Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1884-12-21
Playing Cards of the Past.


Playing cards, of course, form the staple
OF the show I'm one apartment 81 the
Health Exhibilion,) but who ever Grcsme ed
ihae such a collection Of cards of ell age,
and counrieS-from England 10 the Ia,
tsat-could ne brought together2 The
walls are literally covered with them, and
he tables bear many rare and curisus
specimens. There are French carcatars
cards printed from copper plate and colored
by hand, bearing the date ISIS; German
astronomical cards, with the signs Of the
consultations, coIored by hand, OF the seven.
! teenih century; German and French heral
die playing cards. with the COATS OF arm,
aud bIszoning Of the Princes and mobiles of
Europe, bearing the date 1920. There is
Sn English pack of ~ picture cards, esch
Cerd Illustrative OF the virtues and vices of
mankind; the d&te of this interesting pack
is i1&0. There are French playing cards
wi;k canoe music. and English and French
caId6 Tor teaching geography to the chill
dren OF the latter part OF the seventeenth
century. One pack OF cards, not satisfied
with England aud Wales processes to teach
/ Tie geography of the world. This appears
ton IN the eaSy-gong times Of Charles II.
here is very amusing pack or caricature
cUrds o! the year lbs. One set Of a diff
iCrent kind commentaries the murder OF
hir. Edrundberrv Godfrey and the Popish
pot .! 1919 AS Titus Ga e. figures here
~ i h,rO il is only lair to assume that the
cards were designed previous to the cy-
iCsTra Of Oates vii,ainy. A pack of
cards bearing the date 1920 caricatdres the
persous and incidents of the South Sea
bubble. Another pack, dated ITO, gives
:. series Of portraits Of eminent Greeks and
EUmans Sporting ia represented on cards
designed as far back as l60j-a very beau.
'ituI example ofengraving of that period
A book describing fortune telling by
pIayirg cards contains some curious wood
Yuts, many Of them evidently copied from
ih. very rare pack Of cards known as the
Carries de Baldini. Then we have the
learned Dr. T. Murncrs cards for teaching
logic an Jurisprudence, with which it is
said he was 40 successful az a teacher that
lie narrowly escaped being burned as a
Sorccrcr The issue Of 1909 and the French
reprint may be seen together in Old Lon.
GUn, and near TO them is very curious and
rare fortune telling book of cards made in
Venice in 1907. Among the greatest rari-
tics are two cards from the pack known as
tho "Chatto cards e 1880 or there .ab9uts
and four cards from pack OF circular play
liz SsrS srG mS a. 4{ C29gns s6cMt ii10
;irrs 10 the Interesting exhibit should take
note Of tie pack Of T0rrochini cards Of
InIogra Tho Makers of plRving Cards
COMPANY show packs Of their cards Issued
for The YEAR. 1882 and 1883, bearing tie
nrn:s of the company the Mitelli, which
are fine examples of design Of the period.
II il amusing to see here when We remem-
J. r the authorship VIII oh is sometimes, Az
snncd to PLAYING cards. that " thick IL
lus,ra,ed ouarto shown in one OF the cases
is treatise devoted 10 teaching Biol. his
tory BIZ means OF playing cards. Worthy OF
roiice is the pack Of cards by Christopher
blanchard, maker in ordinary to his
Majesty George III, of 1854, and those
yEo care to see what has been done to i'm
rroye ulaying cards in hundred years may
compare this pack with that OF the Playing
Card Makers of lsSS, which is shown close
ly it. A proclamation of Charles /, pro-
rtc,ipg the playing card makers OF London
against foreign invasion, is shown on the
window shutter ofthe Old Rose Inn. This
collection is both interesting and vslusble
Is showing that Tor 100 years at least play
ing cards have formed an important part OF
he diversions OF the civilized world, and 1t
is worthy Of remark, also, that they
lave been used in no insignificant way as
in aid to scholastic education. The col
'cc,ion and arrangement IS due to the energy
o. Mr. Geo rye CluIow, a member of the
Court of Assistants OF the company, whose
intimate knowledge on the subject OF play.
irr csrdg, antiquarian, historical, and
rfac,ical has been used to produce an eS-
| Llit of n most novel and attractive
! rLnrnctcr