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Volume I

The Gaming Table by Andrew Steinmetz, Volume II

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Doings In Gaming Houses

Miller said there was no disgrace in standing in the pillory for
gaming. He could spare L500 out of his coffers without missing
it. His gaming table was once broken up by a warrant from Bow
Street, when he said it was too good a thing to relinquish, and
he set up another, one large enough for 20 or 30 persons to sit
at. They played at it all night, and on one or two occasions all
the next day too, so that Miller said to witness on his return in
the evening--'Some of the people are still here who came last
night. They stick to it rarely.' Sunday was the grand day. He
had seen more than 40 persons at a time there, and they
frequently offered half-a-crown for a seat. Wine and suppers
were furnished gratis. Some looked over the backs of others and
betted. A Mr Smith, the very man who had pawned his coat,
confirmed the above evidence. Miller was convicted, and the
judge, Lord Kenyon, made the following solemn observations before
passing sentence:--

'Gaming is a crime of greater enormity, and of more destructive
consequences to society, than many which the laws of the country
have made capital. What is the crime of stealing a sheep, or
picking a pocket of a handkerchief, when placed in comparison
with this crime, traced through all its consequences?

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