The good people of Auckland have lately been carrying on an anti-gambling crusade, and it will doubtless interest them to learn that at any rate one resident of the Thames expresses his gratitute that the}' ever com menced such an agitation. It appears that at the recent conference to consider the best means for eradicating the gambling evil, one of the speakers made a statement to the effect that Mr Adams, the well known Sydney con sultation promoter, held at the present time no less a sum than £50,000 unclaimed prize money. This was probably considered a coup de maitre\bj the speaker in question, and intended to convince the sceptical of the magnitude of the gambling evil. But it has had rather a different result on the Thames resident referred to. It appears that a drawer ! having become filled with innumerable let ters and papers, Mrs — set to work to clean it out. Amongst the papers was a circular giving the results of the last drawing of the Melbourne Cup sweep, which had lain in the drawer since last November, and the numb ered ticket receive d by the investor for his £1, " Are these of any use to you ?" asked she, -tossing the papers to her husband. He replied that they merely served to remind him of his lost 20s, but almost unconsciously set to work to compare the number on his old ticket with the figures on the circular. Imagine his astonishment when he dis covered that his ticket entitled him to a £10 prize, and also one for £5, making £15 in all! He could scarcely realise that it was not a dream, and tossed the tickets and circular over to his better half, who, after a scrutiny of the documentary evidence, was obliged to admit that the tickets were worth £15, and that the amount was a portion of the unclaimed £50,000 prize money alluded to by the speaker at the anti-gambliug con ference. The ticket has now been sent away to Mr Adams, and the £15 claimed by the rightful owner.
