Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1888-08-03

Christ Church Bells--A Lottery or d
bible society--A singular Bit OF So
ciai HISTORY.
Rs one of those condolences which are
caIIef strange" in fiction, although they
ore all the time occu ring in real life. 1t has
hannened that while Monsieur Lesseps
has been agitating the idea CT Il lottery In
Trance to carry through his new Panama
canal projecU the old Union Canal, the
very Oldest canal in this country, and
which WAS or ginally and materially aided
in its construction by q lottery, has out
lived its usefulness and has teen aban-
The Union Canal of Pennsylvania was
the first projected ON the American CONT
nent 1t was suggested by William Penn
in go, years before a canal was in opera
ton even in Finland. The route was sur
yeyed by David Rittenhouse, the astrono-
mer, and DR.. William Smith, provost of
the University of Pennsylvania.
The drawings of he ottery in aid of the
Union Canal took place in the old Arcade
in Philadelphia on Chestnut street, near
Seventh aud were regarded as occasions
of public interest. The work was inter
rupted by the Revolutionary war, bu'
lat on Robert Morris, Robert Fulton and
Jacob Francis became interested in it.
The canal was eighty-nine miles long,
and necessitated in its construction some
of the greatest eng neering work of the
day. The first tunnel in the United States
was bored tor this canal, and a colossal
d mping apparatus was used to raise the
water to the necessary height.
The canal cost $3,0UO,0OU equivalent to
ten times that sum at the present time).
was worth TO the country every dollar 1t
cost, and would never have been COM
pleted had it not been for he lottery.
A rival to the Union Canal was after.
wards started by the Bostonese to enable
tho I,,h n
but slthough this canal was completed
Through the agency also of public lot
terry formed to aid in its construction it
failed TO render Boston equal to New
York, though it did much good, never
theless.
Various public works besides canals re-
sorted to the lottery for aid. When New
England patriotism fell short of finishing
the Bunker Hill Monument, large lot
terry was suggested to cont nue. the good
work, and q rattle" was COTTON up at a
ladies fail" TO which Fanny Elssler, the o..
danseuse, contributed, and which supplied
the funds required.
Even the phlegmatic Germans took
kindly to the lotteries, and drawings of
interesting magnitude took place in Vienna
and Berlin. The lottery then found It's
way, on the general principles of human
nature, into Great Britain, where it took
root and fiourIshed. The first English
lottery was for the repairing of harbors
and Notifications along the coast. The
first public drawing in England took place
at the west door OF old St. Paul's Cathe
dral in the presence of a vast crowd.
Queen Elizabeth, the most sensible and
successful of English sovereigns, estab
lished the lottery by royal edict, and
aced it under the control of the Prime
Minister ana the Chancellor of the Ex- |
cheqer. 81 successful were its results
accented
stltutl n for raising revenues down to the 4
close OF tire eighteenth century. 1t was
during this brilliant period that the bank
Ing system, insurance, exchange, and
paper money We're first introduced, and
ali, if not born of, were undoubtedly
Graded in, the lottery system.
The greatest public institution in Lon
don, or perhaps in the world, the British
was materially aided in its in
ception by 10 terry. Neatly E60,, 90 were
thus contributed TO this magnificent OBJ
iect one hundred and thirty five years ago.
irm foothold in France. The mercural
Parisians took kindly to it. They dearly
owed the excitement of the drawings.
while at the same time The government
took care to. devote the maj portions of
the funds thus raised TO public purposes.
AT present, lotteries in +. ance are In full
favor for charitable and art purposes, and
fetal being present at all drawings. Over
forty lotteries have obtained the sanction
OF the French governme Ut during the last
decade. The lottery known as The Cen
trail Union of decorative Arts" had a cap.
ital of l,UU0, COZ francs (nearly ) j0Ju,Uu0).
One lottery disposed of six hundred thou
sand tickets III twenty days. The Aiger-
Ian National Lottery sold over a million of
tickets per month for five months, and the
lottery for the Societie des Gems de Lotto
Jes sold over half that number at a higher
price.
In this country as has been previously
stated, lotteries nave always been popu-
lar, and'untii late years have been sane
toned while regulated by law. Religion
mas, even i'll America, availed itself largely
OF human natures tendency TO the lottery.
Churches, from Main to Louisiana, have
been aided by lotteries. The Philadelphia
Steepe LOTTERY was managed by no less a
man, statesman and philanthropist, than
Benjamin Franklin, and through it's
agency the steeple of old Christ Church,
Philadelphia, wa raised and its peal of
bells secured.
These Christ Church Bells are almost as
well known and his orical in the QuaS er
City as are Bow bells" in London the
whole peal weigh over nine thousand
any music by the pound" They were
cast In London and brought over with
great care and large expense to Philadel.
phia The lottery, the funds of which
procured these befs, was regarded by the
good men and women at the time as q
public benefit.
In New England lottery was originated
Tor the purpose of raising funds TO supply
sailors and strangers with Bibles, and
succeeded largely in accomplishing its OBJ
Ject. Thus a lottery became Bible So
clety. Various Episcopal and Congrega.
tional churches at Newport and else ere
have been built with funds raised by lot
teries.
Two Of the most noted preachers of this |
Increase and Cotton Mather, !
lived and died in houses built by lotteries, |
and the Rev. DIR. Eliphalet Mott, of Union |
College, has written the best, because
most truthful, defense of the lottery sys-
TEN. Rev. Or. Mott was a historical char
acter, the grandfather of the present |
Bishop Henry Goldman Potter of New
ork, and the inventor of the celebrated !
Mott stove The defense of the lottery
system was before the New York Legisla-
ture
The first Episcopal church in brooklyn,