McCook weekly tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 188?-1886, 1884-11-13
W York Commercial Advertiser.

| something About the Ea3fy History of the
Came It's Career in NetC York.
New York Commercial Advertiser.
"Have you any idea by whom or
when the game of faro was invented"
asked reporter of the Commercial
Advertiser few days ago while talking
with Charlie Dunn, the well known
gambler. The question was asked in
the course of conversation about gam
ing in general and particularly about
the prevalence of it in this city. Dunn
had previously said that there was more
gambling going on at present within
the precincts of this devoted city than
at any other in its history.
''Well, that is a question: replied
Dunn, crossing his legs with grunt of
supreme comfort and lighting another
cigar. ''Faro, my boy, dates back to
the inventors of almost all the games
that require thought. 1t was invented,
[ have heard, by the PhaDahs after
they had got tired of playing chess and
backgammon and all the other inno-
cent little games which brought them
so much enjoyment. But the new in
vention was the ruination of the
Pharaohs, for they gambled so much
that finally the Shepherd Kings went
for them and pulverized them, as
we say nowadays, so faro was
temporarily forgotten. The Piol-
meys revived it and it then crossed
over into Italy, where mosaics in the
ruins of Pompeii have been found rep
resenting two players deeply absorbed
in the primitive game. No, I'm not
joking. l never joke about any such
serious matters as faro. But, honestly,
no one knows when the game was real
ly invented. 1t is one of those things
which partook of the nature of Topsy
and simply growed.
1.-The earliest record We have of the
game is in the thirteenth century, when
it had assumed considerable popularity
in Italy and France. | am inclined to
believe that it is of Italian origin. From
the Italian we get the word 'pariee,'
which is used in the game now, and
means to let the stake lie and double.
The Italian original is paroli. To make
paroli, as it was originally called, a
player was required to bend one corner
of the preferred card over. 1t was al
| ways right to withdraw bet after the
time when he had won his first stake,
but previously to that he had to let his
money remain. At that time there were
no 1ayouts.' Every player had his own
pack and made his bets on the cards
that he himself had turned. When he
won he simply showed his card to the
dealer and he was paid. A century ago
no box was used. The dealer dealt
out of his hands, and so ran great
chance of showing most of the cards.
The box is a great protection against
the inquisitive, and it is really the only
protection the player has against
any possible manipulation on the part
of the dealer. If faro was dealt out of
hand as it was in former times, there
would be decided number of shootings
in this police-ridden city.
cit is hard to say when faro was in
troduced into this country. The pro-
liabilities are that it was played in Eng
land long before any one ever dreamed
of colonizing the new world. We know
that it was played in Virginia long be-
fore the revolution. The old planters
were not chary about betting their
slaves on the turn of card, and had |
none of the Puritan narrow mindedness |
which kept faro out of New England. |
The game was played at that time with
out a box. The players chose their
cards from their own deck and had am
pie opportunity to manipulate it as they |
pleased. They got no benefit from a
split-that is, when two cards of a like |
denomination were turned up and the |
stakes are evenly divided between the
player and the bank. They didn't even
have the advantage of a 'cue-box' to |
check off the cards which had been |
dealt. Of course there was rash betting |
in consequence, and manipulation was
common on the part of the bank and of |
the player, and you may be sure both
took advantage of their chances to the
best of their ability"
Have there been any recent changes
in the game?'
81 should think so. And they all |
have tendency to make the game
much fairer than it was originally. |
Thirty years ago, remember that it |
was the rule that if man put a bet |
down on the table he was compelled to |
leave it there until it had lost or won
its equivalent. Now he is able to
change his bets as many times as he
chooses. At that time when man sat |
down at faro table he sat down to bet
to win. Now he can bet either to win
or lose. At that time there wasn't any
such thing as copper; now man
can copper the ace and bet that it will |
lose and still win on a losing card.
Then there is considerable difference in
the way faro is played in the west. If
a man puts his chips at the corner of |
the king heading to the Queen in this
city, the bet takes in the king and the
duece only, but out west such placing
of chips would mean the king, queen,
ace and duece Checks have been used |