followed by what appeared to be an unqualified abandonment by the province of the lottery policy, not only as a makeshift in the case of the "temporary and inconsiderable services of Ferrys, Roads, etc.," but as a means of providing for the execution of more important projects with which the government with increasing frequency now found itself called upon to deal. It is true that in 1765 an act was passed' to establish a lottery, to raise three thousand two hundred pounds sterling for rebuilding a dormitory of Harvard college. But the permission of the lords to Governor Bernard to affix his signature to that bill was obtained only upon the governor's representation to them of the obligations the government felt itself under to the college, owing to the peculiar circumstances under which the building had been destroyed, and his assurance that such permission should in no event be advanced as a precedent for other lottery acts. And when, seven years later, another act was passed appointing new managers for this lottery, in place of some deceased and others unwilling to serve, Governor Hutchinson was careful to explain to their lordships that" the act which this act referred to was assented to by Governor Bernard upon special license from his Majty and the execution of it has been delayed, the Lotteries for finishing a Town Hall in Boston interfering." 1 June 25th, 1765-'6, chap. 21, Acts and Resolves, IV., 834-'5. 2 The dormitory caught fire from one of the fires kindled for the general court, which had adjourned to Cambridge on account of small-pox in Boston. 3 To strengthen his request, Governor Bernard called the attention of the lords to the good results obtained by lotteries in Pennsylvania, the "Academy at Philadelphia" receiving a great part of its support from an annual lottery. See Acts and Resolves, IV., 868, note to 1765-'6, c. 21. 4 July 2nd, 1772-'3, c. 16; Acts and Resolves, V., 212-'3. 5 Governor Hutchinson to Lords of Trade, August 10th, 1772; Massachusetts Bay, B. T., Vol. 81, O. o., 48. For the scheme in detail of this lottery, see Acts and Resolves, V. 267, quoted from Executive Records of Council, 1765-'74, p. § 82. Events Leading to its Revival. For six eventful years the province of Massachusetts Bay now managed its financial affairs without resort to the seductive expedient of a lottery. The Boston massacre in 1770, had greatly excited the people; the destruction of the tea in Boston harbor in 1773, the opposition to the port bill in 1774, the representation of the colony in the general congress, the seizure of the arsenal at Charlestown by the militia, the adjournment of the general court to Concord and its reorganization there as a provincial congress, were the most prominent events immediately preceding the revolution. The first blood of that war was shed upon Massachusetts soil; the battle of Bunker Hill followed, and the colony was fairly involved in the war more than a year before the declaration of independence. The attitude that Massachusetts assumed upon the question of declaring independence, and the part she took in the struggle to make independence a fact, are not matters of dispute. The expenses of the colonial government were now enormously increased, and every expedient had to be tried in order to meet them. The taxes had been greatly augmented. Loans had been contracted in increasing amounts. In 1775 the first of a new series of bills of credit had been issued. Three years after the first blood of her citizens had been shed in the cause of American freedom, Massachusetts again turned to the lottery as a means of raising funds for continuing the war. § 83. Tentative Lottery Legislation. On April 28th, 1778, the house of representatives, in recommitting the report of a committee appointed the day before, to report a resolve for giving the soldiers of the Massachusetts contingent in the continental army thirty pounds each, directed the committee to bring in besides a resolve for granting the gratuity, another for raising by lottery the sum of two million dollars. On the 30th the committee reported two resolves, according to instructions, except that in the latter resolve the amount to be raised by lottery was fixed at one million nine hundred and ninety-eight thousand dollars, from the sale of three classes of tickets (numbering one hundred and eleven thousand each), at four, six and eight dollars each, respectively, according to a scheme laid down in the resolve. On May 1st, the resolves were recalled by the house and recommitted. A joint committee the same day reported two resolves, which were passed in concurrence; the one relating to the raising of the money by lottery being as follows: "Whereas this Court have, this day, passed a Resolve for paying certain Gratuities to such Officers & private Soldiers who inlisted into the fifteen Continental Battalions raised by this State & who inlisted before the 15th day of August last, for the term of three Years or during the War, And as it is thought expedient that a Lottery or Lotteries should be set on foot for raising a Sum of Money for the purpose aforesa "Therefore Resolved, That a Sum, not exceeding