"Only Free State"

The commonwealths of Arkansas and Idaho having matched Nevada's go-day residence divorce law (TIME, March 16), Nevada last week went them 48 days--and then some--better. At Carson City, Governor Balzar signed a bill permitting divorce after a 42-day sojourn in the State, with the provision that grounds need not be specified unless the action is contested. Also he signed a measure legalizing old-time gambling. The new divorce law is effective May 1; the gambling law went in at once.

With the double attraction of being a wide-open town and the place where one can return to the single state quickest in the U. S., Reno had successfully met the challenges of Boise and Hot Springs, had retained its distinction as the nation's divorce capital, had protected its $3,000,000-a-year business.

The enactment of the gaming statute crowded Reno's palaces of chance with increased patronage, although no addi tional halls were opened. The new law merely makes legal what has gone on 24 hours daily for years. The famed Bank Club, however, was preparing to knock out a wall to provide larger quarters for the gamesters. Each game was taxed $50 a month, 50%, of which will go to the city in which it is collected, the remainder split between county and State. Slot machines were licensed at $10 a month. Although the State passed an antigambling law in 1910. since 1915 open card games have been permitted.

Happily listening to whir of wheels and click of chips, Mayor Edward Ewing Roberts of Reno, survivor of the Old West, declared: "It's all nonsense trying to regulate people's morals by law. For eight years I've been trying to make Reno a place where everybody can do what they please--just so they don't interfere with other people's rights. Now we can do lawfully what Nevada has always done under cover.

"No, I don't think it will increase revenues much. This city has been deriving about $35,000 a year from card games. Of course, it wasn't lawful to gamble for high stakes. We just assessed them so much a table for playing cards. We never asked them what kind of game they were playing. . . . Guess Nevada is about the only free State left. Seems funny, people will let a lot of long-haired reformers take their liberties away from them.

"I expect to get a lot of roasting. But the boys have got to run these games on the square!''

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