=_ The three highest trumps have special privileges in the matter of not following suit. Any player holding the Five or Jack of the trump suit; or the ace of hearts, but having no smaller trump with them, may refuse to follow suit if any inferior trump is led; but if he has also a smaller trump, he must play one or the other. If a superior trump is led, the player must follow suit in any case. For instance: If the Five of trumps is led, no one can refuse to follow suit, no matter what trumps he holds; but if the Jack is led, and any player holds the Five alone, he need not play it to the inferior trump lead. If the heart ace is led, and one player holds the Jack alone, and another the Five alone, neither of these cards need be played, because the trump led is inferior to both of them. If a superior trump is played in following suit, such as the Five played on an Eight led, the holder of the lone Jack of trumps or ace of hearts, need not play it, because the lead was inferior. This privilege of reneging is confined to the three highest trumps. _=OBJECTS OF THE GAME.=_ In Spoil Five there are three things to play for. If any one person can win three tricks he takes the pool.
The Isle of Man version is played, Mr. Moore says, the same as other Thread the Needle games. (_c_) The game is evidently dramatic in form, and perhaps is illustrative of some fact of history, such as the toll upon merchandise entering a walled town. The changes in the words of the different versions are not very great, but they show the influence of modern history upon the game. The appearance of King George evidently points to the date when it was frequently played, though the older versions are doubtless those in which his Majesty does not do duty. Mactaggart has the following quaint note which perhaps may supply the origin, though it seems a far cry to the Crusaders:-- This sport has something methinks of antiquity in it; it seemeth to be a pantomime of some scenes played off in the time of the Crusades. King and Queen o Cantilon evidently must be King and Queen of Caledon, but slightly changed by time. Then Babylon in the rhyme, the way they had to wander and hazard being caught by the infidels, all speak as to the foundation of the game (Mactaggart s _Gallovidian Encyclopædia_). In the _Gentleman s Magazine_ for December 1849, in a review of the _Life of Shirley_, it is stated that in many parts of England the old game of Thread the Needle is played to the following words, which refer to the gate of the city of Hebron, known as the needle s eye. How many miles to Hebron? Three score and ten.
Euchre, unlike the other members of the family, is not essentially a gambling game, but belongs rather to the intellectual group of card games; a position which we hope it may long maintain. EUCHRE. _=CARDS.=_ Euchre is played with what is commonly known as the piquet pack, 32 cards, all below the 7 being deleted. In plain suits the cards rank as at Whist; but in the trump suit the Jack is the best, and it is called the _=Right Bower=_. The Jack of the same colour as the trump suit, red or black, is the second-best trump, and it is called the _=Left Bower=_; so that if clubs were trumps the rank of the nine cards in the trump suit would be as follows:-- [Illustration: 🃛 🂫 🃑 🃞 🃝 🃚 🃙 🃘 🃗 ] The rank of the cards in the other suits would be:-- [Illustration: 🂡 🂮 🂭 🂪 🂩 🂨 🂧 🂱 🂾 🂽 🂻 🂺 🂹 🂸 🂷 🃁 🃎 🃍 🃋 🃊 🃉 🃈 🃇 ] When the _=Joker=_, or blank card is used, it is always the best trump, ranking above the right bower. In cutting, the ace is low, the other cards ranking as in plain suits. A player cutting the Joker must cut again. _=COUNTERS=_ or whist markers may be used for keeping the score, but it is much more common to use the small cards from the deleted portion of the pack. The game is five points, and the best method of scoring is to use the 4 and 3 of any suit.
--Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire (Miss Matthews); Anderby, Lincolnshire (Miss Peacock). This is apparently the same game as the well-known I love my love with an A because she is amiable. In this game every player has to repeat the same sentence, but using a different adjective, which adjective must begin with the letter A. Various sentences follow. At the next round the adjectives all begin with B; the next C, until a small story has been built up. Forfeits were exacted for every failure or mistake. The formula usually was-- I love my love with an A because she is ( ). I hate her with an A because she is ( ). I took her to the sign of the ( ), and treated her to ( ). The result was ( ).
