Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1884-07-15
us CAREFUL WHOM YET PLAY
WITH.
New York SIM. |

The safest place for poker sharp to
practise his cheating is in h company of
gentlemen, where the players are natur-
ally less on their guard than they would
be IN gambling house. 1t is best to
beware OF strangers, no matter who in
troduoes them. AS a rule, men who are
known TO be in reputable business are
not suspected of cheating. 1t is COM
mon thing for few well known friends
TO meet frequently at some hstel and
have a quiet game, in which the win
nings vary with the ordinary chances of
the cards, and with no very serious loss
To nyoody. But there are professional
poker sharps who make it a business to
get introduced to that class of games,
and 10 fleece the unsuspecting after
long and shrewd preparation, almost
impossible OF detection.
know one case where at least three
confederate poker sharps fieeced a COM
pany of gentlemen by plan which CO.
cupied six months in its development.
They got introduced, one after another,
IN private game, pretended to be per-
feet strangers, and hsd their code of
signals and plan of joint operations SO
arranged as to baffie detection. They
did not Introduce one another to the
game, but managed TO get introduced
by different gentlemen. They pretended
to be strangers in the city, although
they had been professional gamblers for
years. They would lose money at times,
but almost always to one another. They
would get one of the unsuspecting play
ers between them, and rock him until
he had put mp his last dollar, then bet
over him, and, when he was driven out,
one OF the others would pretend to be
over-bet, and would also drop ont, so
that neither would be compelled To
show his hand. OF course. when they
got a pot III this way they would Sc
cretly divide.
TIE thing WAS worked so shrewd.y
that they were not suspected mp to the
very last. They always talked business
at the sessions. One was an alleged
stock broker, another vas purchaser
of horses for the government, another
was in the commission business. they
were never seen together. and the pos
sIbility Of collision appeared almost
impossible.
The company was composed of men
In active business who played for pleas
ure, and TO whom the loss of few hun
dreds was of little consequence. When
the exposure came the proof was so diff
hcult that the news Was whispered and
never openly stated. but it was satisfac-
tory To the other players. When they
began TO compare notes ID Was soon
found that each time any member of
the company lost heavily. il was when he
got caught between Two of these men.
IL was Also proved that neither of them
ever lost any money except To one of the
others. II WAS found that their pretend
ed business was spurious, and that they
had stsnply been making living out of
the rest
When that was found out the repusa-
BILE players made 10 scene. They merely
stepped playing. The sharpers got tired
of winning only from one another, and
soon dropped cut: all of which goes 10
show that when YOU propose 10 play
pok ~ith friends, You had better be
sure thew are friends, aud you may save
somsihing by playing cautiously with
strangers.