Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1893-04-21
Monte Carlo Profits.

The Monte Carlo gambling establish
ment made more money during its last
financial year, which ended the first of
this month, than ever before in its his
tory. This fact is especially notable
because the season has been an excep-
tionally bad one for all the other Rivi-
era resorts. The total receipts from the
gaming tables in the twelve months
were over 24OO0,000 francs, and the
directors of the gaming society, which
officially goes by the euphonious and
more delicate name of the Societe des
Bains de Nler ct Cercie des Etrangers
du Monaco, will be able to pay divi-
denG of about Al per cent. for the year
on the nominal value of each share.
This is the largest dividend it has ever
paid. The face value of share is 500
flaucs, but the actual value is quoted
to-day at five times that amount.
The present capital of the society is
30000,000 francs, divided into 60,0C0
shares. \ majority of the stock is in
few hands, and only holders Of more
than 200 shares are allowed to vote at
the business meetings and share in the
management.
This has shut out all but about
dozen shareholders. Efforts are max
ing looking to n revision of the stock
and an increase of capital. 1t is pro-
posed to split up the shares into iitths
and redistribute them at 500 francs.
This would let in many more share
holders, and, it is believed, would cause
some striking changes in the conduct of
the establishment.
There have been no striking
events at the gambling establish
mcnt during the past year. No plunger
has ari: on, and there have been no
bic winners. No one has broken the
bank. 4 young Russian, who won
over $4,000 on the last day of the ii.
nancial wear. came back next day, All
Fools Day, and lost every sou again, so
the cashier had but to transfer the
amount from last years account to this
years. The feature of the season has
been the increased multitudes Of small
gamblers, the class the management
most welcomes. They have small cap
ital and can't stand against run Of bad
luck. They lose their money rapidly
and make room for other victims.
Monte Carlo has fallen vastly in the
social scale during the past year or so,
so the local observers say. The list of
visitors contains few names Of people
high in the social scale of European
society as compared with previous
years. Scarcely day of the past
twelve months has passed without
brawls and quarrels over the tables,
either among the players or between
players and officials, Rowdyism and
rascality have been ri'e, sn1 one lead
ing writer says: ''The Casino has
never harbored such gang of thieves
as that which practices upon the
pockets of the people standing around
the tables during carnival time"
A marked feature Of Monte Carlo in
recent months has been the largely in-
creased proportion of Germans among
the players. A few years ago Ger
man was rarely heard in the gambling
rooms; now it said to be everywhere
about Monte Carlo. The strong eff
forts recently made in Germany to re-
strict gambling is offered as possible
explanation of the fact. The gambling
spirit of the nation is finding an outlet
at Monte Carlo. American dollars, too,
have, so it said, been more plentiful at
Monte Carlo during the past twelve
months than formerly. The gambling
society's franchise, from the late Prince
of Monaco, has still twenty years to
run