The Chapel Hill weekly., 1958-02-27
Vast Sums of Gamblers Money Could
Be Used to Reduce Taxes

and sober lie. O1le OF tne iHipT uutHt
things they don't do is to gamble. There
are many other people who have differ
ent tastes. They like to gamble, III one
way or another, and they insist on dong
it. That there are vast number OF
these people We kn2g from what We
hear and read about the glittering re-
sorts in Florida, California and Nevada
and the race tracks and other gambling
centers all over the land.
In these days when the tax burden
bears down so heavily some way should
be devised to channel the profits from
the colossal volume Of gambling into
the service Of government instead OF
letting it go into the pockets Of gangs
Of flashy operators.
If the authorities were making any
real effort to stop public gambling,
there might be some sense in the pres
ent governmental attitude toward IT.
But they are not. Both federal and
state governments, either avowedly or
by lack Of any hostile action, sanction
it. And some states have taken to
legislating in favor of it. Within the
last year the newspapers have been
publishing articles about the enactment
Of laws permitting bingo. Apparently
this game enjoys special favor among
legislators because it is used largely to
raise funds for churches.
1t would probably be useful taxa
tion measure to outlaw the conduct Of
gambling concern by any corporation
or individual, and then to establish
national lottery and possibly also, for
states that wanted them. state lotteries
under license from the national govern
ment The details could be worked out
easily enough. The whole enterprise
would be run in the glare Of full pub
hcity.
A tremendous amount Of revenue
could be raised by government lotteries.
Of course it would not be a sufficient
amount to take the place Of all our tax
es but it would liberate US from some
Of the burdensome levies.
Lotteries formerly played an import
ant part in government finance and
they are used in some countries today
Private lotteries were suppressed IN
France in 1776 so that there would be
only single one and that as a means
of taxation.
Lotteries were authorized in Eng
land as early as 1869. Suppressions Of
them and various restrictions upon
them have been enacted from time TO
time both in France and England.
They existed in the United States till
near the end Of the last century and
were held for the benefit Of individuals
as well as for charities and public prof.
ects. A lottery was held for Thomas
jefferson when he was in financial dis
tress in his old age, and nobody thought
of objecting to it on moral grounds.
Part of the money for the South
building on the University campus was
raised by lottery about 1920. The
famous Louisiana Lottery, the last one
in this century, passed out in 1890. The
abolition of lotteries was effected by a
federal law forbidding the passage Of
tickets through the mails.
The Encyclopedia Britannica says:
Despite the fact that all forms Of gam
ing with cards, dice, roulette wheels,
and other mechanical devices are for
bidden, they are carried on surrepti-
tiously throughout the United States" :"
This statement is incorrect in two
respects: First, most Of the great vol
ume Of gambling is not surreptitious-
II is practically wide open. The state
ment that all forms Of gambling are
forbidden gives 3 wrong impression. 1t
~ A.. 49, 49, 80 fo.v-nfddnn IN aOUn0