People rushed after the tickets, and they were taken up at once. '21 Jan. 1710.—Yesterday books were opened at Mercer's Chappel for receiving subscriptions for the lottery, and, 'tis said, above a Million is already subscribed; so that, 'tis believed, 'twill be full by Monday 7 night.'[151]
A LOTTERY.
And the same authority tells us[152] that 'Mr. Thomas Barnaby, who lately belonged to the 6 clerk's office, has got the £1000 per ann. ticket in the lottery.'
Among the prize-holders of the next lottery (at least, so Swift writes Stella, Aug. 29, 1711) was a son of Lord Abercorn's. 'His second son has t'other day got a prize in the lottery of four Thousand pounds, beside two small ones of two hundred pounds each; nay, the family was so fortunate, that my lord bestowing one ticket, which is a hundred pounds, to one of his servants, who had been his page, the young fellow got a prize, which has made it another hundred.'
In some of the lotteries the prizes were very valuable, for we read in the Post Boy, Jan. 6/8, 1713, that 'Yesterday was drawn No. 22858, which entitles the Bearer to £36,000.'
The accompanying engraving shows us exactly how the lotteries were drawn; and, as it is taken from a book published in 1710, in all probability it is a correct representation of the famous first State lottery of 1709. Bluecoat boys, then, as in 1824, drew out the tickets.
As in all lotteries, superstition attaches a peculiar value to some number, or combination of numbers, in the ticket: so it was in Anne's time, and the Spectator (191) comments on an advertisement in the Post Boy of Sept. 27, 1711—'This is to give notice, That Ten Shillings over and above the Market Price will be given for the Ticket in the £1,500,000 Lottery No. 132, by Nath. Cliff, at the Bible and Three Crowns in Cheapside.'