The French game of Mort is dummy with a better system of scoring introduced. Favourite Whist simply changes the value of the tricks in scoring, according to the trump suit. Cayenne and Bridge introduce the first changes of importance. In Cayenne, the dealer and his partner have the privilege of changing the trump from the suit turned up; in Bridge they name the trump suit without any turn-up, and play the hands as at dummy. In Boston, and Boston de Fontainebleau, in addition to making the trump suit instead of turning it up, further departures are introduced by naming the number of tricks to be played for, allowing the player to take all or none without any trump suit, and by ‘spreading’ certain hands, without allowing the adversaries to call the exposed cards. French and Russian Boston are simply varieties of Boston. Solo Whist is an attempt to simplify Boston by reducing the number of proposals and the complications of payments, and eliminating the feature of ‘spreads.’ Scotch Whist introduces a special object in addition to winning tricks--catching the ten of trumps; that card and the honours having particular values attached to them. This variety of whist may be played by any number of persons from two to eight; and its peculiarity is that when a small number play, each has several distinct hands, which must be played in regular order, as if held by different players. Humbug Whist is a variety of double-dummy, in which the players may exchange their hands for those dealt to the dummies, and the dealer may sometimes make the trump to suit himself.
If any one play two cards to the same trick, or mix his trump, or other card, with a trick to which it does not properly belong, and the mistake be not discovered until the hand is played out, he is answerable for all consequent revokes he may have made. If, during the play of the hand, the error be detected, the tricks may be counted face downward, in order to ascertain whether there be among them a card too many; should this be the case, they may be searched, and the card restored; the player is, however, liable for all revokes which he may have meanwhile made. THE REVOKE. 71. Is when a player, holding one or more cards of the suit led, plays a card of a different suit. 72. The penalty for a revoke-- I. Is at the option of the adversaries, who at the end of the hand may either take three tricks from the revoking player or deduct three points from his score, or add three to their own score; II. Can be claimed for as many revokes as occur during the hand; III. Is applicable only to the score of the game in which it occurs; IV.
| ♠ | ♣ | ♢ | ♡ | ------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ Five tricks alone, or partners’ 8 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 16 | Three honours | 3 | 6 | 9 | 12 | Four honours | 4 | 8 | 12 | 16 | Each extra trick | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | ------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ Six tricks, or petite independence | 6 | 12 | 18 | 24 | Three honours | 4 | 8 | 12 | 16 | Four honours | 6 | 12 | 18 | 24 | Each extra trick | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | ------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ Eight tricks, or grand independence | 8 | 16 | 24 | 32 | Three honours | 6 | 12 | 18 | 24 | Four honours | 8 | 16 | 24 | 32 | Each extra trick | 4 | 8 | 12 | 16 | ------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ Petite misère | 16 | 32 | 48 | 64 | Grand misère | 32 | 64 | 96 | 128 | Misère de quatre as | 32 | 64 | 96 | 128 | Misère sur table | 64 | 128 | 192 | 256 | Slam à deux (partners) | 50 | 100 | 150 | 200 | Slam seul (alone) | 100 | 200 | 300 | 400 | Slam sur table | 200 | 400 | 600 | 800 | ------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ RUSSIAN BOSTON. This is a variation of Boston de Fontainbleau. A player holding carte blanche declares it before playing, and receives ten counters from each of the other players. Carte blanche is the same thing as chicane in Bridge, no trump in the hand. But in Bridge the player is penalized for announcing it until after the hand is played. The order of the suits is the same as in American Boston de Fontainbleau: diamonds, hearts, clubs, and spades. When a player bids six, seven, or eight tricks, he is supposed to be still willing to take a partner, unless he specifies solo. When a partner accepts him, the combination must make four tricks more than the original proposal. Four honours are paid for as four over-tricks; three honours as two over-tricks. Piccolissimo is played, and comes between the bids of seven and eight tricks.
