Push-button bookies must draw on high notes of the past Bon voyage: Dame Nellie Melba plays Rosina in The Barber of Seville. Today's corporate bookmakers need a dash of Robert Sutton Sievier. In some respects a rogue and scoundrel, Sievier changed the face of bookmaking in Australia. Since the floodgates of corporate activity opened, big overseas companies, out to plunder the colonial buck, have generated wails of complaint over their niggardly, penny-pinching policies. I received an email from a correspondent named Len about one of the big corporate bookies which "employs many young, clever whiz-kids to set their racing odds; I am an age pension-aged man living out my twilight years in Indonesia; I have no 'inside information', collaborate with no one, take no notice of what anyone else tips, keep my own counsel, make my own decisions and don't place bets on anyone else's account." Yet after just 11 days [they] restricted my bets to Mickey Mouse amounts, as if $50 was not Mickey Mouse enough. I am apparently too good for their young, clever whiz-kids! They should hang their heads in shame; ... get some balls or decent analysts. In 1886, Sievier, established as a gambler of significance, came the knuckle with Lord Deerhurst, the aide de camp of the Governor of Victoria, over a bet on a pigeon shoot. Subsequently he did 14 days in jail for assault, was barred by the Victoria Racing Club, leaving him little option but to return to Great Britain. Earlier in the 1880s, Sievier - an actor - on arriving in Adelaide after a stint in South Africa, noted how the Australian bookmakers seemed quiet and furtive in their endeavours to fleece the punter. He was the first to use a bag, a big black one all the better for holding pelf, introduced numbered tickets with the initials of the horse, and had a regular area of business with the clerk to write the wagers. Sievier called the odds. Other bookies had to be approached about a price and were sluggish with settling. Sievier paid out immediately after the race. Sydney bookmakers rioted when he crashed their scene, giving a better service, which is a key for Ladbrokes to follow. Alas, enhanced by his sense of swashbuckle, there was a darker side to Sievier, a private life described as "lurid and chaotic." He married constantly and was regarded as a human Hyperion, producing illegitimate progeny numbered at 17, according to his tally. On the voyage home in 1886 he became bewitched, bothered and bewildered by "Mrs Armstrong," particularly with her rendition of Tosti's Goodbye. The boat rocked to their rhythm. In Great Britain he was an entrepreneur, racehorse trainer, newspaper publisher, gambler and lived the high life, bank-rolled by wealthy wives. Dr. W.G. Grace accepted his hospitality. Sievier was cheered when he raised a company for the Boer War, promising that his troops would have life insurance for the families of those who fell. He welshed, David Hickie divulged in Gentlemen Of the Australian Turf. Libel writs arrived nearly as quickly as his betting tickets in Adelaide when Sievier launched his sporting paper and scandal sheet, Winning Post. He took on Dick Wootton, patriarch of the Hall of Fame racing family, alleging Wootton was a mastermind at race fixing. During the hearing Sievier questioned Wootton about the credentials of one of his associates and Wootton replied: "No, he's just an ordinary, honest citizen." "Not such a blackguard as I am," Sievier jibed. "Well, I won't contradict you on that," Wootton countered. After three days of petty insults, Justice Darling declared: "I shall never get to the bottom of wickedness in this world." To which F.J. Smith, counsel for Wootton, interjected: "I'm sure Mr Sievier will help, your Lordship." But Sievier, foaled on a London hansom cab seat, never shied away from a big bet. Ladbrokes, which also made a name for themselves when founded in 1886, acquired the privately owned Gaming Investments Pty Ltd during the week, for an initial $22.5 million with further payments based on results, confirming the strength of the local betting economy. Commenting on the Australian involvement of Ladbrokes, the company's international group and strategy director Damian Cope said: "The technology skills and highly experienced management team that have enabled that success will now help Ladbrokes establish a strong presence in Australia by delivering value, product innovation and a better customer experience." Action speaks louder than words. All the corporate bookmakers need to do is just let the punters on. Incidentally, Sievier's "Mrs Armstrong" made a name for herself on the stage - Dame Nellie Melba.