Los Angeles herald., 1890-07-30
THE LOTTERY CRUSADE.
HARRISON AND WANAMAKER EN-
LIST IN THE WAR.
The President Sends a Message to Con-
gress on the Subject-The Postmaster
General Recommends Bill.

WASHINGTON, July 29.-President Har-
rison today sent the following message
to congress:
To the Senate and House of Representa-
tires.
The recent attempt to secure a charter
from North Dakota for lottery COM
pany, the pending effort to obtain from
the state of Louisiana a renewal of the
charter of the Louisiana state lottery,
and the establishment of one or more
lottery companies at Mexican towns
near our border, have served a good
purpose of calling public attention to an
evil of vast proportion. If the
baneful effects of lotteries were
confined to the states that gave the COM
panies corporate powers and licenses to
conduct business, the citizens of other
states, being powerless to apply legal
remedies, might clear themselves of re-
sponsibility by the use of such moral
agencies 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 states
for charters are drawn from the people
of the United States, and the government,
through the mail system, is made an ef-
fective and profitable medium of inter-
course between the lottery company and
it's victims. The use of the mails is
quite as essential to the companies as
state license. 1t would be practically
impossible for the companies to exist if
the public mails were once effectually
closed against these companies, and the
prostitution of an agency only intended to
serve the purpose of legitimate trade,
and decent social intercourse, stopped.
1t is not necessary, am sure, for me to
attempt to portray the robbery of the
poor, and the widespread corruption of
public and private morals which are
necessary incidents of these lottery sys-
tens. The national capital has become
sub-headquarter of the Louisiana lot
terry company, and its numerous agents
and attorneys are conducting here bus
mess involving probably a larger use OF
the mails than any legitimate business
enterprise 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. Severe and
effective legislation should be promptly
enacted to enable the postoffice
department to purge the mails of all
letters, newspapers and circulars relat-
ing to this business. The letter of the
postmaster-general which l transmit
herewith, points out the inadequacy OF
the existing statute, and suggests legis-
lation that would be effective. 1t may
also be necessary to so regulate the
carrying of letters by express companies
as to prevent the use of those agencies
to maintain communication between
lottery companies and their agents or
customers in other cities. 1t does not
seem possible that there can be any
division of sentiment as to the propriety
of closing the mails against these COM
panies, and l therefore venture to ex-
press the hope that such proper powers
as are necessary to that end will be
given to the postoffice department.
The letter of the postmaster-general,
referred to by the president, calls atten-
ton to the inefficiency OF the present
law, and recommends the passage of the
anti-lottery bill recently reported to the
house