Los Angeles daily herald., 1886-12-16
HOW TO PLAY WHIST.
Points that Puzzle beginners
Why Ladies Play Poor whist.

why hauleS tlay FOOE "hhSt'
With the return of long evenings and
Winter temperatures. whist parties
have been resumed and the indications
point to even greater interest in the
game this season than was shown in it
twelvemonth ago. A well-known
player said to reporter the other day:
'Ihe thing that surprises me Is the
rarity of players one would desire for
partner, although so many hundreds OF
PLAYERS devote time and a tentlon to the
game. Probably the reason why SO
many players fal to become even rea.
sonably skilled in the game les, i'll the
fact that they think it too much trou Die
to observe the fall of the cards. That
is the very reason most ladies' play
poor whist. They prefer to chat
at the card-table, and no one can do that
and at the same time observe closely
each card as it is played. When people
saw they cannot remember what has been
play ed they really mean that they have
not noticed the cards as the latter have
fallen in each round. Any person of or.
dinary intelligence can quick ly cultivate
whist memory if he Will take pains to
notice particularly each card as it is
played, aud at the same time connect 1t
in his mind with the person who played
it. After few rounds of hand have
been played the person who has OBJ.
served the fall of the cards can often
place the remaining cards IN every suit;
in other words he can tell what cards
are still held by each of the other three
players Just as well as if he saw their
hands. There is nothing wonderful in
this. 1t is comparatively an easy matter
to form a correct conclusion as to the
cards still in the hands of the players
when one has noticed the cards already
played. Such conclusion is drawn al.
most instinctively by an observant and
careful player. And this leads me to
say that most bad whist playing is
due to pure carelessness. Some
Whist players boast of such care.
lessness, as if it were to their credit
Their plea is that they play whist for
amusement. Yet l have noticed that
these very players generally have the
conceit to believe that they play their
hands very well. and, as a rule, they at
tribute their defeats to the super or luck
of their opponents rather than to their
own Indifferent play. If they chance to
win they take credit to themselves al
though they are really deserving OF none
whatever. 1t therefore appears that
they consider themselves at the very
least fair whist players, although, as a
matter of fact. their play is execrably
bad. They lose on the average at least
one trick every hand, and at the end OF
it openly congratulate themselves on
their play in making every trick possible
with the cards they held. That may be
styled card playing for amusement, but
| it is a libel on the game to call it whst.
Whatever is worth doing at all is worth
doing well, is an old maxim which ap-
plies to games and pastimes as we'll as to
more serious matters. If these wretched
and at the same time self-satistied whist
PLAYERS could see the sarcastic glances
| thrown in their direction and hear the
| Jcose remarks made at their expense,
their complacency might perhaps be Sc
riously disturbed.
But" asked the reporter, sis it not
considered impossible for many persons,
and especially for ladies, tobecome good
whist players?"
"All any one asks of player al
WHIST" was the answer, sis that he OF
she give careful attention to the game
and show a genuine desire to master it.
1t is this playing without any intelll
gent effort to play we'll that l quarrel
with. As for members of the other sex
| see no reason in nature why they
could not, if they would, become fine
whist players. The trouble with most
of them is that they want to make
social affair of sitting at cards. Thi
cannot be done successfully when whis
is the game in hand. They should drol
small talk at card parties or drop whis
from their list of games at such gather
ings. Neither man nor woman can gos
sip land play whist we'll at the sam,
time. The play of every hand presents
a problem for solution-not, as rule
very difficult or intricate problem il
one considers it as one goes along
but problem, if ever so simple, tina
cannot be solved unless one knows it
conditions, and these can become know
only by close observation and an act O
memory. If fair percentage of th'
hundreds of persons in this city who arr
now deyoting themselves to whist ART
to become proficient in the game, they
must become observant players; they
must watch the fall of the cards, and
, aside from a few conventional rules, bt
, guided in their play thereby. BY thu
) way, there seems to be some confusion
| in the minds of many players between
, the laws of whist and the conventions
, rnles of the play. The former are oblig
, atory. but the latter may or may not b,
, followed according to circumstances o.
the Judgment of the player. For in
! stance. il a man lead from a singleton
| or sneak, it is no violation of the law
of the game, although in exceptiona
r cases, it is not good play. But you hav'
a had enough of whist for one day. Conn
s again when you want to continue thu
/. subject. "-Rochester tN. ~ Post Er
: Dress.