Sheffield Daily Telegraph – Wednesday 27 June 1928

£50 Betting Fine.

For having kept a betting house, James Parker, a bookmaker, of Mexborough, was fined £5O at Doncaster West Riding Court yesterday. His wife, who is 75 years of age was fined 20s. for having assisted him.

For the defence, Mr. A. S. Furniss said that it was difficult to reconcile the attitude of that Bench in the penalties they inflicted with the light penalties recently inflicted by the York and Gastleford magistrates to show their objection to the state of the law on betting.

The Chairman, Mr. G. E. Cooke-Yarborough, said that he did not agree that the penalties of that Bench were higher than those imposed by other Benches With regard to a summons against the defendant for acting as a bookmaker without a certificate the Bench did not feel happy dealing with such offence, because the idea of man taking out a certificate was that could carry on legal business.

The penalty of £5O would include one of £2 for acting as a bookmaker without a certificate.