The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1877-04-28
THREE CARD MONTE.
ACountryman Sells His Lumber and
is Roped in By Monte Men,

yosta,asv a man named Ike Smith
came up on one of the packets tor
the purpose of disposing OF q
quantity of lumber. While IN the cry
smith succeeded in disPosi1g OF inc
nroperty in question at islr price, anu
having received the ducats tor the same,
vent on bis way rejoicing. But man is
full of errors, "for to err It's human, to
forgive divine" and Smith was led astray
by certain and sundry individuals, whose
business is to rope in the unsoPhlstlcateo,
While on the levee. He was
frst approached by portly red faced
loster with rather glib tongue In MS
head who entered into conversation With
him and finally invited him to take
walk. Smith having taken liking to
his new found friend, of course accepted
the invitation, and walking down Water
street, was introduced by his new
friend to q consuu ptive looking man,
who had the appearance one VINO main
but q short time TO live This fellow
was rather brash IN his demonstrations,
[ and produced from his clothes trap
with which he contemplated to dupe his
victim, but the countrymsn didn
bite, and the man with hack
ing cough put up his tools and en-
tered into the general conversation with
the man from the rural parts and the red
faced capper. Passing on down Water
street, they encountered three other men,
and finally wound up in saloon, where
they imblbed of glass of beer Here
one of the party proposed thu old time
knife trick, but the countryman, thanks
to providence, had read OF the same IN
the daily papers, and repudiated his ad-
vances, giving him the go by IN the end.
This action of Smith, however, did not
deter in the least the remaining men,
bers OF the party from getting IN their
work. Not much; they were thorough
b eds, and were happy in the thought,
at least they so expressed themselves,
that Smith had treated the other man
in a manner as to cause him to leave
the party. They were, indeed, in glorI-
GUS spirits; asked Smith to take
another drink, which Smith did, and
proposed TO go down to the river bank
about the Baltimore and Ohio depot. 10
this latter proposition Smith at first de-
INJURED, but finally assented, and togeth-
er the party weuded their way to point
on the bank of the placid OHIO directly
west of the depot IN question. Here
they seated themselves and a cOnv"rsa-
ton on various topics eDsued, when, oi u
sudden, one of Smiths friends produced
three common playing cards and began
manipulating them in a manner which
was wondrous to behold, and Smith was
asked to- pick out = card after such ma
nipulation which had previously been
shown him. Of course he did
so successfully, but finally sue
cumbed to the fsttering prospects of
fortune which lay before him, and
gambled S. that he could pick out the
| rig ut card He lostt gambled again end
| lost, and so on To the end, or until his
pocket book was empty, and the wealth
which he had received 70: his lum Ier,
some $50 or $40, was in the hands Of the
sharpers, and left them a ssddcr if not
wiser man. From what we can
learn, some four or five of these
fellows have been lying about the
levee the past few days laying in wait
for unsophistocsted victims, taking them
in with the strap game, Monte, knife
trick, or other game, with which they
are plentifully supplied, and have sue
cessiully robbed several countrymen. 1T
would be we'll for the police to keep an
eye open in that direction. The parties
engaged in the games are strangers here,
and have been in the city but II short
time.