The Queen v. Joseph Pereira and Others

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF HONG KONG

HOLDEN AT VICTORIA

CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

CASE NO.25 OF 1971

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Coram: District Judge T.L. Yang

Date of Judgment: 7 December 1971.

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Reasons for Verdicts - Main Part

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1. This is a case of conspiracy in connexion with the dishonest interference with the forms of horses which took part or were scheduled to take part in races at Happy Valley during the 1969/1970 Racing Season, from 11.10.69 to 16.5.70.

CHARGES

2. The gist of the First Charge is that all six accused, between 1.10.69 and 18.4.70, conspired together and with others unknown to cheat and defraud bettors as well as horse owners by doping horses. The gist of the Second Charge is that all six accused, between the same dates, conspired together and with others unknown to effect a public mischief by doping horses. The gist of the Third Charge is that D4, D5 and D6, between 1.10.69 and 1.3.70, conspired together and with one Fung and others unknown, to cheat and defraud bettors and horse owners by doping horses. The gist of the Fourth Charge is that D4, D5 and D6 between the same dates, conspired together and with one Fung and others unknown, to effect a public mischief by doping horses. By way of further particulars of the Charges, the prosecution on 30.3.71 stated that the method of interfering with the horses was the introduction of a substance or substances into the body of a horse (p.56 of my notes of proceedings. The figures in brackets hereafter (unless otherwise indicated) refer to my notes of proceedings and/or the exhibits). It will be seen that the same set of facts cover Charges 1 and 2, and another set of facts cover Charges 3 and 4.

FORMAT

3. Before I proceed any further, I should explain briefly the somewhat unusual format of my Reasons for Verdicts. I was at the very outset confronted with a dilemma. On the one hand I have to avoid going into great details and produce a complicated decision of inordinate length, but on the other hand I must not eschew details of importance. The solution that I have found is to divide the Reasons for Verdicts into several parts, in the hope of achieving two objects: (a) that it would contain all matters of material relevance, and (b) that the reader would not be overburdened with great length and unnecessary detalls. Thus the reader finds --

CROWN'S OPENING

4. The opening of the Crown's case took the whole of 22.3.71. On the following day, Mr. Jackson-Lipkin for D1 applied for an adjournment of at least a day. The gist of his submission was as follows: This is a case of great complexity, and one would have expected such a case to have been brought in the Supreme Court (but see Professor Glanville Williams on Criminal Law. - The General Part, 2nd edition at pp. 682-3, where the learned author considers that conspiracy charges are hardly suitable for trial by jury). It was only in March that a list of the horses involved and some of the witnesses' statements were supplied by the Crown. There was as yet only an incomplete list of the names of the witnesses. The first part of the Crown's written opening was received in March, the second part at mid-day and the third part in the afternoon of the first day of hearing. There being no written depositions, the defence found it difficult to prepare their case. These observations however, were in no way intended to be criticisms of the conduct of Mr. Corcoran, counsel for the prosecution. On the contrary, it was admitted that Mr. Corcoran was exceedingly fair and helpful in having supplied the witnesses' statements and other information. Indeed I think it right to make special mention of the scrupulous fairness which has characterised the conduct of the proseuction in this trial. The application by Mr. Jackson-Lipkin, and the reasons on which it was based, were supported by Mr. Patrick Woo for D2, D5 and D6, by Mr. K.H. Woo for D3, and by Mr. Thomas Wang for D4. (Leave was given to Mr. Wang to withdraw from the case on 7.6.71. A few days later D4 was represented by Mr. P. Woo.) Mr. Corcoran did not object to the application. I accordingly adjourned the hearing for 1 ½ days to 25.3.71 to enable the defence to consider the Crown's opening speech.

ASSESSMENT OF WITNESSES

5. A list of witnesses is to be found in Appendix 2.

6. As in most conspiracy trials, some of the witnesses called by the prosecution in the present case are either self-confessed co-conspirators with the accused or alleged by other prosecution witnesses to be co-conspirators.

7. Thus PW4 (Wong Tang Ping), a senior riding boy, has been described as having taken part in doping horses (e.g. by PW11), and as a member of D1's doping group (e.g. by P.W.7). It has been suggested by D2 and D6, and denied by PW4, that PW4 had asked them to dope Willie (Race 118). I find that PW4 did not ask either of them to dope Willie (pp.70,1060-1, 1074, 1145). On the evidence as a whole, I am of the view that he was suspected by his colleagues in the stables as a member of a doping group probably because of his unique position, to wit, his close association with its members and also the fact that he enjoyed the confidence of the alleged members of the conspiracy specified in Charges 1 and 2. This view is based on the readiness and willingness of D1, D2 and D3 to convey to him information on doping and the proved friendship between him and the three accused. And D6 received riding instructions from PW4. In my opinion, he was not a member of any doping group, nor a co-conspirator or accomplice. However it does not necessarily follow that he is therefore a completely disinterested and independent witness. He was clearly a suspect, and it is natural that he is anxious to clear his name. A witness in his position may become over zealous and exaggerate his evidence so as to present himself in a more favourable light. I accordingly warn myself that I should treat his evidence with the utmost caution. Having thus warned myself, I unhesitatingly accept him as a witness of truth.

8. PW5 (Chan Yuk) is an ex-mafoo and a self-confessed member of a doping group of which D4 was alleged to be a member. His evidence concerns Hippona II and High Flyer (Race 1 and Race 5 respectively, both on 11.10.69), Beautiful Girl (Race 14 on 18.10.69), and Atalanta and Public Safety (Race 17 and Race 20 respectively, both on 20.10.69). D4 is implicated by this evidence. P.W.5 has been declared a hostile witness, and in my opinion it is unsafe to rely on his evidence at all.

9. PW12 (Lai Kei On), a mafoo, denies that he was a co-conspirator, but I am satisfied on the evidence as a whole that he was. PW6 (Kan Ling Chi), PW7 (Vong Cheung Leung), PW9 (Yuen Leung), PW11 (Wong Tsz Yung), PW13 (Yau Po Kwong), PW14 (Chiu San Hong) and PW63 (Chung Lun) who are all mafoos, and PW10 (Yu Wing Kwai) a riding boy, have all admitted either that they took an active part in the conspiracy or that they were members of the conspiracy to dope horses, or both. All the witnesses referred to in this paragraph were therefore accomplices. That being so, it is not surprising that although some of them quite openly admit their participation in a conspiracy, others would deny it. Again in a conspiracy trial such as the present one, covering some 70 horses and 73 races and other incidents, all of which occurred a long time ago and stretched over a prolonged period - of some six and a half months for the first two Charges, and of six months for the last two Charges - witnesses were sometimes confused, and their memory was at times faulty. As is common in these cases, they contradicted themselves and each other in certain respects. In these proceedings, many witnesses for the prosecution, particularly those already mentioned in this paragraph, whilst under cross-examination, were subjected to extremely long and vigorous investigations on matters of great detail. Some of the witnesses' character was attacked, and at times the same question was repeated over and over again until the witness gave the desired answer, more, it appears, as a result of exhaustion and resignation rather than a genuine correction of a mistake made. Some of them were visibly weary and tired at the end of the day, particularly PW7, who was kept on the witness stand for about 31 ½ hours (18 of which being occupied under exceedingly persistent cross-examination) on the 14th, 15th, 16th, 26th, 27th, 28th, 29th and 30th of April and on the 3rd of May. After a few days his cheeks were flushed and his eyes were red, and it was plain that he was confused and could only concentrate with difficulty. PW9 was cross-examined at very great length on his part-time employment and it was put to him -- some might feel rather brusquely -- that he was a pimp and a liar. In this somewhat unfriendly atmosphere, some of these witnesses adopted a suspicious and evasive attitude, and were reluctant to answer questions in cross-examination, Having warned myself that these witnesses were accomplices and that it would be dangerous to rely on their uncorroborated evidence, and having reminded myself also that the evidence of one accomplice cannot corroborate that of another, and further having regard to the inconsistencies and evasions in their evidence, I am nevertheless satisfied that these accomplices are witnesses of truth on all matters of material relevance although their evidence is not corroborated.

10. As PW7 is perhaps the most important witness for the Crown, I have prepared a list of the inconsistencies in his evidence and my comments thereon (Appendix 3).

11. The other witnesses for the prosecution are police officers, jockeys, trainers, employees of the Jockey Club, horse owners and expert witnesses. I accept each of them as an independent and truthful witness.

12. D1 was one of Hong Kong's leading amateur jockeys. D2 is a mafoo and an apprentice riding boy. D3 is a Chinese herbalist. D4 is an employee of a restaurant at Aberdeen. D5 and D6 are mafoos.

13. I have considered carefully the evidence given by each of the accused. Having considered all the evidence adduced in this case, I am satisfied that they are not witnesses of truth. Witnesses called on behalf of the defence (DW1-8), with the exception of Gordon Wu (DW3) have tried their utmost to present a true picture to the best of their recollection. Gordon Wu appears too confident and too ready with an answer to be worthy of credence. I have considered his evidence as favourably as I could, but regretably I am compelled to reject his evidence as not being worthy of credence.

14. In coming to the above conclusions on the witnesses, I have studied and considered the final submissions. I am confident that counsel will forgive me for not referring to their submission in full.

LAW

15. It would be helpful at this stage to refer to the following authorities.

16. Brett J.A. in R. v. Aspinall (1876) 2 Q.B.D. 48, at p.58, said,

"The crime of conspiracy is completely committed, if it is committed at all, the moment two or more have agreed that they will do, at once or at some future time, certain things. It is not necessary in order to complete the offence that any one thing should be done beyond the agreement. The conspiraters may repent and stop, or may have no opportunity, or may be prevented, or may fail. Nevertheless the crime is complete: it was completed when they agreed."

17. Professor Glanville Williams says in his Criminal Law - General Part (at p.668):

"Mere knowledge of and mental consent to a crime about to be committed by another does not make a man a conspirator; but quite a slight participation in the plan will be sufficient. It seems, in the words of Wright, that 'a person may involve himself in the guilt of a conspiracy by his mere assent to and encouragement of the design, although nothing may have been assigned or intended to be excuted by him personally.' In other words, it need not be intended that all the conspirators should take part in the crime as principals in the first or second degree."

18. Where the prosecution have laid a sufficient foundation by evidence to go to the jury, of several persons having conspired together, the declarations of any conspirator made in pursuance of the conspiracy and in furtherance of its objectives are admissible against all the conspirators even though they were not present at the time of such declarations. But admissions of the conspiracy made after its objects have failed or been achieved, not being made in pursuance of the conspiracy, are admissible only aginst the party who made them. There is a similar rule for acts: acts done in pursuance of the conspiracy are evidence of the objects of the conspiracy against all the conspirators. The main application of the rule is where all the defendants have done acts tending towards one obvious purpose (see pp. 680-1 of Glanville Williams; R. v. Blake (1844) 6 Q.B. 126; R. v. Hardy (1794) 24 St. Tr. 199; R. v. Esdaile (1858) 1 F. & F. 213, 175 E.R. 696). I have also, with respect, studied and applied Chau Sau Tai v. R. (1969) HKLR 214, particularly pp. 219-222.

19. Thus, on the authorities, if A,B,C,D,E, and F are members of the same conspiracy, declarations made by A to B in furtherance of the conspiracy, e.g. the transmissions of such information as is necessary to carry the conspiracy to its end, are admissible against C, D, E, and F. In my finding of facts, I have not relied on such transmissions unless they were supported by some other evidence establishing a connexion between C, D, E or F and the declarant in regard to the incident referred to in the declaration.

20. I shall now deal with the evidence and state my findings of facts for each accused individually. The evidence for the prosecution and the final submission on behalf of the Crown have been presented in such a way that it is extremely difficult to say which particular piece of evidence affects which accused. Many days were spent first in relating particular aspects of the evidence to each accused. My finding of facts in respect of one accused does not necessarily implicate another accused. I should at this juncture say that I have borne in mind and strictly observed the rules on the burden of proof in a criminal trial.

D1 Joseph Pereira
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D3 Tang Fu Man

D4 Lam Wong Fai
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A. Charges 1 and 2

B. Charges 3 and 4
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C. Similar Facts
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Conclusion

D5 CHAN Hung-ming
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A. Charges 1 and 2

B. Charges 3 and 4

Conclusion

D6 TSUN LAI KUEN
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A. Charges 1 and 2

B. Charges 3 and 4

C. Similar Facts

Conclusion

Appendix I

THE MORE IMPORTANT RULINGS

Appendix 2

LIST OF WITNESSES

Prosecution

Defence

Appendix 3

Inconsistencies in P.W.7's evidence

The following items are the inconsistencies, apparent or real, in P.W.7's own evidence and the inconstencies between his evidence and that of the other P.W.'s. Some of them are on quite trivial matters while others are on matters of a greater importance. Some of those inconsistencies have been satisfactorily explained and some not. The list (which does not claim to be exhaustive) is compiled with a view to facilitate references should the case be reviewed elsewhere. The figures in brackets refer to the pages in my notes of proceedings.

Appendix 4

FINDINGS OF FACTS ON BEAS RIVER

(See my notes at pp.143, 184-7, 196-7, 200, 203-4, 211-213, 219-20, 228, 248-9, 254, 520-4, 688, 916-7).

Beas River is that part of the Jockey Club situated at Sheung Shui, New Territories, where horses are sent for treatment, recuperation, or rest.

Mr. Auchnie (PW39) is nominally in charge of mafoos and trainers in Beas River. Major Grimshaw the Supervisor is actually in charge. There are about 120 horses at Beas River in summer, and 50 to 60 in winter.

Major Grimshaw sometimes visits the stables, but not when he is busy.

Mr. Vong (P.W.7) the mafoo of Great Success looked after his horse at Beas River from 15.2.70 to May 1970 for a bleeding nose.

If a horse is sent to Beas River, the mafoo goes with it and stays there with it till its return to Happy Valley. The mafoo at Beas River gets up early in morning to clean the stall and the horse. It is not taken out to ride. At about 6 p.m. the night before (if weather is fine, not if it rains), the horse is taken to the grass enclosure and left to roam for about 10 hours. Next morning at 4 a.m. the horse is taken back to the stall and fed at 6 a.m. It spends the day in the stall. The mafoo should be at Beas Rivers from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m., and then from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. When Vong failed to feed his horse or lead his horse to the grass enclosure, Mr. Cheng Yuk Chun (P.W.64) would do it himself or get someone to do it. Mr. Cheng was at the relevant period an employee of the Jockey Club stationed at Beas River.

At Beas River Vong did not have to report to the Head Riding Boy at Beas River everyday, but during the last 2 weeks there he had to report to Mr. Pang (Major Grimshaw's chief clerk) twice a day at 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. because of a disciplinary action taken against him partly because of Great Success's eye trouble and partly because of his misconduct in that he was idle and his stall was dirty.

Vong should be in at 4 p.m. to clean the stall and put his horse to grass. He should be in by 5 a.m. to bring his horse in. He should finish his morning work by 7 a.m. or 8 a.m.

A mafoo in Beas River could buy his way into the race course on race days or pretend to be a mafoo from one of the stables in Happy Valley.

Vong was not to be seen at Beas River for 3 or 4 days a week, sometimes even 6 days a week. He was only seen on Sunday by Mr. Cheng (P.W.64). He was not seen in the mafoos' quarters at Beas River during the week. Mr. Cheng himself had to feed the horse and give it water. His horse and its stall were not cleaned at all except on Sundays, when Vong would do this himself.

I accept in full the evidence of Mr. Cheng Yuk Chun (P.W.64) as regards Vong's neglect of duties whilst at Beas River (pp.915-7, 925-30).

There is no rule that a mafoo cannot leave Beas River. If a mafoo wants to leave he just tells (or gets leave from) the Number One (Cheng the Cripple Boy - P.W.64) in charge of employees and horses at Beas River. If a mafoo can get a colleague to do his work for him (which is an unlawful practice), he can leave Beas River (even for seven days a week) and pays the substitute $10 a day. When Great Success was at Beas River, Vong was sometimes away from Beas River three times or more a week. He would be away for a few hours, or a day, at most two days. In practice he had to report back to let the Number One see him because owners sometimes came to visit horses. If Mr. Auchnie or Major Grimshaw or a trainer or owner saw that the mafoo was not there, the mafoo would be in trouble. If he was spotted in Happy Valley he would also be in trouble. When a mafoo finished his work at night, he can go anywhere, but even so he should get permission from Major Grimshaw but permission is easily obtainable. Sometimes, Vong came to Happy Valley from Beas River to get his fortnightly pay, sometimes he asked someone to collect his pay for him. Mr. Cheng (P.W.64) said he did not give Vong permission to be absent from Beas River during the time that Vong was stationed there.

From Beas River to the bus stop takes 20 minutes on foot. From the time of getting on to a bus to Jordon Road Ferry is 90 minutes. Vong came out by novice's private car or mini bus - and it took 90 minutes from Beas Rivers to Jordon Road. From the time of getting on to the ferry to Hong Kong is 15 minutes, and it takes 15 to 25 minutes to reach Happy Valley.

Vong usually came to Happy Valley two days before a race day. When in Hong Kong Vong stayed at home or with friends, never with D4. He came out to hear what horses had been doped. He would be away from Happy Valley for at least a day. He came to Happy Valley more often if there were races; 3,4, even 5 times a week.

On 9th February, 1970, Vong went to Happy Valley for 1 or 2 days, and he went back to Beas River in the evening so the Number One could see him.

A mafoo whilst stationed at Beas River should not go even into his own stable in Happy Valley.

Normally a mafoo is allowed to leave Beas Rivers once a week. He cannot be away from Beas Rivers for long without being noticed. If he is not there at night, the riding boy in charge will know and tell Major Grimshaw.

Great Success was sent to Beas Rivers because of a bleeding nose when racing in Race 40 on 15th November, 1969. Fluid was flowing from her eye, so an ointment prescribed by Mr. Auchnie was to be applied twice a day - this was at Beas Rivers. The ointment was applied at 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. daily by Vong before reporting to No. 1. (Mr. Auchnie's record however does not show this - pp.949-50, 953).

Great Success came back to Happy Valley in about May or June, 1970.

P.W.64 Cheng Yuk Chun also gives evidence that the horse had eye trouble and was given some medicine by Mr. Auchnie (pp.916, 927-8). I accept the evidence of P.W.7 and P.W.64 on this point. The mere fact that Mr. Auchnie's record did not show his treatment of the horse's eye does not mean that he did not give the ointment described.

