Delaware State journal and statesman., 1861-01-29
From the Methodist Protestant
LOTTERY IMPOSITIONS.

From the Methodist Protestant.
LOTTERY IMP0sTTI0NS.
Our attention has been called, by croespcn-
lent, to series Of impostions in the form Of
Lottery Circulars, distributed throughout our
State and the State of Virginia, and doubtless
all over the country, by certain parties in vii
mington, Del We call them gross impOeiUuns.
because they are evidently intended 10 tntrap
the unwary, to excite expectations not to b,
realized, aud thus. under sanction Of State law, |
to rob as many as may be Veldant enough 10 bite |
ut the ridiculous bait they offer.
Here is the plan. A we'll meaning farmer, or |
storekseper in the country, not too we'll acquaint
ed with the tricks of city civilization goes to the
post-ofIice and is surprized IT, find letter to his
address, in IN unknown haul, and benrng u
poptmark that is unfamiliar. He opens, aud
reads as follows the letter printed III script to
initiate wriiing;)
"DscemJs WA 1850
aDGlR SIR As prejudice exists in the mlpis oimtny
persons aga INST Lotteries. determined To-
no far Al least the popular and sAmed
Lotteries Of the State Of Delaware aud show you we
in earnest, we present 70 you the following eNtraor
diuary proposuon-we will send you tucata Of a
full package dfslxteenhs Of TcAsts in e Grand Hotter
b. drawn the goth Of January, SOL (see schena
eosedl and iflt does not draw you 5000, We will "ni
you another package In ons OF our Extra lotteries foT
nothing. We sent prize Of $1,000 IN this way to "a
merehantin Troy, New Horh on The sth Of December and
having aeedenty met With your NAME oer the tAue
chance to you. You will Of courHo, utdersanl that
ubeci In making this ofsr To extend our business aud
unless gu show the money and let It be known that We
sent you the prize we shall derive NO bsueht from this
arrangement Please keep this matter strictly private
until We send yot the money Use the eneosrd envelope
and send $40 In your letter 10 pay the managers for the
certificate when will forward il by return mall and
send you the money you draw As rs the drawing is
over After you receive the money you must CT
show 1t to your frende and ali your influence In our
favor Please send at once and don't show this letter
any ono,
We have before us, Ms we write, three Of these
letters, purporting to be from three different
Lottery establishments in Wilmington, each diff
fering slightly in phrascOlogy, but covering sub
stantaly the came proposals Enclosed in each
is o splendid schemei and return envelope, du
ly directed to the truly fortunate Office The
brother who sent them to us, says; "Read them
carefully, and tell me if you ever knew n more
rascally plan to rob. Our State is flooded with
them, and many one is made to believe that he
or she is selected on purpose to draw certainly
a prize"
Now, q moments glance would show that If
such persons ore to draw prizes, certainly it
must be by cheating in the arrangement Of the
numbers; for, otherwise, how could these man
ayers tell who would or who would not, get a
prize of six thousand dollars? 1t is simply u
novel way of selling package of worthless Lot
terry tickets But the letter is most adrotly
written. If the package sent for ten dollars
package, in one Of our extra lotteries, for moth
ing" And that is just what ii is worth, aud just
what the first package sent is worth But the
ten dollars first invested, are gone forever, and
they were worth food and raihent. These Lot
terry vendors, resorting TO such measures to de-
ceive the people, are, it is said, duly authorized
by the STATE Of Delaware. Can it be that any
Legislature in Christendom will consent to b.
part and parcel OF such a swindling, Peter Funk
concern, as this Lottery system assuredly is
We wonder that Delaware can sanction this
wholesale system of bribing men to purchase
tickets, under pretences that appeal to them AZ
dishoaest men. For certainly eueh letter as
the above, is an insult to every man 20 whom il
is addressed, who is not either a fool, or desti-
tutc of moral sense. II he is a fool, he may see
nothing in it other than All implied assurnnc,
that be has been selected by the managers as the
happy recipient Of prize ii he is II knave, hi
is asked to consent to an arrangement, preyoui
to the drawing, by which he is to get a certain
amount for becoming a walking advertisement
for the generous prize sellers, and co workri
with them in fleeing the neighborhood wherl
he may live, IN consideration Of sun of none,
to be paid him. The whole is an arituly ar
ranged trick to impose upon country people
We feel that 1t is our duty to warn them. Tn
brother who wrote to us gu this subject, waxiul
worm says :-"Numbers come to me to Wsk ny
opinion in the premises, and l say at once, hun
the letters, and kick out their agents when the,
call " We endorse the advice given to burn III
letters, though, as to the kicking that might b.
dispensed with. They deserve worse treamen
great deal but we would leave kicking Il
horses.
Now, if any reader of the Methodist rQtes
taht should be guled out of ten dollars by ihes
lhimble-riggers, we shall be sorry for his folly
Have nothing TO do with any Of the numrrou