The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1859-08-12


abolish the constitutional prohibition and the prohiOtcry
law then secure system Of lotteries In the State under
such regulations ~ will secure the public confidence in
the fairness Of the schemes the integrity Of ds
will be retained 10 circulate at home; the profits which
belong the business win be kept among ourselves aud
made subsidiary to public improvements and benevolent
Objects and the State and municipal authorities will
acquire what both need-s source Of revenue which,
like most others will be productive and will cause no
complaint.
The fact was, that lotteries which had acquired
the confidence of the public would necessarily be
patronzed by the public, and the State was bound
TO have the sales legal and derive revenue from
IT, when it could not be prevented The amend
ment to the constitution was only prevented by the
shortness of the session.
The New Orleans Delta also contained the fol-
lowing about this tme:-
We are told that at half million dollars annually
goes from for the sale Of Havana tickets TO help
support government foreign and hostile TO us
In every respect Until within the past Two or tnree
there for this ne we bad here no
reliable for those TO invest who felt Inclined but
within that time lottery, drawn and owned by respon
sibe men, has successful operation in the States
of Delaware Georgia We alude to the lotteries OF
Wood, Fddy Co., which have rapidly grown into
them Of large amounts and but few weeks ago their
capital was PAID TO parties in this city.
II has within the last few months, rapidly increaset
in favor with our citizens, but we do not think
In the proportion Should compared with its great
rival the Bavsna The latter has been amongst for
u
invest in 1t, without comparing it with the Georgia or
studying the chances and advantages Of the latter tho
former.
Arguments like these finally convinced the Lou
lsiana Legislature OF the necessity of legalizng the
sale of the lottery tickets of other States and the
New Orleans papers predict that the constitution
will probably be so amended at the next session of
the Legislature.
THE LOTTERY BUSINESS OF THE PRESENT DAY.
There are now only four States that have legal
lotteries. These are Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri
and Delaware. The last Maryland lottery was
drawn in March, 1859. Kentucky has three, in
GLIDING the one recently purchased in MCrakn
county by Mr.. Benjamin Wood known as the
Paducah Academy Lottery, for the franchise Of
which he has agreed to pay to the academy $50 000
and which in the course OF few months, it is said
will be carried on as extensively as the Georgia
lotteries The following is an extract from the Pa
ducah Herald announcing the fact
PADucAH LOTTERY GRANT
Mr., B. Wood, Of the city OF New York, recently pur
chased the lottery franchise granted by the Legislature
male academies Of this city. The arrangement made with
Mr. Wood highly advantageous TO the cu que trust Of
the grant, the friends OF these growing and deserv
eddy popular Institutions of learning will be gratfed to
know that the grant has Ut Last been disposed Of at
and adequate price, Mr. Wood has entered into bonds
securing the payment prizes and the price agreed
given the grant with iecurity worth as is shown at
| least three hundred thousand dollars.
| Now that so few States legalize the business,
there is a great scramble for the franchises when
they are for sale, the in this of the
| Eddy Co.'s grants in Georgia claim that the late
| onslaught on them was led on by jealous rivals who
| had failed to secure the Paducah grant. The fol
lowing extract from Delaware paper in 1857 will
| give some idea of the money and influence which
are brought to bear to secure these grants in the
| Legislatures
| QuADRANGULAR FIGHT.
There has been considerable excitement in Dover the
| lottery
which have heretofore alluded TO- In order that our
may understand the matter properly will
mark that there three applications for lottery grants
to extend aperiod of ten One OF these known
the Wood grant, and advocated by Hon. Geo. Read Rid
die and Others another kno the France grant
and advocated by Nsesfs Stats, Broadbent and
others; while the third represented by Governor
sage Of any new grant and was Represented is said By
Geo. c. Gordon, Esq Hon Martin W. Bates and others
VINO naa large their services The contest
with considerable ingenuity, each party striving TO gel
| the advantage Of the ether.
| CHEATING THE LOTTERY MANAGERS.
Before the electric telegraph was invented, lot
terry managers in the habit of selling tickets
ong after the drawings, in cities distant from the
! place of drawing, making due allowance for the
| time in which an express would carry the news Of
the successful numbers. The lottery managers Their
were the most energetic expressmen. Their ex
presses ran far in advance of the mail and the early
| progress of journalism was much indebted to them
for the rapid transmission of news. They of course
! ran some risk in selling after the drawings took
| place, and were sometimes overreached by the
sharpers, who Wonld succeed in learning what were
| the drawn numbers, and buying the tickets after
| wards before the branch offices closed. The ut
most ingenuity was exhibited in these arrangements
They sometimes established telescope telegraph
lines for hundreds of miles, the successful numbers
beng read from one station to another by means
OF telescopes. Another plan was to arrange a set
nfc NtFlrg H.,
as far as sight could operate selecting the highest
points OF land for the stations in all cases. There
were also carrier pigeons employed, but the most
ingenious and successful plan was by means of
shooting lights, each shot counting ten, and the odd
numbers being communicated in like manner after
pause, so as to make certain of the correct nun
oers; In this way, it is said, the pious Connecticut
gentlemen succeeded in swindling one manager
out of fifty thousand dollars in the Rhode Island
lotteries.
THE USE OF TELEGRAPHs FIRST ADOPTED BY LOTTERY
MEN.
The early history of telegraphing records the
TACT that before lottery managers were aware of it
aspecies of visual telegraph had been established
and the prize numbers learned in time to purchase
lucky tickets in places distant from the scene of
drawing. Large sums were at first lost by lottery
managers in this way. Among the best supporters
OF the electric telegraph in its infancy, as well as
more recently, have been the managers of lotteries
LOTTERY MANAGERS PUBLISHING ANTI LOTTERY
TRACTS
1t is a curious fact in lottery history that when
applications have been pending in some States for
the issuing of new grants the managers of lotteries
already in legal existence have been known to pub
sh and circulate large quantities of anti.lottery
documents and tracts, and to pay large sums of
money for them, intending by these means to de.
feat the applications of rivals while they were sure
of continuing themselves-preferring the damage of
public opinion against lotteries to the competition
of rivals.
BOGUS LOTTERIES.
The fabulous profits ascribed to the legal lottery
business has, of late years. introduced system o,
bogus lotteries, which has tended much to injure
the regular business. They are got up by unprn-
cipled and irresponsible men, who issue flaming adj
vertisements of schemes Offering immense prizes
at small priced tickets. OF cnurse if thnr na va