An apprentice riding boy (who is also a mafoo) in Beas River, such as Vong, may go to Happy Valley but normally he would attend riding classes in Beas River once a week. He helps his trainer and other riding boys. Very few apprentice riding boys would go to Beas River unless his horse is sick. If his horse is in Beas River he would have no reason to go to Happy Valley on a race day.

The conclusion which I draw from the facts stated above is that P.W.7 frequently left Beas River and came to Happy Valley during the period that his horse Great Success was staying there.

Appendix 5

LIST OF RACES
(See Ex. P. 1 - C)

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* D1's mount and his place in the race.

** These horses came under Charges 3 and 4.

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(Note: Faithfully Yours and Quality were not racing on that race day).

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Appendix 6

LIST OF HORSES

(See Ex. P. 1 - C)

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Findings of Facts on Individual Horses
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		CONTENTS
No.		Horse's Name
1.		All Grand
2.		Almaz
3.		Arrowhead
4.		Beaufort Sea
5.		Bella
6.		Ben
7.		Black Belt
8.		Black Swan
9.		Bueno Muchacho
10.		Captain Courage
11.		Chantek
12.		Dalagita
13.		Dane Court
14.		D'Artagnan
15.		Energy
16.		Fairy Boat
17.		Faithfully Yours
18.		Fountain Head
19.		Gay Apollo
20.		Golden Time
21.		Happy Years
22.		Harvester
23.		Helga
24.		High Flyer
25.		Honey West
26.		Joker
27.		Just In Time
28.		Lucky Girl
29.		Mercantile
30.		Moonraker
31.		Mount Superior
32.		Mulia
33.		Nekayah
34.		Not So Bad
35.		Optima
36.		Overtake
37.		Peter Pan

Appendix 7

		Horse's Name
		Phoenix
39.		Playmate
40.		Public Safety
41.		Quartette
42.		Sincerity
43.		Smiling Day
44.		Splendour
45.		Sugar Joy
46.		Swiss Miss
47.		Terrific
48.		Three and Four
49.		Thunderbird
50.		Treasure of Orient
51.		Willie

1. ALL GRAND:

She was a 1970 subscription mare, strong, and was always in good condition. In the 1969/1970 Season, she was still a griffin, but now in Class 2. She had a good temporament and was not nervous. She did well at the barrier. She had no bad habits. This appears to be the ideal horse. Jockey Lau Fook Hung says she is a good race horse.

Other races in the 1969/1970 Season:-

In Race 93 (griffins) - she came 2nd with D1 on. In Race 98 (griffin) - she came 3rd with D1 on; in Race 136 (Class 4) - she came 1st with T.C. Cheng on. Then came Race 156 (in-fra).

Race 156 (Class 3):

The race took place on 28/3/70. There was nothing to indicate that the jockey Lau Fook Hung was responsible for the horse being run other than on its merits. The jockey was warned of the dangerous practice of getting in too close to the heels of a horse in front. The jockey was a novice and not too experienced at the time. She came 4th. Lau was lighter than D1 and T. C. Cheng. Before the race, she did well in gallops and had a strong finish. She was healthy and her appetite and condition were good. The distance of 1 mile 171 yards for the race was favourable. The weight of 145 lbs with 3 lbs allowance was about right. Pereboeff the trainer thought she had a chance to come 1st or 2nd. It was a yielding track; she preferred hard ground. In the race, she started well, and she galloped alongside Even. At the first bend before the Rock, jockey Lau pulled back All Grand and then switched out to avoid her stepping onto Even's hoofs and All Grand went off to the right side. That in the trainer's opinion caused an excessive loss of ground (however Lau said he hardly lost any ground), and it would be very difficult to regain the lost distance. After the race, the horse suffered a very slight loss of condition - no more than usual. Jockey Lau had galloped her many times before, but he galloped her only twice for Race 156 (on 24th and 26th of March). Before that he last galloped her in January 1970 and before that in November 1969, Lau stated that a horse's form in November or January might be quite different from that in March. Race 156 was the first race lau had ridden her in a race. It was also her first time out on yielding going. Had it been a harder track, she would have done faster. On the only other occasion she raced on yielding track she came 9th and last. At the last furlong she did not have the speed and the guts she had had in morning trainings. If Lau had lost ground in the incident at the first bend, it would be difficult to make it up because of the yielding ground. When Lau came round the bend after that incident, he was the outermost horse away from the rail. In Race 156, in the first 6 furlongs, she was going strong but after turning the last bend she gave no response and began to slow down and appeared to be tired out. She dropped further and further back, and came 4th about 7 or 8 lengths being the winner.

Mr. Auchnie gave some eye drops to the horse on 23/3/70 and he examined her eye and gave her an injection on 27/4/70 (see p.950 of my notes).

2. ALMAZ

It was a 1970 subscription griffin. It is a gelding and a good and strong horse. That it never won a race was due to bad luck, though it had been placed. A good horse does not necessarily win every time. This is a nervous horse. Mr. Auchnie, the veterinary surgeon, has treated it for an eye condition (corneal ulcer that lasted about 4 months in the 1969/1970 Season). This is also a "morning glory", which means that it is good at morning gallops but not good in actual races. It is now in Class 5. D2 however considers it a mediocre horse.

Other races:-

Race 123 (Class A):- No mishandling noticed. It came 4th with D1 on.

Race 162 (Class A):-

No mishandling was noticed. In that race D1 was on Profitability. It was not a favourite - not a sure winner (see evidence of PW18 Braham at p.535 of my notes). Kenneth Kwok galloped it 2 weeks before the race and he thought it had worked "like a bomb". Kenneth Kwok was confident that he had a winner. On the day before the race Kenneth Kwok thought it a sure win. During the race, on the way to the track it passed watery manure due to nervousness. It started slowly in the race. The weight was alright, perhaps a little heavy. It came in a poor third. During the first ¾ mile it did well, but in the last quarter it "lost" its legs and faded badly (though other horses were also fading) and stopped dead after the finishing post. When Kenneth Kwok took it in, it was exceptionally tired. Kenneth Kwok thought it was beaten by better horses.

On 1/4/70, it was treated by the veterinary surgeon, Mr. Auchnie, for disrrhoea, but he was unable to determine the cause. It was off its feed, but not in acute pain. A day or so later its condition worsened. It was given antibiotic injection and also chalk and kaolin by stomach tube. This was done daily until its manure became normal. It was ill for 7 to 10 days. It did not race again that season (see Ex. P40 paragraph 24, and page 737-8 of my notes).

It was tested on 7/4/70 by Dr. Crone (PW40) and found to have arsenic poisoning, with 200 microgramms of arsenic per 50 ml. of urine (Ex. P41 paragraph 40 & 42)(see also Ex. P.24, Paragraph 44, Ex. P25 and Ex. P.19 in respect of Almaz, Bella, Fairy Boat, Optima and Quartette, which I accept as true).

3. ARROWHEAD

It was an old horse. When it came to Hong Kong in 1960 it was 3 years old. Trainer Lum has had her since November 1968. It has a temper ever since it came as a griffin. Every time when it shows a temper at the gate, it would not do well. If it has no temper at gate, it will have a good chance. As the horse was old, Lum would not let it start if the going was not suitable, and he would not let it start too often.

Other races:-

In the 1967/1968 Season: in Race 24 (Class 7) it came 5th on firm going, in Race 91 (Class 7) it came 4th on firm going and Race 194 (Class 8) it came 1st on firm going.

In the 1968/1969 Season: in Race 41 (Class 8) it came 1st on firm going, and in Race 72 (Class 7) it came 9th on firm going.

In the 1969/1970 Season: in Race 22 (Class 7) it came 2nd on soft going, in Race 60 (Class 7) it came 3rd on firm going, in Race 86 (Class 7) it came 3rd on firm going, in Race 116 (Class 7) it came 8th and last on firm going, in Race 130 (Class 7) it came 6th on yielding going, in Race 145 (Class 7) it came 7th and last on good going, and in Race 188 it came 8th and last on firm going. From January 1970, it began to fail. After Race 145, the jockey complained of its temper and behaviour during the race.

In the 1970/1971 Season: in Race 42 (Class 9) it came 8th on good going, in Race 99(Class 9) it came 6th on good going, in Race 146 (Class 9) it came 6th on firm going.

Race 130 (Class 7):-

No mishandling was noticed. It was not bad in morning gallops. Its condition, form, and health were good. Lum thought it had a good chance. It came 6th in Race 130. The horse was too old. The yielding going was suitable, because soft ground was more comfortable. Hore the jockey after the race complained to Lum of its bad behaviour at the gate.

4. BBAUFORT SRA

233. The trainer Sze Sau Wo thinks she was quite good. She was destroyed last year because of swelling legs.

Other races:-

In the 1968/1969 Season she was out once with Cruz on and it won, but she was not allowed to race again that season due to fetlock trouble.

Race 72 (Class 5):-

No mishandling was noticed. T. H. Yau was the jockey. She had trained well. Sze Sau Wo and Yau thought she had a chance to win. She started well in the race and was leading for most part, and at the 1 mile post she was leading D1's Location by a neck, but suddenly she ran out of steam and came 4th. Yau felt that she had performed honestly, and he put her failure down to fetlock trouble. Sze in assessing her chances did not consider her bad legs, as he did not think it would affect her, and in fact it did not. After the race, Sze dressed the leg, which felt hot. There was no change in her condition after the race. The leg was swollen and she could not gallop.

5. BELLA

Race 170:-

She was withdrawn. The trainer thought at best she would come 3rd.

She was given urine and saliva test, and found to have arsenic poisoning. For details of the incident, see Mr. Pereboeff's evidence on pages 698-9, Mr. Auchnie's evidence at Exhibit P. 40 paragraph 22 and 28 and on page 732 of my notes and Dr. Crone's evidence in Exhibit P.41, paragraphs 35-39. As to discovery of the carrot by Bella's mafoo, see pages 895-903 of my notes. I accept the evidence referred to above as representing the truth, (see also Exhibit P24, paragraph 44, Exhibit P25 and Exhibit P19).

6. BEN

It is a very common low class horse and an old horse. Its regular jockey was Eddie Yau. It was in good health.

Other races:-

In the 1969/1970 Season it ran about 5 races. In the 1970/1971 Season, it has won with Bobby Lee on.

Race 155 (Class 8):-

No mishandling was noticed. It had trained well. Its condition was good. The yielding track in the race was against Ben. Yau the jockey thought it was an honest race, and it had performed as expected.

7. BLACK BELT

It was a 1969 subscription pony. The jockey Middleton thought it an indifferent performer but might win in Race 182. It was not a good horse but might have a chance in Class 9. Lum the trainer thought that as it was a long distance horse, therefore it did badly in Race 132 and in Race 169 of the 1968/1969 Season, both being short races. In the beginning of the 1969/1970 season Lum thought that it was a useless horse.

242. On firm or good going over 1 mile or 1 ¼ miles, it came second 3 times, 3rd once.

Other races:

It had never won a race in the 1969/1970 season, nor up to March 1971. It started the season in Class 7, and ended in Class 8. It is now in Class 9. In the 1968/1969 Season, it ran in Race 122 (came 4th in a 1 mile race), Race 132 (came 10th in a ½ mile 40 yards race), and Race 169 (came 6th in a ½ mile 170 yards race). In the 1969/1970, and 1970/1971 Season, it was out 14 times and never won.

Race 182 (Class 8):

The distance was 1 mile 171 yards; the track was firm going. It was perfect in training. The trainer Metrevelli thought it would win the race. Linda (which came 1st) and Walling Street were the only contenders. In the race it went for 2 furlongs and "packed up". It came last. In the race, it was a totally different horse to that during training. No mishandling was noticed.

Race 158 (Class 8):

The race took place on 28/3/70. The distance was 1 ¼ miles. It came 3rd out of 4 horses. The weight was 145 1bs, with an allowance of 3 1bs. Lau, a novice, was the jockey. The ground was yielding. The horse had been trained for long distance all along. Lum thought it was an outsider, because its condition was not bad. Lau often trained and galloped it. Before Race 158, it was in good form. Lau thought it had only a fair chance because it was not a horse with a good racing ability. He thought Page of Gold a better horse. Three and Four did not appear to be a better horse. Helga had beaten Black Belt in Race 52 but in Race 158 her form was not as good as before. In the race, Black Belt started well. It and Page of Gold were leading until the last stretch when Three and Four caught up. Black Belt came a close third. Lau said it ran steadily in accordance with its form. There was no drop in form after the race.

8. BLACK SWAN

Other races:-

Race 100 (Class 2):-

It was a 1969 subscription horse. Tam was the trainer.

In the 1969/1970 Season, it came 10th and last in Race 4. It was a Class 4 race.

Race 113 (Class 4):-

Race 83 (Class 3):-

She has an excellent appetite.

In the 1969/1970 Season, she ran 6 races and won once in Race 114, but was unplaced in the others.

Middleton the jockey won on her. Middleton had expected her to win and she did. Of the other horses he fancied Harvester and Eastern Venture. The race went more or less as he expected. The trainer Metrevelli thought she had a fair chance to win. Two or three days after the race she had fetlock trouble in both fore legs which developed to such a degree that she had to be retired.

This was a 1964 subscription mare. She has been D1's regular mount since the 1967/1968 Season and D1 had ridden her in almost all her races but never won. She used to be a good horse when Middleton was her jockey before D1 took her over. Middleton had won three times in one season with her; that was the 1966/1967 Season. Then she went to D1. Dalagita's difficulties started shortly after Middleton ceased to ride her - this was in 1967. Since D1 had taken her over from Middleton, it was usually D2 who galloped her in morning gallops. D1 very rarely did so (pp. 1057-8).

D1 rode her and came 3rd. This was D1's only mount from D2.

She arrived in Hong Kong in 1970. She is a puller and it is therefore difficult to control her speed. She is an excitable horse; not so good and not so bad, and not particularly healthy but in fair form. She is slightly high strung and a little nervous, but not known to have given trouble in races due to nervousness.

She ran 4 or 5 races in the 1969/1970 Season. Her first race was Race 102 ridden by D. K. Lee and she came 3rd. In Race 143 she came ninth on a yielding track. In Race 174, she won by 15 lengths on firm going. Then she was promoted to Class 4. Since then she has come nowhere. In her last race, Race 192, Belov the trainer thought she had very little chance as he thought she had been put in too high a class (Belov thought she should be in Class 6). She came last in Race 192. She ran a race in March 1971 and did very badly.

This was her second time out in Hong Kong. T.C. Cheng was on her, and came 9th out of 10. No mishandling was noticed. She was a puller in morning gallops. She was in good condition and form. T. C. Cheng thought she stood a good chance to win as this was a sprinter race (½ mile 170 yards). She had a good training time. Belov thought she had an excellent chance to win. She carried 144 lbs, which was no problem to her. In the race she did not start well and did not catch up though the jockey pushed her hard. She was way behind from the beginning till the end. She ran differently from morning gallops. She was top favourite but ran quite below her form. The going was yielding. After the race she lost condition, with lack of appetite and serious deterioration of form, and she took longer (almost 2 weeks) to go back to normal form.

She was a 1967 subscription horse. In the beginning it was a good horse for Class 6 of the 1969/1970 Season. It is a good tempered horse. It is lazy and needs a lot of pushing. It is strong and healthy. The jockey Kenneth Kwok likes it. It is also an erratic horse. It went up and down in classes over the last 3 seasons, is now relegated to Class 8. It shies a little bit under the whip. It is a low quality horse.

It had a good season in 1968/1969. It won twice with Kenneth Kwok on, but lost badly twice. In the 1969/1970 Season, it ran 6 times, Kenneth Kwok rode it 4 times. In Race 44 (15.11.69), she came fifth; because the distance was a little too short. In Race 66, ridden by Williams, it ran well in the 1 mile race but was beaten by better horses. In Race 142 (1 ¼ mile) it had trained well and the weight and going were alright, but it lost to better horses. In Race 189, it came in 6th, because the other horses were better and it was a rather fast race.

No mishandling was noticed. It had run below the best it had shown previously. Kenneth Kwok galloped it for the race which was 1 mile 171 yards. It had worked well, and was in excellent condition. Kenneth Kwok considered it the best horse which had been entered for that race. He was only afraid of Paraviva (with T. C. Cheng on). It had galloped on the Thursday before the Saturday race and its condition was excellent. Kenneth Kwok was confident. On the day before race Kenneth Kwok told the owner he was confident of winning. The trainer Sze Sau Wo thought it had much chance to win. On coming out of the gate in the race, she was not moving and stretching out properly. She seemed heavy on her legs. It seemed to be stiff. It came in a poor fifth. After the race it was rested for a while and Kenneth Kwok did not gallop it for a week.

It came second. No mishandling was noticed. The distance was 1 mile 171 yards which was a suitable distance for the horse. It was in good form and condition in morning gallops. The weight was favourable and the going was alright. Kenneth Kwok was confident that it would win. Sze Sau Wo thought it had a good chance to win. The only contender was Energy. There were no strong contestents. Kenneth Kwok bet on D'Artagnan. In the race, for the first ¾ mile, it seemed to be running well and was well placed. When Kenneth Kwok put pressure on, it did not respond very well and seemed to fade. It lost by a neck to Captain Kid which Kenneth Kwok thought was an inferior horse. Kenneth Kwok was surprised that Captain Kid won as it was a horse with "3 legs", that is, as it had a bag leg. He thought D'Artagnan capable of better time on this going which was a firm going. D'Artagnan's physical condition was better than Captain Kid (though in Race 139 on 22.3.69 Captain Kid came 5th and D'Artagnan 7th with 8 lengths in between). Captain Kid is an old horse, though it had good qualities. The trainer of Captain Kid Ng Chi Lam thought it had very little chance and was surprised when it won. Captain Kid only won by a neck; it ran erratically over the last furlong and the jockey D. C. Yau was later warned that he must make a better effort to keep his mount straight in future. In other races Captain Kid had always carried heavy weights but in this race it was carrying only 137 lbs with 3 lbs, allowance for the novice jockey. In other races she usually caught up from behind, but in Race 164 she was in second position as early as the Rock because of the light weight. Ng Chi Lam told D. C. Yau to exert the horse to win, but Yau did not believe Ng and it was only at the last part of the race that Yau found to his surprise that the horse still had a lot left in it, but Yau did not try hard enough or it would have won beautifully. Ng Chi Lam thought no other horse in Race 164 had a better quality than Captain Kid.

