Mountain Democrat. [volume] (Placerville, El Dorado Co., Cal.) 1854-1860, 1858-04-24

On Tuesday Governor Weller returned inc
" Gambling Bill" to the Senate without his
approval. Az the Governors Veto Message
IL rcpIets with good sense and sound argu-
uasrt and a. Il fully shows his views on the
vice In question, We publish II In full. We
take Il from the Sacramento Union:
SACRAnENTO, April 20, 1868.
ZS tie Senate Of California:
Irsturn herewith to your honorable body,
without my approval, "A" Act TO suppress
gAmbllng."
1857, was In advance Of public sentiment. and,
Therefore, no efforts have been made to my
knowledge. 10 secure convictions under it
Tndeed. Although In several States gambling
has been declared felony, have never heard
Of any enc being convicted Of this crime. Az
a general principle there should not be any
laW upon che statute book which public opin.
Ion viii not allow to be enforced. Such .
law might produce good impression abroad
but would reflect little credit on us here,
when Il Il notorious that Il cannot be executed.
More certainty and less severity would, in my
Opinion, b. the best policy
0an6lirE, 10 the early history Of this State,
was the co anon amusement Of large portion
OF OUT people, and Il IL only within few
years that L has been expelled from the most
public places. The vice still exists to an
alarming extent but II has been driven into
eserst PLACES, aud the moral sense Of this
oommunity is not 90 frequently shocked as
hsretoloee. In no one thing, however. has
soctety been improved 30 much as in this re-
specS end Il 10 probable that We would suffer
but little BY . comparison with our sister
States
That gambling houses arc carried on, and
that the young and unwary arc still being
ruined, L. notorious fact. II q correct biog-
raphy could be written, Of all who have fallen
victims here, to this vice, since the settlement
Of our State BY Americans, . picture would
De presented which would reflect no credit
upon our race. How many fortunes have
been squandvred, hcarths desolAtcd, families
aepaFatod, children impoverished, and prisons
Allied BY these gambling saloons3 Who can
ssS:snatS thS'miSery which they have inflicted
upon societyi Who can count the graves
which they have flledi
This may be oue Of the evils which lcgisa.
Sion cannot correct; but II is the duty Of
these who represent the people to d. all in
SheiF power to suppress it. This cannot be
done BY passing laws so severe that they can
WV W GAS(uSDuO uOt W N'NANi"S eH"NV " hbNu
inGiict 20 light penalty that it is not fit
Tie Act now before me makes the dealer
Of certain banking games. therein named.
guilty Of q misdemranOr, and subject to fine
Of not leHa than Ave hundred, nor more than
Hix hundred dollars think it viii be r!itii-
cult 90 find peMal Act where the maximu
end minimum pumShmcntS are placed 30
closely together. Nv the Act which this re.
peAis, this oGeASc II = felony, and subjects
the psFty e imprisonment for not less than
enc nor moro than five years. The old law
makes h . misdemeanor TO bet on any Of these
games; the Act befiFe me rs not. This il
making too wide q distinction between men
occupying seats on different sides 81 the same
table The Act Of April 18th. 1855 (Which
this also Tepeals,) very properly makes dis
tinction between tho punishment for the first
and second offence. This law does not The
existing act goes farther than the common
law In declaring certain contracts, etc. in re-
gard 70 gaming, null and void. THIS Act is
silent on the subject Under the hill before
ne, if The gambler Was only indicted three or
four times IN the year, the maximum fine is
% iOdgniecant, <hst he could pay the penalty
and still carry on profitable business. This
license Uog this il is in eject would amount
20 else Or 5000 per month This is far less
than the sam charged for license for gambling
houses By che Act Of March ~, 1851. That
law compelled house keeping over three
tables 70 pay Ave hundred dollars per month
and houses containing three tables or less.
three hundred and Rfty three dollars per
month. TkOrc Is q provision in this Act,
which Il 10 sid, is an improvement on the
present law. Tits, that any person convicted
under Il, may be Imprisoned until the fine is
paid. The Sapfctne Court Of this State has
already decided, that when fine is imposed
On . conviction Tor gaming, the defendant
may Be impHsNNcd 10 enforce the payment"
and % there was no necessity for this pro.
vision. Il ID true, that this Act includes the
games of rondo" and "keno," but the adj
vantAgea resulting from this are more than
eoUaater. balanced BY the objections which
have stated to other provi ions. 1t is better
that The dieKrAccfal scenes which are enacted
at the few tables which are still kept up,
should continue Tor another year. than that
the bill before me, no impdtcnt for good, SO
pregnant with evil, should become law.
Entsrtaining these opinions, the bill is re-
specially returned for reconsideration.
JOHN B. WELLER.
The question being, Shall the bill pass,
withdrawing the objections Of the Govern
orr Il vas lost, by the following vote:
Ayes-AllCH, Coulter. FO 'guson o. SacrA-
msntO, Hunt, johnson oil Sacramento, and
Lewis-6.
Noes-Baker, Berry, Burch, Bell, Carpen-
81 Dessae, Ketdhum. Merritt, Rodgers, Soule,
TaliaferO and ThOm-l6.
Rvu RR~~oOR --nr l1arr;s q fnrtncP Pres.