New-York tribune., 1885-02-22
WHIST.
.DY RICHARD \. PROCTOR.
Ill.
OPENING THE PLAY.
Neu- York, Feb. 10. 1854.

There is noteworthy difference between the
views which the whist player, the player OF hoine
whist, aud the player OF Bumblepuppy take
respecting their hands rs they arrange them after
the deal In the earliest stage of practice the player
looks on the aces in his hand many almost
certain tricks he expects to make his kings; ana
has hopes for his queens. His small cards he
regards as worthless, as cards which he simply mas
to throw away to the enemy's winning caris. III
he has 4 two card suit and still better If he has Il
singleton then his small trumps will serve him III
rofiing-the only use for small cards known 10
him. He has little anxiety lest his trunps should
be drawn for early trump lead is nnheard Oh IN
this innocent nciplent tand lnslplentl WHIST
Therefore he pays his aces hrst his kings after the
enemy caually ch.ldlike in their play have gotten
rid of their aces and later his queens. II he has
n singleton, he plays that Immediately after MS
ices have been utilized. He expects his partner to
return his lead at once. II the enemy have led
suit of which he has tho best card or cards he
hastens TO make these, having no lea of keeping
command OF his opponents suits. When be has TO
discard he ALWAYS chooses his longest suit. rs beng
the one from which he has most small cards to play
When every one ut the table plays this game. the
rrsu,t is about rs amusing as any game Of pure
chance can bc This game is not Bumblepuppy,
but the ancient form OF home whist drcary and
monOtouous pursuit, the chief interest OF which
seems TO reside in the 'dea OF those engaged IN IL
that tncy are playing a highly scientific game.
Very little scollins goes Oh at tins dnil ginie.-
unles, the players are naturally llltempered-the
only IN stake one can make in il being the revoke
Bnnbcpuppy is more prctcntiouS game alto
pethcr In It, the players possessed with the
idea that they know something about whist lhey
smile at home whist which s innocent compared
with their noxious system. The bumblcpuppist
imagines he is a brilliant player. He rejects
conventional rules rs not binding n whist genius
snch as he supposes himself 10 be- Thus ho views
his hand neither like the true whist player nor Ike
the PLAYER OF home whist. II is true he always
leads a singleton If lac has onc,-no whist duiier can
cscape nut. But he often leads tramps early,-
especially if lac has only one or two HIS smile oi
triumph at the enemy when On the rcturn OF the
sut by his partner two trumps all for one is worth
noticing. Nor does 1t disappear-il as commonly
hanpens in such cases the enemy are left one with
established trImps, the other with odd trumps for
runing. THIS he regards as mere accident. The
cascs though only onc-ihird of tho total number
i'm which his partner turns ont 10 have tie longest
truup hand he regards as the normal Gncs. and his
own biIliaucy as throwing into his partners hand
the power OF using such trump strength. Ihe bun
blepnupist is also very fond OF signaling. and very
Indignant when hls partner. having learned his
WAYS plvs no attention to bis signals The bum-
u,aver dors IIe is indeed apt TO keep them back
rather too long Bnt like the player of domestic
whist he has no notion Whatever o. the necessity
of keeping command of his opponents suits.
The whist player takes a very different view of
his hand aud OF the way to utilize such oioments
of strength as il may possess. In Tue iist place,
he considers whether the hand promises 10 take the
leading part in the pl.y,-that Is. neither he ran
safely suggest to his partner the propriey OF play
IA, l. he IA rood
in trumps a long AMI strong suit and good card
ar two IN the Other salts. the charCos are that he
viii do well to play forward game. II he has
good strength in trumps, but no good plain suit, he
may still have to take leading part by cndoavor-
ing to get command in tIumps, ana then helping
all he can 10 bring IN rcng suit OF h5 pirtnerH.
Iut for t!;s he must wait mt hc has had evl-
d.nce that has partner has II strong aiId long suit
II he has neither strength IN uunPs nor Il good
i;, L. ,,,,- hive slch c6rnfuaud I'M The main suits
as 10 be abe to sustain a strong Gri 'nsiVc game
agliDst the enemy and perhaps TO help his partner
c1c,tiyrly 10 take the lead. Even Though he have
GOOD cards in but one platn suit ana that not a |
long suit still the waoio game may tara on his |
defence of that suit aga nst the ehohy Lastly, u
he has utter weakness. insomuch mat ne can barely
make single trek, or may even iaI 10 MAKE "a |
trick he NAV YET by careful play csrape the |
disastrous results which must iOiOT-ln Guch "A |
casc-from suffering the enemy to imagine ms |
n viii he manifest from consideration Of the |
different positions here suggested that the original
4
cyeI though pariner ho weak a forward game may |
stu be played. With Il weak hand It Is an advan-
age TO he second or fourth Ia hand, where the play
Ot low card does not necessarily indicate aIjcct |
But While tho lead is a disadvantage to the holder
of a weak hand. do not think that any dIlhcuity |
oIpht n, a rule to be experienced as to the original
lead even from the weakest hand In the case of |
tie first lcal Of any other player but the original
leader there ~ often room for much doubt, because
suCh A player already knows something of the |
strength OF the yariOus hands. II he Is weak and !
has seen reason to ulnk that ms partner y alsD
weak, nc ought at once IN my opinion TO give no |
the idea Of leading from his longest suit merely |
because it is long. With very great weakness he
on yht even. double dummy play repeatedly |
shows, 10 give up the idoa OF retaining the com
mand of his opponents suits, By 50 doing ho Is
likely TO lose the chance Of making the tricks |
necessary TO save the game. How often do
a commanding card kept back IN snbservence 10
the rulo usually eXcellent that command should |
be keyt over the enemys suits, then played when II
can be ruiied, and the command falling after all to
the enemy while a trick has been lost III the
lint Willie Y, b. and 2, may often with advantage
disobey the rule of leading from the longest SUIT 1t
very seldom happens that should do ~: sup
posing even such an extreme case as that holds
ace king queen in each Of the plain suits, and 3,
4, in tho third, with three small trnmps, what
does he lose by Leading from ms ro 6G 1 oGs5 %Ssk
chosen at random OF tho two tierces
major! He may seriously compromise the game by
leading ont the three cards of tbor strong short
sut for he may leave one OF the enemy with sew
eral long cards of tho sut, TO he perhaps brought
in by re-cntering card IN the long weak suit.
Now bv leading from this weak suit You give your
partner a fair chance Of making Il trick In your
snit and showing his, in which y0n can give him
good support showing him by so doing that Your
own sut IL too weak 10 be worth continuing Tho
real doubt woud be whether the b st trump should
not be- led and IN extreme IA case. with such |
utter weakness in the long suit, and such strong
command of the other plain suits, this would doubt
less .be tho best course.
| lay 1t down as q sound general principle tilat
the original first lead should be almost always from
the longest sut-uness that snit be trumps. when
the best of the strong suits should be opened If an
original trump lead is unsuitable But note that #
you lead from long weak suit, with weak trumps,
aud no re-cutering cards the other plain suits,
you do this merely because such "a course 10 least
III. .iu IN hn, iou ar smulv