An Enquiry into the Causes of the late Increase of Robbers/Section 3

SECT. III

Of among the Vulgar; a third Conequence of their Luxury.

I Come now to the lat great Evil which aries from the Luxury of the Vulgar; and this is Gaming: A School in which mot Highwaymen of great Eminence have been bred. This Vice is the more dangerous, as it is deceitful, and, contrary to every other Species of Luxury, flatters its Votaries with the Hopes of increaing their Wealth; o that Avarice itelf is o far from ecuring us againt its Temptations, that it often betrays the more thoughtles and giddy Part of Mankind into them; promiing Riches without Bounds, and thoe to be acquired by the mot udden as well as eay and indeed pleaant Means.

And here I mut again remind the Reader, that I have only the inferior Part of Mankind under my Conideration. I am not o ill-bred as to diturb the Company at a polite Asembly; nor o ignorant of our Contitution, as to imagine, that there is a ufficient Energy in the executive Part to controul the Oeconomy of the Great, who are beyond the Reach of any, unles capital Laws. Fahion, under whoe Guidance they are, and which created the Evil, can alone cure it. With Patience therefore mut we wait, till this notable Mitres of the Few hall, in her good time, accomplih o deirable a Change: In Fact, till Great Men become wier or better; till the Prevalence of ome laudable Tate hall teach them a worthier Manner of employing their Time; till they have Sene enough to be reaoned, Modety enough to be laughed, or Concience enough to be frightened out of a illy, a hameful and a inful Profligacy, attended with horrid Wate of Time, and the cruel Detruction of the Families of others, or of their own.

In the mean time we may, I think, reaonably deire of thee great Peronages, that they would keep their favourite Vice to themelves, and not uffer others, whoe Birth or Fortune gives them no Title to be above the Terrour of the Laws, or the Cenure of their Betters, to hare with them in this Privilege. Surely we may give Great Men the ame Advice, which Archer, in the Play, gives to the Officers of the Army; To kick out all—in Red but their own. What Temptations can Gameters of Fahion have, to admit inferior Sharpers into their Society? Common Sene, urely, will not uffer a Man to rique a Fortune againt one who hath none of his own to take againt it.

I am well apprized that this is not much the Cae with Perons of the firt Figure; but to Gentlemen (and epecially the younger Sort) of the econd Degree, thee Fellows have found much too eay an Acces. Particularly at the everal public Places (I might have aid Gaming Places) in this Kingdom, too little Care is taken to prevent the promicuous Union of Company; and Sharpers of the lowet Kind have frequently there found Admision to their Superiours, upon no other Pretence or Merit than that of a laced Coat, and with no other Stock than that of Asurance.

Some few of thee Fellows, by luckily falling in with an egregious Bubble, ome thoughtles young Heir, or more commonly Heires, have ucceeded in a manner, which, if it may give ome Encouragement to others to imitate them, hould, at the ame time, as trongly admonih all Gentlemen and Ladies to be cautious with whom they mix in public Places, and to avoid the Sharper as they would a Pet. But much the greater Part of uch Adventurers have met with a more probable and more deerved Fate; and having exhauted their little Fund in their Attempts, have been reduced to a Dilemma, in which it required more Judgment and Reolution than are the Property of many Men, and more true Sene of Honour than belongs to any debauched Mind, to extricate themelves by honet Means. The only Means, indeed, of this Kind, are to quit their asumed Station, and to return to that Calling, however mean and laborious, to which they were born and bred.

But beides that the Way to this is often obtructed with almot inuperable Difficulties; and fale Shame, at its very Entrance, dahes them in the Face, how eaily are they disuaded from uch diagreeable Thoughts by the Temptations with which Fortune allures them, of a Posibility, at leat, of till upporting their fale Appearances, and of retrieving all their former Hopes? How greedily, may we imagine, this enchanting Alternative will be embraced by every bold Mind, in uch Circumtances? for what but the Danger of the Undertaking can deter one, who hath nothing of a Gentleman but his Dres, to attain which he hath already diveted himelf of all Sene of Honety? How eay is the Tranition from Fraud to Force? from a Gameter to a Rogue? Perhaps, indeed, it is civil to uppoe it any Tranition at all.

