Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1820-08-25
RICHMOND, AUGUST a5. Is2o.

we nave lately had occasion To touch
| tie question of a Lottery. authorized by
| an act of Congress.-On looking further
INTO the matter, we find there is one ques-
ton, touching Lotteries. growing on, OF
| our Stale Laws-and another, out of an
| aci OF Congress.-A few words on each.
| State Lnws.-OiIices for selling tickets
in Lotteries, not authorized by The laws OF
| this state, were lately licensed To sell them
! by paying S 800 for the license.-+But al
| the recommendation Of the Committee Of
RevisOrs, the following provision was in
| troduced into our laie Revised Code:
Nor shall any person or persons buy or
sell, within this commonwealth. any lottery
] ticker, or part or shatc OF lottery ucket, ex-
| ccpt in such lottery or lotterie as may he au-
! thorsed by the laws thereof and any person
or persons offending herein shall forfeit and
| pay for every such offence. the sum of one
! hundred dollars, TO be recovered aud aprpro.
priated in the manner last aforesaid. "--(See
An act TO reduce into one the several acts
and parts OF acts TO prevent unlaWJut gaming.
Passed Jan. IL, 1917
| This provision id not take effect Till
! Jan. last But in the late Revenue law il
was enacted that
''The-e shall he levied collected and paid,
OF every license 10 any person 10 make sale OF
any lottery tickets, of any lottery, other than
, such as may he authorized by the laws Of this
| Commonwealth, three liun dred dollars"
a question has arisen out OF these
two laws, whether the last repeats the
| trst--in other words, whether under the
| Isl any tickets in foreign lotteries can he
sold at all in this state, by paying S 500,
| and taking ont license. On the one
side, il is said the last law Ito wit, the
Revenue law,) does substantially repeal
the first, and therefore licenses may be
taken out, and foreign tickets may be
soid-On The other, il is said that the Isl
law cannot thus he repealed by a side
wind that il would be particularly alb
surd TO suppose that the Legislature
| meant by The Revenue law in February 10
repeal provision, which could only go
into effect the month before January y
that the revenue provision was inadves-
tently introduced, being merely copied
| from the revenue law OF 1919 and that
| there is no provision in force at present,
which prcscribes The wav in which
the license Is 10 be issued viz. by the
commissioner on certificate from the
sheriff tha, tie 5 800 had been paid.
On whichever side The truth may lie, il
| is certain that different interpretations
have been given by men skilled in tho
law, and what is worse, that the law las
been differently executed. In this city,
license has been given, as formerly. aud
tickets in other lottery Offices have been
sold. In Norfolk, the revised provision
has been carried into effect, aud license
has been reiused.-We do mol iNean 10
slate, that no foreign tickets have been
sold, where the license has been refused
because ii is suspected that means
have been taken To Glade the law. For
instance, that lottery office will promise
10 obtain for you, perhaps from Balii-
more, such tickets as you may want-and
perhaps The lottery keeper holds this
buying Of tickets for oilers TO be no
breach OF the law.
Let this however passive leave this
point under the impression that The Le-
gislature will remove this ambiguity in
the law, AT lis next session.
Us. Law.-Amorc important question
than this arises under an act OF Congress
Whether a lottery intended 10 raise mo
neg for the benefit Of some local work III
the District of Columbia is of such a cha
racier, thai lis tickets may be sold in The
states wi,hou! paying the license, where
license is cxacied by the state law 2
For instance, the Sd class OF the Grand
National Canal Lottery" is now drawing III
Washington. One agent of il adverli
ses, that the object 10 be promoted by
this lottery" is the connection OF the
ABacesiia and Potomac rivers by ca
nal ;" thai il " can9Ot fail 10 be consider
ed rs truly national" &c. that tho canal
in passing through The city approaches
the Capitol within few yards, and al this
day, waters Il large portion of National
Reserve i'll this city, enhancing their va
iue, aud consequently lessening the bur-
thens of the naiion"-aDd that I" being
authorized by Congress, the tickets can
2 be sold i'll every part of tile u. States"
&c. &c. Another agent puts This same
information about the privilege of sale,
al the foo, OF his list OF drawings.
We understand, that this notification is
backed by the opinion OF COUNSEL, wrli-
ten by an able advocate of Maryland !;
and concurred IN by three or tour other
eminent lawyers in the Northern states.
On the other hand, HAT an opposite idea
has been expressed by one or two OF the
eminen: lawyers Of Virglnia.
We state these facts for consideration.
II were very much 10 be wished, that the
opinion i'll favour of this National
Lottery, as II is called, could be laid be-
/, fore the public. We wish very much 10
see il.-Bui as at present GdeiSed, we think
the opinion inaccurale-and are disposed
TO lament HAT another biow should Illus
have been aimed al the rights OF the
states. Perhaps il may be said, that tie
: law is made by tile representatives Of Tire
! nation, who have The unqucstIOned pow
l er "to exercise exclusive legislation III
! all cases whatsoever" over the 10 miles
: square-and as the law thus proceeds
, from the nation, il has right 10 operate
| uncontrolled throughout tiie nsliou.....
{. But here is a plain distinction. The pow
ers Of Congress over the district are Ger
lainly Of an anomalous character. Though
they are elected by tie nation, their pow
= crs are local, whue they lcglslate for Ili'
locdt property and interests OF the district