THE HIPPODROMO, BUENOS AIRES
The race track of Buenos Aires, called the Hippodromo, is a monopoly of the Jockey Club in that city. This club is an exception to the general run of clubs in the world, for it has more money than it knows what to do with. The troublesome surplus in the bank is the only problem that bothers the board of directors, and it is bringing gray hairs to their devoted heads. A half million dollars (an Argentine dollar is worth forty-three cents) is devoted to charity each year, but that is only a small part of its income. Ten per cent. of the total amount of stakes on the races is the property of the club. This, together with the gate receipts and membership dues, gives the Jockey Club an enormous income, running up very close to eight figures. The several hundred members each pay dues amounting to fifteen hundred dollars annually, and the initiation fee is four thousand dollars. The membership is always full, and there is a long waiting list of eligibles. About a year ago a proposition was seriously discussed by the club to purchase a dozen blocks right in the heart of the city, construct a broad and beautiful boulevard through it and make a present of the improvement to the city. The estimated cost was in the neighbourhood of fourteen million dollars. When the proposition came to a vote it was lost by only five votes. It was defeated, too, not on account of the cost, but simply on the question of the advisability or practicability of such a scheme. The club had the money on hand, and they are now worrying themselves again as to what to do with it.
The home of the Jockey Club is a rather unpretentious-looking building on the narrow Calle Florida, in the very heart of the city. The interior, however, is magnificent. As one enters the massive doors, a marble staircase faces you, which is the boast of the members and the pride of Buenos Aires. Then there are dining-rooms, reception-rooms, parlours and all the other apartments required in such an establishment. All of these rooms are fitted and furnished regardless of cost, and with the artistic taste which is inherent with the Latin races, so that it will compare favourably with any palace in Europe. The banquet-room is fitted with a circular table, with a running fountain in the centre. This table is so made that it can be arranged to seat twenty people, or enlarged to accommodate a hundred, and still be a perfect circle. I had the pleasure of dining in the club with the American minister, and found that one will meet with representative Argentinians of all classes, for the membership is confined to them; but few foreigners, outside of the diplomats, are able to get their names on the membership books even as honorary members. A good introduction will sometimes give the visitor a chance to take his meals there and have a hand in the games, in which fortunes are oftentimes lost in a single night. The club possesses some exquisite works of art. They have followed the plan of purchasing one picture each year, but that picture must contain merit, for the price is no object. In this way they have collected some paintings and statuary that are worthy of places in any museum of art or palace in the world.
The Argentinians are natural born gamblers, and nothing suits them better than to take a chance on a lottery or on a horse race. The Hippodromo has one of the finest race courses in the world. There are three tracks, one within another. The outer one is three kilometers, or about one and three-fourths mile, in circumference. There are three grandstands, the central one being a magnificent structure, which is reserved for members of the Jockey Club and their invited guests. The gates are as fine specimens of brass gates as one can find of modern manufacture. The big races are all held on Sundays, or national holidays, from twelve o’clock to three. Then all of the society folk put on their best bib and tucker and pour out toward the Hippodromo. A perfect stream of luxurious automobiles and fine carriages with liveried drivers will carry the society out to the races. During the races these vehicles line up along the curb facing the middle of the street, for blocks, with mounted police mingling in the line at intervals.
Here is a typical flowery description by an Argentine reporter of a race at the Hippodromo: “It was a lavish spectacle of contentment, of spirits absorbed for the moment in the coming sport—regulars eager to try their palpitos, simple-minded folk who carried the ‘sure-thing’ safely tucked away in their pockets. Dreamers of fortune, these, lulled by the music of the trot. And out of the vague intonation of all this multitude there came, here and there, like a breath of fresh air, the glimpses fluttering, elegant, of luxurious carriages carrying radiantly dressed ladies, the luminous note of undulating ribbons and plumes standing out like a spring-like, feminine bouquet against the black mass of these absorbed in the sport.”
It is a study of Argentine life. They are not as noisy as an American crowd, but the tense faces express the keenest interest, for nearly every one, old and young, man or woman, has a personal interest in the outcome. There are none so old and few so young that they will not wage a few pesos on a favourite. Between the races the crowds leave the grandstand and wander around below or visit the betting booths, which cover a half-acre of ground. One booth will accept wagers of ten dollars, another of fifty and still others of one hundred dollars. The money is then apportioned after fixed rules. Ten per cent. is first deducted for charity, another ten per cent. for the Jockey Club and the balance is divided among the bettors. When the result has been figured up, the amount to be paid on the different horses is posted up on a black-board and the winners can draw their money. This board, it is needless to say, is eagerly scanned after each race.
More than one hundred races were given by this club last year, and they were attended by nearly three-quarters of a million of people. The big races were witnessed by a concourse of people which sometimes numbered fifty thousand. The average attendance of all the races is more than six thousand. The attendance and the money wagered is increasing rapidly each year. The statistics show an increase in the past ten years of more than three hundred per cent., and the amount of money wagered has increased still more rapidly. The Argentinians are prosperous now, and they spend their money more freely than the average American.
The Tiger—that is the meaning in English of El Tigre, the Thames of Argentina. It is situated a half-hour’s ride by train from the city of Buenos Aires, and is the favourite resort of all the lovers of water sports in that city. “Going to the Tigre” is the usual expression you will hear from the passenger at Retiro station on Saturday, Sunday or a holiday, and it may be said in Spanish, English, German or Italian. It is an inaccurate expression, for the name Tigre is properly applied only to one of the most insignificant branches of the network of streams which abound in that vicinity.