Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1878-11-17
DRAW POKER.
The Statesmen and DIpIomatIsts who
Used TO Indulge I'm It In the Golden
Days Of Washington Life
Humphrey Marshall, Thad
stevens and BodiscO.

CO neTs IN those old days, either. Inc MEM
bers walked IN natural-like, as if it was a
home or a Sunday-school, and sat around in
the windows, bowling to their friends In the
street. Well sir, IN those times | don't be-
lleve there was more than half dozen mem
bers we didn't know we'll in business way,
but swear now as a gentleman, that not
more than four members Of the last congress
ever came to our rooms. It's dead, sir; !
tell you it's dead"
Where do they play now?"
Play? Pshawl They get together on
short cards in their room at the hotel aud
play on twenty-five cent ante and five dol
lars limit, and II a man loses ten dollars in
the course OF a night, he goes out next day
and puts Grape on his hat, and invites the
whole town to the funeral. Call that play
Why the man that wins twenty-five dollars
on turn now thinks his reputation for 2
gambler Is established, and he begins to
talk about US fellows that play. If we can't
10 better than that there's only one thing
lett: well have to turn in and eat zach other
up
How heavy was the old play?"
Wen, hundreds was the usual run, but
we thought nothing OF having thousand or
two up on turn. There was old Humphrey
Marshall, and Bob's eyes began to glisten
at the name, 81 swear be was a prince.
never saw an amateur in my experience OF
forty years who would put down as much
cold money out Of his hands as Marshall
Some fellows, you know, are queer about
cards. There was the other Marshall he was
different from Humphrey that way. He laid
himself out on piling his chips up to the cell
ing. But Hum phrey would come IN and pull
the cold cash out of his clothes and put it all
down on a turn. He made lots Of money,
lived like a lord, and never seemed to be
short. Hold up! Yes, he was short once,
that's fact" continued Bob, with a deep
hugh. TWAS about the time he came back
from Chill where he was American minister.
II came into the rooms one day and said that
AIS wife wanted an addition to the house,
and he was going to give her money to build
it with right off that table; and by the Lord,
he did! He walked off with forty-fou hum
dred dollars on three turns, and next day be-
gan work On his house. He played just like
one of us-had that regular clear grit, you
know, and cool as ice all the time!"
Amy more rare specimens?"
"Oh, / couldn't name EN- all now Every
body played, | tell you, In those days, and
they were perfect gentlemen about it. One
OF the grandest old men at the business was
Thad. Stevens. Thad., he played pretty
game, not very big, but scientific; and then,
too, he was regular about it. Never came
across any one who had bigger soul OF
no Tor about him than Thad. I used TO love
hun like brother. he always played blue
chips, never got excited at all, but took more
solid comfort out of 1t than most any one |
when ne was on his deathbe6. The doctors
had been giving out that he was sick of this
thing and that, and wouldn't let any one
come into his room. He sent for me. When
/ got there the honsekeeper said that she
had been positively ordered not to let any
person talk with Mr.. Stevens, but Thad
happened TO hear my voice and he called me.
Bob, sad be, these old fools are trying to
lind some excuse for killing me off, but it s
all nonsense. Seventy eight years is my
complaint. I wanted to see you, old fellow,
before | pass in my chips for the last time, >
and be died that day, the grandest and best
old fellow we've had here in public life for
many day, tell YOU"
Some of these foreign fellows used to be
game, especially the Russians. | guess it is
in the blood with them; anyhow, they all had
1T IN the old days, from Bodisco down. He
was queer coon, but the most systematic
man at the game you ever saw. He used to
set aside just so much money for his little fun
1t he was In luck he d play ahead, and some
times cleared stake, bat generally he didn't
turn up well, and when so much was gone
he d push his chair back from the table and
say quietly, in almost the same words. NE
appropriation for Eat is all exhaust Then,
1t he didn' feel tired, he'd look on for while
before gong home. He never went over his
limit on the appropriation. The fellows con
nected with the Russian legation then used
to come around nearly every day, some of
them playing big. II they did. t have the
cash 1t made no difference, for they were Just
as good as old wheat. The bank kept q reg
ular account with them by the month, and
when their slnews of war came around they'd
clear the slate. But nowP Lord | don't
believe any of those good old fellows are IN
the country any more. Just appears like
pestilence or hurricane had come along and
swept the whole crowd away or into the
grave. l tell you, it's dead, sir, dead as
Julius Cesar"
''Well, that being the fact" we inquired,
what IS the average profit now-a- days, to
the square inch, derived from keeping a
lunch and free bar for customersF''
PROFIT? Good Lordl" responded Robert
with rather extreme feeling for an old man,
and, turning TO one of his friends, he called
attention to the peculiar question put to him
IN this year Of peace, 1873. "Well, now,
honest up, I'll tell you there isn't customer
who comes to the rooms now. DAYS who
doesn't eat his head off and drink up his
Jaws three times over in twenty-four hours.
The thing came on us gradual like when the
war began. In the old days there was money
IN the game, and it paid to dine and wine
your patrons. When a game used 10 clear
upward Of one hundred thousand dollars in
a season, we could afford to be generous and
give away the lunch. | can remember one
year when we got away during the season
with fifteen hundred baskets OF champagne
Il
now, but other values were in proportion.
We never thought of asking a gentleman
what he'd have to drink when he looked
thirsty; we Just rung the neck of bottle
and that was the end of It, Cham
payne was the only drink. We lived
then, hear me. Well, as I'm standing
here, just to show you how things have
changed, there never used to be any small
chques leaving the game to scatter around
the room at short cards. Never saw it ex-
cept once in a great while, when some par
ticular old friends felt as if they'd like
turn at poker, and, Of course, they were
treated with Just as much clvIlity as If they
had their chips down on our board But,
good heavens! when the war broke out and
the old boys scattered the suffers and quar-
termasters came into power, and they didn't
take to the game in the same free way you
know. They took well enough to the lunch
and the short cards till we had to cut off the
freedom and charge for the side cuts. 1t
went along that way tom bad to worse every
year, until now we're down to hard-pan
sure. The fellows that come along now don
play enough to pay the niger or gas bill. So
you SEE, the shutters are up
Has this same frost struck the other 10.
caljties?"
Eyes, replied Bob, with a doleful con-
traction of the eyebrows, 'the same every-
where. Why, would you believe it, even the
old summer resorts don't care any more for
the game. went down this summer to
White Sulphur, Just to see if couldn't find
some Of the old southern blood. We opened
out. One day the bank took thirty-four dol
lars; then didn't do a cents worth of bust
ness for several days, until some Youngsters
dropped in, and we cleared about twenty
dollars. That sickened me, and packed up.
| thought, you know, If there was any game
left in the old stock it would grow up at the
White, but its all changed; tie crowds there
are different. getting too general fOO pro-
miscuous, and too poor. The men sit around
on the veranda, take the girls driving, and
buy ball tickets for them-all such soft sport
as that; but they've quit risking stakes on
turn like the old boys. No use talking about
it, the moneys gone. 1t made me feel sick
looking around that place, to think how
changed everything is since the war, espe-
cially in our business. 1t played the devil
with us. Wen have TO learn a new trade, l
guess" and Bob sadly readjusted his quid
for a secret session with the dead past and
its cherished memories.