This is a difficult horse to predict - a feverish horse whose temperature may go up to 104^o or 105^o. It is however a splendid horse. It had fever 15 times through the 1 ½ years in Metrevelli's stable, but still had a good appetite. Metrevelli says this horse is lazy when galloping by itself, but Tong the jockey says it is not a lazy horse. Its performance is unpredictable because its condition went up and down (as shown by its records: in the 1967/1968 Season, it came 6th; in the 1968/1969 Season, it came 6th, 1st, 9th and 2nd; in the 1969/1970 Season, it came 7th, 4th, 1st, 6th and last, and then 1st; and in the 1970/1971 Season, it came 5th, 1st, 2nd and 5th.)

It ran five races in the 1969/1970 Season. T.C. Cheng rode it twice and won: Race 135 (infra) and Race 186. Tong rode it thrice and won nothing: Race 58 (7th), Race 116 (4th) and Race 164 (6th and last, infra). Tong who galloped it said it was not in form for the first two races (that is, Race 58 and Race 116), but gradually worked up in form for Race 135.

No mishandling was noticed. The distance was ½ mile 170 yards. It carried 143 lbs. Its position was No. 3. It was in good condition before the race. T.C. Cheng was confident it would win and it did win. All along Tong trained it in morning gallops. The training went well but it was lazy when galloping by itself. The trainer thought it had a very good chance. There was no temperature before the race and it was in very good form. There was no change in condition after the race. In Race 135, it ran as a Class 7 horse. It was the hot favourite.

No mishandling was noticed. The distance was 1 mile 171 yards. W.C. Tong was the jockey. T.C. Cheng had watched its morning gallops and he might have galloped it once or twice. He thought it stood a chance to win. It came last. The trainer Metrevelli says it ran as a Class 6 horse should. Tong had galloped it for Race 164. It had trained well, and was in good form. Tong thought there was a good chance it win, having considered that in Race 135 it was in Class 7 and in Race 164 it was first time out in Class 6 in a long distance race and carrying a heavier weight (that is 5 lbs more than in Race 135). The trainer blamed the failure on Tong because he was not fit enough for the race. Its appetite and health were good and there was no temperature before the race. The trainer's only worry was the jockey and he told the owner it had an outside chance. In the race it carried on well till after turning into the last stretch when it failed to respond - it "just failed to kick" and came last out of 6 horses. Tong said it had performed badly. This was the only time it had run a 9 furlong race. It is 14.3 hands, which is a little small, but not too small for a 9 furlong race. Tong does not agree that he was not suited to this horse.

The senior riding boy Wong Tang Ping (P.W.4) thinks it is an average Class 1 horse - not a good one, but good for short distances (5 or 6 furlongs), not for long distances. It has no bad habit of hanging out or running out. Lee Tin Lam the trainer says it was quite a good horse, with a lot of pull. It is difficult to pull it back. It has a strong mouth. It is a sprinter, and likes firm or good going. It has been in Lum Wan Leung's stable since last year.

It has won in the 1968/1969 Season. It has not won in the last season nor up to March, 1971. It ran once or twice in the 1969/1970 Season before Race 154. In Race 6 Collopy came 2nd on it, and in Race 29 Collopy came 6th on it (both being Class 1 races). In Race 109 (Class 1), Hore came 7th and last on it. It ran in Races 15, 34, 67 and 160 in the 1970/1971 Season and came 3rd, 5th, 3rd, and 1st respectively.

It was a yielding track, and the distance was 6 furlongs 40 yards. It was withdrawn from this race at 9:17 a.m. on the day of the race (i.e., Saturday 28.3.70). It was tested on 7.4.70 and found to have arsenic poisoning. It had been entered to run but was withdrawn. On Friday a report was made to the Veterinary Surgeon because it seemed ill, though on Thursday she had been alright in training and galloped well and her condition and form had been good (see Mr. Lee Tin Lam's evidence pp. 603-4, 618-9 on its illness, also Mr. Auchnie's evidence on pp. 736-7, 748-9 and 755 which I accept as true). It did not go to sick bay or sick line. I accept Dr. Crone's evidence on his tests respecting this horse (see Exh. P41 paras.41 and 42) (see also Exh. P24 para 44, Exh. P25, and Exh. P19).

It was a 1969 subscription horse owned by Mr. C.W. Wong. It was a strong horse. It was in good health in the 1969/1970 Season. It had a good temperament, though a little playful: It was not nervous and behaved well. It had a little temper in morning trotting. It was not in good condition in the 1970/1971 Season. Once it had fetlock trouble, and on two occasions it had shoulder trouble. The fetlock trouble recovered at once. Its bad condition started soon after Race 83. There was a sudden drop in condition two months after Race 83, at the same time as Swiss Miss. It was a very good horse, and its racing ability was very good. It was a very good horse, and its racing ability was very good. It was always in front. It had a habit of kicking when other horses were nearby, but not during races.

In the 1968/1969 Season: in Race 114, Race 150 and Race 169, it came 4th, 2nd and 3rd respectively, all many lengths behind. It ran 3 races in the 1969/1970 Season: Hui rode it in Race 4 (Class 4) and came 2nd. Then T.C. Cheng took over the training of the horse and raced it in another Class 4 race: in Race 48 (it came first by eight lengths in 1 mile, carrying 150 lbs.) It was then promoted to Class 3. Its last race in the 1969/1970 Season was Race 83. It did not race in the 1970/1971 Season. During off season it was given a lot of rest and good feed and it became stronger and healthier and had a better colour, but did not perform so well in training and its form deteriorated. Up to new it has not recovered its health. It has not raced for 1 ½ years.

There was nothing outwardly suspicious regarding its race. Sheppard (PW 17) observed that in the early part of the race it was towards the rear of the field (cf. Race 48 when it was in the lead as early as the Rock, carrying 150 lbs.). In the straight it made up a lot of ground to finish a fast 3rd. Jockey T.C. Cheng in the final stages of race rode it very hard with the whip. In the last quarter, it was still over 20 lengths behind. T.C. Cheng trained it in gallops and found it in excellent condition. He thought it stood a good chance to win. It galloped very well on 1.1.70. It was in good condition. T.C. Cheng says that in the race it failed to respond to his riding as it should have done (in his previous race on the horse, "it gave me a very strong push"). He had no suspicion at the time of the horse having been interfered with. The owner says possibly T.C. Cheng pulled it, for it could not have started slowly. It was in good condition right up to Race 83. The distance of 1 mile 171 yards was a good distance for it, though this was a long distance race. The weight of 150 lbs (top weight) did not affect it (the weight was the same as in Race 48 when it came 1st). Chue Po Ming thought it had a good chance and expected it to be 1st, 2nd or 3rd. He thought Athena (137 lbs) ridden by D1 and Not So Bad (139 lbs) had some chance as both carried light weights and he thought Treasure of Orient had only a fair chance. He thought that Captain Courage had no chance; Fairy Tale not the same chance as Faithfully Yours; Dickie had a chance; and Bonus Bond a little chance. The owner Mr. Wong thought it was a sure win. Chue's assessment was based on good time in Race 48 and the fact that no horses were closely behind it. In Race 83, it made a tremendous finish as it was at first 15 lengths behind the 1st horse. On return from the race, it had an injured leg. Chue says it lost the race because the jockey pushed it, causing it to lose ground. This horse was entered for an April race in the 1970/1971 Season, but was withdrawn due to a drop in condition.

It was a 1967 subscription gelding. It has a temper. It had a good performance in its first and second seasons, but was not good after that. A horse with a temper would get worse in its performance after each race. It was a temperamental horse. It would gallop with a fast speed in the morning but in the race its speed would be different, therefore it was difficult to assess its chances.

Other races:-

Race 100 (Class 2):

Horace Chan never galloped it in morning training, since it always tended to gallop too fast. In the race, it had a good start, but was challenged for the early lead by Rasselas. It was still in the top lead at the top bend, but with 2 furlongs to go, the horse began to falter slightly, and in the straight it was passed by five other horses. It came 6th some 6-8 lengths behind winner Champoo ridden by D1. The jockey thought it an honest race. In Race 100, it was against better horses.

This was a 1970 subscription gelding. It was not a particularly healthy horse, and a little nervous. Kenneth Kwok was usually its jockey.

Kenneth Kwok first rode it as a griffin in Race 85 (6 furlongs 40 yards) and won in a relatively slow time as it was a little green. Then it was put in Class 4. In race 134 Kwok won again carrying 141 lbs. in 1 mile. It was then put in Class 3. In the 1970/1971 Season it went down to Class 4.

All Grand and Gay Apollo were involved in general crowding at the stable bend. No other mishandling was noticed. Gay Apollo had to be severely checked and switched out to avoid racing onto other horses because of All Grand's jockey getting in too close to the heels of a horse in front. Kwok was the jockey. The distance was 1 mile 171 yards. It was in good condition and form in training and galloped well. Kwok thought it had an excellent chance to win and the race was between Gay Apollo (which come 6th), Not So Bad (1st) and All Grand (4th). The yielding going and weight were no trouble (cf. Belov, who thought yielding track possibly affected its running). Its gallop time was better than neccessary. In the race it did not start too badly, but right after the start, it dropped back. Its time was very slow. When Kwok got up to the horse, it was sweating more than usual and drooping a bit - he thought it (being delicate) was nervous. On reflection Kwok now says this did not seem right. In the race it did not start badly but soon faded and the jockey could get no response from it. It was difficult to assess its chance in that race, because this was its first race in Class 3. After the race it lost appetite for a full month before regaining it. It went completely out of condition after the race and was very thin and off its feed, though it had never been a good eater before. It was never the same since that race.

This was a 1969 subscription mare.

Other races:-

In the 1969/1970 Season, Eddie Yau rode her in Race 199 (the next race after Race 135) in Class 7 (½ mile 170 yards). She came first on soft going as she was then in better form. After her rest (see below) her temper and appetite become better. The same pattern was followed in the 1970/1971 Season: Race 39 on good going (came 6th), Race 63 on yielding going (2nd), Race 79 on good going (6th) and Race 137 on good going (9th).

It was soft going. It was her first race in the 1969/1970 Season and her second race in Hong Kong. Kenneth Kwok was the jockey. She came 6th. She ran true to form except that she kept boring out a little and he had to check her a bit - she was shying a little, i.e., it tried to run out a little because of nervousness or her being green. And her load of 150 lbs on soft going was hard on her.

She was top favourite. Kwok was again the jockey. She came 11th and last, 20 or 30 lengths behind the winner. He galloped her several times in training on the instructions of Ng Chi Lam. She had worked very well. She was in peak condition, and Kwok and Ng were happy with the way she was shaping up. Kwok thought her the best horse in that race. He was afraid only of Querida. Ng thought Flying Dragon the chief contender, and also Harvester - other horses not being particularly good. Kwok was confident that she was a cetain winner. Ng thought she had a chance. In the race she started badly. She drew a good position in No. 5. The weight was only 139 lbs. It was on firm going, which "she ran like a doakey either because her condition was not fit or tiredness or fumbling and loss of co-ordination due to shying." After the race Kwok saw nothing outwardly wrong with her. Kwok bet on her and lost. Kwok says she was running differently from training time form. Braham and Sheppard say the horse lugged throughout the race placing Kwok at a disadvantage in riding the horse out, but they had no suspicion at the time. Ng said her performance in the race was good and thought he had made a mistake in his assessment thinking she so Ng changed his method of training as he realized that he had previously used the wrong method. After Race 86 her form and appetite came down as in the normal range of things and did not regain appetite till after Race 135.

No mishandling was noticed. Eddie Yau was the jockey and she came 5th on good going. She was not expected to win but thought to have a chance to place. Her final gallop was on Friday, - before the Saturday race and she performed satisfactorily and her condition was quite good. When Yau was up, she no long started off with wrong leg. In the race, Yau was instructed by Ng Chi Lam to go for an early lead and to use his left hand to whip to prevent her from boring out. Rounding the top bend she was in 2nd position but she was spent going into the straight. Yau thought her performance not too disappointing as she was expected to be unplaced. Yau noticed nothing unusual about the horse in this race and when he unsaddled her, her condition was satisfactory. He did not think the horse had been interferred with. The horse rested after this race for over 2 months after which her form and appetite returned to normal.

This was a 1968 subscription horse. It tends to bore out in races, otherwise it is not bad. Its favourite distance is ¾ mile. It was very thin when she came to the trainer Chue Po Ming's stable as a griffin. Its appetite was not very good, and it was not a very strong horse. In the 1969/1970 Season it was not in very good condition, and a little nervous. Since last season it was in Class 6. In the 1969/1970 Season it was in Class 7 and after that season it went down to Class 8 where it won, and went up to Class 7 where it won again, it is therefore now in Class 6. 1 is primarily a weak horse, therefore it is galloped only 3 times every 2 weeks.

It raced 8 times in the 1969/1970 Season, in Class 4 without winning anything. In Race 92, T.C.Cheng rode it and came 3rd. It won once in 1969 and ran two more races in the 1968/1969 Season without winning. In the 1970/1971 Season, it was demoted to Class 5. In Race 136 (February 1970) it came last out of 9 horses. In Race 192 (May 1970), it came 10th out of 12 horses. T.C. Cheng did not ride it in Race 136 because he thought All Grand was a better horse.

No mishandling was noticed. T.C. Cheng was the jockey. The distance was 6 furlongs and 40 yards. He galloped it in the morning and found it in good form. Its appetite was not bad. He consulted Wong Siu Hung the trainer and was confident he could win because it had won over the same distance before (in January 1969). Wong however thought it had just a fair chance. In the race it came 5th out of 8 horses. It carried 134 lbs which was a little light. It was not top fit for the race. T.C. Cheng tried his best to push it up but it just did not work. T.C. Cheng lost money on it. It was top favourite because T.C.Cheng the champion was riding it. There was no change in condition and appetite after the race.

She is very good in a low class andaa good horse in her own class. The trainer Chue Po Ming thought she was a stayer but the jockey T.C. Cheng thought 1 mile was too long for her.

In the 1968/1969 Season she ran twice (Race 152 and race 176), and came 8th and last, and 7th out of 8, because the positions were bad. In the 1969/1970 Season, she never won, but once she came 2nd in Race 86 (infra). In 4 of her 6 races (all in class 7) in the 1969/1970 Season she was an outsider. In 2 races (Race 86 and Race 135), she was favourite. Except for once when she ran 5 furlongs, the others were all more than 5 furlongs but still all sprints. In Race 22 she came 7th. This was her first time out in the 1969/1970 Season. She was a very long way behind. In Race 60 she came 4th. Had the jockey not applied the whip on her right, causing her to swerve to the left, she would have won. For this reason trainer Chue changed the jockey and got T.C. Cheng to ride her in Race 86. At the final bend in Race 60 she was an extremely bad 7th and 12 lengths behind Arrowhead, though she was carrying 10 lbs less than in Race 22. She improved as the load lessened. She was tired for only 1 or 2 days after the race because of a lighter load. In the 1970/1971 Season, she was out 3 times: Race 5 (won in 6 furlongs), Race 41 (won in 5 furlongs), and then she went up to Class 6, and in Race 93, carrying a heavy weight of 148 lbs she came 10th in 5 furlongs.

T.C. Cheng rode it (½ mile 170 yards) carrying 136 lbs. This time she was carrying 3 lbs lighter still. She was top favourite. She came 2nd, 2 lengths behind the winner. She was tired for only 1 or 2 days after race because of a lighter load.

This was her first long distance race. No mishandling was noticed.

She was a very old horse, nice, and even tempered, alright for her class, and a medium horse; she was slow in starting but had a good finish. She was more of a stayer, though the race she won was a short distance race.

She won once in the 1969/1970 Season, during which she ran 6 times. In the race she won Sofronoff thought she had a good chance and she ran as expected.

This was her last race. She came way behind fourth and last with K.Y. Ho as jockey (10, 12, or 15 lengths behind). At that time she already had a thickening of fetlock in one leg. She had trained normally. She developed a limp during the race and came back limping. Sofronoff had no great expectation as to her chance. The poor performance was attributable to her fetlock trouble. Apart from that there was no change in form after the race.

Lum Wan Leung was the trainer until November 1969 when Wong Siu Hung became her trainer. She is now a "chicken hearted" horse, though she was not so before. When still a griffin she was quite a good horse (she ceased to be a griffin at the end of 1967). It was after the end of 1969 that she became chicken-hearted. She was delicate, but not a sweater. Wong says she was a good horse - now in Class 8. Her health was alright but a bit afraid of other horses. She was at her best when leading the field at the start or at least in second or third position, - but she lost heart when she was behind. She had a tendency to stick to the rail after start. Her best distance was 1 mile. This was a temperamental horse. She is not a good horse now. She had been in Beas River since March this year. She is not a very healthy and strong horse.

Other races:-

Race 21 Class 5 - came 4th - H. Chan the rider.

Race 154 Class 5 - came 11th and 2nd last - Hung the rider.

She was out 5 times in the 1969/1970 Season:

Race 75 Class 5 - Hung the rider came 6th out of 8.

Race 147 Class 5 - Hung the rider came 8th and last.

She was out once in the 1970/1971 Season:

Race 5 (Class 5):-

Race 75 (Class 5):-

The distance was 1 ¼ miles. No mishandling was noticed. Darkie Hung was the jockey. In the race she did not respond at all to his riding and seemed a different horse from morning gallops.

Race 105 (Class 5):-

Race 147 (Class 5):-

She had been in Chue Po Ming's stable. She came to trainer Tam Man Kui in 1969. This was 1969 subscription mare.

In the 1969/1970 Season:

Race 86 - came 4th - Leung was the jockey - distance ½ mile 170 yards - 143 lbs - firm going.

Race 130 - came 2nd - T.H. Yau was the jockey - distance 5 furlongs - 143 lbs - yielding going.

Race 179 - came 4th - Wong was the jockey - distance 6 furlongs 40 yards - 141 lbs with 3 lbs allowance - firm going.

Race 130 (Class 7):-

Jolly Good Show the winner is well known for liking soft or yielding going. Race 130 was on a yielding track. In Race 130 the distance was shorter than before, which was favourable to her. The weight was favourable also.

