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won their £200 apiece. I would then start the four winners at the 

 Curragh October meeting for, say, £300 to the winner, £100 to the 

 second, £70 to the third, and £30 to the fourth and last. 



By some such method as this there would be (a) a distinct incentive 

 to bring out horses fit to stay a long distance on the flat ; (6) a fair dis- 

 tribution of the money over Ireland, and thereby encourage thorough 

 breeding ; (c) running the winners off in ties would bring out the best 

 four-year-old in Ireland, and that at a season when he would be far 

 advanced ; (cl) there would be no monopoly of Queen's Plates as has 

 been in so many cases already historic ; (e) finally and financially the 

 prize would be worth looking for, as the winner all out would have 

 got £700, the second £500, the third £470, and the fourth (or last 

 in the final race) £430, while the other four winners, although beaten 

 in their first ties, would have got their £200 apiece. 



No doubt, at times, these races would have little interest to the 

 public, as the issue would often be a foregone conclusion. Never mind. 

 The object of Queen's Plates is not to provide races necessarily 

 interesting to the public, but to encourage the breeding of stout 

 thoroughbreds. The money takes the form of o, premium rather than a 

 stake, therefore let these races be fought out annually on the merits 

 of our four-year-olds at equal weights. Let the public look elsewhere 

 for races which will give them excitement. 



In these days of huge stakes men don't value a £100, therefore 

 Queen's Plates should be made up to a sum that would be valued. 

 The Government of a great nation like England would not grudge a 

 few thousands a year of extra expenditure upon the most popular 

 sport of the people, not to speak of improvement of the most profitable 

 animal we have in the kingdom. Fifteen Queen's Plates, totalling 

 £1,530, are given annually in Ireland, productive, as I say, of no 

 good result. Let there be now given £2,900, allocated somewhat 

 upon the lines I have suggested, and then see what result it will bring 

 about. 



A change to something like what I have described would apply at 

 present with especial adaptability. Our Conservative Government 

 has of late years introduced into Ireland thoroughbred horses, which 

 are distributed fairly over the four provinces. These serve farmers' 

 mares at the low charge of one sovereign. Their produce will soon be 

 plentiful all over the country, and if they had Queen's Plates to run for 

 such as I have described, it would undoubtedly prove a still further 

 inducement to our farmers to breed strong thoroughbred horses. 



What will our rulers say to all these radical changes which I have 

 proposed in our racing 1 Of course they will say that I am an enthu- 

 siast, or perhaps something worse. I don't care what they say about 

 me. I have the good of our racing and our racehorses as much at 

 heart as any of them, and I see many things which require adjustment. 

 I think therefore it would be a good plan if the Turf and Jockey 

 Clubs were to follow the example set by the National Hunt Clubs and 