[Music] --Congleton Workhouse (Miss A. E. Twemlow). I. Have you seen the muffin man, the muffin man, the muffin man, Have you seen the muffin man that lives in Drury Lane O? Yes, I ve seen the muffin man, the muffin man, the muffin man; Yes, I ve seen the muffin man who lives in Drury Lane O. --Earls Heaton, Yorks. (H. Hardy). II. O, have you seen the muffin man, The muffin man, the muffin man; O, have you seen the muffin man Who lives in Drury Lane O? --N.
A complete table consists of six; the four having the preference play. Partners are determined by cutting; the highest two play against the lowest two; the lowest deals and has the choice of seats and cards. In _=Boston=_ and in _=Solo Whist=_, a table is complete with four players. In cutting for positions at the table, the lowest has the choice of seats and cards, and the two highest sit opposite each other. 3. If two players cut intermediate cards of equal value, they cut again; the lower of the new cut plays with the original lowest. 4. If three players cut cards of equal value, they cut again. If the fourth has cut the highest card, the two lowest of the new cut are partners, and the lowest deals. If the fourth has cut the lowest card, he deals, and the two highest of the new cut are partners.
The dealer may lay out any two cards in exchange for these, but no other player is allowed to touch them, nor to see the discards. The elder hand makes the first declarations. He makes repic and counts 90 if he can reach 20 without playing a card; and he makes pic, 60, if he can reach 20 in hand and play, under the same conditions as in the game for two players. The majority of tricks counts 10; if it is a tie, each counts 5. Capot counts 40 if all the tricks are taken by one player; but if two take them all between them, they count 20 each. The game may be played for a pool, first man out to take all; or it may be agreed that after one has retired the others shall decide it between them by playing it out at the ordinary two-handed game. PIQUET VOLEUR, FOR FOUR PLAYERS. The players cut for partners, the two lowest pairing against the two highest, and the lowest cut taking the first deal. Partners sit opposite each other. All the cards are dealt out, two and three at a time, each receiving eight cards.
This is as follows, with the starter:-- [Illustration: 🂭 🃛 🂫 🃚 🂡 ] This is worth 9 holes; 8 for the run of three with one duplicate, and 1 for his nobs. There are no fifteens, and the Ace is worthless. This puts the dealer three holes round the corner, and on the homestretch for the game hole. The deal now passes to the player that was the pone, and the next crib will belong to him. Beginners often experience difficulty in deciding when a run has been made in play, and when it has not. If there is any dispute about it, the cards should be placed as shown in these diagrams, and if any duplicate is encountered before the run is complete, it cannot be pegged. Take the following examples:-- [Illustration: 🂡 🃒 🃖 🃄 🃅 🂲 🃓 ] There is no sequence, because we encounter a duplicate deuce before we reach the Five. If the last player had a Five to play now, it would make a run of five cards, stopping at the deuce of hearts. Take the following:-- [Illustration: 🂦 🃑 🃅 🃒 🂣 🂤 🃁 🂶 ] There is no sequence; but if the pone had played his Five for his second card, the dealer would have pegged two runs; one of four, and one of six, besides the last card; the pone making one run of five and a pair, as follows:-- [Illustration: 🂦 🃅 🃒 🃑 🂣 🂤 🃁 🂶 ] It will be seen that if the dealer had not played his Ace and kept his Six at the last, the pone would have pegged eleven holes on him, instead of seven. _=Go, and Thirty-one.
So much for gamblers. I kept control of the dice while each new gambler handled them. I was having a good night. Of course, by that time I had handled the dice, which always improves my TK grip. Every point I had TK d came up. For all the perception I kept on the ivories, I could sense no other TK force at work, which after all was the whole reason for my gambling. The interesting note was the way Sniffles handled my chips. Sometimes more sure than others, she occasionally let a winning stack ride. On other rolls, she keened and chanted oddly to herself, eyes closed, and pinched down most of the stock. But she was never on the wrong side of the Pass line.