For example: A player holds A Q 10 of a suit, his right hand adversary holding K J 9. These are known as the _=major=_ and _=minor=_ tenaces. Whichever leads makes only one trick; but if the holder of the major tenace can get the suit led twice, he makes all. This is called the _=short-suit game=_, or _=finesse and tenace=_. Its resources may be added to by finessing against certain cards. For example: Holding A Q 3 of a suit led by the partner, to play Q is a finesse against fourth hand having the King. Each of these systems has its advantages, and almost every hand will offer opportunities for practice in all of them. The most important thing to impress on the beginner is that whist cannot be played by machinery. Some authorities would have us believe that certain theories alone are sound; that certain systems of play alone are good; and that if one will persevere in following certain precepts, in such matters as leading, management of trumps, etc., that the result will be more than average success at the whist table.
He progresses until he meets this hand again. The first to observe this should give notice to the company by a bell tap, as all the gentlemen must meet their original hands at the same time. Instead of stopping at the table at which this tray is encountered, all the gentlemen move on to the next, leaving the trays as they are. This skip enables each to finish the round without playing any of the hands twice. _=Scoring.=_ There must be four winners; the ladies with the best scores for the N & E hands respectively, and the gentlemen with the best S & W scores. If a choice is necessary, the lady and the gentleman taking the greatest number of tricks above the average should be selected as the winners. _=MARRIED COUPLES.=_ Safford has an ingenious schedule for eight married couples, so arranged in two sets that no husband and wife are ever in the same set at the same time. When seven sets have been played, every lady will have overplayed four hands against every other lady and gentleman, including four held by her husband.
It is folly to take any risks for the sake of a gammon, and any plays which leave unnecessary blots are very bad; for which reason the three throws shown in the foregoing diagram would be absurd in the American game. On the other hand, you may risk being gammoned, or even backgammoned, if it is the only way to save the game. An Englishman cannot take this risk, for he might lose a triple game in attempting to save a single. Secure the five point in your own and your adversary’s home table as soon as possible, and then the bar and four points. After the first few throws the player should take a general survey of the board, in order to see whether he is ahead or behind, or if he has any advantage of position. He must then decide whether he will play a _=backward=_ or a _=forward=_ game. A glance at the relative positions of the men will usually show if one side is much more advanced than the other, without going into any minute calculations as to how many points nearer home one side _may_ be. If, at the beginning of the game, one player makes two or three large throws in succession, while his adversary gets small throws only, the latter will have little chance of winning the game simply by running for home, whereas the former’s best chance will be to follow up his early advantage and get home as fast as possible. The only hope for the man who is behind is that he can pick up some of his opponent’s men, setting them back, and in order to do this he must keep behind his adversary, so as to meet as many of his men as possible. This enables us to formulate the great principle of the American game, which is that when a player is ahead he should go ahead as fast as he can; and when he is behind, he should stay behind as long as he can.
At the end of a game, if there are more than four belonging to the table, a sufficient number of the players retire to admit those awaiting their turn to play. In determining which players remain in, those who have played a less number of consecutive games have the preference over all who have played a greater number; between two or more who have played an equal number, the preference is determined by cutting, a lower cut giving the preference over all cutting higher. In _=Boston=_, _=Cayenne=_, and _=Solo Whist=_, at the end of a game a new table must be formed, those already in having no preference over fresh candidates. 6. To entitle one to enter a table, he must declare his intention to do so before any one of the players has cut for the purpose of commencing a new game or of cutting out. In _=Boston=_, _=Cayenne=_, and _=Solo Whist=_, this rule does not apply. CUTTING. 7. In cutting, the ace is the lowest card. All must cut from the same pack.
