To the Editor of the "Norra-Cuixa Datty News."
Sir,—Everybody's business is nobody's business, thus month after month goes by and no comment is made regarding the methods adopted by the prosperous Saving Society established in our midst. Recently new premises were opened and probably more bondholders visited the offices and witnessed the drawing than ever before; but. most of them no doubt went away without taking thought as to why five cylinders are used for drawing the winning numbers, and it is more than likely every bondholder imagines that his or her number stands a chance of winning one of the five prizes of $2,000, one of the five prizes of $1,000, or one of the five prizes of $500, and soon. And so it does in a way, but not the nay ho or she thinks, because as a matter of fact there is not one lottery held, but five lotteries. and Nos. 1/2,000 can only win between them one prize of $2,000, one prize of $1,000, one prize of $300, ete. In the same way the series of Nos. 2,001/4,000, 4.001/6,- 000, 6,001 /8.000, can each win only one set of the big prizes alloted to each respective group. the system is unfair; that is not Thope T am ug suggesting that my desire, but it will probably strike many people who have never before given the subject a thought. that they would prefer to stand the chance of ayinning one of five first, five second or nve third, ete. prizes. than (for the same money) the chance of one militarists andi first, one second or one third, ete, prize! _Following the matter further, if a person has two or more bonds consecutively numbered, one only of his numbers has the ghost of a chanze of winning a big premium at each drawing, instead of a number of chances in proportion to the number of bonds held. The 10 bonds grouped as follows: 2,000/2,001, 4,000/4,001, 6,000/6001, 8,000/8,001, 10,000/10,001, are the only consecutively numbered bonds that have each a chance of winning one of the big prizes. Anyone who stadics the list of drawings must be struck by the wonderfully even distribution of the prizes amongst the numbers of the table of arithmedical notation, but the reason for this is explained on the notice board that is exhibited at the place and at the time of drawing.
Another feature that strikes the observant onlooker is, that all the 2,000 numbers from 1/2,000, ete., still go into the cylinders, although many of the earlier policies must have been drawn for payment and cancellation long ago; but I have already taken up too much of your valuable space so will not go further into this question. Of course, it simplifies the drawings to reissue drawn, lapsed and cancelled numbers to new bondholders. On the other hand, the individual chance of any particular number coming out of the cylinder is lessened by every additional ball that is competing, and it is but human to feel a certain amount of jealousy at having against one, numbers that have already drawn first prizes and should. therefore. be out of the running. Perhaps if the management will take into their consideration the above. observations. this letter may achieve some good in gaining for each and every bondholder a greater share of the element of chance than under the existing system of drawing. T am, ete.,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.