The Magnolia gazette. [volume] (Magnolia, Miss.) 1872-current, 1883-08-30

see him nled Just interfere with one OF
his pet superstitions and he'll curse a
blue streak. He's a great believer in
| spiders. Let one of them black, ugly
| things be about him while he's dealing
and he's as happy as a dead Injun.
Why, one night a stranger dropped in
during the game; the bank was win
ming every layout, and. spying spider
crawlin' on Hills shoulder, he brushed
it off and killed it. Well, such yelling
and swearingl Hill stopped the game,
and the startled stranger left the place
in a hurry. Since this Hill has had
bad luck, and attributes it to the spi-
der's death.
II lost a cool 81, 200 one night by just
having feller's foot on my chair dur
ing the game. When / found out the
cause l just raised my voice with both
hands and made very pretty speech.
The feller apologized and staked me
with 500 and took his foot away. /
started in and soon swamped the bank.
tell you [ want no mans foot on my
chair while I'm handling the paste
boards. Why, there's Brownie, I've seen
him throw many five-dollar gold piece
away just because some one would beat
his faro game. He'd look through his
money, and if he'd find the piece the
player had changed in he'd throw it
over the housetops, just because the
money was bad luck for the bank.
"Oh! / tell You these things sound
funny, but there's something in them.
| Why, sir, one of our boldest dealers
gets nervous and shaky if certain men
visit their rooms during game. Now,
there's Mac, he's good 'un and bold,
still he thinks Murphy's 'hoo-do," or
bad luck for him, and sometimes he'll
stop dealing when Murphy comes in.
His partner, Eddleman, is just as SUI
perstitious.
"There's Joe. just let him meet a
strange lady, and the Evil One himself
couldn't persuade him that he wasn't
going TO have good luck. But let his
washerwoman bring home collar
ironed on the wrong side, and he be-
lieves bad luck will follow him for
week. I've seen him stop big game
because he happened to find he had put
on different pair of socks from what
he intended. Ii his servant should for
get to black the heel of one of his boots
| Joe would consider this sign Of good
luck, and would back his faro game to
any amount.
"Neds the coolest of all. He believes
in streak of luck, and also has some
| pet superstitions He believes good
luck will follow him if he, by mistake,
puts on his stockings wrong side out,
and is never so happy at dealing faro as
when he finds the bow of his necktio
has slipped under his right ear. Ii it's
gotten under his left ear he gives the
| daal how IN R,.o,unsa ~
"How about the players who buck the
gamep Are they cranky alsoPr
Eyes. There's Cooley Bearer, for in,
stance. I've known him TO follow an
| old woman along the streets lust to get
the nib of her cigarette. This he'd keen
for several days in his vest pocket, on
the left side, and then go and buck the
tiger. If he'd win he'd say the cigar
ette brought good luck. Ii he lost, then
he'd say the old woman must have been
praying when she was smoking.
"Then there was Lance; his hobby
was that if he could touch a hunchback
person on the hump without the person
knowing it, he would be very fortunate
and strike a bonanza. Last summer
one of the Boston tourists had hump.
Lance saw him and prepared to touch
him. He followed him to the old
churches, curiosity shops and public
places, and several times was ON the
eve of stealthily touching the hump,
when the gentleman would turn around.
So persistent did Lance become that the
gentleman reported him to the police,
and the annoyance ended, much to
Lance's chagrin and modification. He
often said: If | could have done it, then
it's good-by to banks, but he didn't do
| it,
Another favorite superstition some
players have is to bet high on certain
cards if certain things occur during
game. If the dealer drops any money
in making change, then the ace and
king should be played to lose. If ne
gro enters room smoking, the jack
should be played to win. If two me-
groes enter arm in arm, then play the
ten as winner for all its worth n-San-
Ia Fe Cor. Philadelphia Press.