The text-books upon the present laws, through no fault of their authors, are somewhat obsolete, owing to recent not altogether consistent decisions of the Courts, although _Law Relating to Betting_, by G. H. Stutfield, and _Law of Gambling_ (Coldridge and Hawksford), contain much valuable information. The following summary is intended to present a skeleton view of the legal position at this date, and for sake of convenience the subject is divided under the two heads of Miscellaneous Gambling and Betting. Whichever portion of the subject is treated, it will be observed that the laws are both inadequate and not fully applied. Miscellaneous gambling must be subdivided into (M) all kinds of individual gaming unconnected with trade; (N) gambling in the stock, produce, and other markets. MISCELLANEOUS GAMBLING M. _Individual Gaming unconnected with Trade_ (_a_) Illegal Games. (_b_) Card Playing. (_c_) Playing with Gaming-Machines. (_d_) Lotteries and Sweepstakes. (_e_) Press Competitions and Coupon Gambling. (_f_) Gambling Clubs. (_g_) Petty Gambling. _(a) Illegal Games; (b) Card Playing._—The old-time absurdity of making certain games illegal, because they were the ones chiefly used as vehicles for gambling and left little room for skill, seems to have resulted in throwing upon the Courts the difficult task of deciding what other games come near enough to this class to share their disabilities, and to have culminated in shaping the law in a direction very unfortunate for public morality, so as to present a modicum of skill as a sufficient leaven to create immunity for a very large element of chance. The gambler avoids, as a rule, the named illegal games and turns to others. Blackstone remarks upon his infinite shifts and the varieties of his expedients, so that to pass laws especially applying to some games only merely drives him into other courses. The true principle is that no game in itself is illegal, but that the gambling upon it may be. While the present laws make special regulations and enforce specific penalties upon certain games, others which may easily be as noxious cannot be dealt with. Consequently we have spasmodic and partial attempts to enforce the law, and a series of enigmatic and conflicting decisions in the Courts, resulting in a chaotic state of affairs in which little check is put upon gamblers.