Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1895-03-18
LOTTERY KING JAILED.
GENERAL AGENT WuRTZBERGER AR
RESTED AT WILKES-BARRE.
Police swoop Down Upon His Luxurious
Office and Capture the Principal and
Clorks--Men Who Have Dabbled In the
Game to Their Sorrow.

Clorks-Men Who Have Dabb1ed In tho
Game to Their Sorrow.
What is considered to be the biggest
lottery business outside of New York or
New Orleanswas broken up at Wilkes
Barre by the police last week, when
John Wurtzberger and his staff of clerks
were arrested. Wurtzberger, who is
known as the lottery king, is about FIVE
feet high and very stout and jolly look
Ing. A dozen years ago heawas big
grocery man, but failed, owing to his
goodness of heart, having trusted people
who never paid him, to the extent of
$4,000. About ten years ago he first
became a lottery agent and then
gradually increased the business until
last year it reached the amount of $780,
900. According to his carefully kept
accounts his patrons numberevery class
and profession from the society man to
the tramp, the banker to the mine
laborer, and from boys hardly in their
teens to men too feeble to leave their
homes, and also goodly number of
women.
Wurtzberger's place of business was in
the Coal Exchange, on Public Square,
right in the heart of the city and in one
Of the most prominent buildings. The
rooms are on the second floor and right
next door is the office of an alderman.
The Office is luxuriantly furnished, and
three clerks are employed by Wurtz-
berger to help him in the business. He
also has agents in almost every town
and hamlet in Luzerne and many adjoin-
ing counties. Wurtzberger has told
friends that he sent over $4,000 every
month out of the city to the numerous
lotteries he represents. His sub-agencies
in other towns send in the balance of
the 100000 year, whichis the amount
OF his business outside of his commits
sions, which represents fully $4,000 or
$4,000 more as the actual amount paid
him for lottery tickets.
The chief companies for which he
sold tickets are the "Royal Havana
Guarantee Loan Company, ""The Louis
lana of Kansas City," Montana of
Butte" "City of Mexico" "Orignal
Juarez Company" and others.
The business was conducted so openly
that the police were disarmed. The
Office was right under their eyes, any
body was welcome to it, and the absence
OF all secrecy put the police off their
guard. They have known the business
was going on for years, but it was not
until father whose son had squandered
large amounts appealed to the police on
Thursday that Mayor Nichols decided
to act.
At 3 o'clock that afternoon two police
men entered Wurtzberger's office and
quietly put the proprietor under arrest
A couple of customers who were there
at the time were allowed to depart, and
after Wurtzberger had locked the big
safe in which he said were several thous-
and dollars he and his clerks walked
over to the police station. The police
took in charge lot Of prize lists and a
heap Of tickets of all denominations, the
lowest being ten cents. At the police
court Wurtzberger pleaded guilty, was
fined $50 and held in $500 bail for trial
The extent of Wurtzberger's opera
tions are evident from look through
{ his books Sales of from ten cents to
several thousand dollars are recorded.
Most of the business men at the county
seat dabbled in the lottery, and the
officeholders and politicians were heavy
spectators. The Polanders and Hun
garians about the mines bought extern
sively and so did great many clerks,
while women made good customers.
George A. Lohman, who committed
suicide short time ago, was financially
embarrassed, it is said, owing to his
heavy investments in lottery tickets.
He was Wurtzbergers best customer
and spent thousands of dollars with him.
He placed great faith on the tickets
i winning sufficient to pull him out of his
financial trouble, and only waited long
enough before committing the tragic
act which ended his life to compare
what lottery tickets he held with the
winning numbers of the drawing pre-.
vious to his death.
Ex-Banker f. v. Rockafellow. who is
now in Cherry Hill for failing to take
proper care of other peoples money, was
ALSO q heavy buyer. When his bank
was closed a starch box was found in his
private office filled with lottery tickets
Everybody knows the size of an ordinary
starch box and can very readily form al
approximate idea of how many thou
sands of dollars would necessarily have
to be invested to buy sufficient tickets tc
fill a box of this size. Those found were
probably only small measure of wha
the old and once respected banker
bought from the time he succumbed t.
the influence until the crash came which
sent him to prison cell and many o
his depositors into poverty
On the other hand, there have beer
some big winnings in Wilkes-Barre
In 1890 Jesse Boyd, machinist at tn,
Lehigh Valley shops, and Jacob Anstett
zach hold half a tfckot a., Nj, lotta,,