The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1852-02-14

this State, and to the evil and pc nicious example
Of Others in like cases offending, and against the
peace Of the people OF the State OF New York and
their dignity n. ,BowDITcH BLUNT,
District Attorney.
Lotteries-Art Unions-- Com mon and r ub-
lie Nuisances--Thc Am erican Art Union.
Lotteries have their origin In such remote an.
tiquity, that history affords ne clew as to how aud
whence they came. They seem coeval with civil
zaton. A respectable authority (Adam Smith)
says, The majority of mankind have al absurd pre-.
sumption in their own good fortane-they under
value the chance Of loss and ovsrvaue the Oh anoe
Of gain. Lured on with the vain hope Of gaining a
large prize, they forget the adverse chances; snd
tho most sober minded scarcely regards it as folly
to pay small sum for the chance of great gain,
and he continues The world never saw, and ne.
yer will see perfectly fair lottery, one in which
the whole gain compensates the whole loss and yet
the success of lotteries is universal This was writ
ten about the year ITO. and AT that time, and be-
fore and after, governments took advantage of this
failing Of humanity, to raise revenues by means Of
lotteries. 1t license tax on the indulgence of
two strong and Inherent passions-the desire for
gain, and the love of gaming
Until the year 1883, the government OF this
State not alone carried on lotteries on their own
account, but also permitted any other body to do
60 without any restriction. Ia l7S3, law was
passed to prevent private lotteries unless author
lied by special statute. Between that time and
1921 number Of private lotteries we're authorized,
to raise funds for various purposes. such as the
erection o; buildings, improving roads and rivers,
mics, orphan asylums, SO Sc
By the constitution Of 1872 CART. 7, sec. 81 it was
provided that no lottery shall hereafter be author.
lied in this State, and by the revised law. passed
"a, it provided, that every lottery other than
such as had been authorized by law should be
deemed unlawful, and common and public nui
sance, and that no person unauthorized by special
law passed for that purpose prior to 1872, should
open or set on foot any lottery AT this time, the
charters of several lotteries remained unexpired,
but by law passed in 1888 all charters OF private
lotteries were determined In expounding this law,
Chief Justice Bronson, in the ease OF the people
against Sturdevant, in q Wendell APO. says
ssAter the year 1888 all lotteries without lilnita
ton or qualification, became and were unla nful,
and Q common and public nuisance.
Thus stood the law ; now fer its application
Some time about the year 1880, there were essab-
lshed in Germany associations expressed to be for
the purpose OF advancing art, and called himst
Va,ien Cart Unions) IL is unnecessary to enter
into detail Of the means adopted to gain their
proposed end suffice it to say they resem oled worry
closely the Art Unions lately SO popular The
idea was well received, the Rin,st Parien fourshed
in Germany, and Art U MONS sprung up first in
Scotland, and afterwards in England, Ireland, and
America.
On the 10th day Of December 1889, the first OF
the Art Unions In America made its first di3tribu-
ton Of tbrty-sx oil paintings; and in the following
year, OSI0,) the promoters of this Art MON pro-
cured from the Legislature charter of incorpora-
ton, and they became body corporate, under the
name of the Apollo Association, changed in 1874
to the American Art Union, for the purposes OF
the promotion of the fine arts in the United States
Some very minor poet has said:--
"That picture rafaes will conduce to nsurish
Design or cause good coloring TO flourish,
Admits OF logic. chopping, and wise laws
But we waive that question, for whatever might
be their tendencies, all Art MONS protested DC
established for o laudablo purpose and, so
long as they appeared honestly and fairly to
carry out their protested object, none cared to 10
quire whether they were legal or illegal, or whether
they did, or did not, c0me within the mischief In
tened TO be abolithed with the abolition OF lot
teries.
There seems. however, an inherent tendency IA
al corporate associations 10 abuse the power Win
which they invested, and pefyerE the objects OF
their trust Thus it has ever been. History in
forms Us that when, after destructive fire IN tho
city Of Nicomedia, Pliny aahedthe Emperor Irala
to lceEse the Institution, Tor that city OF IRE
company, (c0Agiu5t faHoepm,) OF enc hundred
and fifty men, with corporate powers, he refused,
saying that societies OF that sort had greatly DIS
tuIbed The peace Of The cities where they mad been
established and that, for whatever purpose q
fail Of being ultimately mischlevous, And Sueso-
Mus writes that, during the reign " Augustus
Cpssar, private corporations had become Hurseries
81 faction and disorder, and that tho Emperor inter-
feIed, MS Juliue Caesar had done before him, ard
dissolved nearly all OF them Some future historian
will adduce in support of Ehese ancient PIES the
podsrn instances VI the dissolution, IN osg grace OF
the once popular Art Unions. They flourish
fer awhile, but the cenker worm corruption sooner
or later ceeps in and instead Of prom citing art or
distributing prints, they, to borrow from modem
wit, present their subscribers magnificent bust.
Thus ii was in England; the abuses IN their ma.
nsgement caused their legality to be questioned,
sno II was OF once apparent beyond the possibility
Of doubt that art unions were Lotteries IN disguise,
and obnoxious TO like penalties and forfeitures
The lava of England and Of this STATE, SO far as
they prescribe what Ia what Is pot an Illegal To-.
terry are identical Both declare that any distribu-
tion by lot or chance OF any valuable thing, 'by
whatever name It may be called, is lottery,
his being SO, il we had any Lingering doubt as 70
whether art unions are or are not ioteres II would
be removed by an opinion OF the learned late Ser.
eaLt and present Justice Talfourd on tie subject.
lie says societies like the art unions, having for
their direct object the ENCOURAGEMENT Of aTt, were
doubtless not plated by the Legislature, when
providing by repeated and cumulative enac iments
against the temptations ot gaming; and possibly
tlo good rotulting fI0n that encouragement III av
cCun,eryail the owls Of the adopted; bat 10
cannct be concealed that the lovers of art have in
such plan, condesccnded 10 borrow aid frSm the
love Of chance, the principle Of gaming, which i,
vas the object Of tne law 70 repress and do not
think that the end cas-, ia the construction Oh the
statute, justify the means
W, then, a. 1t feoms, and who can doul. ~ art
Unions are lotteries in disguise, they arc, by our
lew, common and public nuiean9es; and il IL the
uuty Of the Law officers Of this city to see to their
immediate abatement Werocoileot they did inter-
icre in two cases, and procure their dissolution
Yct the American Art Union still remains Why
is II TO enjoy an especial immunity? Why should
it be permitted an especial and uninterrupted mono
poly in wreng doingg ls IL Unanswered the American
Art Union IS Incorporated We reply, 80 were
those in which The interference took place. But
every lawyer knows that charter Is no authority
for doing an unlawful act TIE American Art
Union was Incorporated 'fsg the purposes Vf the