Waterbury evening Democrat., 1888-07-02

when you play with MT. Blop-
 per-" said Jones one evening at
 the Club, when tho Chevalier
 and his partner had been carry
 ing all before them u whist
 .C.est vrai,' assented the Chavalier in his mixed jargon of French and English, jing- lin, the while in his trousers pockets the numerous gold coins that had found their way to those receptaclt.s in tho course of the evening. 'Meestare Blopparc plays ware tlne game It is no credit to win with so good a partnare.
 The Chcvalier made stately inclination as he spoke towards the object of his eulogium, who acknowledged it by blushing and looking foolish, for the latter of which processes na- turc had endowed him with unusual facilities. He was a snub- nosed, bald headed little man, with that peculiar species of florid complexion at which one would be disappointed were 1t not supplemented by pair of sandy whis- kers; however, MT. Blopper's whiskers were satisfying He wore a black tail-coat a little largo for him; and with his grey trousers, massive gold watch-chain, and square-toed boots looked like a British tradesman retired from business-as was the case by all ac- counts.
 Not so the Chevalier. He was tall and aristocratic-looking his hair, which was grizzled was worn cut away over each tenn pie; he had Q coal black mustache and twink ling black eyes, and in his unexceptionable evening dress, with bit of red ribbon in his button hole, he was emphatically the disting- uished foreigner.
 Not much was known about the Chevalier. He had been amongst us some six months, or little more. He had come in the first in- stance to drink the waters for which our city is famous. For nearly month after his arrival he stopped at the principal hotel. drank of the waters religiously every day, | and as he was always well dressed, and his 1 manners were polished and agreeable, he soon made number of acquaintances. Having been elected to tho Club, and having received | a few invitations, he was soon discovered to | he an acquisition to the society of the place. | Ho was a good dancer and quite ladies' man 1 hc talked amusingly, the more for his 1 broken English he was fair billiard-player, l though he was an unlucky one, and was con. | tnually loosing small sums and having to | pay for tho game.
 l But lie was a capital whist player, and l whist is our chief amusement. In our city 1 is settled Il large number of army men ; who | hunt in the winter, play tennis in the sum- l mer, and play whist all the year around. We | play for high stakes too: for where the play CTS are pretty evenly matched and are con- l tinually playing together, there is not much | in it at the end of the year. and the high l stakes stimulate the play, and prevent men from getting care ess.
 Jones and had conversation on the sub l ject as we walked home from the Club this 1 very evening had been loosing, for had been ono of Chevalier's opponents; and partly l perhaps, to console myself, hazared the re-
 mark that whist never made twenty pounds | difference to me ut the years end, one way or 1 the other. Jones shook his head. I can tell you one man, Perkins, said he 'to whom it makes more than twenty pounds l difrerance at the years end-or at the weeks l end for that natter
 Whom do you mean?' said I. Jones stopped, and struck his stick on the ground to give his words additional en- l phasis.
 l Perkins, he said, I've been watching that l old Chevalier very closely for some time, and in the last fortnight alone he has won up-
 wards of hundred and fifty pounds from our | members.
 'Ncver.' said staggered.
 ! Its fact. He never gets up loser, And l I've noticed another thing. He always wins l -always-when Blopper is his partner. What l do you make of it?'
 l T never liked Hopper said l. He was l very near being billed when the Chevalier put 1 him up for the Club
 Did the Chevalier put him up?' asked Jones quietly. I was away at the time.' Certainly. Blopper came about a week
 after tho Chevalier was elected; and the
 Chevalier, who had met him at Scarborough
 or somewhere, some years ago--'
 'Humbugr said Jones. He is often rather l rude, is Jones; one of those shrewd long,
 headed fellows that are never taken in, and
 arc very uncompromising in expressing their opinions. Ho and are always at logger
 heads. Ho always thinks the worst of people
 and always think the best; but am bound
 to confess that he is generally right in the
 sequel.
 Perkins, he resumed thoughtfully. I mis-
 trust that pair. We'll keep our eagle eyes or
 them. old boy. We'll watch them and see il they are up to any tricks together. You are ) q man of the world, you are, and you know a thing or two. Watch their game
 The Chevalier hates people to look on,' said ! innocently.
 I dare say he does, said Jones, very drily and here, as we were at my rooms, we said , goodnight and parted.
 As was smoking my final pipe over the fire before turning in, found my thoughts very full of Jone's suspicious. I was inclined tc laugh at them, but had so often found Jones who was a lawyer and a sharp one, to be per. . fectly right in his opinions, that I began tt think out the matter thoroughly. It occurred to me to calculate my own losses of late, and : to examine how often they had taken place , when was opposed to the suspected pair. was astonished at the result. Taking my l play and the cards had held into consider
 ation, I was amazed to find how poor a show , had made against Mir. Blopper and his for
 eign ally. made a strong resolution that would carry out Jones's suggestion. My op. portunities were suret to be ample, for I am al idle mana retired officer of Royal En
 gineers- -and spend halt my time at tn,
 Club, tho most of that in the card.room. ' |