380 CRIMES AND PUNISHMENTS. [ART. 27

214, 222 or 225. It is the playing of a game of chance which makes a
gaming table criminal. How a criminal statute should be construed. (But
see section 217, et seq.) James v. State, 63 Md. 250-1 (cf. dissentihng opin-
ions).

The court will take judicial knowledge of what a billiard table is, or of
the difference between a billiard table and a faro table. If a billiard table
is used as a faro table, it loses the immunity, of the former under this sec-
tion. An indictment under this section held sufficient. State v. Price, 12
G. & J. 260.

1904, art. 27, sec. 201. 1888, art. 27, sec. 124. 1860, art. 30, sec. 58. 1842, ch. 190,
sec. 5. 1853, ch. 265, sec. 1. 1856, ch. 195, sec. 1.

216. No person shall lease or rent any house, vessel or other place
to be used for gambling.

Ibid. sec. 202. 1890, ch. 206. 1894, ch. 232. 1898, ch. 285, sec. 124A.

217. It shall not be lawful for any person or persons, or association
of persons, or for any corporation within the State of Maryland, to bet,
wage or gamble in any manner, or by any means, or to make or sell a
book or pool on the result of any trotting, pacing or running race of
horses or other beasts, or race, contest or contingency of any kind, or to
establish, keep, rent, use or occupy or knowingly suffer to be used, kept
or rented or occupied, any house, building, vessel, grounds or place, or
portion of any house, building, vessel, grounds or place, on land or
water, within the State of Maryland, for the purpose of betting, wager-
ing or gambling in any manner, or by any means, or making, selling or
buying books or pools therein or thereon upon the result of any race or
contest or contingency, or by any means or devices whatsoever, to
receive, become the depository of, record or register, or forward or pur-
pose, or agree or pretend to forward any money, bet, wager, thing or
consideration of value, to be bet. gambled or wagered in any manner,
or by any means or device whatsoever, upon the result of any race, con-
test or contingency, and any person violating any of the provisions of
this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon convic-
tion thereof shall be subject to a fine of not less than two hundred
dollars nor more than one thousand dollars, one-half of said fine to go
to the informer, and shall be subject to imprisonment in jail for not
less than six months nor more than one year, or be both fined and im-
prisoned, in the discretion of the court.

Under the act of 1894, ch. 232, the making of books or pools, etc., is lim-
ited to the day upon which, and the grounds where, the races take place;
the races may not continue longer than thirty days in any one year;
an agricultural association may not use two or more distinct and separate
parcels of land for horse races and claim the exemption provided by the
above act. All indictments must conclude "against the peace, government
and dignity of the state." State v. Dycer, 85 Md. 249.

When an exception in a criminal statute must be negatived in the indict-
ment; an indictment under this section held to sufficiently negative the
exception. Reasonable certainty is required in criminal pleading; duplic-
ity ; when a statute employs the disjunctive "or," the indictment should
employ the conjunctive "and," or else should use separate counts for each
offense. When a prisoner is not "put in jeopardy" and may be retried.
Stearns v. State, 81 Md. 343 (decided prior to the act of 1898, ch. 285).