The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1870-10-05
scIEScE land eHANSESsS
A kentucky Legend Of the Noble
Game OF ss0Id Nledge.ol

1
At that time, in Kentucky (saids th,
Hon. Mr. Knot N. CO., thelaw wa.
very strict against what is termet
games of chance" -
About q dozen Of the boys were De
tected playing "sesenap," or odd
sledge," for money, and the grand Jury
found a true bin against them. jim
Sturgis was retained to- defend then
when the case came UP of course Hht
more he studied over the matter ant
looked into the evidence, the palmer i
was he must lose case at last-ther,
was no getting around that painful
fact.
These boys had certainly been bet
ting money on game Of chance. Ever
public sympathy was reused in behal
Of Sturgis. People said it was a pity tc
see him mar his successful career with
a big prominent case like this, which
must go against him.
But after several restless nights an in
spired idea flashed upon Sturgis, and he
sprang out of bed delighted. he though,
he saw his way through. The next day
he whispered around little among his
clients and few friends, and then when
the case came up in court he acknowl
eiGed the seyeE-up and the betting, and
As his sole defense, had the astounding
efirontery to put in the plea that old
sedge was not game OF chance
There was the broadcast sort Of a smile
all over the faces of that sophisticated
audience The Judge smiled with the
rest But Sturgis maintained coun.
tenance whose earnestness was even
severe. The opposite counsel tried to
ridicule him out of his position, and
did not succeed. The judge TESTED in a
Ponderous judicial way about the thing,
but did not move him. The matter
was becoming grave The judge lost a
little of his patience, and said the joke
-had gone far enough
Jim Sturgis said he knew of no joke
in the matter; his clients could not be
punished for inaulging in what some
people chose to consider a game OF
chance until it was proven that it was
a game of chance.
Judge and counsel said that it would
be an easy matter, and forthwith called
deacons job, Peters, Burke and John.
son, and dominies Writ and Miggles, to
testify; and they unanimously and with
strong feeling put down the legal quib-
bic OF Sturgis, by.pronouncing that old
sleage was game Of chance.
What do you call it now p said the
Judge.
Il call it a game of science" retorted
Sturgis. land III prove it, too W.
They saw this little game. --,e
He brought in a crowd of witnesses
and produced an overwhelming mass OF
testimony to show that old sledge was
not a game Of chance, but game Of
science.
Instead of being the simplest case in
the world, it had somehow turned out
to be an excessively knotty one The
Judge scratched his head over it awhile,
and said there was no way of coming
to determination, because just as many
men could be brought in court who
would testify on one side as could be
found to testify on the other But he
said he was willing to do the fair thing
by all parties, and would act upon any
suggestion Mr.. Sturgis would make for
the solution OF the difficulty.
Mr.. Sturgis was on his feet in a
second
'Impannel a jury Of six each, Luck
rs. Science-give them candles and a
couple of decks OF cards, send them into
the jury room, and just abide by the re-
suit
There was no disputing the fairness
of the proposition. The four deacons
and the two dOminies were sworn in as
the "chance" jurvmen, and six inveter-
ate seven-up professors were chosen to
represent the "science" side of the is
sue. They retired to the jury room.
In about two hours Deacon Peters
sent into court to borrow $500 from a
friend Sensation In about two hours
more dominic Miggles sent into court
to borrow stake from friend.
TSensation. During the next three or
four hours the other dominic and the
other deacons sent into court for small
loans. And still the packed audience
waited, for it was a prodigious occasion
in Bulls Corners, and one in which
every father of family was necessarily
interested.
The rest OF the story can be told
briefly. About daylight the jury came
in. and Deacon Job, the foreman, read
the following:
VERDICT.
We, the jury in the ease Of the Com
monwealth of Kentucky u. John
Wheeler CT al, having carefully consid
cred the points of the case, and testec
the merits Of the several theories ad
vanced. do hereby unanimously decide
that the game commonly known as old
sledge. or seven-up, is eminently game
Of science and not Of chance. Ii
demonstration thereof 1t is hereby and
herein stated, iterated, reiterated, se
forth and made manifest that during
the entire night, the Chance mer
never won a game or turned jack
although both feats were common anc
FREQUENT to the opposition. ndfurther
more, in support Of this our verdict VIZ
call attention to the significant fact thai
the chance men are all busted, anC
the Science men have got the money
1t is the deliberate opinion OF this jar!
that the chance" theory concerniue
seven-up is a pernicious doctrine ant
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