The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1879-02-27
NEW RULES IN BILLIARDS.
a Brief History of the POTuIar Game L
the PreAent Time.

a Rrief History of the POVuIar Game 10
lhe PresenI Time.
The dispute between the French and
American players of billiards on the
question Of rail nursing, as exempiifed
by Sexton and Schaeter, can be fully
understood on reading the following
interesting resume OF the game Saws
the New York Sun: The astOnishingIv
iarge runs made by some of the billiard
experts who took part in the recent
tournament In this city drew special
attention to the faults and merits Of
" nursing" Should a change be made
in the rules OF the game, il Is likely to
be brought about, not directly by con
yentlUn Of experts, but through the
popular favor which al innovation made
Gy the giver of prizes aC q tournament
may find. In the proposed spring tourna
ment II Is said that NIgnaUx viii
undoubtedly take part. The question If
change Is very largely national The
French experts, as GARNER, RUdOlphe.
and Niguaux, are earnest in his favor,
while sexton, SlOssOn, Gallagher, Schae
fer and Heiser view the proposition
cOldiy or positively oppose IL. Maurice
DAILY and Dion incline TO the side OF
the FTenchmen. Daily says il Is a great
mistake TO suppose that nursing balls
along the rails Is an easy thing. II
requires spl mid nerve and perfect exc
CuuOn. the objection To il he thinks.
is that 1t brings the element 0. chance
into the game. II the bal roll so that q
player can get them beside the rail, II is
20 a great extent a matter OF course that
ne will win. He was asked whether he
approved the prop siLiUn to make II
obligatory that the players ball should
strike the cushion before or Just afyer
seriEing the first object ball.
No" he said, that would throw
OUtmany fine masses. draws, spreads and
follows. Il w=uld strip The game of a
large share Of It's beauties in one blow.
Let me recall to you " ne continueC,
how the history OF billiards within my
time has been q repetition If efforts a.
make the game more d tticult. About
the time the war broke out, in 1861, We
used to play on the old English table
with four balls and six pockets Very
we'll players went to work and mastered
the pockets by means of what was called
the spot stroke A player who could
pocket 4 ball once and leave his own bail
in q certain position near the spOtting
patch, could Tepeat the stroke indie
hniteiy by merely drawing hin OVID ball
]
pockets were made smaller TO prevent
this spot stroke As a result, caroms
began to improve. Soon the runs began
TO improve in size again, and side pockets
had to be abolished. We had lett a
game with four balls and four pockets.
Again the players found a weak spot in
| the tables. They learned to Jaw the
balls, that Is, to wedge two Of them in
| the jaw of The pocket, and then run the
| game out. So jawing was abolished.
| The contest has been like that between
/ the inventors of cannon and the inventors
! Of defensive armOr. AS often rs the
players set to work and got an advantage
over the table, a new rule Is made, or the
table is altered. The next thing, after
! iawing, that players turned their atten-
! ton 10 was push shots, made in cases
| where now the masse i employed
! John NJ Dewitt became so accomplished
! in this that he could run the gsme out.
! So push shots were abolished.
! Consequent upon the abolition Of
| having and push shots, skill in the DIT
! ferent carOm and cushion shots increased
| to such an extent that the four remsin-
. ing pockets were discontinued. With
four balls on the table, the player who
/ found 10 opportunity to make = carom
/ thought u nSTu luck u chance 10
pocket wasn't staring him in the face
Still the runs made were so large that g
| remedy had 70 be found 10 Keep the
game difficult, and, therefore, interest
ing. This need resulted III the discard.
lug OF one OF the balls. Then we had
the present game-three balls on P pock-
etless table. About this time another
wea5 spot was discovered on the table.
The Gi-use u the packets, while it made
having impossible, created another point
Of advantage Tor the players. The bill
lard table then, for the first time, had
corners. We found that by careful play
the balls could be kept IN one c0rueI
(crctch) tor al iud-fiui period, or unit
the game was run out This advan tagt
gained by the players was net by a rule
that. after three shots had been made il
the crotch, one Of the two object ball.
on the ..ur5h shot must be 6rIven to
point over five inches from either raj.
THIS Is the game - 1t i now played
BuJ the playeIs, when they were bsIke
by ghe crotch rule, did not give up il
despair. II they could not impri-0u H.,
balls in & .rEvr, could tGey not ksel
tnem uader control along the rail? f.
tins way rail-nuFsing was developed