Bids outrank one another in the order of the suits, hearts being preference always. The number of tricks is not mentioned. In case there are no bids, each in turn has a second chance to bid for the widow. These bids are made in counters, to be put into the pool. The highest bidder takes the widow, lays out two cards, and then names the trump suit. The players agree upon a value for the tricks won, and payments are made from the pool accordingly. These payments may vary according to the rank of the trump suit. ODD GAMES. There are quite a number of odd games of cards, which come and go as favourites from time to time, and pass round the world from one country to another under many different names. The origin of most of these games is lost in the weedy undergrowth of variations, but the chief family trait in some of them can be traced back to the alpha of cards.
The second player in each trick must win the trick if he can, either with a higher card or with a trump. For each honour in trumps in the tricks won the player marks a white counter at the end of the hand. The winner of the odd trick scores as many white counters as he has tricks in excess of his adversary. If either player makes capot, (all twelve tricks,) he scores two red counters. _=Scoring.=_ When one player reaches six white counters and changes them for a red, his adversary must take down any white counters he may have scored. For instance: The pone has 2 reds and 4 whites up; the dealer has 1 red and 5 whites. The pone scores two whites, reaching six, and advancing his score to 3 reds, which are sometimes called impérials. The dealer must take down his white counters, losing that count altogether, and leaving himself 1 red. The only exception to this is that at the beginning of the hand if both have impérials combinations in hand, neither side takes down its white counters.
White to move and win. The mate can be accomplished in six moves, as follows:-- B-B7 B-Q7 K-Kt6 1 --------- 2 -------- 3 --------- K-B sq K-Kt sq K-B sq B-Q6 ch B-K6 ch B-K5 mate 4 --------- 5 -------- 6 --------- K-Kt sq K-R sq K, B and Kt against K. This is one of the most difficult endings for a beginner, but is very instructive, and should be carefully studied. Set up the men as follows:-- Black King on K R sq. White King on K B 6, white Bishop on K B 5, and white Knight on K Kt 5; White to move and win. The object is to drive the King into a corner of the board which is commanded by the Bishop, as he cannot otherwise be mated. Kt-B7 ch B-K4 B-R7 Kt-K5 1 --------- 2 -------- 3 --------- 4 -------- K-Kt sq K-B sq K-K sq K-B sq Kt-Q7 ch K-K6 K-Q6 B-K6 ch 5 --------- 6 -------- 7 --------- 8 -------- K-K sq K-Q sq K-K sq K-Q sq K-B6 B-B7 Kt-Kt7 ch K-B6 9 --------- 10 --------- 11 --------- 12 -------- K-B sq K-Q sq K-B sq K-Kt sq K-Kt6 B-K6 ch Kt-B5 B-Q7 13 --------- 14 --------- 15 --------- 16 -------- K-B sq K-Kt sq K-R sq K-Kt sq Kt-R6 ch B-B6 mate 17 --------- 18 --------- K-R sq If, at the fourth move, the black King does not go back to the Bishop’s square, but goes on to the Queen’s square, hoping to cut across to the other black corner of the board, the continuation will be as follows, beginning at White’s fifth move:-- K-K6 Kt-Q7 B-Q3 B-Kt5 5 --------- 6 --------- 7 --------- 8 -------- K-B2 K-B3 K-B2 K-Q sq Kt-K5 Kt-B4 K-Q6 Kt-R5 9 --------- 10 --------- 11 --------- 12 -------- K-B2 K-Q sq K-B sq K-Q sq Kt-Kt7 ch K-B6 Kt-Q6 K-B7 13 --------- 14 --------- 15 --------- 16 -------- K-B sq K-Kt sq K-R2 K-R sq B-B4 Kt-B8 ch B-Q5 mate 17 --------- 18 --------- 19 --------- K-R2 K-R sq _=PAWN ENDINGS.=_ There are a great number of these, many being complicated by the addition of Pawns to other pieces. The following example, which is a position that often occurs, should be understood by the beginner:-- Put the black King on K B square; the white King on K B 6, and a white Pawn on K 6. If it is Black’s move, White can win easily; but if it is White’s move it is impossible to win, because whether he checks or not the black King gets in front of the Pawn and either wins it or secures a stale-mate.
He then repeats the words-- Hunt the Staigie, Huntie, untie, staige, Ailleman, ailleman, aigie, and rushes off with his hands locked, and tries to touch one of the players. He must not unlock his hands till he has caught one. When he has captured one, the two join hands and hunt for another. When another is caught, he joins the two. This goes on till all are hunted down.--Keith (Rev. W. Gregor). [Illustration] See Chickidy Hand, Whiddy. Hunting [Music] --Earls Heaton (Herbert Hardy).
See Bob-Cherry. Luggie A boys game. In this game the boys lead each other about by the lugs, _i.e._, ears; hence the name (Patterson s _Antrim and Down Glossary_). Jamieson says that the leader had to repeat a rhyme, and if he made a mistake, he in turn became Luggie. The rhyme is not recorded. Luking The West Riding name for Knor and Spell. Playing begins at Easter.--Henderson s _Folk-lore_, p.
He did well at it, but he was fantastically old for this kind of business. Father Moontree looked at the glum Woodley and the musing Underhill. How re the youngsters today? Ready for a good fight? Father always wants a fight, giggled the little girl named West. She was such a little little girl. Her giggle was high and childish. She looked like the last person in the world one would expect to find in the rough, sharp dueling of pinlighting. Underhill had been amused one time when he found one of the most sluggish of the Partners coming away happy from contact with the mind of the girl named West. Usually the Partners didn t care much about the human minds with which they were paired for the journey. The Partners seemed to take the attitude that human minds were complex and fouled up beyond belief, anyhow. No Partner ever questioned the superiority of the human mind, though very few of the Partners were much impressed by that superiority.
(_b_) In the Enborne, Newbury, version (Miss Kimber) a ring is formed by the children (boys and girls) joining hands. Another child stands in the centre. The ring of children walk round while singing the verses. The singing is confined to the ring. When the centre child is told to choose, she selects a boy from the ring, who goes into the centre and they stand together. At the next verse these two children walk out of the ring arm-in-arm. When the next verse is sung they return, and again stand in the centre. At the next verse the boy pretends to put a ring on the girl s finger. They walk out of the ring when told to go to church (two children in the ring unclasping hands to let them walk out, and again clasping hands after they return), and kiss each other and shake hands when the two next verses are sung. The child who was first in the centre then joins the ring, and the game proceeds in the same way with the second child, who chooses in his turn.
When Third Hand plays Queen on a Ten led, it should be a certainty that he has no more of the suit. If he holds A K and only one small card, the King should be played on a Queen led. If he holds Ace and only one small card, the Ace should be played on the Jack led. If Third Hand has four trumps and a card of re-entry, the Ace should be played on Jack led, regardless of number, in older to lead trumps at once, to defend the suit. _=When Partner Leads Low Cards=_, the Third Hand should do his best to secure the trick. If he has several cards of equal trick-taking value, such as A K Q, or K Q J, he should win the trick as cheaply as possible. The only _=finesse=_ permitted to the Third Hand in his partner’s suit, is the play of the Queen, when he holds A Q and others; the odds being against Fourth Hand having the King. _=Foster’s Eleven Rule.=_ By deducting from eleven the number of pips on any low card led, the Third Hand may ascertain how far his partner’s suit is from being established. For instance: if the card led is the Seven, Second Hand playing the Eight, and Third Hand holding A J 6 3, from which he plays Ace, Fourth Hand playing the Five; the only card against the leader must be the King or Queen; he cannot have both, or he would have led one.