COMMISSION.
- George the Fifth, by the Grace of God, of Great Britain, Ireland, and the British Dominions beyond the Seas, King, Defender of the Faith, Emperor of India :—
- To The Honourable HEREWARD HUMFRY HENCHMAN, M.A., LL.M., a Judge of the Supreme Court of Queensland, JAMES CADELL GARRICK, Esquire, Barrister-at-Law, and FREDERICK JAMES MCCARTHY, Esquire, Barrister-at-Law, Acting Commissioner of Stamp Duties.
- Greeting :
WHEREAS it is expedient in the public interest that full and careful inquiry should be made into the control and management of horse-racing and racecourses (including the form, manner, and extent of such control and management to ensure proper conduct on the part of all persons taking part in horse-racing) in an area comprising the areas of the City of Brisbane and the City of Ipswich and the area between the said cities bounded on each side of the railway line between the said cities by a line running parallel with and distant five miles from such railway line, and into the ownership of all racecourses (including in that term all lands originally granted, reserved, or set apart for the purposes of horse-racing and/or racecourses) in such area, whether at present used as such or not, and the tenure under which the same are held, and into the extent to which each and every such racecourse is used for the purpose of horse-racing and the extent to which horse-racing is carried on in such area, and more particularly into (but without limiting the scope of such inquiry to) the matters following, that is to say :—
- (1.) Under what form of tenure each and every racecourse is held, whether under the provisions of the Land Acts, or under any and what trust or trusts or under freehold or under any and what other tenure ;
- (2.) As to each and every racecourse whether the same is owned or leased or held and/or controlled and/or managed by a bona fide club and/or a committee thereof or by any and what person for his or their own use and benefit or by any and what person on behalf of or for the use and benefit of any other and what other person ;
- (3.) As to each and every racecourse owned or leased or held and/or controlled and/or managed by a bona fide club and/or a committee thereof, and as to each and every racecourse owned or leased or held and/or controlled and/or managed by any club so called but not being a bona fide club and/or by a committee or body of persons purporting to be the committee or controlling body of such club—
- (a) By whom such committee is elected or appointed ;
- (b) What are the qualifications for membership of the club and of such committee ;
- (c) By what method such committee is chosen or appointed ;
- (d) What is the number of members of the club and of such committee ;
- (e) Whether the number of members of the club is limited, and, if so, what is or are the reason or reasons for such limitation ;
- (f) In what manner and for what purpose or purposes the moneys receivod by such club whether from subscriptions, fees, licenses, charges for admission, totalisator deductions, fractions, and all other sources are expended, applied, disposed of, or used ; and
- (g) Whether proper books of account are kept by such club, disclosing the manner in which and the purposes for which all such moneys of the club are expended, applied, disposed of, or used.
- (4.) (a) Whether any racecourse has been sold, leased, mortgaged, charged, encumbered, or dealt with or agreed so to be, and, if so, what is the nature and effect of, and what agreements or other instruments have been executed pursuant to or in connection with any such sale, lease, mortgage, charge, encumbrance, dealing, or agreement ;
- (b) What is the financial ability of the party or parties to any such sale, lease, mortgage, charge, encumbrance, dealing, or agreement, or of any person directly or indirectly interested therein to complete and carry out the same.
- (5.) As to each and every racecourse by what person and by what arrangement, agreement, or agreements, if any, the days for holding race meetings thereon are appointed or allotted.
- (6.) (a) Whether it is desirable that the number of days upon which race-meetings are held should be reduced generally, or on any, or if so, which racecourse or racecourses ;
- (b) Whether it is desirable that the days upon which race-meetings may be held should be confined to Saturdays and Public Holidays.
- (7.) Whether it is desirable to reduce the number of race clubs and /or racecourses.
- (8.) Whether it is desirable to restrict or prohibit horse-racing under any, and, if so, which of the existing forms of control.
- (9.) Whether it is desirable to constitute a board of racing control, and, if so, how such board should be constituted, and in what manner should it be elected or appointed.
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