The use of blind boys to make the draws at the Hospitals' Sweepstake in Dublin is likely to be extended, if "Big Bill" Thompson can get his way in Chicago. I see from American papers that his idea is to have the winning tickets for the great Chicago "million-dollar lottery" (which, incidentally, has been barred by the American postal authorities) drawn by the spirit of Grover Cleveland.
Since this did not seem so easy as it looked, the mayor was asked how he proposed to do it. He said that he would consult a medium, and would instruct that medium to get in touch with Cleveland, to whom he would say: "Grover, you were President of the United States during a hard-time period. We are going to have a drawing here in Chicago in our million-dollar prosperity drive. Now, Grover, I want you to pick the winning numbers." "Then," the Mayor continued, "I get the numbers through the medium, who will be in a trance, and I will write them down on a piece of paper. Nobody but me will know what these winning numbers are." It all seems quite simple, but I wonder whether it will be satisfactory to all right-minded purchasers of tickets in the lottery. The tickets are being distributed throughout Chicago, where they are being given away by stores with purchases of 25 cents or more. Every ticket is ornamented with a portrait of the notorious mayor.
The Irish Times, February 3rd, 1931