This was a 1969 Griffin. She is not a very good horse.

In the 1969/1970 Season, she ran about 6 times and never won a race.

Race 72 (Class 5)

Race 150 (Class 5)

This was a 1968 subscriptions horse.

In Race 68 (Class 6) of the 1969/1970 Season this horse came 1st with Hore up.

The horse came first with Hore up. The horse ran according to expectation. It was in good condition all along. It was the top favourite. The trainer Sze Sau Wo thought it had good chance to win. It remained in good condition after Race 79.

This was a 1969 subscription horse.

She was big and strong and healthy. She had no bad habits except that she was a bit slow in starting. She had a good temperament.

In the 1969/1970 Season she ran 6 times: in Race 5 she came third; in Race 28 first; in Race 69 (in Class 3) she came first; in Race 104 (in Class 2) she came second (Ng had expected her to place, but not to win in Race 104 because the distance was short); and in Race 206, she came first on soft going. In Race 206, she won on a yielding track. Therefore this indicated that in Race 144 Lucky Girl gave a performance which was much below her form. In the 1970/1971 Season she did not place at all. She ran in Race 30 on 14.11.70 with Croker up. Ng Chi Lam saw nothing wrong with her in that race. She ran well and came fourth. There was no change in her condition after Race 30. A saliva sample was taken after the race, and about a week after race, a urine sample was taken. Some patent medicine was found in her saliva. In the 1970/1971 Season, she ran 5 times, and won nothing. Mostly she came fourth, and once she came third. By that time she was in Class 1.

No mishandling was noticed. She came fourth with A.J. Silva on. Sheppard thought she ran disappointingly but it was a yielding track and she had previously won on a firm track. She lost by 6 lengths to D1's Chateaugay. Prior to the race she had trained well and was very fit. Silva thought she had a good chance to win but the yielding track was against her. He feared only Chateaugay. She had a poor start and "seemed unable to get in its stride". Silva was almost last at the 6 furlong post and Lucky Girl was struggling, so he had to push her all the way, even up the Rock. He got little response in the straight and just could not get up to the leaders. She was struggling throughout the race. There was nothing unusual about her condition. Silva bet on Chateaugay because on a wet course there was nothing to beat Chateaugay. He also bet on Lucky Girl. (He rode her in all 6 races in the 1969/1970 Season and 2 out of the 5 races in the 1970/1971 Season.) Black Beauty in that race would run well on both wet and dry ground, Rasselas would run better on soft or yielding track, so also Chateaugay. As to the race, Lucky Girl had trained well, and her condition and feeding were good; the weight of 141 lbs. was also good; and the distance of 1 mile was right. It was a yielding track, which was slightly unfavourable; Ng thought that she had a good chance to come first, second or third; that her performance in the race was as usual but was slow in starting. There was no change in condition after the race. When Silva lost Ng thought it might have been due to misriding by Silva or obstruction by other horses, but as Silva was used to riding her he had nothing to say against Silva.

She was a 1969 subscription mare. She had a very bad habit at the gate. She has a soft mouth. One has to ride her at a long range and not to pull her. After Race 121 (in the 1969/1970 Season) Metrevelli the trainer was advised by the Stewards to give her further gate schooling before declaring her to start again. She is generally a slow starter. She did well as a griffin but was no good after promotion. She was demoted to Class 4 in the 1970/1971 Season. She is still poor.

Towards the end of the 1968/1969 Season, she came first in Race 175 with D1 up. She came second in Race 122 also with D1 up. Both were griffin races.

In the 1970/1971 Season she was out 3 times:

Race 24 (Class 2):-

D1 rode her and came 7th in this race on 20.10.69. After the race the veterinary surgeon saw her on the same day. He saw her again on the 21st. P.W.9 the mafoo of the horse said she trembled but had no cut on leg. The veterinary surgeon's evidence is that he treated her for a cut and he detected no other abnormality.

Cruz rode her once, in Race 83 on 3.1.70, in which D1 won on Athena. Cruz trained her before Race 83 and thought it had a good chance to win and the trainer agreed. At the starting stalls, the horse was extremely cocile and Cruz had to give her a shake-up to prepare for the gates to open. Immediately after the gates were released, she baulked and wheeled round dislodging Cruz and took no further part in the race.

This was a 1968 subscription horse.

Other races:

In Race 96 she came fourth. P.W.10 says that she did not come true to form though she was a hot favourite, and it might be because she was immature.

She came first. After this race, she was promoted to Class 8. Her form was normal prior to the race. She seemed able to hold the distance of 1 mile in Class 9. Sofronoff expected her to win. It was a 1 mile race.

No mishandling was noticed.

It is a very good horse and suitable for any sort of going, even heavy going. It health was always good.

In the 1969/1970 Season it ran the following races:

In Race 90 (griffins race) it came first with Silva up on good going.

In Race 98 A.J. Silva won in a griffins race on firm going (1 mile 171 yards: carried 147 lbs.)

For Race 141 (see below).

In Race 173 (Class 2), it came first with Lau up on firm going.

In Race 178 (cup Race) it came fifth with Middleton up on firm going.

In Race 195 (Cup Race) it came fifth with Hung up on firm going.

In the 1970/1971 Season:

In Race 15 (Class 1) it came first with MacMillan up on good going.

In Race 34 (Class 1) it came first with the same jockey on firm going.

In Race 74 (Class 1) it came second with the same jockey on good going.

In Race 133 (Cup Race) it came second with the same jockey on good going and

In Race 160 (Class 1) it came 8th with Cruz up on good going.

No mishandling was noticed. After the race, it was discovered that it had been struck into on its near fore by the aluminium plate of another horse, causing a deep wound. A J. Silva rode her in Race 141 (yielding track: 1 mile: came third: carried 149 1bs.) The owner Dr. Yen thought the distance and weight were suitable. It had trained very well before the race and was in top condition. Lee Tin Lam the trainer thought it had a chance but the yielding track was not suitable for it. Race 141 was its first time on yielding track. The owner Dr. Yen thought it had a very good chance to win. Silva noticed nothing unusual about it. It just took a little more time to enter the gate. In the paddock before the race, its condition was still very good but it had diarrhoea which is not unusual. In the race, Silva took an early lead up to the 6 furlongs post when he was overtaken by Champoo. He noted something wrong with it going up the Rock as it began to wilt. It get a cut going up the Rock. Silva steadied it round the top because its legs were weakening. The horse was tiring and was shortening its strides. The cut in the leg would not weaken it in the race. However Silva kept it going strongly drawing level with the leaders, but in the final few strides it could not overtake Champoo and Excel, both of which were known to be very good on yielding and soft track. At the unsaddling enclosure it had extremely loose bowels which stopped on return to the stable. Silva was sure the horse had been doped. The difference between the first and second horses was a neck; that between second and third also a neck. This was its first race in Class 2 and on a yielding track. The trainer was satisfied with its performance. The trainer thought it had a chance to win had it not been pulled out by the jockey to the centre. Silva's explanation is that as he felt the horse weakening he pulled the horse out so as not to fall in front of a lot of horses and also he wanted it to run on harder ground and also he thought this might give him a better chance to win. Silva does not think he would have won if he had not pulled out. (In 6 out of his 14 wins in the 1970/1971 Season, Silva finished up in the centre of the track because, running from the back, it would give him an advantage.) After the race the veterinary surgeon examined it and found no clinical symptoms and he kept an eye on it for the next few days but detect no abnormalities. It fed as normal.

It will be noted that a yielding track is not evenly yielding all over the track, especially after a few races. Race 141 was the 5th race of the day (see p.875 of Dr. Yen's evidence).

This was a 1970 griffin - a mare.

It is a very nervous horse.

It is a good horse, though in a low class.

Other races:

In the 1969/1970 Season, in -

Race 143 (Class B):

The race was on 7.3.70 Mulia aisloged the rider Middleton when going to the starting point. She was caught and remounted. The horse sustained a severe kick at the barrier just before the start (for details, see evidence on p.844 of my notes, which I accept as true). Middleton only nursed her through the race. She came in fourth.

On 10th March, 1970 the veterinary surgeon treated her by stomach tube for diarrhoea - he did the same on 11th. She recovered quickly - it was not a bad case. The diarrhoea was due to the reaction after the kick (for details of the incident and treatment, see evidence on pp.844-5, 8, 8, and 951-2 of my notes, which I accept as true).

She trained very well for Race 143. Her health, appetite and condition were good. Tam Man Kui the trainer thought she had a good chance. After Race 143, her form changed due to the kick so she was not allowed to take part in further races that season, though she had been entered for a race in April. After Race 143, there was no change in her appetite.

This was a 1970 subscription griffin. Allen Wu rode her in all her 3 starts in the 1969/1970 Season. She is quite a good horse - strong and healthy. She always starts well and runs well in the first quarter, then she likes to slow down, but if whipped, she responds again. She is a sprinter.

In Race 174, she came 5th in 6 furlongs 40 yards. She was still not ready for a win and was a little overweight. She ran as expected.

Race 143 (Class B):-

This was a 1968 subscription horse. This horse would not find it easy now even if it were in Class 4; Class 3 was too high for it and it was over-rated. It was an unreliable horse and slightly nervous. This was a one - pace horse. If it was up in front it would set the pace, if it took the lead it would run well, but if other horses caught up, then it was no good. It liked to run alone.

In the whole of the 1968/1969 Season, it was in Class 3. It ran 7 races in the 1969/1970 Season, all in Class 3. Its first race in that season was Race 13. As to its first 3 races in the 1969/1970 Season: in Race 13 it came last (as the gates were relased it dislodged the rider Macmillan and completed the course riderless. This was due to its unruliness when in its stall before the start, and that the rider was not properly in the saddle), in Race 47 it came 5th, and in Race 67 it came last.

D1's Athena came first and Not So Bad (with MacMillan up) came 2nd. Athena was able to catch up probably because she was carrying only 137 lbs. while Not So Bad was carrying 139 lbs.

This was a 1970 subscription mare.

In the 1969/1970 Season she ran in two races. In Race 85 (6 furlongs 40 yards) she came 4th as a griffin; the winner was Gay Apollo. Highfield came in 2nd 3 lengths behind, and Crown Pearl came in 3rd 3 lengths behind the 2nd horse. Optima came 4th a very long way behind.

Race 170 (Class B):

Braham was told that Optima had fallen sick suddenly. Optima was tested on 3.4.70. Dr. Crone the analyst later reported to him of a high concentration of arsenic in her urine samples.

See also Dr. Crone's evidence at Exhibit P.41 (paragraphs 36-9) on his analysis and tests, which I accept as representing the truth.

This was a 1968 griffin. Tam Man Kui was the trainer, and he thought it was a good horse.

In the 1969/1970 Season, it ran in Race 8 (Class 4 with T.H. Yau up and came 3rd), in Race 38 (Class 4 with Yau up and came 1st), in Race 95 (Class 4 with Yau up and came 3rd), in Race 134 (Class 4 again with Yau up and came 4th), in Race 167 (Class 4 again with Yau up and came 3rd), and in Race 197 (Class 4 with Wu up and came 8th).

No mishandling was noticed. Jockey T.H. Yau rode it. It had trained well. Yau gave it a good chance of winning. In the early stage of the race, Overtake was well up with the leader, then it dropped behind rounding the top bend and came 3rd 4 lengths behind the winner Grand Print. This horse had no finish in the straight. Yau had no suspicion of interference.

There was no drop in condition after race. Now Convention Day is in Class 2 and Overtake is in Class 3. Grand Print is now in Class 1.

This was a 1966 subscription mare.

In the 1969/1970 Season: in Race 21 she came third on soft going, in Race 42 she came second on good going, in Race 66 she came second on firm going, then she ran in Race 88 (infra). In Race 140 she came third on a yielding track (infra). Throughout the season she was in Class 6.

Race 88 (Class 6):

Race 140 (Class 6):-

This was a 1970 subscription horse. She had a number of infections in the 1969/1970 Season, and she also developed a ringed bone. She was not healthy in that year. She suffered from nose bleeding when she first arrived as griffin, but it later cured itself. Her hind leg was slightly lame (Chue Po Ming the trainer says she could hardly walk), and she was sent to Beas River in November 1969. She returned in a little over 2 months with her bleeding and lameness completely cured before Race 143. She was in Class B in the 1969/1970 Season, now in Class 8. In the 1970/1971 Season she had been in Class 7 but did not race after being relegated to Class 8. Later in 1970 she suffered from a slight lameness as before. In 1970 she had to go back to Beas River.

She ran 2 races in the 1969/1970 Season. As to Race 143, see below. In Race 203 (Class B), her condition was not as good as before, but she was in fair condition prior to the race. When she was ill, she was given ordinary feed. On her recovery, better feed was given. Her performance in Race 203 was not as good as in Race 143 though she came 3rd. Chue Po Ming asked D1 to ride her in Race 203. D1 refused, saying that she was a dead and useless horse and that he would ride Magic Forecast which was a better horse.

Race 143 (Class B):-

In Race 163 on 30.3.70, as compared with Playmate, Ababa, Jick Sing and Pink Treasure were new and better horses.

It is a low class horse. It is rarely unwell. Its behaviour at the gate is erratic. Sometimes it keeps on swaying at the gate.

It ran 7 times in the 1969/1970 Season. In Race 10, it came 6th. In Race 45, it came 3rd. In Race 65, it came 3rd. In Race 96, it came 2nd. In Race 106, it came 4th. In Race 168, it came 5th. In Race 196, it came 6th. All these were Class 9 races. Its performances in the 1969/1970 Season were erratic.

In ran 5 times in the 1968/1969 Season. In Race 6 (Class A) it came 9th out of 10 with D1 up. In Race 23 (Class A), it came 8th out of 10 with D1 up. In Race 35 (Class A) it came 6th out of 8 with D1 up. In Race 60 (Class 8) it came 8th and last with D1 up. In Race 172 (Class 8) it came 5th out of 12 with D1 up. It was retired at the end of the 1970/1971 Season and was given to a riding school.

No mishandling was noticed. T.C. Cheng trained it before the race. It was in good form, and he thought it would win and bet on it. It was the hot favourite. In morning gallops T.C. Cheng found the horse quite difficult to try. It did not pull much when it galloped alone. It galloped well in training. The trainer Lum Wun Leung said it should at least place. In the paddock before the race, it appeared to be lethargic and was off its colour, i.e., it was stiff in the shoulders.

In the 1968/1969 Season D1 had said to Lum Wun Leung that this horse was of no great use. At the beginning of the 1969/1970 Season Lum also thought the horse was useless.

She was a 1970 subscription horse.

Other races:-

Race 123 (Class A) on 21.2.70:-

She was in Class 4 in the 1969/1970 Season. This was a 1969 subscription griffin. It was not a good horse. She is nervous and sweats heavily. Sometimes she gallops well; sometimes she zigzags. Lee Tin Lam the trainer considers her a Class 5 or Class 6 horse. The jockey Middleton describes her as a scatter-brained horse and a free-sweater. It is difficult to judge her ability on training gallops.

In the 1969/1970 Season, she ran in Race 8 and came 8th, there in Race 59 and came 3rd, and in Race 89 and she came 7th, then in Race 113 and came 3rd, and in Race 193 and came 3rd. In the 1970/1971 Season, she ran in Race 4 (Class 4, came 6th), Race 73 (Class 4, came last), Race 116 (Class 5, came 8th) and in Race 179 (Class 5, came last). She is now in Class 6.

No mishandling was noticed. T.C. Cheng was the jockey (1 mile 171 yards with a light weight of 136 1bs.) She had trained well. She was in good form and had a strong rush. In the race he rode her hard all the way but she did not respond. She was a different horse from morning gallops. She was second favourite, but came 7th out of nine.

No mishandling was noticed. Middleton was the jockey. He considered that the race was between Gratitude and Happy Years but felt certain that Sincerity would be placed. The weight, draw, and going were in her favour. During the race her head kept 'yawning' from side to side and the rider had difficulty in keeping her straight. He had to push her more than in training. The time of the winner was average for Class 4 horses considering the firm going. She came 3rd.

This was a 1966 subscription horse.

This was a fair horse. Usually T.C. Cheng was the jockey. She never won or placed with another jockey on. She had won and placed many times with T.C. Cheng up. She is now in Class 7. A distance of ¾ or 1 milesuits her. She is a healthy horse but somewhat difficult to ride. T.C. Cheng is the only one who can ride her best.

In the 1969/1970 Season, she began in Race 23 and came 2nd in a Class 6 race, and finished in Race 164 (also a Class 6 race) coming in fourth.

She came 4th with Cruz up. Wong Siu Hung the trainer told the owner that without T.C. Cheng her chance to win was not good. She was alright in morning gallops. Her health and condition were not bad. Wong Siu Hung thinks it had been in too many races and was rather overwerked, and I accept this view.

This is a very low class horse. Throughout the 1969/1970 Season, she was in Class 9. After the 1970/1971 Season she was retired altogether. She was not any good as a race horse. She was one of the smallest horses in the Jockey Club. She was always rather thin (785 1bs. the average being 850 to 1,000 1bs.). The jockey Cruz did not come to know this horse too well. She never had a good appetite, eating 9 to 10 1bs. a day. She was a strong hearted horse, i.e., with a will to win. She was a long distance horse. She was never good in morning gallops but exceeded her gallop time in the race. She was a slow starter but had a good finish. She was susceptible to skin disorders over a long time and lost hair on different parts of the body. The veterinary surgeon did not find the cause. The veterinary surgeon says she was probably blistered on beth fore legs at the end of a racing season.

In the 1969/1970 Season, in Race 106 Cruz rode her over 1 mile and came 2nd, 6 lengths behind the winner. She was in Class 9 and carried 147 1bs. She raced 8 times in the 1969/1970 Season: Race 10 (came 3rd), Race 45 (came 2nd), Race 63 (came 3rd), Race 103 (came 4th), Race 106 (came 2nd) Race 139 (came 2nd last), Race 171 (came 8th) and Race 196 (came 9th and last). In Race 103, Splendour was 8 lengths behind the 3rd horse.

