The Semi-weekly leader. (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1905-1941, 1907-11-16
RAFFLING-..A REMARKABLE PROCEED.
ING.

Ihe jackson Daily News OF
Thursday, under the conspicuous
caption, appeal from Convict, "
pays tribute to the cleve1ness
and kindness of Mr.. Dave Woler-
stein, the gentleman in charge of
the Yazoo County exhibit at the
State Fair, which is doubtless
we'll deserved, and after describ.
ing a unique hair bride on exhibit
in the Yazoo department, goes on
to explain that Mr.. Wolerstein and
Mr.. W. B. Stinson, Secretary of
the Yazoo County Fair Associa-
tion, are engaged in promoting
rattle on this bride with 200
chaEees for the benefit of ans un-
known convict in the Montana
penitentiary, who sent it to Mr..
Stinson with the request that he
rattle Cor sell) it for the benefit of
the maker and owner.
It doesn't appear from the
somewhat gushy article in the
News that either the News editor,
Mr.. Wolerstein, Mr.. Stinson or
the convict, who is in the Montana
penitentiary for infraction of law,
is aware that to conduct a rattle 10
Mississippi is a violation of the
law in this State, yet such is un-
questionably the fact.
Section 1886 of the Code of 1865
reads thus:
"Raffles. If any person, in or
der to raise money for himself or
another, shall publicly or private
ly put up or in any way offer any
prize or thing to be raffled or
played for, he shall, on conviction
be fined not more than twenty dol
lars, or be imprisoned not more
than one month in the county
jail"
This statute which is substan-
TALLY repetition of the section
in the Annotated Code of 1892,
was passed by the Legislature and
approved by the Governor and is
just as much the law of Mississippi
as the law against murder, bur-
glary, larceny or any other, and
is therefore emitted to due respect
and observance as such.
1t is really all but grotesque
and comical in its mal-appro-
priateness for gentlemen of the
standing of Messfs. Stinsos~ and
Wolerstein to deliberately enlist
in scheme for the violation of a
plain statute of their own State
for the benefit of a man already in
prison stripes in another State for
violating law, and it can only be
accounted for on the supposition
that they did not know that
raffling is prohibited in Mississip-
pi.
1t is no answer for any one to
say that to conduct rattle is not
as great violation of law as some
others, and that 1t is all right for
a man to violate the law in this
respect if it suits his convenience
or notion or is from a good motive.
On that principle and reason
ing, all men could be turned loose
to be law unto themselves and
this and all other penal laws be
declared null and void.
Neither is it the thing to be
railing against the big stock and
cotton gamblers Of Wall street
who have precipitated the late
financial trouble all over the
country, if we are to 60 on edu-
eating and encouraging little
gamblers to take their places later
on. 1t was the little foxes in
SIMPSONS time that destroyed the
grapes, and the thing for all good
citizens to do, is to respect and
stand up for the faithful OBJ
servance and enforcement of all
laws on the statute books.
1t is a compliment to the hu-
manlty and sympathetic hearts of
Messrs. Stinson and Wolerstein
that they should want to aid an
unfortunate fellow-man and stran-
|ger in trouble, but they will hard
lily contend, we take it. now that
their attention has been called to
it, that the proper way to do
this is to 90 ahead and trample
under foot the law of their own
State and set pernicious example
in that respect to the younger
men and boys of Mississippi as
we'll as to the convict they are
seeking to help.
If they should, then the sheriff
of Kinds or the sheriff of Yazoo,
nc H., onnn s,nnx. L. &c Gn:Ake..l l.