Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1892-03-08
oAuaIiho An ANCIENT lxIl.


Gambling h an ancient evil and has
always becn . fashionable disslpstion.
TIE sucient Grreks INDUCED In lt and The
Romans werr great EambI<rs. Among
thsm gambling had attained The dignity
Of q SCIENCE and books we're written
thereon. Jullus Cssar In his youth was
. most notorious gambler, losInE sums
90 enormous that he became bankrupt
before hr became famous for anything
else. The Roman Emperor Justinian
forbade public gambling .. early ~ the
sixth century. In the middle sgrs the
clefgv were greatly given Tn gambling,
and In the fiiteenth century an abo..s
was tried for having systematically
ssmblesi In her convent. The Aslatics
we're from the earliest times great gam
blers; gambling With cards came Into
vogue In Europe during the fourteenth
cntury by way Of Arabs. The Chine.e
are passionate gamblers,n are the Ameri'
can Indians, the southern negroes, the
Mexicans, aud all the spanish-Ameri-
tan people.
A very small portion of the worlds
gambling IL done With cards; gambling
i, like lust, ope Of the primitive Vices of
both the savsgc aud the civilized men.
its universaliiy IL easily explained, for u
has liz roo, In avsric- and Incidence. u
/. the passion Ia get .omeihing for Moth
ing, and I. Of Mn 20 the desire 10 acquire
property by theft rather than by
labor. The primitive man stood for IN
bridied lust and lswless syarice. The
primitive barbarian. when he wanted
something for nothing, robbed aud muir
dered his weaker fellow Ia get 10, but
when society organized and rc.e To the
level Of the rights 81 property and their
legal protection by the state, then the
man Who wanted something for nothing
va. obliged 20 Win Il by he Wits, ".
driven Ia steal by craft rather than by
force, and Instead % knocking man In
the bead io get hl. money, men begsn Ia
cit up night. and device methods by
which they could succe.sfuliy get some
thing for nothing cut 81 their Deigb'
bor..
Gambling began IN an effort 10 steal by
.trsiagem What men dar,d not of could
no, steal by force. The gsmhier.
chance when honestly given was tempt
ing lurr to persuade EVERY greedy fellow
"a compel fortune 90 his .lie by his "a.
p<rior skiii, but, % course, naturally the
professional gambler soou learned To
summon fraud to III. assistance, and
from time lmmsmorial the professional
gambler or the bank almost Invariably
bankrupt. the infatustsd persons Who In
vain .s,k To pit their .kill and luck
against the natural or fraudulently COO.
tTi,-i advantage 20 the professional
gambler whose tank they try "a burst.
III. olic.t literature rccord. TIL. pas
lion for gambling. FROM the rudssi
.s,sg. AZ the lo,ton of ,ocicty to the
Prime, 81 Vale. At hs top, the wori i.
pa..Ionatsly food IL gambling IN some
say. The Indian VAS gambler bsfore
he knew m. u.e II alcohol; the China.
man l,rforc be knew the use ~ opium {;
the ancient Gf,ek., IA. llevbrr~s, the
Romans. the Egyp,ians w,r- all in''ief-
Il. gambler. bcfOr, they acre drunk
ards, be,au.s, n. We argued, the gsm-
bling Instinct grew oui 10 the pfimiil"
p...lon 81 a,srlc- and the lndolrnt de-if'
10 dodge labor anil I've by violence When
you can. by fraud when you cannot By
fotc.. Gambling bsgsn a. Early .. the
l recognition % the right 20 Individual
property aud the legal projection ~ both
I III. strong aud "a. weak against ID"
ubiquitous and lndi.crimlnsis rob,rr,
81 every maa by III. nclghbor Who had
the strength aud the opportunity Ia mur-
| der him.