The Canton advocate. [volume] (Canton, D.T. [S.D.]) 1877-1897, 1879-07-17

'ss q ae5Segg NUMBER Ii. &
you'd had the impudence to send to asl
1how old she was, she'd no objection {
telling you that she's seventy -four" -.
r. THREE-CARD MONTE. Sstl
Anew "reminiscences of the Great Three Car,
Monte ''Sharp, '''Canada BILL 2s2
Phil.delphia Times: so 's6bo4''5 e'.sSt'A ~
| Three-card monte is a swindling gam,
at which it is, impossible to beat the op
orator, and it has been SO thoroughly ex
posed that there ought not to be any vic
Tins. Nevertheless the. monte spider
seeking human flies Of present wealth
dexte1ously handling his cards and skill
! fully talking the while, makes his living
about as easily as he did in the days o.
the war, when money, was SO plenty. Ar
old railroad conductor, now passenger
agent for the Chesapeake & Ohio road
but who ran train on the Baltimore &
Ohio road during the war, relates that he
knew "Canada Bill'' to gather in $4,000
IN one train from Martmsburg to Baiti.
more, distance of one hundred miles
"Canada Bill" is name we'll known ia
the gambling fraternity, although he who
was known by that title was some years
age laid to rest. His death, which cut
off from the earth the smartest operator
of three cards that ever was seen, took
place when he was trifle more than for
ty years of age. "Just as well to die
now, !" said he, when told that medicine
could not save him. "Might as well cut
the game, because the cream of the mon
te has been skinned. There won't be
another war, and they amt going to build
no more Pacific railroads, and it's hard
for me to play for ten when L used to
catch a hundred twice as easy" When
his last minute came he sat up in mis- bed
and called out: "Fifty dollars to ten you
can't pick up the ace" and then he fell
dead. 5r,r.5 ,t.f Il
That is the story told of his last mo-
ments, and may be true if the old saying
has no exception that the ruling passion
is strong in death. Bills great boast was
that he had beaten minister. Chicago
newspaper reporters of the year 1874 re-
member of the excitement the city editors
Of the papers there, except one, were
thrown into by the exclusive publication
by that one of the story of a well-known
minister who became victim to "Canada
Bills" wiles on train on the Chicago,
Rock Island and Pacific railroad. He
had lost nearly thousand dollars. Can
ada Bill did not bear the reputation of
having been the most expert dealer, but
he did that of having been the most skill.
tul operator. In the slang of the profess
ion, she could ring in the suckers better
than anybody" and here is sample of
his proceedings that came under the OBJ
servatlOn of the writer few years age
The Illinois State fair held at Decatur.
was Just over, and the Changers we're fill
ing the trains, homeward bound. Bill,
got into the train just moving from the
station and attracted attention by saving
in loud tone, "Well, no farmer has q
show with railroads. They kill his stock
and laugh at him when he wants pay for
it, "What's uP?" asked his clever cap
per, and Bill related: II brought three
head of Durham calves down here from
Winnebago county and got premiums
on all of them. Twas having them put
on the car to send home"-by this time
the attention of every granger in; theacar
was attracted when one, of the csn.r
,sarned fools let one of them break q leg,
on the bridge from the cattle pen to the
stock car, and they had to kill it to put
it out Of misery. wouldn't have taken
$500 for the calf, but the railroad tells
mel was shipping reduced rates and
amt got acy claim. '.sslaw doc. T4a, ,eS .1ss
The conversation that ensued and the
statement. that Bill had made put him, on
the best possible terms and in the conf
dence of all the grangers, and so when
he presently spread his ovcrcoat and said
first. "I'll sue the; road, anyhow, y and
then. 81 found this little game that'Q he
funny lor the Winnebago folks, anyway"
he had no lack of listeners and Interested
watchers, and sitter that is accomplished
the work of the three-card monte man is
easy. Human nature, rich avaricey does the.
rest. Bill drew out his cards and proceed
ed to tell how he had won $3.50 after losing
800, '.just as easy" he went on, 'as this.
Now here's the money" and he pulled
out pig-skin ipocketbook tied up with
,twine which he undid and exposed pile
of notes to the amOnnt of several hundred
dollars. "No discount on that: easier
made than turning a long furrow." His
capper asked for an explanation and Bill,
told him all there was init and lost forth
with $50 to yhlsi accomplice., BY this
<;,,,o hale n 1o,on pooEa<b1oko x.,oro o,,A
and bets came in freely In half an hour
the train reached Tolono, where passen-
gers change for Chicago, and Bill, about
5000 ahead, got up remarking: "Well,
gentlemen, I'm going to Chicago to see
q lawyer about recovering Tor that calf.
Good night.' And before thesastonished
granger, could realize tho situation he
had disappeared through the door. Halt
an hour ,afterward he was seen on the
north bound train, dressed in the height
Of fashion and looking like an ything but
the coarsely-clad man on the Wabash
road. s!aplt t.6 .ss.s!s e'.s atp1a ssis IA
"a 1t is said that Canada Bill made 800,
600 during his career as q card -throwcr,
hut when he died, in Council Bluffs, Iowa,
he left Just enough Of money to. give him
decent funeral. Like many of his pro
fession, he found sattthe faro table his
greatest pleasure, and his winningswent
from him more easily than they came
He was great player Of draughts, and
won much money that way. OF his early
life not much is known. He was born
and lived for some years at Peetskill, n:
II, on the Hudson river, just below
FPoughkeepsie. He was often arrested,
but never stayed long in prison. Alter
the war his field Of operations was mostly
on the Pacific railroads, west Of Omaha,
Himself man Of daring and personal
desperate than himself, but his presence
Of mind never deserted him, and when
everything else failed he was g ready
with his weapon as his adversary, He
never drank to excess and had no intimate
friends. Some years ago he visited Phila-
delphia. It was in the days when