The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1891-02-25
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But these dishoncsties in the carrying
on Of the gains are nothing whom com
pared with the frauds which. are COM
mitted In order to get money TO 60 on
with the nefarious work. Gambling
with its greedy hand has snatched away
the widows mite and the portion Of the
orphans; has sold the daughters virtue
to- get the means to continue the game;
has written the counterfeit signature,
emptied the bankers money. vaults and
welded the assassin's dagger. There is
no depth of meanness to which IL will
not stoop. There is no cruelty at whichit
Is appalled,. There Is no warning Of God
that II will not dare. Merciless, unap-
peasable, fiercer and wilder II blinds, II
hardens, II rends,Iit blasts, 1t crushes, II
damns. II mas peopled our prisons and
lunatic asylums. How many railroad
agents, and cashiers and trustees OF
funds II has driven TO disgrace, incar-
ceration and suicide! Witness years
ago cashier Of railroad who stole
one hundred and three thousand dollars
TO carry on his gaming practices. Wit
ness forty thousand dollars stolen from
q Brooklyn bank within the memory Of
many Of you, and the Siso,ooo taken
from Wall street insurance company
for the same purpose! These are only
illustrations on large scale Of the
robberies every day committed for the
purpose Of carrying out the designs Of
gamblers. Hundreds Of thousands Of
dollars every year leak out without OBJ
servation from the merchants till into
the gambling hell A man In London
keeping one Of these gambling houses
boasted that he had ruined nobleman
day; but II all the saloons Of this land
were TO speak out, they might utter a
more infamous boast, for they have de-
stroyed thousand noble men year
Notice also the effect of this crime
npon domestic happiness 1t has sent
its ruthless plowshare through hun
dreds Of families, until the wife sat in
rags and the daughters were disgraced
and the sons grew up to the same in
famous practices or took short cut to
destruction across the murderer's scat
fold. Home has lost all charms for the
gambler. How tame are the children's
caresses and a wife's devotion to the
gambler How drearily the fire burns
on the domestic HEARTH There must
be louder laughter, and something to
win and something to lose; an excite
ment to drive the heart faster and FLIP
the blood and fire the imagination. No
home, however bright, can keep back the
gamester. The sweet call Of love
bounds back from his iron soul, and all
epdearments are consumed in the hama
Of his passion The family Bible will
20 after all other treasures are lost, and
II his crown in heaveJi were put into his
hand he would cry: Here goes one
more game, my boys! On this one
throw I stake my crown Of heaven" ."
A young man in London on coming OF
age received fortune Of 500, 900,
and through gambling, in three years
was thrown on his mother for sup
port An only son went TO South
ern city; he was rich, intellectual, and
elegant In manners. His parents gave
him, on his departure from home, their
last blessing The sharpers got hold OF
him. They fattered him. They lured
him to the gaming tables and let him
win almost everything for good while,
and patted him on the back and said
First rate player" But, fully in their
grasp, they fieeced him; and his thirty
thousand dollars were lost Last Of all
he put up his watch and lost that.
Then he began to think Of his home,
and his old father and mother, and
wrote thus:
my beloved parents: You will
doubtless feel momentary Joy at the
reception of this letter from the child
Of your bosom, on whom you have Law
ished all the favors of your declining
years. But should feeling Of Joy for
moment spring up in your hearts
when you should have received this
from me, cherish It not. have fallen
deep-never TO rise. Those grey hairs
that / should have honored and pro-
tected l shall bring down with sor
row TO the grave. | will not curse
my destroyer, but, oh, may God avenge
the wrongs and impositions prac-
ticed upon the unwary in 4 way that
shall best please him. This, my dear
parents, Is the last letter you will ever
receive from me. humbly pray your
forgiveness. II is my dying prayer
Long before you have received this let.
ter from me the cold grave will have
closed upon me forever. Life TO me Il
insupportable. cannot, nay, l will
not, suffer the shame OF having ruined
you. Forget and forgive is the dying
prayer OF your unfortunate son."
The old father came TO the post Office
got the letter, and fell 10 the floor
They thought he was dead at Hrst, but
they brushed back the white hair from
his brow and famed him. He had only
tainted. wish he had boon dead; 70,
what is life worth 10 father after hi'
son is destroyed2 When things &C
wrong at q gaming table they shout
Foul" foulr Over all the gaming
tables Of the world cry out: "Foul
foul! Infinitely foul"
Shall sketch the history Of the gam
bier? Lured by bad company he hndI
his way into place where honest mer
ought never TO go. He sits down for hi
hrst game, but only for pastime ant
the desire of being thought sociable
The players deal out the cards. They
unconsciously play into satan's hand'
who takes all the tricks and both ths
players souls for trumps-he being .
sharper at any game. A slight stake Il
put up Just TO add interest 10 the play