The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1893-03-08
POOL-ROOM GAMBLING.
A Vice That Is Undermining the
Youth of This Country.
1t Saps the Morals of Young and Old and
Is Filling Our Jails with Those Cor
rupted by It's Infiu-
ence.

does more injury than all the faro
banks and other institutions for
gambling put together. When
man has once been sm1tten with
the fever for betting on races
he is of no use for anything else any
more. It destroys his morals. The
vice is fairly undermining the youth Of
this country. No wonder that de-
tectives are commonly engaged by large
employers to go around among the pool
rooms and find out if their clerks fire.
quent them. The most trusted employe,
once attacked by the frenzy, is no
longer to be counted upon. His inter-
est in his work relaxes, and there is no
telling when he will begin to steal in
order to provide himself with money
for the qualification of the passion.
For the "beneft" of clerks and others
who are engaged during the day there
has recently been arranged in ST. Louis
a scheme for racing from eight p. m.
to twelve p. m. The races in the day
time are supplemented by races at night
under the glare of the electric lights.
These nocturnal contests are watched
and gambled on in cities all over the
union, says the Washington Star.
Before long it may be expected that
other tracks will adopt similar plan.
In former times people were obliged to
go somewhat out of their way in order
to obtain an opportunity to play away
their money, but the races bring the
luxury of gambling within easy reach
of all, and even the women have adopt
ed the vice to an alarming extent.
Many business men, who most anxious
ly discourage such indulgence by their
employees, are themselves plungers, and
there are not few such in New York
who often carry from twenty to forty
thousand dollars in their pockets for in
vestment in horses, thinking nothing Of
venturing ten thousand dollars on
single race. Compared with this form
of gambling the Louisiana lottery was
a harmless institution. It is claimed
that it is demoralizing the1people from
the highest to the lowest, and the time
may yet arrive when national as well
as state legislation will Of necessity be
resorted to for the suppression Of the
evil.
Say that one finds one hundred book
makers on a course on race day. Each
Of them pays one hundred dollars day
for his privilege. In addition to this
the racing association which owns the
track gets five per cent. commission on
every ticket sold. It also gets the profit
on the sale of programmes at ten cents
each, which is a big item when fifteen
to twenty thousand people are present..
The bar and eating privileges are sold
at high figures, and from twenty-five
to fifty thousand dollars a season is
paid in by the telegraph company for
it's privilege. Racing is to the telegraph
company a great source Of income.
This can readily be comprehended when
it is considered what an enormous
quantity of Geographic matter is sent
out from the tracks to the pool rooms
and elsewhere all over the country.
Dispatches are flowing over the wires
in a continuous stream, reporting each
race at all stages Of it's progress, from
start to finish, and this is only part of
the electric correspondence that is
transmitted.
The expenses of a bookmal1er in active
practice are great. To begin with, as
has been said, he must pay one hun
dred dollars day to the race track for.
his privilege. He is obliged to employ,
two expert accountants at ten dollars a
day, one Of them ''sheet writer"
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