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permitted to be competitors. There are fifty-three clubs at which only unregistered horses are allowed to compete ; twenty-seven agricultural and pastoral associations or polo or hunt clubs are registered, while there are two clubs which it is impossible to classify because the nature of their proposed activities is as yet uncertain. The first of these is the Cambridge Racing Club, of which registration was granted only on the 28th February, 1947, and the other, the Clifden Racing Club, which has not held a meeting of any kind since it became a non-totalizator club. Of all the clubs registered, twenty-seven appear to provide programmes in which racing is the exclusive constituent, fourteen provide for racing and novelty events, whilst ten provide for novelty events alone. 336. Some of the clubs have not held any meetings for some years, or at least none in respect of which it has been necessary to submit a programme to either Conference. With the exception of those clubs which cater for registered horses, the operations of these clubs are in the nature of picnic meetings—that is, they are gatherings of farmers and other country people and horse-lovers who meet in a social way in connection with events in which a purely sporting spirit predominates. The prize for an individual race rarely exceeds the sum of £2O and the amateur spirit is rigorously preserved. The general nature of the meetings can best be gathered from the following extract from a case submitted to us in this relation. The extract reads : The real motive behind the inception of picnic racing clubs is to promote interest amongst the younger members of the rural communities in the care and attention of animals and to provide an amenity in the form of racing of farmers' hacks. This has led to a tremendous improvement in the general standard of hacks throughout districts in which these clubs operate, and a growing active interest amongst farmers and their employees in the affairs and competitions of the clubs. As all events carded by the clubs are restricted to amateurs, it can readily be seen that if there was not very keen support from the farming community there would be too few competitors for a successful fixture to be held. Frequently there are divisions required in certain events because of the numbers desiring to compete, and these divisions are usually in events for purely local competitors. Necessarily the entrance fees must be kept low, which means the prizes usually are small, and some interest has to be provided to attract public support, through the gate charges and other attractions, to pay for sideshows. SECTION 2.—SWEEPSTAKES 337. At most of these meetings no horse can compete which is or has for some stated time been in the hands of a professional trainer, and none can be ridden by any person employed in or about the management, training, riding, or care of registered horses. As a means of engendering further interest in the racing, any form of betting being illegal, recourse has been had to a system of sweepstakes, and the practice