The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1901-07-17
"REMINISCENCES OF INCIDENTS
AT THE GAMBLING TABLE.


nected In one capacity or another. bu
principally as croupier. with several o
the gambling casinos OF Europe" said 4
croupier who, untn recently. presided a
one of the roulette tables at a famous
continental public gambling establish
ment.
Few people have much idea Of tn,
enormous amount OF money that has beer
earned by the various gambling estab-
lishments. In the early days the annual
profits OF the gambling houses at Aix-la.
Chapelle were said TO be Gl4,000. AZ
Homburg the annual expense OF the Kur-
sal was &l0,000, and yet there remained a
very handsome profit though l forget
the amount; neither can now recall the
profits OF Baden-B Baden, but as the com
pany which rented the Conversationhaus
(as the gambling establishment was call
ed) paid about e1l,0o0 year for IT, and
contracted TO spend, besides, E25, 600 in
improving and maintaining the premises
and grounds, equaling f36,0o0. and still
show big profit, you can guess the
gross takings must have been pretty
heavy.
'At Spa (where the gambling establish
ments at one time belonged TO the bishop
OF Llege) the profits were over 10000 per
annum. At ostend the club in a season
OF three months, managed after paying
a tax of $4,000 TO the municipality, TO
make a net profit of G2S0,0Oo.
THE splendid revenue earned by the
Monte Carlo tables has now become a
proverb. That these public gambling ca
sinos are productive OF much harm IL
would be idle 10 deny. As a matter of
fact. many more cases OF suicide. murder
III
bling resorts than ever reached the public
ear at all. for the administrations of
most OF the gambling tables expend a
princely sum annually in subsidizng "A
large number OF European and American
newspapers; In fact, all that they can, i'm
Order 10 prevent such horrors from being
reported. -
THE papers thus subsidized are also
freely used for occasional puffs and
paragraphs relating 10 sensa ational and
often lima ginary 'breakings' of the bank.
Indeed. YOU may be surprised to hear
that quite number of mushroom Jour
nails are continually being started for the
mere purpose of securing the retaining
fee paid by the administration / could
tell you the name OF one little paper
the proprietor Of which was paid by the
administration of certain gambling
'casin' 100000 francs $4,000 TO keep IL in
a friendly frame of mind at a rather crit
ical time. Besides the command they
obtain OF these papers the 'admiristra-
tons have other methods for making
the best OF tragic occurrences.
AT one OF the gambling houses where
was employed there were three doc
ignorant rascals. with
no practice, and whose names would i'm
England have long since been struck off
The medical register-who We're secretly
and unofficially paid handsome salaries
oy the administration for rendering GER
ain professional services as occasion re-
luired. II. for instance, some ruined
after losing his last louis, shot
himself in quiet corner of the grounds
wo of the doctors would be sent for, and
would, in number OF instances, certify
he death as 'apoplexy,' 'syncope, heart
disease 'aneurism' or sunstroke' and
hus the inconvenience of an inquest and
publicity was avoided One
II these rogues, l heard, was paid 500
year
Murders, too. were. whenever circum-
tances made II possible. either similarly
lushed up or reported as occurring some
where else | remember OF such n case
ome years ago. The only son OF a
wealthy English merchant won about
1900 at the trente-et-quarante table.
instead or leaving II i'm the care of the
which he could have
one, he insisted on taking his winnings
lome with him 10 his hotel. Before he
iad got very far he was robbed OF the
Whole sum and knocked on the head.
And In what form do you think the
ews reached the public? Why. I'm this.
The unfortunate young man. who had
cen on Notwithstanding expedition,
ras found lying az the bottom of n preci- |
Ice with his head broken. He had an
arently missed his footing. and thus met |
is untimely end That was the way |
appeared I'm those papers that men |
oned it at all As a matter OF fact |
he poor fellows body had been slirren- |
tiously conveyed from the spot where |
was first discovered 10 the supposed |
Gene OF the accident. the better TO |
lbstantiate the explanation given.
1T Is astonishing how the gambling
ahit dominates some people. knew one
dy as an habitue OF the rooms at Monte
arlo. with whom gambling became such
n absorbing mania that she made sew
'al applications 20 magistrates. and
so TO the resident doctor OF n lunatIc
sylum. and used considerable efforts 10
% herself placed under restraint as be-
u tho only means by which she could
prevented from gambling. Not being
iccesstul, she managed to get incarcer-
ed In another way. by forging n check
n El00. though she had no need OF the
oney, and she got two years imprison-
ent. Her story was fully told in court.
hich probably accounted for her not
'tting a longer sentence.
The persistence with which a born
mbler' viii pursue his own ruin Is ex-
aordsnary. Many years ago n major I'm
g army. who had Just inherited E25OoO.
me TO Homburg Being aware what an
ecaution or paying three months I'm adj
nee for his board and lodging at the
tel and. furthermore, handed to the
ndlord 5000. which the latter was in
ructed 10 hold In trust for him and on
consideration whatever 10 repay 20
~ until he had returned to England. no
alter how much he might entreAt him