Seven Hundred & fifty Thousand Dollars be raised by a Lottery or Lotterys, by a Deduction of fifteen Cent upon the Amount of the Ticketts. "That Oliver Wendell Esq. Mr Henry Hill, Thomas Crane Esqr Caleb Davis Esqr. & Mr Ezekiel Lewis, or any three of them, shall be Managers of said Lottery or Lotteries, & who shall be Sworne to the faithful discharge of said trust, & shall give Bond to the Treasurer of this State, in the Sum of One thousand pounds each for the performance of the trust hereby reposed in them: which said Managers shall make, & publish in the Boston & Worcester News-Papers, & also in the Hartford Paper a Scheme for said Lottery or Lotteries, as soon as may be, agreeable to this Resolve; & they shall also therewith publish all necessary rules & regulations for the Management thereof; That all Prizes of Fifty Dollars & upwards, shall be paid by Treasury Notes for the amount of Such Prizes, bearing date the last day of drawing said Lottery (or each of 'em, if two), & payable, with Six Cent annum Interest, on the first day of Jany A D: 1783—; also, that all smaller Prizes shall be paid by said Managers in Money; & also that all Prizes shall be paid without any deduction." 1 Felt's Massachusetts Archives, Vol. 218, p. 419. This resolve was supplemented by the act of June 16th, 1778, "to prevent the Forging, Altering or Counterfeiting the State Lottery Tickets," by which it was provided that any person convicted of being a party to the circulation of counterfeit tickets "shall be punished by being set on the gallows for the space of one hour, with a rope round his neck, and shall pay a fine not exceeding one thousand pounds, at the discretion of the court before whom the conviction may be, to the use of this state; and suffer not more than twelve months' imprisonment, nor less than three; and be publicly whipped, not exceeding thirty-nine stripes; or shall suffer only a part of the aforesaid punishments, at the discretion of the court before whom the conviction shall be, according to the circumstances of the offence; and shall pay to the person or persons defrauded treble damages;" and a reward of thirty pounds was offered for information leading to conviction. § 84. The Great Lottery of 1778. Of the seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars which was the limit of the sum to be raised under the foregoing resolve, the managers attempted to raise only one hundred and fortythree thousand dollars-that being the specified percentage on nine hundred and fifty thousand dollars, the total value of the tickets offered for sale. The Lottery was arranged in four classes.? A resolve of September 26th, 1778, directed the managers to take the most effectual methods for disposing of the tickets 1 1778-'9, c. 5. 2 The scheme of the first class of this lottery was advertised as follows: "THE General Assembly having passed a Resolve for raising a Sum of Money, not exceeding 750,000 Dollars, for the Benefit of those Officers and Soldiers who inlisted into the Fifteen Continental Battalions raised by this State, appointed Oliver Wendell, Esq; Mr. Henry Hill, Thomas Crane, Esq; Caleb Davis, Esq; and Mr. Ezekiel Lewis, Directors of a Lottery for that Purpose, who are sworn to the faithful Discharge of the Trust reposed in them. "The following Scheme is accordingly offered to the Public, which it is hoped in the first class until the first day of December next, at which time, should any tickets remain unsold, the managers will meet with their Approbation and Encouragement. MASSACHUSETTS-STATE LOTTERY. Consists of 25000 Tickets, at 6 Dollars each, 6374 of which are Prizes of the following Value, viz. 300 200 I Exclusive of the above Prizes, the first Number shall be drawn, 2 The last drawn No. will be entitled to 6376 Prizes. 18624 Blanks 25000 Tickets, at 6 Dollars "The Directors flatter themselves they shall be able soon to compleat the First Class, when they consider the Money to be raised is to be applied to the benevolent Purpose of rewarding those Officers and Soldiers who have endured Want, Hardship and Toil, and hazarded every Danger for the Safety of their Country, and who, when Government, through a Series of unfortunate Events, was unable in some Instances to comply with its Promises for their Support and Comfort, nobly scorn'd to shrink from the Post of Danger, and, like their great Leader, resolved never to survive the Ruin and Desolation of their Country. "Public and seasonable Notice will be given of the Time and Place of Drawing, and when finished, a List of the Prizes will be published in the Continental Journal, and the Money will be paid (without any Deduction) to the Possessors of Benefit Tickets, (within twenty Days after a Publication of a List of Prizes) in the following manner, viz. "All Prizes of Fifty Dollars and upwards will be paid in Treasurer's Notes for the amount of such Prizes, bearing Date the last Day of Drawing Said Lottery, and payable on the first Day of January, 1783, with Interest at Six per Cent per Annum. All Prizes of Ten Dollars will be paid in Current Money. 66 Prizes not demanded within Twelve Months after they are drawn, will not be |