THE GAMBLING EVIL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 141, 23 September 1910, Page 2

THE GAMBLING EVIL.

LEGAL AND ILLEGAL METHODS. TOTALISATOR AND CHINESE PROSECUTIONS. "Our State Gambling -Machine" was the subject of an address delivered'on Sunday afternoon before the Wellington City Men's Brotherhood by Mr. G. Ell, M.P. for Christchurch South. The speaker claimed that gambling was now carried on to a greater extent in this country than At was a few years ago, although public opinion was divided as to whether it was wise to abolish the totalisator. The majority of the members of Parliament argued that gambling .would always exist, and .therefore it wa? far 'better to have it under .cpritrol. He disagreed very strongly with that view, because by statutory enactment ,the State sanctions it. The law therefore declared this thing was not wrong, and that the totalisator could be used without danger to the community. Raffles and sweeps were abolished because they,,were considered a speiaj, dange.r. further, the State had said that no money was to be sent to "Tattersall's" or to German and other lotteries, whilst any house known to be used for gambling was liable to be broken into by the police. Gambling was forbidden on football, cricket and athletic grounds generally, then why should the State legalise it on the racecourse?

It was a noble sight to see great racehorses battling for supremacy, and there was no. justification to say that race meetings should not be held, but they could be carried out without the State-legalised betting machine. Women nowadays were as keen upon gambling on the totalisator or through the medium of the bookmaker. He believed that if the totalisator ■ were abolished they would not have half as many race meetings as they had at the present time in this country. Parliament was now receiving petition from racehorse owners, trainers and jockeys against the abolition of the totalisator. They said if the totalisator were abolished their occupation would be threatened, but such an attitude was not tenable. They could find other occupations. He did not think the Legislature was justified in retaining the use of this gambling machine, which was distinctly harmful not only to the male portion of the community but also to the women.

In the interests of working men, their' wives and families, it was most desirable that gambling should be suppressed as far as they could suppress it. If a man conducted any form of lottery he wasi prosecuted in the court. If by chance j a Chinaman in Haining street was suspected of carrying on gambling in hisj house they sent private detectives along and punished him if caught. Were they consistent, then, in having Parliamentary sanction to a form of gambling tha,t was jast as harmful as the Chinese methods; in fact, it was more harmful, because it was more far-reaching. The State had no right to participate in the profits of a gambling machine to the extent of £30,000 a year. He hoped they would do all they could to induce their representatives in Parliament to vote against the totalisator when opportunity permitted of that being done, and should they not succeed, then he trusted the Legislature would allow the people of .this country to declare by their vote at the ballot box by referendum on the question whether they would have State gambling or not, '