III. Dummy being blind and deaf, his partner is not liable to any penalty for an error whence he can gain no advantage. Thus, he may expose some or all of his cards--or may declare that he has the game, or trick, etc., without incurring any penalty; if, however, he lead from Dummy’s hand when he should lead from his own, or _vice versa_, a suit may be called from the hand which ought to have led. DOUBLE DUMMY. Is played by two players, each having a Dummy or exposed hand for his partner. The laws of the game do not differ from Dummy Whist, except in the following special Law: There is no misdeal, as the deal is a disadvantage. THE POKER FAMILY. Properly speaking, Poker is not the founder, but simply the most famous representative of a very ancient and always very popular family of games, all of which can be traced to one source, the old French game of Gilet, which was undoubtedly of Italian origin, perhaps a variety of Primero. Gilet we find changed to Brelan in the time of Charles IX.
After making the circuit of the room, they halted on reaching the fiddler s corner, and the cushion-bearer, still to the music of the fiddle, sang or recited:-- Our song it will no further go! The Fiddler: Pray, kind sir, why say you so? The Cushion-bearer: Because Jane Sandars won t come to. The Fiddler: She must come to, she shall come to, An I ll make her whether she will or no. The cushion-bearer and vessel-holder then proceeded with the dance, going as before round the room, singing Frinkum, frankum, &c., till the cushion-bearer came to the lady of his choice, before whom he paused, placed the cushion on the floor at her feet, and knelt upon it. The vessel-bearer then offered the cup to the lady, who put money in it and knelt on the cushion in front of the kneeling gentleman. The pair kissed, arose, and the gentleman, first giving the cushion to the lady with a bow, placed himself behind her, taking hold of some portion of her dress. The cup-bearer fell in also, and they danced on to the fiddler s corner, and the ceremony was again gone through as at first, with the substitution of the name of John for Jane, thus:-- The Lady: Our song it will no further go! The Fiddler: Pray, kind miss, why say you so? The Lady: Because John Sandars won t come to. The Fiddler: He must come to, he shall come to, An I ll make him whether he will or no! The dancing then proceeded, and the lady, on reaching her choice (a gentleman, of necessity), placed the cushion at his feet. He put money in the horn and knelt. They kissed and rose, he taking the cushion and his place in front of the lady, heading the next dance round, the lady taking him by the coat-tails, the first gentleman behind the lady, with the horn-bearer in the rear.
This making of a better proposition than one already made is known as “_=Over-calling=_.” A player who has made a call of any kind, or has accepted a proposal, may amend his proposition to a better one, only in case he is over-called; or a player who can not get a partner to accept him may amend his call to solo. For instance: A player may have a hand which he feels sure is good for 8 tricks, perhaps 9. To be safe, he calls solo, and hopes to make three or four over-tricks. If he is outbid by some player over-calling him with a misère, he may be tempted to amend his call to abundance. No call is good until every player who has not already passed does so, by saying distinctly, “I pass.” _=STAKES.=_ The losses and gains of the players are in proportion to the difficulties of the tasks they set themselves. The most popular method of settling is to pay or take red counters for the various calls, and white counters for the tricks under or over the exact number proposed. If the callers succeed in their undertakings, their adversaries pay them; if they fail, they pay their adversaries.
[Illustration: 🂡 🂢 🂳 🃔 🃄 ] If the five cards contain one sequence of four, and one duplicate, the combination will always be worth 10 points; 8 for the double run of four, and 2 for the pair. The foregoing should be thoroughly familiar to every player, so that he may know the exact value of the combination the moment he sees the length of the sequence and the number of duplicates. _=Two-card Fifteens.=_ Any combination of two or more cards, the total face value of which is exactly 15, is called _=fifteen-two=_, because each fifteen so formed is worth two points in the pegging. There are only three combinations of two cards which will form fifteen; a Five with any court card or Ten; a Nine and a Six; an Eight and a Seven. The manner of counting duplicates is the same as that employed for the pairs and sequences, and the player should be equally familiar with each variety of combination. The fifteens formed by _=two cards=_ only are the simplest, and should be studied first. [Illustration: 🂮 🂻 🂥 ] It is obvious that if there is in the hand or the starter a duplicate of either of the cards forming the fifteen, no matter which, another fifteen can be formed, and the combination will therefore always be worth 6 points; 4 for the two fifteens, and 2 for the pair. It must not be forgotten that in the case of _=tenth cards=_, as they are called, the duplicates may not form pairs, as for instance with K J 5. The fifteen is duplicated, but there is no pair.
