The Iola register., 1890-08-08
THE LOTTERY QUESTION.

The President Sends . Special Message to
Congress in Which He Treats Of the Evils
of Lotteries.
WASHINGTON, July y31-President Har-
rison has sent the following message to
Congress:
To the Senate and House of Representatives
The recent attempt to secure a charter
from the State Of North Dakota for a lottery
company, the pending effort to obtain from
the State OF Louisiana renewal of the char
ter OF the Louisiana State lottery, and the
establishment of one or more lottery com.
panies at Mexican towns near our border,
have served a good purpose Of calling pub
lie attention to an evil of vast proportions.
II the baneful effects of the lotteries were
confined to the States that gave the compan-
les corporate powers and a license to con-
duct business the citizens of other states,
being powerless to apply legal remedies,
might clear themselves of responsibility by
the use of such moral agencies as were with
In their reach. But the case is not SO. The
people of all the States are debauched and
dcfrauded. The vast sums of money offered
to the States for charters are drawn from
the people of the United States, and the Gen.
eral Government, through its mail system,
is made the effective and profitable medium
of intercourse between the lottery company
and its victims.
to the companies as the State license. 1t
would be practically impossible for these
companies to exist if the public mails were
once effectually closed against their adver-
tisements and remittauces. The use of the
mails by these companies is a prostitution
of an agency only intended to serve pur-
poses of legitimate trade and a decent So
cial intercourse. 1t is not necessary, / am
sure, for me to attempt to portray the rob-
berry of the poor and the widespread cor
ruption of public and private morals which
are the necessary incidents of these lottery
schemes.
The Nati7n capital has become a SUBJ
headquarters of the Louisiana Lottery Com.
pany and its numerous agents and attor-
neys are conducting here business inyolv-
ing probably larger use of the mails than
that of any legitimate business enterprise
in the District of Columbia. There seems to
be good reason to believe that the corrupt
ing touch of these agents has been felt by
the clerks in the postal service and by some
of the police officers of the District. Severe
and effective legislation should be promptly
enacted to enable the Post Office Depart
ment to purge the mails of all letters, news
papers and circulars relating to the busi-
ness.
The letter of the Postmaster. General,
which / transmit herewith, points out the
inadequacy of the existing statutes and
suggests legislation that would be effective.
1t may also be necessary to so regulate the
carrying of letters by the express COM
panies as to prevent the use of those agen-
cies to maintain communication between
the lottery companies and their agents or
customers in other cities. 1t does not seem
possible that there can be any division of
sentiments as to the propriety of closing
the mails against the companies. and
therefore venture to express the hope that
such proper powers as are necessary to that
end will be given to the Post Office Depart
ment.
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.