The law and the Fare Banks.
--For nearly three days last week the Hustings Court of the city of
Richmond was occupied with the trial of
John A. Worsham, presented by the
Grand Jury for permitting ‘"a game commonly called faro bank"’ to be exhibited on his premises.
The
Court and jury listened with becoming patience to the examination of witnesses, and the case was elaborately argued by the learned counsel on both sides.
At a late hour on Saturday evening the jury retired to consult, but found it impossible to agree upon a verdict — were discharged — and the case was continued to the next term of the
Court, the defendant giving bail for his appearance.
Altogether, this legal demonstration against the faro banks of this city, initiated by the
Mayor and the police, some weeks ago, has turned out to be a complete farce.--We have no means of ascertaining the precise number of these institutions in
Richmond, but will assume that there are a hundred.
There may be more, or there may be less.
Two or three are entered by the police, some contraband articles seized, and legal proceedings are commenced against a few men of the gambling fraternity.
One unfortunate ‘"sport,"’ who happened to be caught in the act, being minus the means of enlisting the efforts of able lawyers in his behalf, has been sent to jail for twelve months, and two or three well-known citizens have forked over a small fine which the law imposes upon amateur gamesters; but the leading cases still ‘"hang fire"’ in the
Courts, and nobody has been benefited except a few legal gentlemen, an exception which we do not regret.
The game goes on, for aught we know to the contrary, with as much vigor and profit as ever.
The moral atmosphere still reeks with the taint of ‘"gambling hells,"’ and the metropolis of the
South makes no advance towards that condition of blissful purity so confidently predicted after the occurrences of that eventful Saturday night. We think the gamblers hold all the trumps and all the honors, and the municipal authorities might as well give up the game.