In the 1967/1968 Season:

Race 139 (Class 9):

The distance was about 1 mile 171 yards. The position drawn being Position No.3 was very good. The track was yielding, which she liked. She was carrying 150 1bs., which was a little heavy for her. No mishandling was noticed. She ran with Swiss Miss and came second last. Braham thought she ran below her known capabilities. Cruz rode her. She had kept her form prior to the race and had trained well. Cruz thought she would at least place if not win. The trainer Metrevelli thought the race was between her and Swiss Miss. He thought at the worst she should be placed. She appeared to be normal at the paddock. She jumped well and kept in touch with the leaders going out to the 6 furlongs post, then she began to weaken and Cruz had to urge her to keep going. Just after the ½ mile post she dropped further back and he had to press her to keep her going up the Rock. Rounding the top bend her legs began to weaken and she was faltering. In the straight he merely allowed her to get to the winning post, many longths behind the winner. When being unsaddled, she was very tired. She had refused to go throughout the race. Cruz would expect her to look very tired, as she was carrying 150 1bs. The trainer says 150 1bs was a heavy strain even on a hard track. As she was not a fast horse, a heavy weight and a yielding track would affect her. After the race, she lost a lot of appetite and her colouring changed. She never recovered after the race, she could never be brought back to the required form. She never regained her appetite, eating only 5 or 6 1bs a day, which is inadequate. For 2 or 3 days after Race 139 she had an upset stomach, but this happens with nervous horses and Metrevelli was not worried. She sometimes had loose bowels before or during a race but never after a race, but after Race 139 she had locse bowels for 2 or 3 days. This was the first time she lost colour in the 3 years he had had her. She had no fever, and was not sick. After Race 139 she ran in Race 171. After Race 139 she still had the will to but not the strength. Before Race 139 she had a good shine but began to lose colour afterwards. Cruz prefers a fast start but Splendour is a slow starter. Metrevelli did not suspect doping.

She was tested on or about 30.4.70 on Braham's order. Dr. Crone's report on 6.5.70 shows an abnormal amount of arsenic in her urine (see pp.502-3 and 525 of my notes, also Ex.P24 para.68, and Ex.P.19 A - E).

It was a 1969 subscription horse.

Other races:-

Race 33 (Class 4):-

46. SWISS MISS

This was a 1968 subscription horse.

She was not a good horse and did not compare favourably with other Class 9 horses. She never liked galloping and had to be forced to be trained. She was lazy in morning gallops. She was a one speed horse, a stayer rather than a sprinter, and she was better for one mile plus. Mr. CHUE Po-ming the trainer says that she had a fair chance in Class 9 races, not particularly good, but not without chances; that her best distance was more than 1 mile. She was big, healthy and strong, had a good temperament and was not nervous. Mr. CHUE Po-ming says this was not a good racing horse, In slow time she had a chance to place.

She would probably not go higher than Class 8, but should win in Class 9 - she was "very mediocre with no possible chance of ever becoming a good horse".

Other races:-

She started in Class 8 in the 1969/1970 Season, but was demoted to Class 9. She ran 6 races in that season and Mr. Allan Wu rode her in the last 2 races (Race 108 and Race 139), both in Class 9. In Race 108, she was very slow in starting, and he had to push her all the time; in the last quarter she came on strongly and finished 3rd. She in fact did better than Mr. Wu had expected. As a result of Race 108, he thought she had a chance of winning in Class 9. In Race 7 she came 4th (Class 8 - about 1 mile 171 yards), in Race 25 she came 7th (Class 8 - 1 mile), in Race 52 she came 3rd (Class 8 - 1 ¼ mile), and in Race 78 she came 4th (Class 8 - about 1 mile 171 yards).

Race 139 (Class 9):-

Allan Wu was the jockey. The distance was about 1 mile 171 yards. She came in 6th and last.

Race 139 was suitable to this horse. She had some, but not a very good chance, Mr. Leader (P.W.49) thought that this horse should win in Class 9, and that the 150 1bs. She carried was too heavy but he expected her to come 2nd. The running of Swiss Miss drew Mr. Sheppard's attention from soon after the start when she was trailing the field by a considerable distance. She ran poorly. She just did not gallop, her head was down and she moved badly and dropped further and further behind. The veterinary surgeon was called in immediately after race. On 10.6.70 the veterinary surgeon handed a sealed envelope containing a plastic bag of organic tissue to Dr. Crone the analyst for analysis. Braham says she was the 4th favourite and finished a poor last and he ordered her to be tested as she ran so badly. Saliva sample was therefore taken and found to be negative. No urine sample was taken because she would not urinate. A post mortem was done by Mr. Redman, Mr. Auchnie's assistant. He found that death was due to circulatory collapse following accute haemorrhogic enterits due to toxic factor (see evidence of Mr. Redman at Ex.P32 paras. 13, 17, 18 and 21, of Dr. Teoh at Ex.P42 para.4, of Dr. Crone at Ex.P41 para.47, and of Mr. Auchnie at Ex.P40 paras. 34-8 and 41, all of which I accept as representing the truth). In Race 139 there were 5 other horses all of which were not of any worth. Mr. Allan Wu galloped her on most of her morning gallops, and found her working well. She had been in good condition and in good racing form. He thought she had a chance and was confident she would win. The yielding track was in her favour. Though carrying top weight (150 1bs), Mr. Wu did not think this would slow her down very much. When Mr. Wu mounted her he found that she could not move just before the race, that there was soft manure on her legs and she was very tired. The veterinary surgeon let her race. Mr. CHUE Po-ming says she was too weak to race. Mr. Wu had to whip her to get to the starting position. In the race, she would not go at all and he had to push her very hard. She could not keep up with the field, and was obviously sick. Mr. Wu felt she was going to collapse on the final straight. When he dismounted he saw she was obviously in distress. Mr. Metrevelli (Splendour's trainer) thought the race was between her and Splendour, but neither came in. Swiss Miss trotted past the winning post. She died on 8th March, 1970.

47. TERRIFIC

This was a 1970 subscription horse.

Other races:-

In the 1969/1970 Season it ran in the following races: Race 74 (came 3rd - griffins race), Race 123 (came 3rd - Class A), Race 162 (came 2nd - Class A), Race 183 (came 2nd - Class 5), and Race 198 (came 2nd - Class 4). In Race 162, it came a close 2nd to Profitability which was ridden by D1.

Race 162 (Class 4):-

Jockey F.Y. Chan rode this horse. It did well in training. Its health, appetite, condition, and form were good. The distance of one mile was very good. Lum Wun Leung the trainer thought its chance was very good. It was however not a sure winner. In that race Profitability was a very hot favourite. Terrific was leading almost right up to the post.

48. THREE AND FOUR

This was a 1968 subscription horse. It came to trainer WONG Siu-hung from trainer LUM Wan-leung. When it came to Wong, its condition was not good. Wong rode it and thought it should not be in the class 8 and told Hung the jockey H.K. Hung not to gallop it too often as its condition had not improved. It runs in wide strides, therefore yielding track was not suitable.

Other races:-

It raced 6 times in the 1969/1970 Season. It won once in Race 108 (Class 9) over 1 mile with T.C. Cheng up, carrying 139 1bs. In Race 14 (Class 9), it came last - that was its first race in the season. Its last race in the season was Race 158 (Class 8) and it came 2nd. In the 1970/1971 Season it started off in Class 8. It is now in Class 9.

Race 125 (Class 8):-

It struck into heels of Doris at the stable bend due to Doris' shifting out, otherwise no mishandling was noticed. H.K. Hung was the jockey, carrying 139 1bs. The distance was 1 mile. Hung galloped it in the weeks before this race and found it in good form. Hung thought it stood a chance to win. In the race, with good going, it ran well till it turned its first bend when it struck into Doris' heels. The horse stumbled and Hung pulled it up. Due to this the horse dropped behind. It finished 5th quite close to the winner. Hung said he lost the race because of the accident. In training, it was given ¾ mile or 5 furlong gallops. Its condition by that time had improved. Its morning gallops were not had. Its appetite was not bad. Wong Siu Hung thought its chance for Race 125 was not bad. It was 2nd favourite on the tote. In the race it trailed the field. Its performance in the race was not bad. WONG Siu-hung thought Hung and the horse did not match well. Because of the incident with Doris, Three And Four lost about 1 enght. There was no change in its appetite and form after the race.

49. THUNDERBIRD

She was a 1968 subscription mare. She is now in Class 5. Towards the end of the 1970/1971 Season she was demoted to Class 5 from Class 4. She always starts with her left leg, possibly due to early training in Australia, or due to previous tendon trouble when still a griffin. She was sent to Beas River for 6 months and cured herself.

Other races:-

In her first race in the 1969/1970 Season she ran in Class 4 with K.Y. Ho up. D1 raced her 2 or 3 times. In Race 136 she was unplaced in a Class 4 race; she was therefore demoted to Class 5. Then she won and went back to Class 4.

Race 113 (Class 4):-

D1 was the jockey. No mishandling was noticed.

Race 150 (Class 5):-

D1 was the jockey, and she came 1st. This was her only win in that season. Before Race 150 she was in fair condition and fair in morning gallops. Sofronoff did not think she had too much of a chance in Race 150. Her contenders were Fast King and Joker. Sofronoff was not surprised she won because the contenders did not perform too well.

This was a 1968 subscription gelding. It was strong and healthy. This is a stayer, better over a mile, extended mile, and 1 ¼ miles. It usually has a strong finish. This is a well behaved horse, and a good Class 3 horse.

In Race 15 (Class 3) on 18th October 1969, which was its first race (about 1 mile 171 yards), it came first with Danny LEE carrying 143 1bs. It was in good condition and worked well in training. It won by a neck. The going was good.

Race 83 (Class 3):

Athena is a good horse and she proved to be better than Treasure of Orient in more than one racing season. This horse was disqualified in the 1970/1971 Season (p.996).

This was a 1970 subscription griffin. Silva, the jockey says it is a not very good horse. It is a little bad tempered (but not too bad) as it was young.

It ran only one race (Race 118) in the 1969/1970 Season.

After Race 120, it was troubled by a little lameness in the front shoulder. It was treated by the veterinary surgeon but it never recovered.

It was a griffin race for untried horses. The distance was 6 furlongs 40 yards. The going was firm. The weight was 147 lbs. Silva rode it and came third. It drew Position 6. This was Willie's first and only race. No mishandling was noticed. T.C. CHENG's Malayan Star won by 5 ½ lengths ahead of Willie. Prior to the race it had trained very well and was in top condition. Its appetite was good. It was well prepared for its first race in Hong Kong. The final gallop was very impressive. Silva thought it would be very close to Malayan Star which was also very fit. Silva was instructed that it should be ridden to win. CHUE Po-ming thought it had a chance to win. In the race, it was about 3rd throughout, within touch of the leaders, but in the straight the rider could get no response from Willie. It lost badly. It was a disappointed race perhaps due to this being its first race. Silva now thinks the horse may or may not have been interfered with. It was the second favourite. CHUE Po-ming was satisfied with the result because of its youth and because this was its first race.

FINDINGS OF FACTS ON MISCELLANEOUS TOPICS

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Apprentice riding boys

There are no signed apprenticeships. A list of apprentices is kept in the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club office. They are just learners. If an apprentice is attached to Beas River he may go to Happy Valley but normally he would be attending riding classes in Beas River once a week. He is supposed to help his trainer and other riding boys and do what he is told to do within his own stable, e.g. feeding, bandaging, cleaning saddles, assisting in morning gallops by riding horses, taking notes, making a record of gallops, helping jockeys up a horse, preparing saddles, and trying a horse at the gates, etc. In short he has to assist in doing miscellaneous jobs and anything in connection with the stable, apart from looking after his own horse. He also assists in looking after other horses in the stable and assists other mafoos.

When the office invites applications from intending apprentice riding boys, any mafoo may apply. He has to observe how his trainer rides. On race days he might take the saddles and gear to the race course. He should help saddle and unsaddle a horse. Very few apprentice riding boys go to Beas Rivers unless his horse is sick. If he goes to Beas River with his sick horse, then he has no reason to go to the race course at Happy Valley on a race day. The apprentice riding boy has to do everything in his stable. There is only one such apprentice in each stable.

Arsenic Poisoning

Mr. Redman (PW25) did the post mortem on Swiss Miss and found that death was due to circulatory collapse following acute haemorrhagic enteritis due to toxic factor, which was consistent with its having died of acute arsenic poisoning, and that the symptoms of poisoning would have appeared within a maximum of about 12 hours, probably less (Paragraphs 13, 17 & 18 of Exhibit P.32).

As a tonic, the arsenic administered is an organic (not an inorganic) arsenic (compare Dr. Crone (PW40), at p.756 of my notes), given intravenously in very small dosage, i.e., O.1 mg. As a tonic, it is used ignorantly and not professionally. Arsenic trioxide is an inorganic arsenic. It enters the blood streams (per Dr. Crone, at p.761). The first symptoms of arsenic poisoning are loose stool and abdominal pain. The recognised dose of arsenic trioxide for a normal horse of say 1,000 1bs. live weight is 5 gr. (p. 580) to have any toxic effect. It is indissoluble and so it is not given in water, but fed. Onset of symptoms of arsenic trioxide poisoning is 8 to 12 hours before a race. It can be up to 72 hours. With a horse that has a greater bulk of food in its body the effect will be slow (Mr. Redmen at p.568 of my notes). The stool may be blood streaked. Eye membrane may be inflammed - a slightly oedematous condition of the eyelids. Tolerence of arsenic trioxide for horses - 15 to 25 mg. per 1b. body weight. This is a toxic dose (Mr. Auchnie at p.747 of my notes). Violent injection of membrane shows poisoning. Generally speaking, for poisoning, there will be violent diarrhoea and not just ordinary diarrhoea. Ordinary injection of membrane may be due to irritation (p.952).

In Hong Kong, a horse cannot have arsenic trioxide inside it by accident or by natural process. Arsenic trioxide takes a fine powder form, though one can also get it in a liquid form. It causes gastro - enteritis (i.e., inflammation of the intestines). Small dose probably has no effect on a horse, but 30 grains of arsenic trioxide has been known to kill a horse in 4 days. Occasionally double the dose produces no symptoms, depending on the horse and the amount of feed it has taken. It is variable in effect, depending on (1) body weight, (2) feed in body and (3) metabolism. The symptoms are: off-feed, diarrhoea, and colicky pains. It does not affect the nervous system. It is not a stimulant or a depressant; it is a poison. It could impair the performance of a horse by reducing its metabolism. It is a very erratic drug and some horses may show no effect at all with one dose whereas the effect on another horse may be fatal. The period required for it to be eliminated from the system depends on the quantity of arsenic trioxide taken. It has been known to have taken as long as 2 ½ months. It is slowly excreted from the body. Arsenic trioxide is odourless and not very soluble. It has no taste. It is white in colour. (Mr. Auchnie at pp. 738-40, 747).

As to diarrhoea - excited horses on race day may have that and it would affect performance. Diarrhoea may be missed. A nervous horse may have hysterical disorders producing a minor degree of symptoms similar to arsenic poisoning, e.g. loose stool before and after a race.

Sweating is consistent with colic. Sweating is always noticeable. Colic may be caused by many things. Reddening of conjunctiva and oedema of eyelids can be caused by many other things. So also dry staring coats.

Arsenic is not used as pest control and not used in stables at all.

Arsenic trioxide was used by veterinary surgeons as a tonic 15 to 20 years ago, not now. Possibly there is still a belief in its efficacy by the ignorant.

Many colouring materials are of an arsenical nature, but not many rodent poisons contain arsenic (Dr. Crone at p.759). Insecticides used in stables have no arsenical base. Fowler's solution containing 1% arsenic trioxide is used as a tonic - the dose is ½ oz. daily (Dr. Crone's evidence on pp. 759, 761).

As a tonic it can improve digestion - this is an old fashion therapy.

Many weed killers are arsenically based. They are usually used prior to harvesting (Dr. Crone's evidence on p. 759).

Half a teaspoonful of arsenic trioxide weighs about 1 gramme which is about 15 grains.

One teaspoonful is therefore about 2 to 3 grammes. For a 1,000 1bs. horse, the excretion rate for 1 gramme depends on the horse itself. It is a relatively small dose, just about double a medicinal dose. There is about a 12 hour time lag before onset of symptoms. One gramme would be got rid of in about 2 days in the normal course of events. If arsenic trioxide is mixed in feed, it is unlikely that a horse can detect it (Mr. Auchnie at pp. 750-1, 753). It takes 2 to 3 weeks for levels of arsenic not greater than 100 microgrammes in 50 ml. to fall off to that normally occuring in urine. Rate of excretion depends on metabolism of the horse and on the quantity of arsenic trioxide absorbed (Dr. Crone at pp.757-8).

Arsenic sold commercially is not necessarily granular. When Dr. Crone buys it for laboratory use, it is in powder form. He has never seen it other than white or off white (Dr. Crone, at p.759).

A large number of arsenic compounds is used medicinally. Arsenic trioxide is probably the base from which arsenic compound is prepared (Dr. Crone at pp.759-760).

Reading of urine may not be a true reading of arsenic in the tissue of a horse because sometimes a horse takes 1 or 2 days to urinate. Dr. Crone does not really know whether concentration of arsenic in urine is higher after having been stored for a certain length of time in the bladder (Dr. Crone at p.760). Excretion rate is in a curve, not in a straight line, decreasing rapidly initially, then levelling off. Where concentration of arsenic is high in urine, it means it has been fairly recently administrated. Very high concentration would suggest very high administration. Smaller amount might mean:

(1) the tail end of a large amount, or

(2) the continuing excretion of a very small amount, or

(3) the initial excretion of a small amount.

Assessment of a horse's chance to win a race

One has to consider a horse's rival, its health, form and record of gallops, also its appetite, the weight it has to carry, position drawn, distance, and going. The position drawn is most important in a one mile race, but not so important in a short race. One also has to consider its entire record of training and past performances, also its general condition and fitness. If it is fit, it is not necessary to gallop it before one can make an accurate estimate as to whether it is ready for a race. Sometimes a slow canter is enough. There is no need to gallop it flat out in morning training. If it does 55 to 56 seconds on a ½ mile distance in training and it shows the urge to go and it moves well, it is enough indication of good form. The actual time is also not so important, it is seeing her perform that gives the indication. One has also to consider the jockey.

A trainer usually discusses his assessment with the jockey and passes his assessment on to the owner.

If the jockey as a champion, a horse would be a favourite even if it is not any good.

