The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1882-07-14
GAMBLING In MEXICO.
Fendness of the Natives for Games
Chance.

Fendness of the Natives for Games o
Cfance.
Monte is the favorite game. It can
be played by any number Of players.
The monte cards are OF Spanish make,
and are very fine in quality they are Of
different design to our playing cards,
and forty.four OF them mako pack. In
this game there is large percentage
in favor OF the dealer, but netwith-
standing this there are always plenty
OF players, who risk and generally lose
their money. 1t is seldom that much
OF winning is made. The Spaniards
have q proverb which says: "There is
nothing certain about luck but that it
is bound to change" SO il they lose
to-day they will most likely resort to
the gaming table again to morrow, with
the hope by that time luck will have so
changed as to make them win. Young
men, cid gray headed sires. and often
women mingle together around the
gaming-table. Only one instance Of a
monte bank being broken up by q
policeman came under my observation,
SO will tell how it happened. A Ger
tain well-known gambler opened q
monte bank on one OF the principal
streets OF the town and was having o
pretty good run. Jim Nc, a police
man on that beat, dropped in one night to
see how things were going. He staked
quarter and won, he continued to win
until he had scooped in $150-all the
money in the bank. The dealer bor-
rowed 800 from friend and started in
again Jim soon had this, and the
dealer borrowed another hundred dol
lars, which Jim soon won. The dealer
was now broke. and the news spreading
that Jim Mo had broke up monte
bank on Commercial street, created
great excitement among the gamblers
until they learned that he had done it,
to them. the legitimate way, by "buck-
ing" it.
Another game, il it can be properly
called game, is high ball, and is very
popular. The desler is seated at long
table around which the players are also
seated, sometimes to the number OF
twenty. The dealer is provided with a
kind Of globe or urn, into which he puts
fifty small balls numbered from one to
fifty. Each player antes ten cents,
which entities him to draw ball. The
dealer shakes the globe SO as to mix the
balls, and then by means OF operating q
spring at the bottom OF it, takes out one
ball at time, and passes them to the
players until each has q ball. Any
player who thinks he has the ball hav
ing the highest number can now bet any
sum he likes. All the players now have
in their turn chance to "call" the bet
by putting up like sum, or the bet
may be "called and raised" The bet
ting is generally confined to three OF
four players, who have drawn high
numbers, and is sometimes quite heavy.
Those who draw small numbers and do
not bet forfeit their antes. When the
betting is concluded the balls are pass
ed to the dealer, who decides who wins,
and retaining ten per cent. for his
tvn2ti- - a., bai a.,.S Of tho --pUJ-
to the winner The dealer is at no risk
and ordinarily makes from $50 to 500
in night. The players get interested
In this simple game and often spend
the whole night in playing it. Besides
this, poker. faro. keno and m any other
games are publicly played. The owners
OF gambling houses make their business
public by advertisements in the news
papers and by signboards in front Of
their places Of sasjafage TEss prac
tice Of gambling does more to retard
the progress and prosperity OF the West
than anything else, because so many
squander their earnings at it, and form
habits OF idleness and viciousness by in.
pulging in it.-lToledo Blade.