288 MINOR EVILS OF THE RACE-COURSE. 



panied by their wives, daughters, or other female friends, who 

 may be under their care. Drinking is then carried to excess, 

 followed by dancing in semi-darkness ; and it is needless to 

 say how baneful such a form of dissipation must be to men 

 and women who are, it may be said, in a measure entrapped 

 into it. Sobriety and modesty often become things of the 

 past only. The restrictions I have named would do much 

 towards stopping this lamentable practice, and would turn 

 into a real day's pleasure for the poor man, what is now too 

 'often an outing he can only look back upon with regret. If 

 to do so much be beyond the authorities, then the magistrates 

 should interfere ; and if they, too, are powerless, then surely 

 some true lover of racing holding a seat in Parliament would 

 bring forward a bill for the purpose, if only the matter were 

 agitated. 



My observations on these matters are not intended for a 

 moment to attach blame to clerks of the course and others 

 for evils which in many cases were pre-existing. Indeed, 

 these officials as a body deserve a large meed of praise for 

 strenuous efforts, often successful, towards reform. Nor 

 would I have it supposed that the race-course of to-day is 

 worse than the race-course in times gone by. Indeed, if we 

 examine the subject, we shall probably find that we have 

 much less to complain of in this respect than our forefathers 

 had. 



In the beginning of the present century, Newmarket not 

 only abounded in touts of all kinds, but in other degraded 

 characters, who stood on no trifles in the commission of 

 actual crime. These miscreants were tutored to villainy by 

 men who because of their superior education and talent were 

 worse than their tools. So widely spread was the mischief, 

 that the turf showed signs of decline if not of absolute 