WINS. WINS. 22 [Illustration: 🃗 🃘 🃙 🃇 🂧] 6,034 36,974 22,772 23 [Illustration: 🂷 🂸 🂡 🂨 🂧] 9,826 38,469 17,485 24 [Illustration: 🂧 🂨 🂾 🂷 🃗] 8,736 41,699 15,345 25 [Illustration: 🃇 🃈 🃝 🃗 🂷] 9,256 40,524 16,000 26 [Illustration: 🃗 🃘 🃇 🃈 🂭] 10,336 37,484 17,960 27 [Illustration: 🂷 🂸 🃘 🃙 🃋] 9,776 37,439 18,565 28 [Illustration: 🂧 🂨 🂹 🂺 🃚] 9,776 36,909 19,095 29 [Illustration: 🃇 🃈 🃗 🃁 🃈] 9,776 36,733 19,271 In giving cards, some judgment of human nature is necessary. Some players habitually propose on strong hands, and it is best to give to such pretty freely. _=DISCARDING.=_ The general principle of discarding is to keep trumps and Kings, and let everything else go. If you hold the trump King you may discard freely in order to strengthen your hand for a possible vole. If you have proposed once, and hold the King, and feel pretty sure of the point, you may propose again on the chance of getting strength enough to make the vole. When only two cards can be discarded, it is a safe rule to stand on the hand; either to play without proposing, or to refuse cards; unless you hold the King. There are no authoritative laws for Écarté, and the various French and English codes do not agree.
I wanted nothing to dull my PSI powers. A blond bombshell slithered down the bar and ground herself against my leg. Wanna buy me a drink, honey? she gasped. I smuggled a lift and slipped all four of her garters off the tops of her hose. A funny, stricken look replaced the erotic face she had made at me. She headed for dry dock. B-girls usually work in pairs, so I looked down toward the other end of the polished mahogany. Sure enough, there was the brunette, frowning as she tried to figure why the blond bomber had high-tailed it out of there. I shook my head at her and she let it lie. That should have cut out the last distraction.
=_ If any card is found faced in the pack, or if the pack is incorrect or imperfect, the dealer must deal again. If any card is found faced in the pack, or is exposed in any manner; or if more than thirteen cards are dealt to any player, or if the last card does not come in its regular order to the dealer, or if the pack has not been cut, there must be a new deal. Attention must be called to a deal out of turn, or with the wrong cards, before the last card is dealt, or the deal stands. There are no misdeals in auction. That is to say, whatever happens the same dealer deals again. Minor irregularities will be found provided for in the laws. The cards being dealt, each player sorts his hand to see that he has the correct number, thirteen; and the player or players keeping the score should announce it at the beginning of each hand. _=STAKES.=_ In auction, the stake is a unit, so much a point. The number of points won or lost on the rubber may be only two or three, or they may run into the hundreds.
_=REPIC.=_ If either player is able to reach 30 by successive declarations, beginning with the point, all of which are admitted by his adversary to be good, he adds 60 to his score, making it 90 instead of 30, and this is irrespective of what his adversary may have in minor or inferior combinations. The important thing to remember in repic is that declarations always count in regular order, carte blanche taking precedence of everything; then the point, sequences, and quatorze or trio. Suppose elder hand to hold the following cards:-- ♡ K Q J 10 9; ♣ A K Q; ♢ A Q 9; ♠ Q. If the quinte to the King is admitted good for the point, it must be good for the sequence also. That is 20. The four Queens must be good, as the adversary cannot have any quatorze. This makes the total 34, and 60 added for repic, 94 altogether, to which he will add one for leading the first card, if it is above a Nine. Suppose the elder hand had the following cards:-- ♡ A K Q J 8; ♣ A K; ♢ A K; ♠ A K 10. If his point is good, that and his four Aces and Kings will make him 33 altogether; but his sequence is not good, because the dealer holds five diamonds to the Queen, which comes in order before the score for quatorze, and so saves the repic.