Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1856-11-18
EVENING STAR.
DoEsTIcKs' BETs ON PENNSYLVANIA.
From the New York Picsyune

From the New York Plcayune
! 1 hadn't any money to bet, but G,d have q
new suit Of clothes, and l was willing To risk
/ them, and try TO win another suit on the State
/ Elections Was sure Of Pennsylvania. Ohio
, and Indiana, for the Republicans-so | u ade
up my mind to bet on the Opposition, aud
started out in pursuit Of a customor-was will
J ing to bet reith anybody who had good clothes,
and on anybody who L thought would win
! Went into tho Pewter Mug''-Buchanan an
| man in his shirt-sleeyes with ragged brooches
and battered hat, wanted to bet $40 900
that "old Buck" would carry his own State
| by fifty thousand majority-then, when no one
| took him up, he offered $40, 600 against SIO,-
600, but sthere was no SIC, 900 man on hand,
he nsgnanimously came down to 5 600, but as
there didn't appear to be even that small
amount ready at the instant, be lowered his
| terms to thousand dollars, against which he
| proposed to lay $4,000, but still no ere lis
tened-he went on offering greater and greater
odds, and made bold defiance TO al the world
! to put ten dollars against 500, GOO; and finally
offered 10 stake a hundred thousand dollars
against glass Of whiskey on the Democracy
OF Pcnnsylvania-fnding no one to take him
up even at that offer, he turned away in high
dlsdaip, staggered up to the bar and wanted
something out Of black bottle, but in two
! minutes tho enterprising bar-keeper kicked
the hundred thousand dollar man into the
street because he couldn raise three cents to
pay for his iiluor
The room seemed to be full of millionaires,
who all wanted to bet on buchanan auy
amount-thOught that the possession of a
great deal money must make a man thirsty,
for I noticed that when any one called the
crowd up to drink, the millionaires always
| responded to the invitation, and took double
horns-ObserVed, too, that Mey never asked
any enc to drink, and thought 1t must be be-
cause they feared setting bad exomplo, and
loading strangers into dissipation.
Then Fillmore man wanted to take vote
on the Presidential question; SO he asked all
those in favor Of Fillmore TO come up and
drink, and the miilionaires all came up-then
buchanan man requested all who wore going
to vote for Buchanan to como up ard take a
horn, and the millionaiTes again came up
then Fillmore man claimed il, and the other
man claimed it-then they hit-Buchanan
went down before rap from chair, but not
boforc he had foOred Fillmore with decan-
ter-disintereSted millionaires dressed chiefly
IN black eye and second hand coat, anx
ious to preserve the peace, took the decanter
from Buchanan man anu drank the contents
before tho bartender caught him at it-then
the bar keeper got excited, jumped over the
bar and pitched into his wealthy customers
he was perfectly sober, and consequently had
tremendous advantage over the others-so
he devoted himself for n few minutes with
great energy and singlcncSS of purpose to an
individual, who, liltls while before, had ex
pressed willingness to stake half a million
on Pennsylvania, but who was now surrepti-
tously filling his pockets with Goldfish and
crackers, and hustled nm out-then he took
a sixty thousand dollar chap by tho nape Of
the neck and pitched him into a corner, then
he gave his attention to seventy Thousand
fellow and a poverty stricken rascal who
n N Ia hot thor h.,
sand on Buchanan, which two were having a
quiet fight all alone: and kicked them into
the gutter-then he went promiscuously and
impartially at tho rest Of the crowd with a
club, and dealt out two-handcd hickory 4" Jug
tice" till all were subdued and satisled-te
came at me in a like afectiUnatc manner, but
| called for two drinks and showed him the
money, and he thought better oft. Thought
there wasn't much chance Of winning my now
clothes from these gentlemen, so l hurrated
tor buchanan, threw quarter TO the bar
keeper and took myself off while he was look
ing for it behind the barrels.
In the course Of the day l found Brown,
who was well dressed and willing 10 take my
bets-so | made the following wayers A new
hat that Pennsylvania would give twenty
thousand Republican majority, a new coat on
1fteen thousand majority, and a c-ayat, a
pair Of pants, and half a dozen shirts on ten
thousand-then got bet Of pair of pants
and an oyster supper on the general result in
Indiana-went homo and thought had done
a good days work and made a suit of clothes
quicker than L could In any other way-went
10 bed satisfied with the world and dreamed
about the cut and quality Of my new coat.
Next day the election came of-met Dam
phool, he been betting on Pennsylvania,
too, that it would 90 for Fillmore 80 had
all his nanesakeS, in fact be informed NE that
all the Damphools had let Oh Pennsylvania
and on Fillmore. Met Brown and told him
I'd take six dollar hat, or, if he'd make il
a cash bet aud pay it then, I'd allow him a
small discount-but Brown said "wait.;
Told Brown he might as well 60 home and put
on his old suit and give me the new one, as to
wait till night, but Brown strangely preferred
to wait-told him to be careful meantime and
not sit down in any dirty spot with my panta-
looms on, then L followed him silly for two
hours, admiring my new clothes from q dis
tance
Night came at last, and it was time for the
returns to come invent to the newspaper of
fee and heard the results read. Fremont
seemed all right-wished that had ten hats
bet, and clothes enough to last me ten years.
Then the scale seemed to change, and in a
little while didn't care for more than half
dozen hats, and was glad on the whole that l
hadn't got a ten years stock of clothes at
stake, as they might 60 out Of fashion before
COulU wear lHcm Out lucu tcle-
graph came in and L thought L could make
three hats do-thel another arrived, and L
began to be rather glad that hadn't bet my
old clothes as we'll as my new ones-then the
telegraph said that Fremont wouldn't have
more than five thousand majority; thought
that this report must be wrong-went to the
Times Office, same news there; walked up to
the Tribune shop, ditto; circulated down to
the Herald office, same kind of news there,
only worse, and a mighty sight moro of it
trembled for a moment then L thought of
/" the mountains" with glee, and the . back
counties" with joyful hope. News kept
coming, same kind-gOt littlo scared-fOund
the fellows L had bet with and tried to con-
vince them that had meant suit Of sum
mer clothes, straw hat and cowhide boots
Brown pulled down the corner Of his eye and
said, " No you don't" Cruel Brown!
Then another county came in and made the
twenty thousand majority sure failure, and
so lest my hat for me, and L began to fear that
1 should have to relapse into my old clothes
| Then another county came in and took the
al fran hoo opnthar nj ctr ad