Wairarapa Standard Published Tri-weekly, Price 1d. WEDNESDAY, JULY 29, 1885. The Abolition of Sweeps.

Wairarapa Standard, Volume XVIII, Issue 1713, 29 July 1885, Page 2

Wairarapa Standard Published Tri-weekly, Price Id. WEDNESDAY, JULY 29, 1885. The Abolition of Sweeps.

The Gaming and Lotteries Act Amendment Bill has finally passed both Houses, and comes into force on 1 1st January. This Bill forbids any racing sweeps, lotteries, or consolations being advertised in the lewspapers of the colony, and renders iable to heavy penalties any persons >ho may be concerned in such transactions. Small private impromptu ■ sweeps ” on races, in which the iclcets do not exceed 5s each and the iolder of the winning tickets takes dl the money, are legalised. These .itter sweeps are usually got up amongst parties of friends “ going to heraces,” just for the sake of creating an interest in the several events, and are veiivinnocent '’ffiV'ji,.— rru ' ”, class oi Dig sweeps which are to be abolished are not quite so harmless, because they encourage a spirit of gambling. All the same when such “ sweeps ” have been managed by honest and straighforward men, they were fair enough. The originators of these sweeps, deducted a certain amount for commission and expenses, the balance of the £l subscriptions being divided amongst the holder of the winning tickets. Sometimes, however, rogues aud swindlers got up “ sweeps ” aud “ collared ” a considerable amount of the money subscribed, leaving the deluded ticketholders ouly a small share. There was one notable case in which a Wellington “ barber ” named North, got hold of some £2OOO of subscriptions to a big sweep aud then bolted to “Frisco,” where he is still flourishing by trading on his illgotten gains. Still, this was an exceptional case, and it may be said of those racing sweeps that any intending investor could easily enough find out by a little inquiry, whether any particular advertised sweep was a genuine affair or the reverse. If this new Act can be effectively worked, then the day of “ sweeps” aud consultations has passed away. But human ingenuity is often too much for legal enactments. The famous “ Dan O’Connell ” once boasted “ that he could easily drive a coach and six through any Act of Parliament -and ho did it. We fancy that the sweep projectors may possibly hit upon a scheme by which they will be able to carry ou their little game in some carefully disguised and apparently innocent form, which shall enable them to defy the law. There has been all sorts of legislation against gaming, betting, gambling, lotteries and sweeps during the last thirty years, bat somehow these things, in one shape or another, still continue to exist, in Melbourne the police have undertaken the tusk of putting down betting almost altogether. A recent telegram states “The police authorities in Melbourne have an nounced their determination to suppress cash betting on racecourses within the colony of Victoria. This announcement has caused considerable comment in sporting circles.” It is very clear that the police authorities iu Melbourne have taken a work in hand which they will have very great difficulty iu carrying out,