The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1883-04-06
BETTING on a Certainty.

In the British army in India betting
among the officers often runs to an ex-
treme of vice that is sometimes fearful
to contemplate. Perhaps i. is no worse
than in club life in London, where the
most amusing as well as tragical stories
are told of the curious bets that are
made. Betting on certainty is held
to be unfair, unless the avowal Is dis
tinctly made, so that no undue advant-
age is taken.
An officer in the army had imported
for his private apartments a new and
beautiful mahogany table. A day or
two after it had arrived and had been
duly installed in his quarters, brother
officer, a great swell and very unpopu.
lar, dropped in Familiarity, and greatly
admired the beautiful table. The own
er was shaving himself at the glass with
his back to his visitor-Col. Brown
but continued the conversation until the
Colonel withdrew, the latter remarking
that he hoped soon to have his legs
under that elegant mahogany.
The owner of the table, whom we
must call Maj. Jones, made up little
dinner party in the course of few
days, and Col. Brown was one of the
number. 1t was natural that the new
table should be the subject of remark,
and Brown, who affected to be con-
noisseur in all matters, said the table
was perfect, with one exception.
Jones-"And pray what is that,
Colonel? ?"
Brownie is just little too high"
Jones-"Do you think so? How high
would you suppose it to be?"
Brown-"I presume it is the usual
height, ipst thirty-six inches, and it
ought to be less than that by at least
half an inch"
Jones-"That is the exact height,
thirty -tive and half inches, not thir-
ty-six, as you suppose"
Brown-"Pardon me. / am certain it
is three feet high; 1 will make you
bet on it,"
Jones-"You will lose if you do, for I
give you notice that L know its exact
height to half an inch, and if L bet L
shall bet on dead certainty"
Brown am just as sure as you are;
1 am betting on certainty, also; my
eye never deceives me. l will lay you
a hundred or a thousand pounds that
this table is thirty-six inches high; no
more, no less"
The Major sought to dissuade his
guest from his purpose to make
bet, assuring him that he knelC the
height of the table, and did not want to
bet on a certainty, but, when the excite
ment grew furious, the wager was
finally laid at an enormous sum- have
heard it stated as high as $50, 600
$1,000 That seems preposterous,
when such q trife was the subject, but
the gambling spirit does not stick at
trihes. When the betting was finally
arranged, Col. Brown exclaimed,
exultingly, Il told you kne,C the table
was exactly thirty-six inches high; L
did know it, because when L called,
just after it arrived, L took its measure
on my cane as 1 sat by it, and after L
went out L measured, and found it to
be, as I have said, precisely thirty-six
inches high"
"Yes," said Maj. Jones, II was sit
ting with my back to you, but L was
shaving before the looking-glass, and
saw you taking the measure from the
table with your cane. Suspecting that
you were preparing for bet as to it's
height, after you left 1 had half an
inch taken off, and it is now precisely
thirty-fve and half inches high"
The applause that followed this result
was tremendous, and completed the
discontinue of the unpopular Colonel.
1t was evident that he had been
laying a plan to cheat, and would have
pocketed the money if he had won. He
was sent to Coventry. He sold his
commission and returned to England,
being unable to stand up against the
contempt of the officers, who thorough
ly disposed his character. -Harpe,'s
Mdqdzine.