GAMBLING.

Evening Star, Issue 11724, 5 April 1902, Page 1

GAMBLING.

It was. we suspect, with mixed feelings that the members of the Presbyterian Synod accepted Mr J. F. M. Fraßer* offer t-> contribute a paper on the gambling ecil. It was pretty weTl known that Mr Eraser's views iipon the subject were far from coinciding with, those .the Synod ; and also there may well haVe been a feeding of doubt whether there was any special piopriety—nay, to be quite candid, whether there was not a shade of impropriety—in this particular interposition of the Crown Frosecutor, who is closely associated in the public mind with recent trials in the-courts. Be thin as it may—and certainly, for our own part, we do not think that tie idea was a happy one—no one questions thaMr Eraser was actuated by an excellent motive, or that he is sincerely desiroas of doing what in him lies to remove or abate an undoubted social evil. Wo do not agree with all his. conclusions, but at least he is nearer the mark than the Council of the Churches or the Presbyterian Synod, who have taken -jp an attitude which we can only regard as impracticable and calculated to delay reform for an indefinite period. We frankly express our conviction that the gambling cusrxHns of the day cannot be abolished by legislative or any otbermeans, save by the necessarily slow spread of higher ideals of life and amusement. The fact that these customs are more or less ignoble does not seem to us to afford any sufficient reason why they should not be recognised and regulated by the State, if such, recognition and regulation help to keep the evil within bounds* We are quite aware that this view of the matter is hateful to many reformers, whose pedantic zeal is out of all proportion to their practical sagacity, and who would prefer that lawlessness should be rampant than that the State, in to serve a good practical end, should in any way afford legal Jaeilities for the indulgence of a public weakness. The attitude is common to extreme temperance reformers and to extreme anti-gamblers, and we cannot, but regard it as pedantry of a most unreasonable and dangerous kind. It may be a moot question whether the abolition of the totalisator would intensify existing evils; but reformers of this class do not hesitate to say that State protection should be withdrawn from the machine, even though inch withdrawal should have a thoroughly bad practical result. This, according to our -view, is to sacrifice truth, to a phrase, the public welfare to an idle formula: in a word, it is moral pedantry. Perhaps our oonscaence does not possess the requisite hypersensitiveness; but, anyhow, holding as we do that the abolition of the totalisator -wanld be the prelude to a far worse state oi ntatters than exists at the present time, we have no hesitation in supporting the continuance of State legalisation and control. 11 is the fashion to say that the totalisator encourages gambling, bat it may be snsI>ected that those who make- this -statement do not realise to what a considecabl© extent the institution of the machine has- relieved the Colony of -an Tmdcsirabl&efass-of gambling agents. Those whose memory goes back to prc-totafeator days know well that the difference between the now and the then is greatly to the advantage.-of the now; and, for our part, we» have no with to seo a reveraian to the former conditions, Nor most it be forgotten that the toiatisaior has had one excellent of a positive kind—namely, in the direction of encouraging the enterprise, of stockbreeders, owing to racing clubs having been enabled to offer such substantial stakes. We agree, then, with Mr Fraser that: the totalisator should be retained, but we cannot endorse, all of his other recommendations. Wo think that so long as the St;ite legalises the machine the racing authorities should be compelled to recognise and register the bookmakers. Kvery possible means should be taken to put down the class of betting sliops in which mino;s aw encouraged or allowed to bet, or in whiiii any shady kind of Uisiness is conducted : but for the rest, we see no reason why ilie authorities should not. take the bookmakiug business under their supervision, with a system of enforced licensing, and with the provision of substantial penalties against dishonesty and other misconduct. We may add that in this as in other matters there should be equal jaws for the rich and th« poor. Why should the moneyed nun bv able to make his investments on the racecourse or at a receiving-house in town, while a working man cannot put a trifle, on his fancy away from the course without running the risk of being haled before th a Police Court? Moreover, it is notorious that the man with the" long purse can bet without serious risk even with persons who are supposed to be without the pale of the law, and that he does so with impunity. This is an aspect of the matter to which the Crown Prosecutor might well direct his attention. Why was there much popular sympathy (outside of. betting cir-clts) with, the defendants At"! wibaesses during the hearing of -the recent cases? Simply and solely because the public recognise that the presem Li.w favors, the rich and bears hardly upon the poor. Some well-meaning people, reading whtx we have written in this article, will perhaps jump to the conclusion that we have a tenderness for the gambling cuntoms of the day, and that we have no serious sympathy with the aims of anti-gambling reformers. We strongly • deprecate such an idea, which would be quite unwarrantable and contrary to fact. Just as we yield to no Prohibitionist in deploring the evils connected with the sale -of intoxicating drink, and yet cannot see our way to adopt Prohibition as a working policy, even so dc we realise the extent of the gambling evil, white thoroughly convinced of the undentability of the plans of the extreme reformers'. Mr Frasers partial plans are almost a-s distasteful to us, on account of their inequitable tendency. We are a.s anxious as anyone, however, to see the evil reduced to the possible dhnensions ; and, pending the gradual elevation d human tastes and interests, we believe that this end will best be furthered by the adoption of a wide' policy of State regulation such as hits been indicated above.