Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1862-08-26
WASHINGTON GAMBLING SALOONS.


WASHINGTON GAMBLING SALOONS.
TCorrespondence Of the Chicago Times
intimated In my last that had been investi-
eating various aspects Of Washington life and
operations, among which was that feature known
as Banking, and the gambling hells of Wash.
ington are the most noted on the continent, both
In numbers and magnitude. The best custom
to these establishments are the members OF Con-
gress, although, since the war broke OUT and has
confined the s'chivalry," with their corpulent
pocket-books, south Of Mason and Dixon's, the
heaviest income Of the hels has been cut off, and
at present their business seems mainly confined
to officers, who, IN full uniform, and at all hours
Of the day and night, throng the apartments Of
the Faro and Roulette dealers
We Will be arstocretic for the once, and visit
only places where elegance presdes where wealth
has scattered her luxuries and surroundings with
liberal hand. We need not fear mistakes our
conductor 10 a man Of the world. He has frozen
his toes In Iceland, made love TO the tawny belle
Of the Choctaws, has tfod the boards OF London
and New York stage, has edited newspaper,
healed the sick, embalmed the Dead in short, 10
fnished, thorough cosmopolitan.
A ring at a door bell and reconnaissance
through its grated upper half by stalwart negro,
then up pair of stairs through an ante room,
and we stand In the carpeted, elegant jungles Of
the modern "dger." There are two wide, lofty
rooms, divided by folding doors, both dazzling
with ng ht, eofly carpesed, decorated with elegant
and vouptuOus paintings, and seemingly just the
spot where poor, tired humanity would come to
q
stern battles OF life. In the first room 10 side
board, upon whose shelves are rows Of elegant
aecanfers, through which bushes the purple
:sand, or flashes the crystalline extract OF the
In this room is also Roulette table, which, as
we enter, Is vacant, and in the other room is
Faro table, around which are gathered half
dozen men, so absorbed in the game that, were
Gabriel to rock the cath with blast from his
trumpet, they would never hear 1t.
The room, by the way, 10 Interesting from
reminiscence. Here, not long since, the presiding
genius was John G. aeenan-the fghting dis
solving love Of the fair Adah Isaacs Menken; and
here, not many weeks ago, an aspiring pc llas-
ter from Maryland succeeded in investing In ore
night the trihing little sum OF twenty-seven
thousand dollars
won't describe the game, for what little, II
any, IL lot known about 1t in Chicago, Is not
known anywhere else, even in this city Of in
Behind the table sits the dealer-long In finger,
white in hand, and with the inevitable cluster Of
brilliants sparkling from digit and shirt bosom.
He 10 grey-eyed, poek-marked, resolute, and yet
pleasant In appearance, with a breadth Of shoul-
der and depth Of ches. that show him to he no
mean man In case Of an exchange Of tstic courte
sizes.
On his right stands captain, playing with
half dollar checks, and investing one at time,
evdentya loser; for, as his check Is rsked down,
he follows 1t with sigh, and, doubt not,
but half d. zen checks-in minute they
gone; and, after going to a corner and examining
an empty pocket book, he returns and stands
mocdily watching the game.
Next to him 4 thick.Eet Young man, who with
something less than bushel Of ten and twenty
dollar checks at bis side, is with the most per-
feet nonckalance betting from one to FIVE hun
dred dollars upon his cards, and winning
losing without the slightest change Of counten-
anee. But he is lucky; every card that he bets
wins until after half hour be loses three or four
times In succession, and then, with the remark,
"My luck is changing, l reckon I'u quit" he
counts over his checks to the dealer, who coolly>
a. II 1t were matter cf fve cents, pays over 10
the lucky Individual 80 200, In one hundred dol
lar three per centum coupons Of the United
States Treasury notes. Thrusting the immense
pile of paper In his coat pocket, the gentleman
rises, takes a cigar and drink at the sideboard,
end then, with "good night, gentlemen" he
The dealer proceeds unconcernedly, while I,
dazzled at such results, draw out a solitary Ave
the claws Of the tiger cover my lonely and long
treasured Ave, and 1 see 1t no more and, may
ada, have not seen 1t since.
A young gentleman, evidently clerk In dry
goods store sits on my Left, and IL betting, and
losing. Two or three times his checks run OUT
and th<n he goes to friend, whispers a moment,
and finally returns with a ten, which he invests
IN checks, and loses. AT last 20 comes back from
and no money. He sits down, watches the game
moment and leaves.
Abou. in s0i. style went the game, one man
winning, all the balance losing. By and by an
elegant supper was served In an upper room, and
then the party adjourned and commenced playing
at roulette, and officers appeared to be out Of luck
Tor here, In less than hall an hour, saw a Fede
rnl captain lose some six hundred and twenty dol.
lars Everybody lost till just before left, when
the young gentlemen who had been borrowing
and betting on faro returned. He watched the
spinning Of the ball short time, and then took
q bystander aside "You owe me fifty now,"
heald the other say.
Hpn give 1t all back Tomorrow" was the
reply.
l. Finally be came back with "green back' to
the amount Of twenty. He put 1t all on the red;
rsd won The whole pile again went on the red,
and again the red won. He changed 1t to black,
and black won. In short, everything that he
laid his money on was the winning color. In less
than five minutes from the time he began he
quietly cashed his checks and left with over
eighteen hundred dollars.
80 much for luck.
During the two hours that was In the estab-
lishmenf some five or six thousand dollars
changed hands.
There are some Eve or six first class establish
ments Of the kind in Washington, besides any
quantity Of others Of Lesser note They are well
known 70 the police, and in fact everybody else,
but are not disturbed. They are a. mush neces-
sary to Congress Is the niger question n, and
nearly or quite az much patrOnized.
UFHorace Greeley writes letter to the Presi-
Aonf bo nj ifsho in fho rr{h