Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1942-06-26
Tax Return
On Lotteries
ESQ Million
US. a Gam bling Nation
Why Not Be Legal?
BY DAMON RUNYON

Il Ject too long once get
started, as for example the lot
terry, but that is the disadvan-
tage of having a one-track mind.
! guess l lack what the baseball
writer's call change of pace.
However, every time l figure
on changing my tune / pick up a
newspaper and read of proposed
new taxes 10 raise additional
money for war purposes and
then I get 10 thinking how
easily much of that required
dough could be produced through
a federal lottery and it makes
me sore.
OF course, my theory OF the
lottery is that il should be de-
signed to get funds for the relief
of the families of the men in the
service, and should continue only
for the duration and perhaps for
a short time afterwards. but
even if the government did not
care 10 use the money for that
specific purpose it could still
make the lottery serve to fat
ten the general treasury.
I MEAN I am commencing TO
L think that il would be a
good idea 10 have the lottery
regardless of the ultimate desti-
nation Of the dollars as long as
il helped take off some of the
weight on the customers.
l notice that the bills intro
duced in Congress providing for
the lottery all have the general
jackpot in mind and while l in
sist my thought about relief is
best, l am willing TO compromise
with the statesmen to get the
thing going.
My lowest estimate on the
probable return TO the govern
ment OF The lottery is $780,
100000 per year based on twice
a-month drawings. / am not too
good on figures myself but /
have had some pretty sharp
fellows do the calculating for
me and not one-has me-in
with smaller reckoning.
Their figures depend on their
ideas of the prices of the lottery
tickets and the number of draw
ings. one of my experts esti-
mating the probable profit TO
the government at $3.50, 900 900
on the basis OF 81 per ticket.
l think this may be trifie
high but no man can say off,
hand with any degree of accu-
racy what a lottery might net in
nation so devoted 10 gambling
that betting on horse racing is
legaliZed in numerous states. and
various forms OF lottery such as
bingo and drawings for defense
bonds as prizes prevails in some
churches and illegal numbers and
boleta games, sweepstakes and
Club drawings for cash awards
are going on daily almost every
where.
NO OTHER country on the
~ face of the globe, not even
in Latin America where govern
ment lotteries are common. has
gambling so widespread in ap-
peal TO the public as in the
United States.
Literally billions of dollars
are staked yearly here on vari-
Gus gambling enterprises, includ-
ing the stock market. and from
an enormous sum of this money
the government realizes not a
dime.
Some of the games are AS
crooked as dogs hind leg. espe-
cially that type Of lottery known
as the numbers game which
despite exposes and prosecutions
continues to operate in numer-
Gus cities. 1t has various forms
but in any form il is a delusion
and snare, a nickels-and dimes
proposition that preys on little
people.
Speaking of boleta. the form OF
the numbers game which is oper-
ated in Miami, Tampa and other
cities, / thought that was one
system that could not be easily
fixed to suit the operators As il
consists of what seems TO be a
hazardous throwing about in a
crowd of a cotton bag of num-
bered wooden pellets.
At a given signal, the person
then in possession of the bag
takes hold of one pellet, which
is then cut out of the bag with
out him ever releasing his grasp
and represents the winning num-
Der. Now a reader informs me
that the signal is never given
until a trusty stooge of the
operators has the bag and that
one of tho pellets is loaded in
such p manner that the stooge
cannot miss IL.
Sometimes / wonder il any
thing is on the square.
Copyright. 1892 ny King Features