St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-07-30
STAMP OUT ALL LOTTERIES
President Harrison Invokes the
Aid of Congress-.

w ASHINGTON. july S9.-IH0 proSl-
dent sent the following message to con-
gress to-day: 1.-THE recent attempt to
secure charter from the state of North
Dakota for lottery company, the pend
ing effort to obtain from the state of
Louisiana renewal Of the charter Of
the Louisiana state lottery and the es-
tabliShment of one or more lottery COM
panies at Mexican towns near our bor-
der have served the good purpose of
calling attention to an evil of vast pro-
portions. If the baneful effects of these
lotteries were confined to the states
that give the companies corporate pow
ers and license to conduct the busi-
ness, the citizens of other states, being
pOwerleSS to apply legal remedies,
might clear themselves of RESPONSE
bility by the use of such moral agen-
cies as were within their reach. But
the case is not so. The people of all
states are debauched and defrauded.
The vast sums of money offered to the
states for charters are drawn from the
people of the United States, and the
general government through its mail
system is made the effective and profit
able medium of intercourse between
the lottery company and it's victims.
The use of the mails is quite as essen
tial to the companies as the state
license. 1t would be practically i'm
possible for these companies to exist if
the public mails were once effectively
closed against the advertisements and
remittances. The use Of the mails by
these companies is a prostitution of an
agency only intended to serve the pur-
poses of legitimate trade. 1t is not nee
essary, l am sure, for me to portray the
robbery of the poor, and the wide
spread corruption of private morals
which are the necessary Incidents of
these lottery schemes. The national
capital has become sub-headQuarters
of the Louisiana Lottery company, and
it's numerous agents and attorneys are
conducting here business involving
probably larger use of the mails than
that of any legitimate business enter
prise in the District of Columbia. There
seems to be good reason to believe that
the corrupting touch of these agents
has been felt by the clerks in the postal
service and by some of the police Off
GERS of the District of Columbia. Severe
promptly enacted to allow the postoff1ce
department to purge the mails of all let
ters, newspapers and circulars relating
to this business. The letter of the post
master general, which transmit here
with, points out the inadequacy of the
existing statutes, and suggests legisla-
ton that would be effective. It may
also be necessary to so regulate the
carrying of letters by the express COM
panies as to prevent the use Of those
agencies to maintain communication
between the lottery companies and their
agents or customers In other states. It
does not seem possible that there can
be any division of sentiment as to the
propriety of closing the mails against
these companies, and l therefore ven
ture to express the hope that such
proper powers as are necessary to that
end will be Al. once given to the post
Office departments.
[Signedl BENJAMIN HARRISON.
Accompanying the message are two
documents, one q letter of the post
master general directing the presidents
attention to the subject, the other a
compilation of the laws relating to lot
teries heretofore enacted, together with
the decisions of courts defining those
laws. In his letter to the president the
postmaster general says that the urgent
necessity of the case impels him to an
ticipate his annual report by this spe-
cial communication in regard to the use
of the mails by the Louisiana Lottery
company. After detailing the action of
| the department in this matter in the
past, the postmaster general says that
| it is manifest that the object of the law
has been successfully thwarted, and
that, without additional Legislation, the
mails must continue to carry this class of
matter. He submits to the president a
copy of the bill recently reported from
the house committee on postoffices and
post roads. and fully covered in the
press dispatches at that time.