The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1882-08-12

winner not sold yet" called out Auc-
iioneer Spitz to two hundred old, mid.
dle-aged and young men seated in the
Sansom street pool rooms on Saturday
afternoon. "Only Charley b., Fellow
play and Macbeth sold," continued the
pool-seller, his eye on the alert for 4
signal. "It's safe as church in Green.
land, and il you lose you have the salts
faction of betting on game horse
There, | thought I'd catch that fellow.
Twcnty--twen,y- twenty-four-six-
make it seven ; six-six-six-seven
can have it. Mack takes il at twenty
seven," and young man, whose legs
were encased in eel-skin pantaloons, and
who sported pcn-shaped shoes and big
white hat, walked up TO the foot of the
clerk table after his pool.ticket.
"How much for the feld-Bally,
Maggie C., Buxom and Knightly King.
Have s5? Aregular pudding. Over
SIso in the pool. Five dollars for the
field. Yours, sir" ratified away the per-
spring auctioneer. A jaunty.looking
lad blushed to the roots of his hair Is he
came forward to pay over his cash. 1t
was evidently his first pool-tiCket. The
selling went on briskly. The races were
TO be run at Coney Island, the pool
rooms being with the grounds
by a telegraph wire running into the
cashiers room. Three or four clerks
were kept busy all the afternoon at the
auction pool stage marking off the
"pools," issuing tickets and taking in
the cash. On the right of the stage,
ilanked on one side by large safe and
on the other by desk full Of ponder
ous-looking books, sat the cashier, who
figured out the ; per cent. commission
OF the "house," and paid over the bal
ance TO the holders of the winning
cards, the successful horse being chalked
up on a blackboard rs soon rs the result
OF each race was received. The cashier
was inside Of wire cage, which had 4
small opening, through which money
was passed, the whole affair suggesting
the fable of the spider and the fly. As
the hours OF the afternoon wore on the
ihrong of bidders in front Of the stage
increased so that il was almost impossi-
BILE for any OF them TO move about
The large, airy room. however, notwiih-
standing the sultry weather outside, was
kept comparatively cool by a dozen
large fans, kept in motion by steam
Those who became thirsty could get re-
lief At the spacious bar running along
one side OF the room, and the demand
for beer was At times so great rs 10
threaten TO exhaust the very liberal sup
PLY on hand. Those who were too busy
TO 20 out after their meals could I'LL up
on store pies that covered side coun-
ter. After a while the betting became
fast and furious, and pools sold At the
rate OF two 4 minute. The auciioneeT
was KEEP; busy and perspiring, but he
managed occasionally TO work off joke
to keep the crowd in good humor.-
Pools went of like hot cakes in Decem.
Der, some OF them for as high rs $500,
Others rs low as SIS. "Just little flyer
for fun" as the seller said in closing uT
the latter. While the auction pool.
were in full blast hundreds of eager
votaries of the tickle Goddess Of Fortune
were ranged about the big blackboards,
and the French pool-boxes, in anothei
part of the room. The scenes here
were, il possible, more enlivening than
those about the auction stage. The
combination pool is the delight Of the
small boy, and possesses fascination
even for the veteran. Here an adven.
,urer can make n bet for half a dollar
and il he wins may "pick up" As man,
dollars as he put down pennies. Each
man selects three horses from the entirs
list in tine days races. IL all Of hi,
horses win he is paid according to the
entire amount in the pool and the mum
Der Of tickets held by Others on the sams
horses.
The French pool system is something
like the combination plan, except that
the betting is confined to single races,
and but one horse is chosen in each.-
Occasionally lucky fellow puts small
amount in one Of these pools and get
out small fortune. French pools have
been known TO pay 500 TO the luck,
holder Of ticket for which he paid bet
half n dollar. At the combination
boards one man is kept busy making uI
the combinations, another handling th,
stream OF half dollars flowing into tn,
the treasury and third giving out tn,
tickets. which are for all the world like
little white and blue railroad tickets.
Morning, noon and night this pool
selling and pool-buying goes on. Th'
great running races are the most entic
ing bait, but no races in which combi
nations can be made are despised. Eaci
day regularly brings together the sam'
familiar faces.
Perhaps some one will wonder wher'
"Billy" has gone, or "What's up will
Bob S'-careless questions which ma,
be answered in the next days newspa
pers, recording the arrest and commit
ment of a trusted clerk for misappropria
ting his employers funds, and th,
"boys" next day will tell each othe
that they thought "Billy" was plunginl
! too much and had been going n wild
Sometimes the hackers Of pool-roou
will warn an employer or a father tha
the clerk or the son Is betting heavily
but cases are not frequent. The small
boy and the pert young lad in pointes
shoes as well as the broker, the profes
sional horseman and the hardened sharp
all mingle in a scramble after the paste
| a-a w.-rl as~lmse ~w,A 70 erx..a2sxx.a