STATE LOTTERIES.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 183, 4 August 1932, Page 9

STATE LOTTERIES.

LIKELY TO BE RETAINED.

N.S.W. GOVERNMENT DIVIDED

FEEDS OF THE HOSPITALS,

(From Our Own Correspondent.)

SYDNEY, July 29

The State lotteries still go on their prosperous ways, and the fortunate speculators • receive their "dividends" regularly. At least one is drawn every week —Sometimes two —with a maximum prize of £5000; and intermittently a larger "anniversary" lottery is drawn with 100,000 tickets and a first prize of £9000. Since the system was started, over £2,000,000 has been subscribed by the general public in payment for tickets, and nearly £1,300,000 has been returned in the form of prizes.

So accustomed are people here to the lotteries that it will take some time and trouble to break them of the habit, and the experiment is certain to be unpopular when our legislators venture to make it. As a matter of fact it is J well known that Mr. Stevens and several members of his Cabinet object to the lotteries on principle. But the Minister of Public Health does not, and Mr. Weaver is a capable administrator, with a well-developed knack of getting his own way. He points out that the financial requirements of the State's hospitals during the -current financial year will amount to .close on ! £1,000,000, and without the aid secured from the lotteries —which have already credited many hundreds of thousands to the hospital funds —further direct taxation would be necessary. This would eat into the large sum of £750,000 already obtained from voluntary contributions; and, in short, Mr. Weaver frankly admits that without the lotteries, he cannot "carry on," much less extend the scope of hospital treatment,on more generous lines. The outcome of this is that in all probability, little as Mr. Stevens likes the prospect, the lotteries will be retained. As Mr. Whiddon, the Director of Lotteries, is fond of pointing out, people will gamble in this Tvay if they

get a chance, and if New South Wales drops the lotteries, the money that would have gone to our hospitals will simply flow out of the State into Tattcrsalls' sweeps and other "foreign investments" as begore. But Mr. Whiddon seems confident enough about the future, for he is already planning developments on a large scale —including £20,000 prizes—to compete with "Tatt's" sweep and other similar ventures, which absorb such an enormous amount of public money about Melbourne Cup time.