If the horse is a jockey's regular mount, he can judge it by having at least one ride, but if it is a new horse, he must have two or three gallops before he can judge, as horses have concealed bad habits (p.995).

Black List

Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club has a black list since after the Bella incident (but not a "physical list" written on a piece of paper) - per P.W.9, a mafoo, on p.333 of my notes. P.W.12, a mafoo, on the other hand knows nothing about it (p.445). Mr. Braham (PW18) also knows nothing about it.

Bye-Laws and Rules

For stables Bye-laws (29.12.64) see Exhibit p.20.

Bye-law 6(b) prohibits introduction of alcoholic liquor into the stables, and regulates supply of tonic or medicine by owners.

Bye-law 9 is on visits to stables (this bye-law has been in force ever since 1964 except for certain changes: (e) and (f) were enforced in 1969/1970 but not in force now: (f) relates to persons admitted under (e)).

D1's regular mounts and chance mounts

See D1's evidence on pp.976-84 of my notes.

D2's morning tea with trainers

PW10 says in his evidence that on 3.1.70 after the morning gallops at the race course he and D2 walked back together to the stables at Shan Kwong Road and it was then that D2 handed him a plastic vial and asked him to dope Not So Bad. The case for the defence on this issue is that this incident could not have taken place because D2 was at the time having morning tea with his trainer Mr. Sze Sau Wo and other trainers as was his custom. The matter was gone into at great length by counsel for D2 - (see pp. 351-4 of my notes), D2 gives evidence denying the incident (see pp. 1042-3, 1050 and 1070 of my notes).

Having considered the evidence as a whole, I am satisfied beyond all reasonable doubt that PW10's version represents the truth and D2's story is not worthy of credence. This conclusion is supported by Mr. Sze Sau Wo's evidence that D2 did not always have morning tea with him (p.589) and also by the evidence of the other trainers who are alleged to have had tea with D2 (pp.617, 799-801, 824 and 832 of my notes).

Declaration and Entry

The list of horses which have been entered to race on a Saturday is published on Monday of the week before the race in which the race takes place, i.e. twelve days before the race, however the weights they have to carry and other handicaps are at this stage still unknown. Entry forms are sent out about 21 days before the first day of a race meeting. Entry closes at 10 a.m. on Wednesday about 10 days before the first day of a race meeting (see Exhibit P.5). The Entry List is sent to trainers at 5 p.m. on Wednesday. Declarations of these latter informations are made on Friday of the week before the week in which the race takes place, i.e. Entry is on Monday and Declaration is on Friday. Declaration closes at 10 a.m. on Friday and until that moment a trainer is entitled to withdraw his horse. After closing of Declaration, withdrawal of a horse is by the veterinary surgeon's leave only. The starting position is published 2 hours after closing of Declaration, i.e. at about 12 noon. Then trainer knows about the horses that are going to run the next day and also their positions at the starting gate. Handicaps are announced a week before the race, i.e. on Saturday for the race due to take place on next Saturday (see p.870).

A trainer (e.g. Mr. Wong Siu Hung) would inform the owner of his intention to make a declaration a couple of days before Friday, say on Tuesday after morning gallops. If he decides not to declare a horse, he tells the owner about a week before hand (p.673).

Doping of hot favourites or outsiders

Once a hot favourite has been doped, the outsider might win and one could win more money. Mr. Braham says a doper might dope a horse for reasons which a qualified person might consider absurd (p.535). He says there is no point in doping a sure winner to let another sure winner win because the public would have a lot of money put on it too.

Sometimes a horse is a hot favourite simply because of the jockey, e.g. Mr. T.C. Cheng. A good horse may not be liked by punters, or a horse which is not promising may be liked.

Fixing a race and methods to lose a race

"Fixing a race" means the election of which horses to win, commonly considered as an election by jockeys. It is then said that the race has been "rigged" or "fixed". It means the result has been previously arranged.

If a jockey wants to lose a race, he can slow his reflexes (but this can be seen in Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club's film). Buckets of water given to a horse will slow it down. Feed also affects its performance. The jockey Mr. Middleton says tightness of girth would not affect a horse's race.

Strange things happen to a horse in a race without anybody's fault (e.g. Race 193 on p.281 of Exhibit P.1 and Race 48 on p.244, Race 65 on p.250, Race 66 on p.250 re Tahoe, and Race 69 on p.251).

A jockey can lose a race without doping the horse. He can get a bad start so that he does not get into a good position and it is very difficult to tell whether this was accidental or intentional. Or he can get the horse unbalanced by galloping on its wrong leg, or go wide on the wrong leg, or go wide on the turns to lose a few lengths, or push a horse which needs to settle down early, or he can ride it out to the front and expend its energy, or he can get into or behind a group of other horses. Or a jockey can pull his horse, or position it in such a way as to hamper its progress. In most cases the stewards are obliged to accept a jockey's explanation. The Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club film shows the entire race.

Form of a horse

When a hot favourite does not come true to form - it does not necessarily mean it has been doped. It may be because it is immature.

Some horses are liable to shy, buck, rear, or kick. Some are placid and unemotional. Some are particularly inquisitive. Some are easily excited by a sudden noise and strange sights, or sudden shadows.

A horse gets accustomed to its mafoo. A mafoo is usually safe with his own horse, except when it is in a bad mood, then it might injure him. The mafoo would be a little anxious over a stranger's safety if the latter is in the stall with a horse.

For no reason at all, horses in the paddock may create a commotion, causing horses inside the stalls to be agitated and nervous.

Some horses are good on hard ground, some on soft ground. The going affects a horse's performance.

Mental and internal conditions, the going, and the jockey all affect a horse's performance. A sudden change of rider before a race may upset a horse. Some horses are difficult to get into the starting gate. The mafoo sometimes blindfolds the horse and wheels it round and then put it into the gate. Some have to be pushed into the starting gate, and if it takes time to do this it upsets the horse.

A horse "runs like a donkey" because: (1) it is not in a fit condition or (2) tired, or (3) it is because of fumbling caused by the rider having to check the horse when it shies in a race. Fumbling is due to a horse losing co-ordination of its muscles for some reason. Under (1), (2) and (3) it would be difficult to get co-ordination back. Starting on the wrong foot or interference by another horse may cause a horse to fumble.

Some horses respond to the whip by decreasing speed or moving sideways instead of running faster. When a horse is below form, it is sometimes possible to bring it back to form. Some never recover. Some goes progressingly worse until ready to retire, e.g. High Flyer. "Ready to retire" means too old or too weak to run - it does not necessarily mean its form is so bad it cannot run anymore. Some horses are good even when old. Some have to retire early.

Sometimes a horse performs better and sometimes worse in a race then in morning gallops. The reasons are: (1) race is on grass and gallop is on sand; (2) in a race the horse carries a weight awarded by handicapper but not so in gallops; (3) in a race a horse runs with competitiors, in gallops it runs alone or with one other; (4) the horse wears iron shoes in gallops and aluminum plates in a race; (5) racing saddle and gallop saddle are different; (6) in a race it is ridden by a jockey, in gallops by jockey or riding boy; (7) in a race the quarter time is between 22-26 second but in gallops it is between 26-29 seconds.

A nervous and delicate horse gets excited when aluminium plates are put on it on Friday.

A green horse is one inexperienced in races, e.g. Quartette.

If a horse has been urged too much in the beginning of the race, it will have no rush left in the end. This is described as fading (p.561).

Some horses lose form suddenly showing signs noticeable to a trainer but perhaps not to a jockey or mafoo.

If a horse is overtaxed or forced to run too much (infra), it loses form, e.g. Alicebar (p.641) Pegasus (p.663). Overtraining may have the same effect (infra).

A horse may change form from one season to another.

Many horses are temperamental, not all are. Occasionally they shy and rear apparently for nothing. When one horse does that, the others follow suit and for a short moment there is confusion. This may be due to a sudden noise or a different light or shadows or strangers, or strange sights, or due to people who do not know how to handle horses.

A horse overtrains if it trots 2 or 3 times more than the normal distance or gallops at a fast speed, especially over a long distance. The horse will lose form and this is indicated by its being off its feed. After overracing, its form will drop. It would take some time to bring it back to normal form - between a week to a month.

Before a race, most horses are excited. Some are already wet through when being led into the saddling enclosure. Some also get slight diarrhoea.

A "chicken hearted horse" is one which is afraid of everything and does not try.

There are horses that go very well when out in front but hopeless when lagging behind.

Mares come on heat every 3 weeks during the season which is about 4 months in a year. It is erratic as to when the 4 months occur. When on heat, a mare's racing is affected.

Worms cause debility and loss of condition. Diagnosis is by manure test - it is done if a horse is not putting on condition, if it is under weight. Sometimes they go off their feed because of worm, or pot belly, or loss of weight, staring coating, or loss of appetite. Horses are dewormed during off season. There are very few cases of worm in Happy Valley except for those that have gone to Beas River.

If a horse coming from Australia has already learned to race one way round it will learn pretty quickly to run in the other direction in Hong Kong, but some always tend to hang out. A left-legged horse tends to run out at the bends. This can be changed - but as to how quickly, it depends on the skill of the rider. There are very few such horses. It needs careful, competent, and prolonged schooling.

Mr. Ng Chi Lam's (P.W.42) evidence (at pp.814-5), which I accept, is as follows:

"Because the horse started with the wrong leg, her eyes were subject to the cloud of dust and mud so she bore out. If a horse has something left in the last quarter and does not respond to the hand and heel, it would respond to the whip.

This is true of some horses. Some will never respond to the whip. If a horse has spent all its strength in the first part of the race, then even if you apply the whip it would be no use. The horse would bleed. If a horse does not like the whip, the use of the whip in the last quarter would have the opposite effect. In 1969/1970 I was the champion trainer. The extent of whipping depends on the trainer's instruction to the jockey. Everyday I see horses being whipped furiously in the last quarter of a race with no chance of its getting anywhere, and this is done to show the owner and spectators that the jockey is trying his best. After a race a horse generally suffers a loss of appetite - in 80% of the cases. If it is an easy win and an easy race, the loss of appetite is not long nor serious. That depends on the horse's temperament. Some really exert themselves, others being too idle to exert, could retain their appetite. In an effortless race, there is a very slight loss of appetite but in a strenuous race, there is more serious and prolonged loss of appetite. Again that depends on its pedigree. Some rather delicate horses might win a race quite easily, but lose the following race miserably where every body expects it to win. They are unpredicatable creatures."

Mr. Middleton (P.W.15) says in Ex.P18 (p.1):

"If I amount a horse in the morning, I am able to judge its potential in a forthcoming race with a reasonable degree of accuracy. I do this by the way it moves its appearance, eyes, whether the nostrils are clean after galloping and the way its stomach tapered. The texture of the coat is also important. I can tell by feeling the loins of a horse after galloping whether it is fit or not, or whether it is overtrained. I can do this with reasonable degree of accuracy." I accept this evidence.

Some horses have concealed bad habits (p.995).

As to griffins:

Some owners and trainers like to conceal the true worth of a griffin until later in the seasor. It is held back in the beginning until later in the season. A griffin ceases to be a griffin after one racing season provided it did take part in races. Griffins are difficult to predict because a first class horse may be thrown together with a Class 9 horse. A griffin may do very well in the beginning but never do well again. If the batch of other griffins with which it runs are all poor and it does not perform too badly itself, it will show up very well. And when it goes to a higher class and matches up with good horses, it will not do well. Some griffins begin badly but run well afterwards. Griffins are expected to improve in form as time goes on.

Stiffness in a horse may be due to (1) rheumatism, (2) strenuous force applied to a horse to hold it back during morning gallops, or (3) its having been hurt in the walk between stable and the track through mafoo's carelessness. A horse walking down a steep incline may slip and stumble and it would affect tis muscles and joints. The route from the stables to the track is very steep. Stiffness might be due to a change in weather. A horse might slip when getting up from sleep, and twists itself, causing stiffness.

Some horses in Hong Kong are subject to digestive disorders, but not an over large amount of it. Horses here are subject to fever more than any other part of the world.

There are very few pedigree horses in Hong Kong. They are mostly "rubbish horses" which explains the irregularity of performance in some in tances. With a pedigree horse, you can give an estimate. With a horse of uncertain pedigree, you cannot always predict. It is hard to keep a horse in top condition in Hong Kong because the grade of feed is not as high as elsewhere. The stables here are not like that of anywhere else.

Sometimes a horse runs very well in morning gallops but refuses to race in races. In the morning a horse always runs alone or is accompanied by only one other horse, but in races it runs with about ten horses. Some horse refuses to run if there are many horses in front of it. Also its performance in a race may be different from that in morning gallops because in races it runs on a grass track but in morning gallops it runs on a sand track. Some horses are also shy of noises from the public during a race. Horses are only "human". (pp.995-6).

Gallop sheets

Some trainers rely on gallop sheets which they receive free of charge. There are occasions when the time of a horse is entirely omitted but this is unusual. There are discrepancies in time of up to 1/5 seconds, which are attributable to the position of the person holding the stop watch. Trainer Mr. Belov cannot remember an occasion when the name of a horse was missed out entirely from such sheets. Trainer Mr. Sofronoff does not rely on those sheets. The sheet are unofficial and inaccurate.

For further details, see Mr. Kan Yee Ching's evidence at pp.1024-5, 1031, which I accept as true.

Istimewa Restaurant meeting between Insp. Charles Lee and P.W.4 and 2nd and 6th defendants.

Insp. Charles Lee (P.W.67) says in his evidence (at p.923-4):

"The first time I spoke to 2nd defendant was in October 1970, one evening, at Caf'e Istimewa on Wong Nei Chung Road. 2nd defendant, I, 6th defendant and P.W.4 were present. On the day before that evening at 4 or 5 p.m. P.W.4 telephoned me and told me 2nd and 6th defendants wanted to see me. I did not know them before that but I knew their names as being employees of the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club. I asked P.W.4 when and why they wanted to see me. P.W.4 told me they claimed to have some information to pass on to me and I could see them that night. I was fully engaged that night so I told P.W.4 I could see them the following evening and I asked him to inform me if he had made the appointment. The following day, in the afternoon, P.W.4 rang me about the time and place of the meeting. I went there. They were there when I arrived and P.W.4 introduced 2nd and 6th defendants to me. I asked 2nd and 6th defendants what information they could supply to me: I understood it concerned horse poisoning. Both toldme they suspected horse poisoning was still being carried out in the 1970/1971 Season and that they were in a position to find out about that. They suggested to assist me by giving me the information should they be able to obtain it. I agree to that and I gave each of them my telephone numbers. I then asked them if they could supply me with information about interference of race horses in the 1970/1971 Season. 2nd defendant at first said he was not clear about it. Later he said he might be able to supply some information but it was difficult for him to do so. I asked him why it was difficult, he did not tell me. After we had the conversation I left first. The whole meeting lasted half an hour or so. Most of the conversation was between me and 2nd and 6th defendants. P.W.4 was present and spoke only a little. He was not much in the conversation. They never contacted me again since that night until their arrest."

I accept this account of what happened at that meeting.

According to P.W.4, this meeting was brought about by a request from 2nd and 6th defendants to give certain information to Insp. Lee about doping of horses (p.72). It was on this request that P.W.4 arranged for the two accused to meet Insp. Lee. P.W.4 also says in his evidence (at p.88):

"Respecting the meeting between 2nd and 6th defendants and Inspector Lee. At that time it was said some people were doping horses and these two wished to say that during that season there were still people doping horses. They wished to report this to Insp. Lee. I arranged the meeting because I heard that there was still people doping horses in that season. I wanted to help the police and I said to 2nd and 6th defendants they could tell the police. This was in October 1971."

It will be seen that this evidence is much the same as that given by Insp. Lee.

I accept P.W.4's evidence referred to above.

I have considered carefully 2nd defendant's evidence (pp.1044-6, 1070) on this point and I reject it.

Jockeys' relationship with:-

Mafoo's badge and pass

When a mafoo's horse is racing, he gets a badge to enable him to go in to the race course. If his horse is not racing, he is not entitled to a badge, but he can borrow one. If someone who has a badge is not going to the race course then the mafoo can borrow it from him. Or if a person's horse is racing in the first race then he will not need his badge after the first race and another mafoo can then borrow it. Sometimes one can get into the race course without a badge, e.g. horses due to run at 2 p.m. are led to the track at 1 p.m. accompanied by a lot of people who go down to help, so if he is amongst one of these people, he would also get in. This is strictly speaking a breach of the rules, but many people get in by this way. Mr. Vong (P.W.7) also did this when he was at Beas River. (pp 187-8, 211, 216).

A mafoo is entitled to enter the members' enclosure. A mafoo can buy a badge on the black market from a friend who has bought more than he requires. P.W.9 bought one for $20 - a higher price than usual (p.314).

Each mafoo has a formal pass to enable him to enter his stable. Condition 4(a) in the pass says:

"To retain this licence the holder must stricly observe the following rules:-

(a) All rules and regulations published by the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club must be observed."

A mafoo who accompanies his horse to Beas River will not be issued a special pass to go to Beas River. He goes on the same mafoo's pass. During the period that he is at Beas River, he has nothing to do with his stable at Happy Valley. If the trainer sees him in the stable he has to give an explanation. Occasionally the mafoo may go to the stable to tell the trainer about the horse at Beas River.

If a horse is transferred to another stable, the mafoo has to get a new pass.

Those who are issued with passes are stable workers, and outside workers are given temporary passes by the stable general office.

Meeting on Saturday 3.4.71 between P.W.s and Inspector Charles Lee (P.W.67) at the Triad Societies Bureau

Inspector Lee (PW67), Inspector Griffiths (PW8) - Messrs. Vong (PW7), Au Yuk Chun, Lai Kei On (PW12), Kai Ling Chi (PW11), Yau Po Kwong (PW13), Yu Wing Kwai (PW10) and Chiu San-hong (PW14) had a meeting at the Triad Societies Bureau on 3rd April 1971. (Mr. Au had asked if he could also attend the meeting as he was considering whether he was to testify for the Crown or not). Absent were Messrs. Tong To, Tsui Kwai Wah, Tang Ching On, Chan Yuk (PW5), and Wong Tang Ping (PW4).