From this Source, therefore, everal of our mot notable Highwaymen have proceeded; and this hath likewie been the Source of many other Depredations on the honet Part of Mankind. So michievous have been this Kind of Sharpers in Society, that they have fallen under the particular Notice of the Legilature: for a Statute in the Reign of Queen Anne, reciting, 'That divers lewd and disolute Perons live at great Expences, having no viible Etate, Profesion or Calling, to maintain themelves, but upport thoe Expences by Gaming only;' enacts, 'That any two Jutices of the Peace may caue to be brought before them all Perons within their repective Limits, whom they hall have jut Caue to uspect to have no viible Etate, Profesion or Calling, to maintain themelves by, but do, for the mot part, upport themelves by Gaming; and if uch Perons hall not make the contrary appear to uch Jutices, they are to be bound to their good Behaviour for a Twelvemonth; and, in Default of ufficient Security, to be committed till they can find uch Security; which Security (in cae they give it) is to be forfeited on their playing or betting at any one Time for more than the Value of 20 Shillings.

As to Gaming in the lower Clases of Life, o plainly tending to the Ruin of Trademen, the Detruction of Youth, and to the Multiplication of every Kind of Fraud and Violence, the Legilature hath provided very wholeome Laws.

By the 33d of Henry VIII. 'Every Artificer, Craftman of any Handicraft or Occupation, Hubandman, Labourer, Servant at Hubandry, Journeyman or Servant of Artificer, Mariners, Fihermen, Watermen, or any erving Men, are prohibited from playing at Tables, Dice, Cards &c. out of Chritmas, and in Chritmas are permitted to play only in their Maters Houes, or in his Preence, under the Penalty of 20s. And all Manner of Perons are prohibited from playing at any Bowl or Bowls, in any open Place out of their Garden or Orchard, under the Penalty of 6s. 8d.

'The Conviction to be by Action, Information, Bill, or otherwie in any of the King's Courts; one Half of the Penalty to the Informer.

'Provided that Servants may play at any Times with their Maters, or by their Licence; and all Perons, who have 100l. per Annum, Freehold, may give their Servants, or others, reorting to their Houes, a Licence to play within the Precinct of their Houes, Gardens, or Orchard.'

By this Statute likewie, 'No Peron whatever, by himelf, Factor, Deputy, Servant, or other Peron, hall, for Gain, keep, &c. any Common, Houe, Alley, or Place of Bowling, Coyting, Clah-Coyls, Half-Bowl, Tennis, Dicing-Table, or Carding, or any other Manner of Game prohibited by any Statute heretofore made, or any unlawful Game invented or made, or any other new unlawful Game hereafter to be invented or made: the Penalty is 40s. per Day, for keeping the Houe, &c. and 6s. 8d. for every Peron haunting and playing at uch Houe. Thee Penalties to be recovered, &c. as above.

'And all Leaes of Gaming-houes, Alleys, &c. are made void at the Election of the Lesee.'

Farther by the aid Statute, 'Power is given to all Jutices of Peace, Mayors, or other Head-Officers, in every City, &c. to enter uspected Houes and Places, and to commit the Keepers of the aid Houes, and the Perons there haunting, reorting, and playing, to Prion; and to keep them in Prion, till the Keepers have found Sureties to enter into a Recognizance to the King's Ue, no longer to keep uch Houe, &c. and the Perons there found, to be bound by themelves, or with Sureties, &c. at the Dicretion of the Jutice, &c. no more to haunt the aid Places, or play at any of the aid Games.'

And now by the Statute of George II. this lat Claue is enforced, by giving the Jutice the ame Power on the Information of two Perons, as he had before on View; and, by a more explicite Power, to take Sureties or not of the Party, at his Dicretion.

Latly, The Statute of Henry VIII. enjoins the Jutices, &c. to make due Search weekly, or once per Month, at the farthet, under the Penalty of 40s. for every Month, during their Neglect.

