Evening star., 1938-03-28
'LEGALLOTTER|ES
COURT F|GHTL0ST
Appellate Tribunal Holds
Injunction Plea Should
Be Dismissed.


The legal fight by Mrs. Oliver Har.
riman's National Conference On Legal.
izing Lotteries. Inc, to enjoin Post.
master General Farley from enforcing
a fraud order issued against the con.
cern April 2S. 1896, in connection with
q Nationwide contest, failed today II
the United States Court Of Appeals.
In an opinion written by Chic
Justice Lawrence Groner the court af.
firmed Trial Justice Daniel w. O'Don.
oghue's decision about a year ago that
the injunction suit should be dis.
missed.
Stating that there was no evidence
that the Post ONCE Department acted
arbitrarily in determining that the
contest, Selection Sweepstakes" wa
a lottery. the appellate court said II
was plain that success in the contest
depended almost wholly on chance.
After long hearing early in 1896
the Post Once Department issued the
order in question, instructing the
postmaster at New York to seize mai
addressed to the National Conference
on Legalizing Lotteries. and to return
it to the senders with the word
fraudulent" written on the outside
Of the envelope. The contest was
in full swing when this was done
and close to 10000 persons hac
entered. it was estimated.
Sentiment for Lotteries.
The purpose Of the contest. presuma-
bly,. was to further the conference q
aim to promote sentiment for legali-
zation of lotteries as a means of rails
ing money for public projects.
The advertisement of the contest
set out Is possible uses for money
obtained from lotteries, such as
financing of hospitals. social service
charities, provision for unemployment
relief, soldiers bonuses, municipal
deficits and others. The problem was
to list the Is given uses in the proper
order with respect to their importance
Each participant was required to in
close 81 membership fee with his list
The winner was to receive a prize o1
$40, 1000, the second best list, $4,000
and so on. with total of 285 prizes
$50 Of which were for $50 each
Justice Groner stated in his opinion
that the awarding of the prize will
depend on the judges selection oi
the list of uses in accordance with
their arbitrary views and withou,
definite and fixed rules of reason
Even conceding the integrity Of thu
judges and the fixing by them o1
some common ground of primacy, i,
Is nevertheless obvious that whateve,
ground of certainty Is attained mus
be reached by an inescapable elemen
of chance.
Held Guessing Contest.
considered in that light, the con,
clusion Is irresistible that the priz,
will 60 to him who is the most fortu
nate in guessing how the judges vii
finally compose their differences. Ant
guessing contests have invariabl,
been held to be within the ban o
the statute. They have been sal.
again and again to be unlike a con
test of essays decided upon recognize,
standards of literary merit and rea
sonably well-settled ideas Of soun,
argument"
Assistant United States Attorne,
Howard Boyd, who represented tn.
Post Once Department In the District
Court and the Court of Appeals, esti.
mated that there are some $1,000
worth of postal orders which the Ma.
tional Conference will not be able t.
cash because of the decision today.
The decision also will bring back &
vast quantity of mail addressed te
the National Conference, which ha.
been impounded during the course o1
the litigation and which will be re.
turned to the senders with the stamr
fraudulent. unless the Supreme
Court consents to review the case.
A suit brought in New York by the
National Conference also failed wher
q Federal District Court and the Sec.
ond Circuit Court Of Appeals held
that the Postmaster General was IN
indispensable party. In New York
the suit had been filed only against
the New York postmaster. It was fol-
lowing this decision that the litigation
was transferred to the District.