. If the 

 suggestions noted under Point 12 are adopted, this would round out the 

 organization in a proper way. As perhaps most of you know, I have 

 charge of the racing at the Iowa State Fair at Des Moines, and so am 

 more familiar with conditions there than at any other of the state fairs. 

 For our 1918 fair, we contracted for vaudeville acts and music to the 

 amount of $14,036. These acts appeared in front of the grandstand each 

 afternoon, same as the harness horses. At the conclusion of the fair we 

 paid their managers the $14,036 as agreed. Now, how about the harness 



