The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1884-11-23
A SHORT STORY.
Why a Chicago Gambling Den
was Closed.
GAMBLER'St REFORMATION.
There is in that Little Pile my For
tune, my Honor, and my Life.
I Win All or Lose ALL

If you want to hear strange story, !"
said a gentleman to a reporter of the
Alta, yesterday, in Golden Gate Park,
engage that grey-haired man in con-
versation and get him to tell you his
history. It will repay you for your
time, and he indicated prematurely
aged man with a sad face, sitting in the
sun on one of the benches of the Park
The reporter needed no second invita-
ton, he was soon seated by the man
with the strange history.
Il am told" said the seeker after
facts. chat you have a life story strange
in the extreme, and that you are not
ayerse to relating ii"
The eyes of the man were turned on
the speaker a moment, and then folding
his white hands in his lap he said ::
Yes, it is a story. am a murderer
and a reformed gambler; but you need
not shrink so from me, for the murder
was not intentional. Ten years ago |
owned the largest and most popular
gambling parlorS in the city Of Chicago,
and on Saturday nights I dealt my own
faro-game, in which business, of course,
I made great deal of money.
MANY UNPLEASANT INSTANCES
grew out of my business, but l always
excused it on the ground that men did
not have to play my games any more
Than they were obliged TO. drink poison.
[ finally got to noticing and expecting
one young man IN particular, who
always came when it was my night to
deal. At first he played boldly, and as
a consequence, lost heavily; but as he
grew more familiar with the game he
played carefully, and acted as though
life depended on his winning, which In
fact was the case, as it afterward proved.
| got acquainted with him, addressing
him as Brown, but knowing that that
was not his true name. think he fol-
lowed the game for months, winning a
little sometimes but generally losing
heavily. At last he came one night, and
saw by his flushed face that he had
been drinking. although he was appar-
entity cool He sat down to the table,
drew out a small roll of money and lay
ing it down before him, said: tThere Is
in that little pile nv fortune, my honor
and my life. 1 either win all or lose all
this night. Begin your game; | am
ready" Others Joined in at first and
played for awhile, but finally withdrew
from the game and watched the strange
Young man at my right. He played to
win, but fate was against him, for he
lost, won and lost again, and finally after
TWO hours of playing, evidently IN the
most fearful suspense, he lost his last
dollar. Leaning back in his chair,
WITH COMPRESSED LIPS
and face blanched to deathly white
ness. he looked me in the eye a moment
and rising said: My money, honor and
happiness have gone over that table
never TO return. 1 said my life would
90 with them and it shall. Tell my wife
I had gone too far to return" Before
we could prevent it he put Derringer
10 his breast and shot himself through
Dire heart, falling upon the table that
lad been his ruin and death.
His wife came, awful in the majesty
e her grief, and after satisfying herself
hat her husband was dead, she asked,
Where is the keeper of this dreadful
4ace?' I was pointed out. and striding
% to me, so that her finger almost
touched my pallid face, she exclaimed,
b tones that are ringing in my ears yet,
oh, you soullesS wretch, with heart of
stone! You have lured my husband
IEom me, sent him to perdition, widow
ed and orphaned my children. You are
his murderer, and may Gods curse rest
upon you eternallyr And, with a wild
scream. oh, my husband my children |!
she fell fainting on the body of the
corpse.
81 fingered for weeks in a brain fever,
shat curse seeming always to be the bur-
den of my mind. On my recovery l
BURNED THE FIXTURES
of my den and closed the place, and
have devoted most of my time to travel,
with the hope of escaping that woman's
just curse, but can't. l believe it is on
me forever, and 1 feel that I was that
mans murderer. l am rich and my
first attempt was to get the dead mans
wife to accept an annuity from me, but
she refused all aid and tried to support
herself by her own labor. I relieved nv
mind to some extent, however, by set
ting a certain sum on her and her child
rem, which passes through her fathers
hands and Ostensiily comes directly
from him. Her children are receiving
q fine education by this means, and my
will, safely locked in her fathers Office,
bequeaths to her and her children my
entire wealth, some $1,000 MY life,"
he, sis devoted largely to
visiting gambling dens, where meet
young men who are on the highway to
hell, and warn them of their danger.
Thanks be to God, have succeeded in
many cases in saving them, and now,
young man, remember this story, and
let it always stand up as a white spectre
between you and the gaming table. See
to it that the poison does not enter your
veins" and he pulled his hat over his
eyes and strobe silently away.
-[San Francisco AItG.