The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1884-10-04
BETTING ON THE ELECTION.

When a leading dealer i'll hats was
asked by a reporter the other day if
his sales were likely to be much in
creased by bets on the Presidential
election, he replied in the negative.
Bets of hats were very common for
merly, he explained, but nowadays men
are accustomed to far larger stakes, and
betting has become serious business,
in which heavy sums Of money are in
volved.
Other people besides this halter have
observed the remarkable growth of the
passion for betting in this country dur
ing recent years. 1t is true that in the
old days men would sometimes wager
hats on the result of an exciting cleo
ton, but the bet was made in jocose
mood, and was paid in the same spirit.
Cranky partisans would also pledge
themselves in case of the defeat Of
their candidates to perform certain alb
surd feats, such as riding on a donkey
faced toward his tail, or pushing a
wheelbarrow through the streets of a
town. But such VOWS were probably
made amid the excitements of bar
room, and were, of course, treated as
a joke. The men who vowed never to
cut their hair or their boards if Henry
Clay, for instance, was not elected, and
who kept their pledges, were, of course,
out-and-out oddities, and were glad
enough to get the notoriety their &C.
centricity gave them.
But betting in these days is seriously
pursued by large numbers of men and
boys for the sake OF making money
They are after the stakes put up, and
not merely hunting for little excite
ment. Many stock broker, for in
stance, looks upon bet as purely
business transaction, feeling it to be
just as square business to stake his
money on the speed of horse or the
result of an election as to hazard It on
the chances of the Board room.
And undoubtedly it is the specula-
ton in Wall street and on the .Exchan-
ges generally which is chiefly response
bic for the recent growth of the mania
for betting. 1t has bred the gambler
spirit in the country, and that is an in
stinct of human nature which is easily
stimulated. During the periods when
the speculation in stocks, in grain, in
petroleum, and in mines has been most
active, we have seen men Of all sorts
affected by the frenzy-quict country
parsons, grave deacons and elders, and
merchants who were supposed to be
beyond such allurements. They were
taken possession of by the passion for
gambling, and nothing except the loss
of their margins was able to cure them
of the disease.
Meantimes horse racing has grown at
an astonishing rateiin this country, and
has tended to further develop the pas
sion for betting, which now finds OPP
portunities for satisfaction in all sorts
of contests. OF course, too, the I'M
usual complications of the present
canvass for President invite betting to
an extraordinary extent. When the
result seems SO doubtful, when there is
such an clement of chance, the spirit
of the gambler is thoroughly stirred.
But are not these betting men afraid
that their votes will be challenged ?
Perhaps they find it easy to pair off at
this election, when SO many men seem
to be glad to get an excuse for rotvot-
ing. Still, we warn everybody against
making bets on the election.-N J.
SIN.