The meeting lasted 30 minutes to 45 minutes (Mr. Vong (PW7) says it lasted 15 minutes). Inspector Webster came in and said something interpreted by Inspector Lee. Inspector Griffiths might have been called out of the office from time to time. Inspector Lee was there most of the time. Either Inspector Lee or Inspector Griffiths was always in the room.

The meeting was a joint decision by Inspector Lee and Inspector Griffiths made on Friday afternoon. The meeting was called on Saturday morning. Inspector Griffiths gave a list to an official of the Jockey Club and request that when the prosecution witnesses came to work the following day, they be advised to attend. All came.

Nothing was said as to what evidence a witness was to give. The contents of the evidence were not raised at all. The witnesses' statements were not read back to them at that meeting. At the meeting Inspector Lee told them not to disclose anything about this case to anyone on account of their safety.

The meeting was called because a witness had turned hostile (i.e. P.W.5). The question of hostile witness might have been raised by Mr. Lai Kei On (By then Chan Yuk (P.W.5) had been declared a hostile witness). The hostile witness' name was not brought up by the police. The meeting was not called to "read the Riot Act" to the prosecution witnesses, but to re-assure them. It was more like a general conversation. The police wanted to find out if any threats had been made. The witnesses were promised that if they told the truth, they would not be punished by prosecution or be discriminated against by the Jockey Club (i.e., they would not lose their jobs, even though they had broken the Club's rules). This was said by Inspector Griffiths in English. Inspector Griffiths had no personal knowledge of that promise but Messrs. McMahon, Webster, Clancey, and Mr. Grace the Director of Criminal Investigation had mentioned this.

Mr. Vong (P.W.7) says no one mentioned these things (p.188).

P.W.9 however says these were mentioned (p.310, but cf. pp.309 and 325).

At the meeting Inspector Lee said (p.332);

"When the time comes, you will be called upon to give evidence in Court. You ought to remember your own evidence. When giving evidence if you have omitted anything earlier on, you can add it. When you go home, don't tell anyone about your own evidence indiscriminately."

He said,

"If anyone should threaten you, do ring me up."

P.W.11 says (p.378):

"Inspector Lee said he had been requested by the highest authority of the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club to convey the instruction to us to tell everything and not to add anything and not to omit anything. I cannot remember what was said about my job. I was not told that my job would not suffer."

P.W.11's evidence (pp.399-400) was:

"Q.	You were given an assurance that whatever you had done, you would not lose your job with the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club by Inspector Lee in P.W.8's presence?
A.	Yes.
Q.	Inspector Lee told you he could give you this assurance on the request of the highest authority of the Jockey Club?
A.	I cannot remember if he did say this, but he did say what you have earlier said."

The meeting finished at about 12 noon or 1 p.m. The prosecution witnesses then went to Luk Kwok Hotel for lunch. Inspector Lee joined their table as they were leaving. He did not mention Chan Yuk (P.W.5) nor did he say that a witness did not co-operate. He told them that he would do his best to make sure they would keep their jobs at the Jockey Club.

Mr. Johnston (P.W.16) on a few occassions passed on messages from Inspector Lee to the prosecution witnesses to go to the police station. He has not made any promises to them.

Mr. Braham (P.W.18) says (p.539):

"I don't know if a promise had been given by the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club that if the mafoos gave evidence they would not lose their jobs no matter what they had done. I have not heard of such a promise, except in the newspapers. The Board of Stewards consisting of 3 stewards have the authority to give such a premise. If I was asked to give such an undertaking from the point of view of my work, I would not give it. I myself would not give such a promise. I doubted the possibility of any such promise being given by Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club. I would think it unusual."

Mr. Auchnie (P.W.39) says (p.754):

"Re: undertaking by Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club that it does not matter if a prosecution witness has done wrong, he will be retained in his job, I have not heard of this. Decision rests with stewards. As far as I know, no such undertaking. If a mafoo confesses to doping I will tell the stawards. The decision is theirs."

Inspector Lee (P.W.67) says (pp.944-6):

"At the meeting with the witnesses I did not say I was speaking with the 'highest authority' of the Jockey Club. I did not say I had discussed the matter with Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club because I did not discuss the matter with them. I told them that I had instructions from my superior officers to inform that provided they told the truth and the whole truth in Court, they would not be discrimin ted against by the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club and Mr. Griffiths also said something to that effect when I interpreted from him. I cannot recall if I used the word 'punish' in the sense that they would not be punished. I used the words '岐?' (interpreted as discrimination or to be given a different treatment. Not 'prejudice'). I cannot recall what word Inspector Griffiths used; if he used the word 'punished' I must have interpreted it, but I did not myself use the word 'punish'. I said to them 'whatever you have done, you would not be discriminated against' provided they were going to tell the truth and the whole truth. Those who had supplied information to the police were told in November 1970 that it was likely they would be called as witnesses. Before this meeting, each of them knew they would give evidence and each of them at some time had given a statement. At the meeting, we intended to call them as witnesses but one indicated he was not willing to testify, so we had to leave him. As far as I can recollect there was only one who was not going to give evidence. The emphasis was on their telling the Court the whole truth, though I may have said that they would not be punished or discriminated against if they gave evidence. Of course I don't know how they took it."

I accept Inspector Lee's evidence as representing the truth, which fits in with the evidence given by Mr. Braham and Mr. Auchnie. In my view the police officers have conducted themselves with scrupulous propriety at the meeting and there was nothing that they did or said that suggested themselves to those attending the meeting that they should give their evidence in any way other than telling the truth.

Misconduct of mafoos

Mr. Braham (P.W.18) says (pp.530-1):

"A mafoo may be warned, reprimanded, fined, suspended, dismissed for breaches of the rules. Our recommendations and findings go direct to the stewards of the Jockey Club who decided on what actions to take."

"A serious view is taken if employees have been found to have administered drugs to horses. If a mafoo admits, outside our enquiries, that he has doped a horse, I would take a very serious view and I am bound to put the case before the stewards for dismissal. If a mafoo accepts a bribe to dope a horse and does not dope it, the matter would come under the stable manager's (i.e. Dr. Auchnie's) jurisdiction and not mine. My own view is that such a mafoo would find himself in an invidious position if the matter came to light."

"I look at Ex. P.23, page 39 R.155 (ii). It is a matter for Dr. Auchnie to take up and refer to the stewards, or it may be referred by the stewards to the stipendiary steward for investigation. If a mafoo corruptly accepts a bribe, my view would be that he would be an unsatisfactory person to be further employed and there will be grounds for his dismissal. I refer to R.155(v) - a mafoo who conspires with his colleagues to decide on which horse to dope and who to dope it, he had obviously contravened such rule and his conduct justifies at least dismissal, or dismissal followed by a warning off. R.155(ii) - such a conduct, if proved, justifies dismissal and a warning off. It is very difficult to say what would happen if he admitted it. It has happened before in my experience, in India, where the person admitting it was proved not to have done it. He was merely a front."

I accept this evidence as respresenting the true position.

Police Escort for Crown witnesses

Those mafoos and ex-mafoos and riding boys who gave evidence for the Crown were given a police escort during the period they were giving evidence in Court.

P.W.7 was cross-examined at great length and in the most minute details on this question. I shall not refer to it in detail, suffice it to say that the evidence is recorded on pages 181-4, 222, 250-3 of my notes. The evidence of the escorting officer Kung Man is on pages 917-8 and 930-3 and that of escorting officer Li Kwan is on pages 918-9 and 933-4.

I accept their evidence and find that there was no irregularity or impropriety of any kind on the part of the police and that P.W.7's evidence was in no way influenced by the manner in which the escort was carried out.

Posters

Posters which warn against giving carrots, grass, sugar or other food stuff, tonics, patent medicines, linaments, drugs or stimulants (Exs. D17 A, B, & C) are widely displayed in stables, on Jockey Club notice boards, outside the stables office, and in the race course.

Rewards

Mr. Braham (P.W.18) says there is a reward offered by the Jockey Club in connexion with doping and it was published widely in and outside the Club premises. Up to June, 1971, the reward was still up: $5,000 for information leading to arrest and conviction of people responsible for doping. It was an offer open to anyone.

Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club employees (Workers generally e.g. Coolies, Riding Boys, Watchmen, etc.)

There are 14 trainers, 14 headlads, 33 riding boys and some 400 mafoos in the stables, also 12 farriers, 30 coolies, saddlers, carpenters, and painters in the stables (Ex.P.40). The number of mafoos varies as per the number of horses. The trainer is the head, the headlad the second in command, then come the riding boys (pp.170, 516).

There are 6 watchmen in uniform employed by the Club to stand guard on Shan Kwong Road outside the stables, one at the entrance to Block A whilst the others at the entrance to Block B and Block C which are opposite one another. They work on 3 shifts, two at each shift, covering 24 hours of the day. They are responsible to see that no unauthorized persons enter the stables (Ex. P.40).

A riding boy has to ride such horses in the morning as instructed by the trainer (p.337). The riding boy also assist in feeding the horses (p.572). If a jockey does not want to do morning trotting, he asks a riding boy to do it (pp.515-6, 563).

A riding boy usually gets up sometime after 4 a.m. and reports at the race course for morning gallops at 5 a.m. He finishes riding his trainer's horses at about 7 a.m., after that he gallops the horses till shortly after 8 a.m. Then he goes to tea with the trainers (pp.1042-3).

Riding boys finish work when morning training is finished. They are supposed to stay until 11 a.m. Then they are off for the rest of the day, assuming there is nothing they need stay behind for. They have to come back in the evening, learning to be trainers in the long run. They have to watch the mafoos and make sure they clean their horses.

There are no signed apprenticeships or indentures in the Jockey Club. There are apprenticed farriers and riding boys, but they are not indentured. They are in fact just learners.

Coolies have nothing to do with stable. They only clean the paddocks and passages on the outside. They do not clear the garbage from the stable. The watchmen do this. The coolies only enter the stable to do repairs and white-washing (p.613) (pp.514-5).

If the sick bay is empty the coolies are responsible for it. There are 7 coolies to each sand paddock. They are nearly always attached to the same sand paddock and they have access to the stable block, but not without the trainer's or the watchman's knowledge. Each stable has a watchman. During the day time, when there is cleaning and repair work to do, the coolies come into the stables and go out again. The coolies are not cleaners but removers of things - they do not need permission to enter the stables for that. The coolies come in to do repair work and they do not need permission to go in to do such work because they will be acting under orders.

The filthy straw is carted away by the lorry coolies. The stable mafoos dumps the manure outside the stable and there the coolies collect it and take it to the manure pit. It is the mafoo's duty to clean the stall.

In Block A is a store area where manure is stored. It is not burned there. The coolies take it there. The mafoo takes the manure to a point at the foot of the staircase where there is an inlet. The coolies maintain the yards: they rake them every day. In the afternoon they do odd jobs such as cutting grass, also cleaning mafoo's quarters and the lavatory in the quarters.

During the evening feeding, the stable watchman has to remain in the stable and patrol it. The two watchmen take time out for dinner in rotation. If a watchman's horse would race, he immediately leaves after feeding his own horse so as to have his dinner. On his return at about 9.15 p.m. he would then assume his duties as watchman with the other watchman who has remained there. The watchman is on for 24 hours and off for 24 hours. For 12 hours both remain in the stable at night, then one is absent from the stable for 12 hours during the day. The remaining watchman will be absent for two brief periods for taking meals, during which periods he is releived by the headlad. The 12 hours working period at night begins at 8.15 p.m. On the two days before a race day, one watchman will be on duty during the day and the headlad will also be in the stable. On a Friday evening the watchman on day duty has to attend to his horse and to act as watchman as well. The watchman who is off duty still has to return for about 1 ½ hours during the day to look after his horse (p.716-7). After the Bella incident, instead of the mafoos employing and paying the watchmen, the watchmen are paid by the Jockey Club but the watchmen are still selected with the trainer's approval as before (p.660). During the afternoon walk the headlad sits at the entrance, and the watchmen at this time assume the duties of a mafoo (p.644). When some horses do not go out on morning walks one watchman remains in the stable (p.645).

Mafoos' hours are governed by their horses, depending on what time the trainer decides to send the horse down to the track at the race course in the morning. If there is trotting, the mafoo will have to start work earlier and finish work earlier. Then he is free until an hour before the horse has its afternoon walking exercise (p.515).

Rumours at Happy Valley

Stable gossips are rife. In Hong Kong there are a lot of indicriminate accusations or opinions that a race has been fixed (See Mr. Braham's evidence). For example, Highfield ran on 27.3.71 and lost. It ran on 8.7.71 and won. It was tested on both occasions and found negative though there had been rumours that it had been doped. Happy Valley is rife with rumours and gossips, particularly amongst the losers after a race, e.g. Cairngorm was a hot favourite on 20.2.71 (R.117) and it came last and its jockey Mr. Alan Chan whilst dismounting complained that the horse had been doped. Urine and saliva tests were made right away, and it was found that it had not been doped.

SADDLING

Mr. T.C. CHENG says (at pp.545-6):

"After weighing in, the saddles will be handed to the riding boy or foreman working in the room opposite the first weighing place. In the room are kept the saddles and gear. After we have been weighed in ourselves we hand over the saddles. We are weighed with the saddles and the weights attached thereto. The horse is then saddled. The riding boy having taken over the saddles, will walk over to the stable where the racing horses are waiting. I don't know who saddles the horses. I can't see it. The horses are already saddled when I come down from the Jockeys' Room after the second bell to the paddock. I use Hong Kong made saddles because I am light. It has a canvas girth. I used to use the same saddle all the time in the past until recently when the prescribed weight for the horse was reduced to 125 lbs. I have 2 saddles myself. When I am to ride a horse with a weight of 125 lbs., then I will use the saddle alloted to me by that stable. It has a canvas girth with a slight elastic. If the weight alloted to the race is not 125 lbs. I use my own saddles with a slightly elastic canvas girth. We stick 2 fingers between the side of the horse and the girth to see if the girth is tight enough. If it is too tight, it will be too difficult to stick the two fingers in. If the trainer is there I will tell him to loosen it."

This evidence has not been challenged and I accept it as true.

The trainer supervises saddling in the saddling enclosure at the race track before a race. The riding boy and the No. 2 saddle the horses. The trainer sees that the correct saddle is used and correctly put on. After tightening up the girth, the horse is walked so as to see how it has been saddled. The trainer tests the girth. After having been saddled the horse is taken out of the stable into the paddock to be walked around for the bettors to see.

After the saddle has been put on, the mafoo is in charge of the horse until the horse is ridden away to the starting gate by the jockey. It is possible to walk the horse to the starting gate, but permission has to be obtained.

The majority of jockeys use girths without elastics.

The jockey Mr. Middleton does not agree that tightness of girth affects a horse's race.

Stables Generally:

1. General information (pp.509-14)

There were in the 1969/1970 Season, three blocks of stables: Blocks A, B & C. As one goes up the hill the block on the left is C, the one on his right is B. Block C can be reached from the street. Block C cannot be reached directly through a flight of steps in the building leading from Mr. Johnston's office. That has been blocked for a long time. Block C has two storeys. At one time there were 3, possibly 4, stables in Block C, depending on the time of the year. There are about 150 stalls. Each stable consists of a number of stalls. The No. 2 sleeps in the room where the saddles are kept. There is another room for the feed. The stables are on 3 sides of the exercise sand paddock with a gate leading to the main road. That road is Shan Kwong Road. A gate keeper looks after Blocks A and C. On the other side of the road is the gate leading to the B Block. The gates of C and B Blocks are approximately opposite each other. Block B has two storeys of stalls for horses, and one storey of quarters for single men. There are married quarters, above one of the stables in Block C.

In 1969/1970, there were 4 stables in Block B, with perhaps 200 stalls. Each stable consists of a number of stalls and two rooms: they are all similar. Block A is at the top of Shan Kwong Road on the right hand side. Its gate is opposite the approach road which in 1969/1970 only led to Mr. Johnston's office. It is a two-storey stable with one storey of single men's quarters above, as in B Block. There were seven stables in Block A in 1969/1970. It is in an 'H' shape building with sand paddocks on either side of the cross bar of the 'H'. In Block B, the building is also in 'H' shape with three sand paddocks.

In Block C all the stables use the same sand paddock for exercising but take it in turn. There can be a mixing of horses from different stables during exercise, as there may be a little overlapping. If one stable has too many horses then some have to exercise with the horses from another stable.

In Block B, there are three paddocks. The largest of the three is used by all except one stable. The middle paddock is used by three stables, and the little one at the back by another stable, which uses the small paddock as well as the middle paddock. The ramp in Block B leads into the big paddock, which is the one nearest the road.

In Block A, there are really three paddocks.

In the 1969/1970 season:- (1) In Block B: NG Chi-lam used the rear paddock and the far paddock; TAM Man-kui used the two paddocks on each side of the 'H'; SZE Sau-wo used the near paddock; AU Kam-hung used both paddocks. (2) In Block A, Sofronoff used all three paddocks; LUM Wan-leung used the first and second paddocks; Metrevelli used the rear paddock; CHEUNG Hok-man used the rear paddock; Belov used the second paddock, and Pereboeff used the rear paddock. In Block A one cannot get from the second to the third paddock without going through the cross-bar of the 'H'. Block A had a gate keeper of its own.

There is a new block at the top of the hill, some of it is already in use. That has been in use since early this last season. The walking facilities there are of a non-slip tartan - a rubbery substance. In the old blocks, it is a type of brick with squares out into it. The gangway between the stalls is slightly convex. On either side of the centre gangway is a gutter with metal covers on it. In 1969/1970, there were no iron gates separating the stables. These gates were put in the beginning of the last racing season. In those days there were means of shutting off one stable from another, and of shutting off a stable block, by means of iron gates. (p.513)

Mr. Johnston was in-charge of all the staff in the stables in 1969/1970. He was in charge of the mafoos as well, under Mr. Auchnie.

When the farrier comes to a horse to remove the horse's iron exercise shoes and put on the aluminium racing shoes, the mafoo will be standing there all the time, the No. 2 or trainer is also around.

The concrete walls of the stalls are painted completely every year during the summer, and the mafoo himself keeps it clean after that. Each block has some divisions for sick horses. There is only one sick bay that has any amount of wood, and that is in B Block.

(2) Security at present (Ex. P.40 paras. 14-16, p.748)

There are iron doors at the entrances to each block of the stables which are to be locked up at certain hours of the day. After the Optima incident on 3.4.70., extra precautions have been taken by individual trainers by putting mafoos on duty day and night even after these doors have been locked.

