The Andrew County Republican. [volume] (Savannah, Mo.) 1871-1876, 1874-05-01

hum, mingled with the click OF the rou
lctte balls, and the musical Jingle o
golden coin.
The hall was of extraordinary dimen
sions, lighted by hundreds of wa,
tapers. Two dozen long, green baiZe
covered tables were surrounded by tn
eager devotees of Fortune; thi
much / saw, then was introduced t.
the proprietor of the hail, a dappe'
little Frenchman, whose name | have
forgotten.
He was extremely polite and a.ten
tive, leading us TO the elegantly tittet
up sideboard, pressing Is to partaEe Of
the sparkling wine and luscious fruit.
He soon left lis, however, to greet some
o!her visitors, and then VT joined the
crown around one of the tables.
1t was devoted to rouge ct NOR, with
its circles of devotees, who came night
after night to tempt Fortune, II mo-
ment tingling with a wild, delirious JOY
as the tickle dame deigns to smile upon
them, the next plunged into the depths
of despair as the croupier's rake trans
fers the glittering offering to the wrong
side of the table.
"See," whispered Don Jaime into my
ear, "observe that lady in black, she
with the lace mask, who places her lit
tie pile on the red double zero with
such a queenly air. That is Sonora de
Los D. Ten months since she was
the idol of her husband, who possessed
almost pr;ncely wealth, but the mania
seized her. She visited the tables
nightly, losing enormously, giving or
ders upon her husband for the amounts,
which were gladly taken, for Don D,
everybody knew, would sacrifice his last
thaco rather than dishonor his name by
refusing payment. Her husband soon
discovered the truth, and paid her
debts, but there WAS IL stormy scene be
tween them, it is said, and two days
afterward he was found dead in the
street, slain by the stroke of a cuchillo
in the hands Of a hired bravo. The
truth is not known for certain, but
many believe that size paid for the muir
der. Since then she has been n nightly
visitor here, losing almost constantly.
The last of her husbands properly is
sold, and when that is gone-well, she
has a choice. to be sure-the suicides
grave, or-the pave"
At the next table, a Californian Of
swart features and sinister aspect, not
lessened by the strips of c"urt-plaster
that diagonaily cross his face from eye
to jaw-bone, deals mont for the ben
eft" of the moths who ilutter around
the golden piles in momentnry expec-
tation of raising them first into their
own pockets; but. alas, though riches
have wings, they DO not fly i'll that di-
~Icction.
The low cries "Cavalle en- In puer-
IA :" "Soto nozo," (''Thc Queen in
the gate" 1.-The knaye winncr!")
ut intervals announce III set phrase the
progress of the game. The golden
stakes are transferred from hand to
hand, their sharp, metallic click con
trasting with the soft, rapid shuttle OF
the cards. But then the betting almost
ceased when a man pushed himself
forward and seated himself in front of
the benches, while a servant deposited
an iron box before his master. When
the lid WAS thrown back a glittering
mass of onzas appeared, causing even
The imperturbable dealer TO start with
wonder, and a glance Of Joy to fit
his face-two things that had
not occurred before within the memory
Of man.
The stranger played heavily, for the
bank had no limit, and in less than an
hour the banker slowly uttered "Geu-
this bank is closed!' The
stranger ordered bis servant to gather
up the gold, and then scattered Il hand
ful of among the crowd, vanish
ed amid the confusion, by this man
euver escaping a probable blow from a
.uclillO in the alley without
"That man is an enigma" muttered
Don jaime, with Il long-drawn breath.
his is the third time that l have wit
lessed the same thing each time he
broke the bank, and then vanished,
asst how nobody could tell, though l
AYE heard that the host curLilIo in