Evening star., 1945-04-29
BY John Clagett Proctor

BY John Clagett Proctor
Looking backward over our citys his
tory to its early days, it does seem that
there just has to be certain amount
of evil always with us, and that about
the time we get one avenue barri-
caded, some new and unforeseen chan
mel is opened. Indeed, as to the broad
question whether we are getting better
or worse, the writer confesses he has a
fuctuating mind and has about con-
cluded that it may be answered both
ways, depending upon the angle Of ap-
proach.
One of the earliest forms of chance,
for time legalized here and elsewhere,
was the lottery, and as early as January
S, 1893, Samuel Blodgett, jr., succeeded
in interesting the Commissioners ap-
pointed by President Washington in a
lottery scheme planned by him to build
here a hotel to cost $4,000. We all
know that this hotel, known as Blod-
getts Hotel, was never completed, and
that the lucky ticket, drawn by Robert
S. Buckley of Philadelphia, proved Of
llGuIc fdIuC dllu SC1 CdlilAy Va AhStSAi
trouble to it's holder. The building was
on the north side of E street between
Seventh and Eighth streets, and was
bought for $4,000 about 1910 by the
Government for use as the Post Office
Department.
Best People Bought Tickets
The lottery, at that time, was not.
looked upon as a dishonest business, and
many of the best people bought tickets
expecting to draw big prizes. We ind
recorded the names of Benjamin Stod-
dert, John M Mason, NJ Waring and
Thomas Peter selected as committee
to draw and supervise the drawing OF
the Blodgett Hotel prizes.
At first President Washington re-
garded Mr. Blodgett with favor, as we
might infer from his letter sent from
Mount Vernon, September 25, 1893, to
Tobias Lear. But by the following
January he had changed his opinion,
and said in one of his letters: Little
confidence, I fear, is placed in Mr..
Blodgett and least where he is best
known"
However. Washington's opinion did
not seem to materially hurt the sale OF
lottery tickets-which only goes to show
that Barnum was speaking from expe-
rience when he said the American people
liked to be humbugged-and soon other
lotteries were gotten up for various
purposes.
Lotteries Advertised
In 1877 we find Romulus Riggs-whose
address is given as Lottery and Ex-
change Office, Bridge street, George
town." advertising in the National Mes
senger lottery to finance the Surgical
Institution of Baltimore. with prizes
from $40 to 100000, and, on the same
page, >Cohen's Lottery and Exchange
Office of Baltimore Md, announces that
tickets numbered 1896, for $4,000, and
2746, for $4,000, both drawn in the
Washington Monument Lottery, were
sold through its exchange.
In the Georgetown paper of January
5, 1918, We find the National Lottery
advertised: For building two Lancas-
terian schoolhouses, a penitentiary and
a city hall in the City of Washington.
The highest prize here was one at $780,
coo and the lowest 1000 at s25 each.
Tickets we're on sale at G. Davis lottery
office, Pennsylvania avenue, this city,
and the managers were William Brent,
Daniel Rapine Samuel N. SmallWood,
Moses Young, Andrew Way, jr.; John
Davidson and Thomas H. Gillis.
Legalized Gambling
There was nothing illegal in holding
Columbia was concerned, for, in 1872.
Congress gave the corporation full
power to authorize the drawing of lot
teries for effecting any important i'm
provement of the city which the ordi-
nary funds or revenues would not &C
complish.
A law passed in 1880 provided: mo
EO, ABC, LSC, faro, rolly-polly, equality
board, equality table or other device to
be used with cards, dice, coin or money,
or any other game of hazard Except
the game of billiards, upon licensed bill
lard tables for the purpose of playing
or gaming for money, or anything in
lieu thereof, shall be set up kept or ex-
hibited in any part of this city, under
penalty of $50 for every day or less time
that such table or other device or game
of hazard shall be so kept or exhibited
to be recovered before any single mag
istrate, of the person SO setting up,
keeping or exhibiting the same"
No. "EO, ABC, Les" the writer had
to pass up. Faro, the dictionary tells
us, is a game played with cards, in
which the players bet on the order in
which the cards will appear when dealt
singly from the top Of the pack by means
of a device called faro box. Rolly-
polly Cor roly-poly, as Webster gives it,
was game formerly played by rolling
ball into hole. or series Of holes; ano
one guess would be as good as another
as to how the other games were played
Beau Hickman
When the celebrated Beau Hickman
the gentleman who lived by his wits
first came to this city, around 1884, HI
started to gamble, and soon lost ths
$4,000 he brought here with him. From
this time on he did very little gambling
living principally upon the generosity
of his friends and new acquaintance!
and gaining the undesirable title Of th'
Prince of American Bummers He wa!
an odd character, eccentric and hui