LOTTERIES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 19061, 4 July 1925, Page 9

LOTTERIES.

Sir,-—Lotteries, styled for some unknown reason art unions, are being carried on in New Zealand upon a gigantic scale. The Dunedin Exhibition art -union extracted : V ; shekels from every corner of New Zealand for the benefit of Dunedin. and the few lucky ones. The cricket art-' unidn has done the same for Chrisichurch, ah'd another money drive from the far South is, I understand, on hand. Apparently no difficulty is experienced in obtaining the permission of the Minister for Internal to. organise, these /things. 'Obviously the State finds toothing to object* to upon tho principlo involved nuid tho success of the recent lotteries indicates ' that the great body of the public has no conscientious objections to lotteries. This being, so why should not the State run lotteries of its own, either by a premium bond' scheme or some other way ? Of course, there would bo opposition from the anti-gamblers, bnt they would not be • consistent seeing they have not oppOßed the art. unions, Apart from the local" , schemes evefyone knows that hundreds of thousands of pcruhds go Zealand every year to Hobart, :the magnitude cf the Dominion's contribujiion to Tattm-sall's sweeps being proved on the law of average by the number of large prizes that return. This class of mild rambling cannot be prevented rior can anything pife*/-..; vent the success of Dominion art unions which offer attractive prizes. Why be blind to fads? Why should the State not take steps to keep the money within the country or obtain for itself the profit now' going to private institutions? I asked a man he wanted to assist Christcburch cricket when he purchased tickets in the art union recently drawn. rt I have no interest in Christchurch cricket," he replied. "I bought the tickets for the chanctvof getting a prize.' That is the common attitude. The priiM is the only appeal" ' I congratulate Christchurch cricket and iha Dunedin Exhibition ' upon their enterprise, hut I would much 1 rather have" seen the State benefit Let us have done with quit japd turn aa ineradicable instinct to national advantage instead of allowing other states or'privats institutions to commercialise it. j ; SWEKPSTATX