澳門博彩業早期的合同罰則

澳門博彩業自1810年以後逐步合法化,(?)姓、番攤、白鸽票等各類博彩生意逐步成爲澳府最重要的税收来源,澳门的社會經濟對博彩行業的依賴性也越來越大。經營赌業的利潤雖然豐厚,但風險也较高。澳葡政府在經過三十多年的摸索之後,於19世纪80年代形成了一套被認爲行之有效的博彩業批给制度,把風險轉嫁给博彩行業經營者。政府爲各種博彩合同設定罰則,就是其中一種確保博彩合同有利於政府税收的執行方法。1882年6月6日的《澳门政府公報》,刊登了澳門公物會訂出的一份合同禁止條款及定刑定罚條款。這份曆史檔案反映了當時澳葡政府如何约束赌商履行合同條款,從中可探索澳门博彩業早期發展的规律。

Penalty Clauses in Early Gaming Contracts of Macao

A legal framework for the gaming industry in Macao was first introduced in 1810. Betting and gambling businesses such as the Loteria Chamada Vae Seng (Wei Xing lottery), Fan Tan and Loteria de China (Pigeon lottery tickets) gradually became major sources of revenue for the government. The local economy grew increasingly dependent on the gaming industry. While profitable, this sector involved relatively high risk. In the 1980s, and after more than 30 years examining the issue, the Portuguese Government in Macao developed a contracting system considered to be effective in shifting the risk to the gaming business operators. Stipulating penalty clauses in the gaming contracts was one of the measures implemented to ensure that these contracts would benefit government revenue. The Government Gazette of Macau published on 6 June 1882 carried a contract prohibition clause and a punishment and penalty clause drawn up by the Public Asset Committee. This historical document sheds light on how the Macao Government bound gaming businesses to fulfill their contractual obligations. Herein we may explore the early development pattern of the Macao gaming industry.