Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1875-01-09

s'They usually bet on the old woman. Just
I ok here (paSsing the cards over one another
dexteriouSlyD Here il the old woman, with
one corner turned up. The nat sees ~. AMI
would bet his bottom dollar that be can pick
IL up. Perhaps he bets on IL and wins. That
makes the fiat moro confident, and he Is ready
10 bet again. The chances next time ma INT
be so good. Here followed another rapid
shifting of the three cards Can you pick up
the old woman? Ha, hai You see that ain
IL. Turned that corner while shifting them.
Here's the old woman (picking up carl
with the corner smOothed out. little black
ened by a dirty thumbl Now you under
stand how IL i done. We change The looks
of the card in manipulating it. Sometimes
this way (stIOwing a longitudinal creas -
sometimes so, exhibiting lateral crease.
complicated by a compound fracturel Ii all
depends on the skill of the monte man, you
know. Ii he IL awkward he loses; IL he is
quick and active he wins. But Y amt sure
thing any way. Ii can't be. No man can
put a spot on the cariS the way you say. He
would be detected AT it"
what has been your usual disguise wnen
working the trains"
Il have always represented myself as a
miner. When got on the trains in Nevada
going cast had always made NV pile and
was going home, and when 1 was cOmind
this way was just coming down To have
good time at Frisco before left for the east.
1 would always have my pockets full Of
money. and was always green ana innocent.
and acted as If did not know how To take
care of il. Then | rOpcd the people in in va
rious ways by the aid ofmy cappcrs, snd the
Good people would come To me aad tell me
wasn't fl 10 have any money, and had bet
ter give il TO the conductor 10 take care of,
or put " I'm the express car don't think
have been very unmcrcifui 10 men | have
heeCed. II they came To me and said that
was all the money they had, or that they
were ruined and had families, and all that
sort of thing, / always let them have some OF
the money back, ii il amounted To anything
at all"
What class Of men have been principally
the victims 81 thTec-Cari monte Sharp~2'
. oh, men of all CLASSES and professions,
lawyers, doctors. merchants and Clergymen.
But preachers are the best game, / think. /
don't know why, exactly, but they bite we9
Several have lost money on the overland
trains. and some of them have made a fIsS
about IL, when il was ala their own fault. /
have now. I'm Nevada. watch that / won
from an Oregon preacher who was going o. a
tour of Europe with money furnished 10y his
congregation II is covered all over with cx-
pres>ionS OF the tendercst love and good Will
OF his flock
Il understand YOU have been 10 Europe"
g Yes, and have just returned; got back
last August"
What places did you viSit:"
'Uh. went To England and about on the
continent; visited Baden Baden and Monaco,
and other cities. At Baden Baden gambling
still goes on, though privately. i'm spite OF the
government prohibition. But the stakes
played Tor are too high for any small fry like
me There is little gambling i'm Paris, and
three-card monte il not a good game u be
played on continental roads. [ PLAYED IT,
however, and successfully. too, on all the
great roads in England-LOndon and Liver
pool, Midland and Northern. l should have
stayed there If had known how things were
going here.
Have any of the thTee-card monte men
made money at the business
"Some of them have and some Of them
haven't They win and lose, have thousands
of dollars one day and nothing the next.
That's the way u goes with them. Canada
Bill Is the richest of them all. He * worth
cl5O.0O, which he has invested in real g tate
IN Chicago, Omaha, ard other places. He
OWNS several small hotels i'm both these cities.
But he did not make all his money in tie
three-card monte business. Most of il he
won at banking games"
The conversation ended with some account
OF the life of Slim jim, or James Ross. as he
may as well be called. He said that he WAS
thlrty-seven years old. He had livel most
OF his life at san Antonne, and hal ATTENDED
school there. Upon his scarf was a pretty
School-SOciety badge with the lone star,
remfniscence of his days of innocence Ever
since lac arrived at manhood he had PLAYED
gambling games, but those things are not
looked at as 50 very bad in Texas. He had
been away from his native state for five
years, and in that time had been all over the
world playing three-card monte. He had
made some money. and was going east 10 en-
gage in Legitimate business. He did think
IL was about time for them to let up on him.
They had accused him anyway of a Thousand
things he had never been guilty Of lie fol-
lowed the reporter to the door, and left him
with the injunction that he hoped lac would
go 1t light on him." SO the two parted.