WAGER (from OF. wager, guager, gager, Fr. pager, to pledge. wager. from "s\LL. icadiarc, to pledge, from wadium, radium, pledge, from Goth. wadi, OHG. yeti, wetti, Ger. 'Wette, AS. wedd, obsolete Eng. iced, pledge; connected with Lat. ras, surety, bail, Lith. raduti, to redeem, ran som, and probably with Gk. de0Nov, acthlon,110X0v, athlon, prize of contest). A promise or agree ment to pay money or transfer property to an other upon the happening or determination of an uncertain event. The promise is given in con sideration of the payment of money or transfer of property by the other party to the wager, or a promise on his part to pay money or transfer property if the event fails to happen or if it happens in a particular manner specified by the agreement. The uncertainty of the event may arise either because it has not happened or be cause it is not known to the parties to the wager. Thus a wager may he made as to the outcome of a race which has not taken place or a wager may be made as to the weight or size of an ex isting object, the only uncertainty being in the knowledge of the parties to the wager. It will
thus be seen that many common forms of com mercial contracts are technically wagers. Thus contracts of insurance, contracts dealing in 'fu tures' in stocks or any commodity, are strictly speaking wagers. At early common law wager ing contracts were held to be valid unless they involved some element in addition to the wager which rendered them contrary to public policy and therefore illegal.
There have been numerous statutes also af fecting wagers in the form of commercial con tracts. The act of 7 Geo. II.. c. 8, made illegal all wagers upon the price of stocks by agree ments to pay differences.' that is, to settle a contract for the sale of stocks for future delivery by paying the difference between the contract and market prices on the date of delivery. This statute was subsequently repealed.
For further consideration of the subject, see the titles GAMBLING; BETTING; etc.