Thus tands the Law, by which it may appear, that the Magitrate is armed with ufficient Authority to detroy all Gaming among the inferiour People; and that, without his Neglect or Connivance, no uch Nuiance can posibly exit.

And yet, perhaps, the Fault may not o totally lie at his Door; for the Recognizance is a mere Bugbear, unles the Party who breaks it, hould be ued thereon; which, as it is attended with great Expence, is never done; o that though many have forfeited it, not a ingle Example of an Etreat hath been made within my Remembrance.

Again, it were to be wihed, that the Statute of George II. had required no more than one Witnes to the Information: for even one Witnes, as I have found by Experience, is very difficult to be procured.

However, as the Law now is, eeing that the general Bent of the People oppoes itelf to this Vice, it is certainly in a great meaure within the Magitrate's Power to uppres it, and o to haras uch as propoe to find their Account in it, that thee would oon be dicouraged from the Undertaking. Nor can I conclude without oberving, that this hath been lately executed with great Vigour within the Liberty of Wetminter.

There are, beides, everal other Proviions in our Statute Books againt this detructive Vice. By the Statute of Queen Anne, whoever cheats at Play forfeits five Times the Sum won by uch Cheating, hall be deemed infamous, and uffer uch corporal Punihment as in Cae of Perjury. And whoever wins above 10l. at any one Sitting, hall likewie forfeit five Times the Sum won. Going Shares with the Winner, and Betting on his Side, are, in both Intances, within the Act.

By the ame Act, all Securities for Money won at Play, are made void; and if a Mortgage be made on uch Account, the Mortgagee doth not only loe all Benefit of it, but the Mortgage immediately enures to the Ue of the next Heir.

By this Law, Perons who have lot above 10l. and have actually paid it, may recover the ame by Action within three Months; and if they do not ue for it within that Time, any other Peron may. And the Defendant hall be liable to anwer a Bill for dicovering uch Sum lot, upon Oath.

By 18 George II. whoever wins or loes 10l. at Play, or by Betting at any one Time, or 20l. within 24 Hours, is liable to be indicted, and hall be fined five Times the Value of the Money lot.

By 12 George II. the Games of Pharaoh, the Ace of Hearts, Baset, and Hazard, are declared to be Lotteries; and all Perons who et up, maintain, and keep them, forfeit 200l. and all who play at them, forfeit 50l. The Conviction to be before one Jutice of Peace, by the Oath of one Witnes, or Confesion of the Party. And the Jutice neglecting his Duty, forfeits 10l. Note, The Proecution againt the Keeper, &c. may be for a Lottery, on the 8 George I. where the Penalty is 500l.

The Act of 18 George II. includes the Game of Roly Poly, or other prohibited Game at Cards or Dice, within the Penalties of the abovementioned.

I have given this hort Sketch of thee everal Acts, partly for the Ue and Encouragement of Informers, and partly to ininuate to certain Perons with what Decency they can openly offend againt uch plain, uch olemn Laws, the everet of which many of themelves have, perhaps, been the Makers of. How can they eriouly anwer either to their Honour or Concience giving the pernicious Example of a Vice, from which, as the Legilature jutly ays in the Preamble to the 16th of Charles II. 'Many Michiefs and Inconveniences do arie, and are daily found in the encouraging of undry idle and diorderly Perons in their dihonet, lewd, and disolute Coure of Life; and to the circumventing, deceiving, couening, and debauching of many of the younger Sort, both of the Nobility and Gentry, and others, to the Los of their previous Time, and the utter Ruin of their Etates and Fortunes, and withdrawing them from noble and laudable Employments and Exercies!' Will a Nobleman, I ak, confes that he can employ his Time in no better Amuement; or will he frankly own that he plays with any other View than that of Amuement? Latly, What can a Man who ins in open Defiance of the Laws of his Country, anwer to the Vir bonus et Quis? Can he ay,

Qui conulta patrum, Qui leges juraque ervat?

Or can he apply that celebrated Line,

Oderunt peccare boni viriutis honore,

to himelf, who owes to his Greatnes, and not to his Innocence, that he is not deterred from uch Vices—Formidine Pænæ?