Long before the United States ever existed, the British and Dutch had already brought gambling to North America, in the form of cards and dice. By the end of the 17th century, just about every country seat in colonial America had a lottery wheel. Cockfighting flourished thought the countries, especially in the South. Bear Baiting was also a popular sport, although it was banned by the Puritans. (Ortiz, Darwin. Gambling Scams. New York: Dodd, Mead + Company, 1984.) Nearly one hundred years later, the early church leaders struck down all forms of gambling which resulted in near death of gambling in the east. However the in the West, which was far from both government controls and the moral interference of reform groups in the East, gambling became so popular that Monte tables were often setup in the middle of the town. (Donovan, Hedley. The Gamblers. Alexandria: Time- Life Books, 1978.) During the Prohibition Era, illegal gambling was organized into an authoritarian regional and national system. Responsibility for the syndication of gambling is usually attributed to Arnold Rothstein, who invented the inner-city layoff. He is also known for master minding the "Black Sox" scandal in which the White Sox threw the 1919 World Series to the Cincinnati Reds in order to assure gambling profits. Since the 1970s, the United States has completely changed in its attitude toward gambling. Three hundred years ago, the "sport", mostly in the form of lottery, was seen as a perfectly acceptable way to raise money for public purposes. (Savage, Jeff. A Sure Thing?. Minnesota: Lerner Publications Company, 1997.) Over the past several years, slow economic growth, cuts in federal funding to states, and growing public needs have forced many desperate state and even local governments to seek additional sources of revenue. Most states have turned to lotteries, horse and dog racing, and, most recently, a growing number of states have resorted to casino gambling ...
