St. Landry democrat., 1882-09-02
Gamblers Tricks.

from the police, that only those gamb
ling places where square games are
played. are allowed to run. And the
fools who gamble are none the less fools
for believing it, The fact is, however,
that there is hardly a gambling house
in Chicago, where crookedness is not
practiced. In some OF the games, such
as faro, the percentage against the play
er is very small. if no cheating device
is employed. Does any one suppose
that the proprie'ors of a gambling house
are too conscientious to employ a little
trickery to increase the chances OF fleec-
ing their victims2 The devices for
cheating at cards are SO numerous and
so difficult of detection that they can be
employed by the professional with very
little risk; and those who play faro, rou-
lette, poker, etc., in the gambling rooms
of Chicago may rest assured that these
devices-all of them that are known to
the PROFESSIONALS more or less used.
There is absolutely no chance for them
to win in the long run.
In faro the most common method OF
increasing the chances Of the dealer to
win is by the employment of box so
constructed that upon being pressed at
particular spot two cards can be re-
moved at once instead of one. In this
way the whole course of the game can
be changed. Having provided himself
with such box, and most of the boxes
are of this convenient pattern, the
dealer sand-papers his cards They are
glazed cards, slippery, and he cannot
be sure that two will come out together
l., l. hn tab hn
pack and divides it into two parts.
With piece of the finest emery paper
he sand-papers very slightly the backs
of half the pack and the faces of the
other half. You would never notice it,
but it makes them adhesive, and by
merely pressing the cards together he
can move two at time whenever he
pleases. But this is not all. He takes
one-half the pack, and. with a very
sharp razor or file, bevels the edge at
one end. 1t may be only the thousandth
part of an inch, but it is enough to
allow the dealer to divide the pack
into two sections whenever he pleases,
and, of course, he knows the contents
of each part. Imagine what a chance
this gives the dealer:
In any game in which hands are dealt
out to the players the professional can
and does have an immense advantage
by practicing what is known as ''shift-
inc the cut" BY skilled manipulation of
the cards in shutting he gets them so
that he knows just where certa n cards
in the pack are. The cards are cut,
and this disarranges the order. By
shifting the CUT the cards are re-
stored to just the order they were in be-
fore the cut was made This operation
can be performed in a way which deties
detection, even though the one execut-
ing it is closely watched by all sitting at
the table with him. OF course the deal
er who can practice this trick has an
immense advantage, as it enables him
to-keep track of the cards as he had
originally arranged them in the pack
while shutting.
Poker playing is exceedingly popular
in Chicago and is played in hundreds of
localities besides in the gambling den5.
Poker rooms in the rear of many of the
more pretentious saloons and in hotels
are common. While shifting the cut is
great assistance to the dealer in tax.
ing an unfair advantage over an OppO-
nent, it sinks into insignifcance by the
side of the employment of marked cards.
With these the element of chance dis
appears, and any game played with
them is nothing more nor less than
stealing, those understanding the
marked backs of the cards being the
thieves, and those who do not the vic
tins. A very large number of these
marked cards are manufactured and
sold.
And this is only one of his tricks.
Shift the cut? You can cut the cards
before his eyes; he will pick them up,
and while you are watching the pack
Just as close as you can, he will shift the
cut within twelve inches of your face,
and you can never see it done. You
have heard the sleight-of-hand men tell
about motion being quicker than sight.
1t is only dodge in their hands. but it
is certainly true, The most wonderful
card tricks done by a prestidigtateur
are mere child's tricks compared with
what a skillful gambler will do with
pack of cards. France, England and
the United States furnish nine-tenths of
all the card sharpers-what we call the
experts. This is, perhaps because we
have the most perfect cardsin the world.
that can be depended on every time.
The French cards, which are also used
in England and America, are better
made, better printed and more reliable
than any others. The best cards Of all
are made in America. but they are still
called French cards, as distinguished
from the Spanish, Chinese and others.
The Spanish cards are ornamented with
soldiers, swords and guns, and are gen
orally rough and very poorly made:
Some OF our best cards in this country
are what we know as "crooked,h made
by special dealers, expressly for profes-
SIGNALS, These are marked cards, and.
of course, there no use of any outsider