Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1907-07-16
LOTTERIES OF EUROPE
The Way French and Italian State
Drawings Are Handled.
PRIZES PICKED in PUBLIC.

4 TILED fsiIhEU lin fUDLlk,.l
offieials Who Preside at the Selection
OF the Lucky Numbers The Differ
& ence Between the French Bono
Scheme and the italian Lotto.
A year or two ago Manchester pub
lican, although he heard that q city of
Paris bond which he possessed had
won f2,000, was so skepticaI of the
genuineness of French government
lotteries that he refused to believe he
could receive the money, even when a
check for the amount came. to- hand.
AT last he was persuaded to cash the
check. Accompanied BY a few friends,
who were going to get the money FOR
know why" he set out for Paris.
They Invaded the Hotel de Vile and
came away gaping with establishment
because the check was enshed the mo-
ment he handed 1t in.
| The French state lotteries are
worked on system which, while put
ting fortunes into the pockets of lucky
Individuals, enables the country to
raise loans when required. Each stock
or bond, besides earning a small rate
| Of interest, entities the holder to par
ticipate In a series Of drawings for
| prizes, ranging in value from a SOW
| ereign to several thousand pounds.
| The bonds range from 16 shilIings to
$50 and, being made payable to bearer,
can be turned into ready money very
i easily. s 3a
! The drawings for prizes must, ac-
cording to law, take place in public,
/ and no one, whether a bondholder or
not, can be refused admitta1ce to the
1 Credit Foncier, where the drawing
takes place. At every drawing the
4 governor of the bank and other high
officers are present, whose duty it is
to superintend the whole proceedings.
AT the commencement one OF them
reads out list OF big prizes to be
H drawn for, and also states the num-
Der Of bonds which are to be redeemed
at par. F ss4 5.S Nj
Each number is drawn by a boy from
q revolving wheel or drum, varying in
height from four to eight feet, accord.
ing to the number Of persons spartici
l pating in the lottery. This boy is usu
ally obtained from a neighboring or.
L phanage or similar institution, and the
sum OF 10 francs Is placed to his credit
in his savings bank book as payment
for his services. Before inserting his
hand In the aperture the boy faces the
audience with his hand in the air, fin
gers outspread, and his arm bare tt
the elbow, to show that he is conceal
ing nothing before making the draw.
AS he draws each little scroll from
the wheel of fortune the presiding Of
icer takes off the copper covering ant
4 reads out the lucky number, afterWar6
4 passing cit round to members Of thu
press for verifcation. And so The
drawing goes on until the whole Of The
4 prize winning numbers have beer
drawn After this the drawing d
q those bonds which are to be repaid al
q par takes, place, the boy drawing then
y from the wheel In handfuls and empty
ing them into a crystal bowl. From
the latter they are taken, sorted out
!, counted and entered by clerks.
II The Italian state lottery, OF lotto, a!
!. 1t Is called, is conducted on somewha
|, different lines. Each week, at eight q
the principal cities In italy. Ave mum
n bers are publicly drawn from the mum
bers one tofninety. People have in tn,
!, meantime been busy taking tickets 10
n the lotto, on which are specified tn,
numbers on which they are playing
4 any two numbers selected by
player appear among the i've drawn
be receives ffty-two and half time.
his stake; il three numbers appear
4,250 times his stake, and il four mum
bers. 10000 times his stake. The low
est stake is II centesimi, equal to abou
! penny Of our coinage.
Seeing, however, that there arr
4005 combinations Of two in ninety
numbers, 117,480 combinations 81
three and no fewer than 1855, 100 com
binations OF four. 1t is obvious that The
odds are very heavy against winning
In spite Of this, however, the lottery
Is very popular, as may be judged
Il kAOul SAc %AdCI %ludt Uu I'LL dfGrdSS Tile
!, Italian government draws f2,5OO,o0t
every year from this source.
u In their selection Of numbers the
!. Italian gamblers are guided to very
i great extent by dreams and events
for no people are more superstitious
Dream books are largely published
i and bought while any untoward event
I Is looked upon as furnishing a cleN
to lucky numbers
n Some time ago, for instance, a seri
GUS accident occurred at Genoa. Tive
horses bolted, fell headlong from an
elevated piazza into street below
and were killed, a lamp post being up
& set In their fall. Immediately those
lwho witnessed the tragedy decided t.
play the following numbers: Two
humber Of the horses), Ave equivalent
4 Of horse), ninety (meaning accident,
and sixteen and forty 1.-THE number
]. painted on the lamp post which was
y w. s