Arizona republican., 1904-01-12
MUCH GAMBLING IN PANAMA.
Games of Chance the One Diversion in
the Canal Strip.

The canal strip except gambling. OF
the problems which will harass the
Americans when the commence to dig,
this is worth attention Mr.. Pratt of
Pratt and Seymour, holders of the
gambling monopoly. came here four
cen wears ago or so with a light opera
and never got away. Perhaps theaters
may rise again and those welcome
singing troups which wander up and
down the South American coasts once
more find it profitable to put in Mt
Panama. But until the troupes come
again gambling. with the occasional
dance at the Commercial, or Internal
tional club. is the only general means
Of recreation-if that is the word.
Everybody CANDLES. l was sitting
with Il banker the other day when he
received a bag of silver his winnings
IN last weeks lottery drawing. HiSa
and dignifled and rather straight-la laced
American officers, ashore to rest, find
nothing to amuse them except to play
the red and the black. In the Ameri-
can colony distinction as entertainers
often goes to families which have the
most satisfactory poker game. For
the natives and the very poor there are
various games. The argument To-
permitting games to the very poor is
the same as in New York regarding
Sunday liquor. If those who have
clubs may gamble, why should those
who have no clubs be deprived of the
port of risking their money on
chance? There arc roulette wheels
open to the street but it seems that
there are people who cannot afford the
eight-cent or four-cent gold chips that
are used upon them.
SO Pratt and Seymour lease to d
Chinaman the privilege of running
curious little games, in which four or
five cents is enough capital until it is
lost. one called Dado is played with
the dice. Every time six and five CT
double three comes up the banker
takes ten cents. Colombia silver about
four cents gold, from the stakes at the
table. He merely furnishes a pl&ce for
the public Ia play and acts as umpire.
The men around the board play two By
two against one another for such
Vagers as they please. Another
game is half lottery and half roulette.
1t is called Lotto. The players have
sheets with numbers placed upon them.
They chip in four cents each, o. eight
cents. as they please. as a pool. The
banker" whirls q cylinder containing
numbered cubes. and when one drops
out he calls the number. Thereupon
each PLAYER places a kernel of corn On
4 corresponding number on the sheet.
Every sheet is differently arranged, !
and the game IS TO get a full row of
kernels of corn across the sheet. The
first to do it wins and the banker takes
ten cents from every dollar in the
pool.
Pratt and Seymour have been pay
ing 100000 4 Year for the gambling
Those who gamble, there
fore, lose that much annually, and all
told, women and children. there are
about $4,000 people in the canal strip
including the towns of Colon and Pan
ana. The chances are greatly against
the players. Monte carlo has but one
zero on it's tables while Panama has
Two. This means that Monte Carlo
4Xacts for itself, the house" only half
what Panama does. Besides from to
o'clock daily, Monte Carlo plays on
even terms with the player. without
the zero. Yet, Notwithstanding the
chances in their favor, Pratt and Sey-
mour do not profit greatly by their
Whether the people have
not the money or whether the openness
and accessibility of the tables detract
from the fascination, play is seldom
high or long continued. 1t frequently
closes after two hours for lack of pa
irons. The coming of $4,000 people to
Zig the canal is expected to change /
his condition. They will be away
rom home with nothing to do after
he daily lahors, and the gambling con-
look for times like when
he French were here and officers of
sat by the tables with
luge bags of silver, sending their SER
wants for more when luck was bad.
That is, the concessionnaires had
hopes and expectations of this sort I'M
til night before last. Mr.. Pratt went
to call then upon DR.. Amador. just
returned from Washington.
'All monopolies," Amador told him,
except the lotteries must go. A gam
bling monopoly is especially objection
able to the Americans"
There is yet year for the concess-
ions to run. If not renewed it does
not follow that gambling will thereby
be suppressed. That 100000 which it
has been yielding to the government
would, of course. do much toward con-
vincing the police that quiet gambling
as they call it in Saratoga. is not al
ways Objectionable to police authorities
Apparently Washington has not in
sisted that the lottery shall be given
up. This concession is held by dn
American citizen. J. C. Duque. 1t Is
represented that the lottery can not be
given up,because the concession has
seventeen years yet to run. Under the
Colombian constitution, which gov
erned when this long concession was
granted no monopoly can be given for
4 longer period than one year.
TO CURE A COLD IN ONE DAY.
fake Laxative Bromo Quinme Tablets.
All druggists refund the money if 1t
ails TO cure. L. w. Groves signature