There is no penalty for a revoke made by either Dummy; but otherwise the laws of bridge govern. _=DRAW BRIDGE.=_ This is double Dummy; but instead of laying Dummy’s cards face up on the table, each player is provided with a holder in which he places his partner’s cards in such a manner that his adversary cannot see them. As it comes to Dummy’s turn to play to each trick, a card is drawn from the holder. All four hands are responsible for revokes. _=KING’S BRIDGE.=_ This is sometimes called _=Four Hand Bridge=_, each player being for himself. The movements of the players are the same as those described in Pivot Bridge, one player sitting still all the time, while each of the others in turn becomes his partner for four deals. The dealer declares. If he passes, the player sitting opposite him must make it according to the mechanical rules given in Bridge for Three.
The penalty for an impossible declaration is that the bid is made seven in the suit named and the partner of the declarer may not further declare unless an adversary subsequently bid or double. Either adversary, instead of penalizing an impossible declaration, may demand a new deal, or that the last declaration made on behalf of his partnership become the final declaration. 50_a_. If a player who has been debarred from bidding under Laws 50 or 65, during the period of such prohibition, make any declaration (other than passing), either adversary may decide whether such declaration stand, and neither the offending player nor his partner may further participate in the bidding even if the adversaries double or declare. 50_b_. A penalty for a declaration out of turn (see Law 49), an insufficient or impossible declaration (see Law 50), or a bid when prohibited (see Law 50_a_) may not be enforced if either adversary pass, double, or declare before the penalty be demanded.[11] 50_c_. Laws which give to either adversary the right to enforce a penalty, do not permit unlimited consultation. Either adversary may call attention to the offence and select the penalty, or may say, “Partner, you determine the penalty,” or words to that effect. Any other consultation is prohibited,[12] and if it take place, the right to demand any penalty is lost.
=_ Before the cards are dealt, each player except the dealer places before him the amount he bets upon his chances for that deal. This amount may be either at the option of the player, within the betting limit, or it may be a fixed sum, such as one counter. In one variation each player is allowed to look at the first card dealt him before making his bet, and before receiving a second card. When it comes to the dealer’s turn, he does not stake anything upon his card, but he has the privilege of calling upon all the others to _=double=_ the amount they have placed on theirs. Any player refusing to double must pass over to the dealer the stake already put up, and stand out of the game for that hand. Another variation is to allow any player whose second card is of the same denomination as the first to separate them, and to place upon the second card a bet equal in amount to that upon his first card, afterward drawing to each separately, as if they were two different hands. _=Dealing.=_ The bets made, the cards are shuffled and presented to the pone to be cut; four must be left in each packet. Two cards are given to each player, including the dealer, one at a time in two rounds. If the dealer gives too many cards to any player, either in the first deal or in the draw, he must correct the error at once.
[Illustration: No. 10. +-.-+---+-.-+---+-.-+---+-.-+---+ | . | | . | ⛀ | . | | .
If stakes are played for, counters of a different colour must be provided, and the player losing the game must pay as many counters to each of the others as they have points still in front of them. One player is usually the banker, and sells and redeems all money counters. The others are redistributed at the end of each game. _=Players.=_ Any number from four to seven may play; but the two black Sevens must be deleted if there are more than four players. When seven play, the dealer takes no cards. All the preliminaries of seats, cards and deal are settled as at Hearts. _=Dealing.=_ The entire pack is distributed, the dealer giving each player in rotation two or three cards in each round. No trump is turned.
My right arm looks fine. It just hasn t any strength. Old Maragon had told me once that my TK powers were a pure case of compensation for a useless arm. The surgeon dropped my hand. You re the best, Wally Bupp, he said. He s too good a friend of mine to call me Lefty and remind me that I m a cripple. It was Maragon who did that. I hadn t noticed him, but somebody gave me the grip, and I looked around. He was back against the wall, short, gray and square. I gave his ear lobe a TK tug in return, harder, perhaps, than was necessary, and nodded for him to follow both of us to my office.