Mr. Auchnie was until recently responsible for the security precautions in the stables. He had from time to time instructed the trainers to maintain strict security measures and he supervised these measures.

The security precautions for horses at the time when they are taken from the stables to the race course for training are in fact in the hands of the mafoos taking the horses down. The horses are usually taken down in batches of 6 to 10, each horse being led by a mafoo, sometimes with a riding boy in charge. The trainers have to rely on the trustworthiness of these people in regard to security precautions. Again when these horses are waiting in the race course for their turns for the morning gallops, security precautions are again in the hands of the individual mafoos.

The staff tend to be slightly slack.

After the slashing in CHUE Po-ming's stable of Peace and Golden Aphrodite on 24.1.66., stricter precautions were taken in the stables. Grilles were then fitted with locks. (The iron doors had no locks. The iron doors have no locks even now).

(3) Visits Generally (Ex. P.40, para. 11)

On normal days, the visiting hours for horse owners and jockeys at the stable are from 9 a.m. to 11.00 a.m., and from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., daily. On the day before a race day, the visiting hours are from 5 p.m. to 6.30 p.m. only.

By Stable Bye-law 9(f), visitors have to sign a book and specify the horse they are visiting, and Bye-law 9(f) (iii) relates to the jockeys who have been engaged to ride on the following day.

STIMULANTS & DEPRESSANTS

P.W.7 says that prior to 1970, stimulants were used - after 1970, depressants used, occasionally also stimulants. There is no fixed and fast rule how long before a race that the drug has to be administered. The drug should be obtained a day or two before a horse was decided on as the one to be doped (p.164). The stimulant, pink in colour, was to be put into the feed, but there was no hard and fast rule as to which feed of the day. Depressants (white in colour) were given usually on or about Thursday but again there was no fixed rule (p.172) - drugs, whether stimulants or depressants, had generally to be given 1 or 2 days before the race but there was no fixed rule as to whether it should be given in the morning or afternoon (p.216).

I accept P.W.7's evidence as representing the truth, and this evidence is also confirmed by the following evidence, which I also accept.

P.W.13 says D4 gave him the powder on Thursday to be given to 2 horses due to run on Saturday within 24 hours of the race (p.452).

P.W.14 says D6 gave him 2 sugar cubes to be given on Thursday morning to Double Luck and Treasure of Orient due to run on Saturday - 21.11.70. (p.491).

D2 told P.W.6 to put the powder into the feed of Mount Superior and Quality not later than Friday - before Friday (p.113).

P.W.7 says 36 hours was required to dope Smiling Day (p.154).

Mr. Middleton (P.W.15) says horses have a sensitive sense of smell (p.501). He says, "the only way that a person could be sure a horse would take arsenic is to feed it in with damp bran. Possibly the horse would take it with carrot or sugar. This would depend on the horse. The only uniform way it could take arsenic is in bran". (Ex. P.18 at p.4).

Also see Arsenic Prisoning at p.2 - 4 herself.

TESTS

(1) TESTING GENERALLY:

At the conclusion of a race Mr. Braham (P.W.18) gives instructions to the Veterinary Surgeon, Mr. Auchnie (P.W.39) or his assistant, Mr. Redman (P.W.25), or the military veterinary surgeon, to test certain horses. Normally he only asks for a routine test on one of the placed horses (para. 14 of Exh. .24). Sampling started towards the end of the 1968/1969 Season and continued at the beginning of the 1969/1970 Season (Para. 20). There are no laid down instructions as to which horses will be tested after a race. Mr. Braham makes the decision and he has to consider the jockeys and also the staff available to do the testing and analysis. Up to March, 1971, the Club Chemist has been part-time and the vast majority of horses which Mr. Braham has directed to be tested have been placed horses and these have been routine tests. The Veterinary Surgeon looks over the horses before and after a race in the paddock and he has authority to direct a test if he considers that there is any abnormality in the appearance of any horse (para. 21).

On race days, Mr. Redman takes saliva and urine specimens from horses needed to be examined, on the instructions of Mr. Braham. (Mr. Redman is therefore paid by the Club on these days). He labels such specimens and locks them up in a box which he hands over to Mr. Johnston (P.W.16) who in turn hands it to the Club's laboratory. This forms only part of the examination on such horses, as Mr. Auchnie has to physically check on them and fill in forms on their physical conditions. (Apart from Mr. Braham's decision to check on horses after a race, the Veterinary Surgeon also in his own field checks on horses which he suspects to have gone lame or otherwise hurt in racing). Results of tests on saliva and urine of horses are kept by Mr. Braham. During the 1969/1970 Season, the Veterinary Surgeon would examine a horse to be tested and usually designate one of his assistants to actually take samples of saliva and urine from the horse to be tested. Usually due to his other duties the Veterinary Surgeon did not witness the actual taking of samples.

Mr. Auchnie says about 216 horses were tested in the 1969/1970 Season, of which only seven were found to be positive and to have foreign substance in them. In the 1970/1971 Season 376 horses were tested, of which three were found to be positive and to have foreign substance in them (p.741).

Mr. Braham says, "I look at Exhibits P.24 and 25. I decide which horse is to be tested. I am in charge of the sampling of the horses. If the vet has reason to believe that a horse has been interfered with he has only to indicate that it should be tested. At the races, I always ask the other members of the Board their views of the matter. The decision has to be taken very quickly. I am consulted when random samples are taken. The sample cards are lodged with me and kept confidential. The top two portions of the card only have a code number. I refer to Appendix B of Ex. P.24 - 'negative' is put here when the analyst reports that there were no foreign substances disclosed in the sample or he may indicate that it was not beyond the normal accepted limit." I accept this evidence as true.

Mr. Sheppard (P.W.17) says, "In the 1969/1970 Season, routine testing began - Braham selected the horses to be tested. One, sometimes two, horse was selected, usually the winner unless there is a horse that ran badly. I have nothing to do with the selection of a horse for testing. Dr. Auchnie does the selecting. Rules of Racing produced (Ex. p.23), in force in 1969/1970 and still in force. The testing of horse now, as compared with the 1969/1970 Season, has changed in that there is an increase in the number of samples taken". I accept the evidence as true.

(2) URINE TEST:

Mr. Auchnie's evidence (paras. 42-45 in Ex. P .40) is - "The urine samples taken at the race course and at the stables were delivered to Dr. Crone by myself or Mr. P. Johnston. The samples were sealed. The third part of the sample form which is serial numbered is forwarded to the Stipendiary Steward for record purpose. Regarding the taking of urine samples from race horses, the procedure adopted is that the person who supervises the taking of the sample also seals the same before it is forwarded to the Club's analyst, Dr. Crone. Regardless of who supervises the taking of the urine samples, Mr. Philip Johnston is the person who usually delivers the sealed containers to Dr. Crone. In the event of my taking the urine sample, I alone will sign on behalf of the Club. The veterinary surgeon witnesses the trainer's signature. In the event of another person taking the sample or supervising such sampling of urine I countersign."

I accept this evidence as true.

Mr. Johnston's evidence (paras. 6 and 7 in Ex. p.19) is: "In the normal course of my duties I assist in taking urine samples from race horses. If I have taken such samples my signature appears on the official serial numbered form issued by the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club. This form may be countersigned by Mr. Allan Auchnie. After samples are taken the containers are sealed by the person obtaining the samples. It is part of my normal duties to deliver the samples. It is part of my normal duties to deliver the samples taken from all race horses to Dr. Crone the Club's analyst and chemist." I accept this evidence as true.

Mr. Johnston also says (at pp.502-9) under cross-examination by Jackson-Lipkin:-

"Exs. P .19 A-E were the urine samples I took in the presence of Dr. Auchnie, I took a lot of samples in the 1969/1970 Season. I produce Exs. P .19 A-E because they were positive. Splendour appears on Exs. P .19 A-E. Splendour was also positive. I wrote the statement in July 1970. As far as my memory went at the time, the 5 horses mentioned in the statement were the 5 horses. I am not in charge of the file. To my knowledge the 5 horses were Optima, Bella, Quartette, Almaz and Fairy Boat (para. 5 of statement Ex. P .19). That's my sworn statement to-day. All saliva samples are taken by a vet, by Dr. Auchnie or Mr. Redman, or an army vet on race days. Urine samples are usually taken by Dr. Auchnie and Mr. Redman, sometimes by me. Compared with them, I have taken very few urine samples. I took more than the 5 samples in that season, about 30 or 40. On Ex. P .19 A-E I have written random samples'. We took a lot of tests in the stables and they would be random samples. All my 30 or 40 were taken in the stables. The vet will first get the saliva sample and you are left with the control urine bottle and the urine bottle and I am left to collect the urine which is then sealed. The analyst is Dr. Crone. It's a plastic, polythene bottle. The cap has a small hook on it, and the bottle has a hole and there is a wire through it. It is a press-down top with a screw-down cap on top of it. The cap I referred to is the screw-down cap. The press-down cap goes into the neck of the bottle. The cap is made of polythene. I am not sure what the screw-down cap is made of. The bottles are sealed when I get them from Dr. Crone. I break the urine seal myself. Usually the vet would have broken the seal of the control urine bottle. The vet breaks the seal in the presence of the horse and he leaves me with the urine bottle, and I watch the urine being collected. I would be present but not necessarily see him break the seal and pour the control fluid into the urine bottle and pour it back again. He also pours the control fluid into the container that you're going to catch the urine in. The control bottle is then sealed by the vet or myself. There'll be somebody responsible to stay with the bottle until the horse urinates. Sometimes it takes up to 3 hours to take a sample. Whilst waiting both the tops are put back on the urine bottle and he waits. I would have done it in this case - i.e. re Ex. P .19 A-E. The urine was collected in a plastic container of the size and shape of a medium size saucepan with a handle. The urine control is poured into the container, swerved around and poured back into the control bottle. It'd not matter whether this is done before or after the control is poured into the urine bottle. It is the same control fluid that is being used.

"The mafoo will collect the sample. He would be given the plastic saucepan and someone responsible will stay and wait for the horse to urinate. He stays by the stall until it urinates. In the cases where my signature appears, I was present when sample was taken. I was there when urine sample was being produced. Quite often I had to wait a considerable time, up to 2 days. There are times when horses are more liable to urinate, i.e., after morning walk, or after the afternoon walk. If it urinates in my absence, then I'll have to wait until it urinates again, in my presence. I take the urine bottle to the office, i.e., the stable office; I never leave it with the mafoo.

"Back in 1970 I can't remember if I was always there when samples were taken. I go to my office when I find that the horse is ready to urinate and I take back the urine bottle with me to the office. The No. 2 trainer stays with the container and notifies me when it is ready to urinate. Our carpenter made a wooden handle which is fitted to the plastic handle of the container. There is little danger of getting kicked even if a long handle was not used. If a horse is very shy, then a long pole and blinkers are used. We don't always use the long pole. After I go back to the office, I wait, and I know when the horses come back after their exercise and that's the best time. There is a fixed time for it to urinate; usually after its walk. The mafoo does not send a message to me, but I go to the stable. In the stall the container might be held by the mafoo behind his back and the urine is caught in the air. The normal practice is to catch it in the air. One of the reasons for not putting the container on the floor is to avoid straw getting into the container. The mafoo hands the container to the person in charge and he will fill the appropriate bottle and seal it with the appropriate card. The person in charge is me or someone in my stead. Ex. P.19B - there were 2 slips, one for the urine bottle and one for the control bottle. The 2 slips were torn off Ex. P.19B. Ex. P.19B goes back with me as record. The top slip is for the control bottle headed 'Urine Control'. The middle slip is headed 'Urine'. Both slips have a serial number and a date. Ex. P.19B is the only form with details on it. The time should be put there. If Dr. Auchnie's signature appears, he would have taken the urine. I identify Dr. Auchnie's signature on Ex. P.19C. There is a white card for saliva sample which is in identical language to the green card. The signatures on the green card have nothing to do with saliva samples. Re Ex. P19C I took the urine: the actual sample of urine was taken by me. The preliminary was done by Dr. Auchnie. The saliva sample has to be taken by a qualified vet. When my signature appears on the card, I would have taken the urine sample. Dr. Auchnie signs to countersign my signature as he is the Jockey Club vet. Re Ex. P.19E - obviously Dr. Auchnie did not countersign it. Ex. P19D shows my initials above Dr. Auchnie's. I look at Ex. P1. I think this horse was tested prior to 22.4.70. I have a feeling this was the second time that the horse was tested. Looking at this card, as I have signed it, I must have taken the urine sample. I don't countersign his signature. He (i.e. the vet) signs all the cards and I sign only if I had taken the sample. Dr. Auchnie countersigns because he is the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club senior vet. He normally countersigns all the cards. We also have a veterinary sheet which refers to these cards and is signed by him. As to Ex. P19D - I know I tested this horse in the initial stage, i.e. the first test, but I can't say if Ex.P19D refers to the first test. I must have taken the urine samples on both occasions, i.e. Ex. P19 A and D.

After I put the urine in the urine bottle, I seal it, attach a card and send it to the laboratory."

I accept this evidence as representing the truth.

(3) SALIVA TEST

Mr. Redman says in Ex.P32 (paras. 3-7):

"I was an Assistant Vet with the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club. I had no specific duties. I was to assist the Senior Vet and to be employed on race days as Assistant Club Vet which entailed the supervision of horses before the race, at the starting gates and the taking of urine and saliva samples and any other duties nominated by the Senior Vet.

"When I took samples, Dr. Auchnie filled in the official forms in use and I countersigned. Dr. Auchnie always filled in the veterinary report.

"There were difficulties sometimes in taking urine samples from horses. Saliva was usually not difficult.

"After the samples were taken they were sealed by me or Mr. P. Johnston and put in a locked tin box. This was taken under supervision to the stables. Johnston delivered this to the Analyst.

"The only records that I kept were the forms which I countersigned when taking samples. I kept no other notes."

I accept this evidence as true (for further details, see also court reporter's transcript of Mr. Redman's evidence given at the end of his examination-in-chief on 1.6.71 before the mid-morning adjournment, which evidence I also accept).

TONICS AND MEDICINES

Mr. Auchnie has the monopoly to supply all medications which are given internally or applied externally. As to non-medicaments, e.g. plasters and dressings, cotton wool, bandages, etc., Mr. Auchnie does not have the monopoly but the trainers invariably get these from him.

Mr. Auchnie keeps a white card for every horse in the Jockey Club. No horse has a nil entry card because regular worm treatments and calcium injections are given to each horse.

Radiol - Many trainers use it, this is a routine medicine. They are obliged to purchase it from Mr. Auchnie Radiol is a linement used for rubbing into the shoulders and hind quarters of horses to loosen them up. The mafoo massages it into the horse. Probably the massage does as much as good as the medicine itself.

Pine Tar - It is used on the horse's hoof. Sometimes there is an infection of the frog of the foot, called thrush. Pine tar is a routine treatment for that.

Molasses - It is given in the horse's feed for its food value.

Liquid blister - If a horse had fetlock or tendon troubles, the trainer like to blister the horse. It is an irritant - it causes a reaction on the leg. After it settles down, the condition improves.

Black Oil - This is a skin dressing. Mr. Auchnie sells it to the trainers.

Neutrolene - This is for dry coating, i.e., not sweating due to the metabolism of a horse.

Seclomycine - This is an antibiotic.

Mr. Auchnie also supplies some contril ointment. It contains cortisone for allergic conditions. Mr. Auchnie does not administer it, he merely sells it and charges for it. The same would be true for olive oil, which he often supplies for oiling bridles and such like. It is the same as regards oil and moult. Oil and moult are codliver oil with moult, which contain Vitamin B, for horses which are not in very good condition.

Fowler's Solution is a 1% solution of arsenic trioxide, used as a tonic.

A large number of arsenic compounds are used medicinally.

TRAINERS' DUTIES

The trainers are appointed by the Club Stewards on Mr. Auchnie's (PW39's) recommendation. They are usually upgraded from amongst the headlads or riding boys. The riding boys are usually upgraded from mafoos after going through a riding course conducted by the Club's riding instructor Major Grimshaw (Ex. P.40).

In the stables on the administration side, the stable accountant, the stable book-keeper and the store-keeper were responsible to Mr. Auchnie. On the stable side, the trainers were responsible to him for their work for a smooth andsstraight running of their own stables. From early this year, however, Mr. Auchnie is no longer in charge of the stables. The trainess have a free hand in dealing with training, feeding, etc., of their horses so long as they do no violate any rules and regulations of the Club. E.g., they are not allowed to use any medication on horses without Mr. Auchnie's approval, or to train a horse which is lame or unsound for training. Watchmen of individual stables are appointed by the trainers (Ex. P40).

The trainer Mr. Metrevelli tries not to put a horse into a race until it is ready. An owner might pursuade him to put it in a race, but he would advise a ainst it. He enters a horse if it is in good form, not necessarily to win, but sometimes with a view to changing it into a lower class. Theetrainer Mr. Sofronoff says that sometimes an owner would insist on putting a horse in a race. However, if he advises against it, the owner would follow his advice. The trainer Mr. Sze Sau Wo says it is a matter for the owner and stewards to say whether a horse is ready to be entered for a race (p.591) and he would enter a horse even it stands no chance to win because otherwise it would be demoted to a lower class.

The trainer keeps a record of the morning training of his horses.

Even for minor illness, the trainer would not treat it himself, but he would call in the veterinary surgeon. All tonics and patent medicines are supplied by the veterinary surgeon and given on his instructions.

The owner selects the jockey, and the owner and the trainer discuss the chances of the horse with the jockey.

The trainer gives the jockey instructions before a race and informs him the galloping condition of the horse, e.g. whether he requires a fast or slow gallop. He gives more instruction to an inexperienced jockey than to an experienced jockey, because with the latter the trainer need not tell him much as he already knows.

In order to determine a horse's performande, the trainer sometimes puts it in a race even though it is not ready. Sometimes a horse is entered to race with better horses so as to keep it in form.

The trainer supervises the saddling of his horses.

The trainer advises the owner for which race his horse should be entered.

VETERINARY SURGEON'S EXAMINATION OF HORSES BEFORE RACE DAY

The day before the race day, the horses that are due to race on Saturday are cleaned up after their morning walk, in preparation for examination by the vet. The horses are led out for the vet to examine.