The Big Sandy news. [volume] (Louisa, Ky.) 1885-1929, 1889-03-21
N. F. CONLEY Publisher.
FEMALE GAMBLERS.
Anew Of Those who Figure conspicuousiy
In English History.

A Few Of Those Who Figure Conspicuou,S
In English History.
In England, as in France, the passion
for gambling has often reduced women
OF the noblest birth to the lowest depths
of depravity. From allusions In old
plays, such as The Provoked Hus-
band,r and from Walpoles Letters
and other publications, it Is evident
that the sacrifice OF honor was not an
infrequent method OF paying gambling
debts. The stakes we're generally high,
and the debts incurred were hrss
charge on the sensitiveness OF the un-
fortunate lady players:
So tender these-if debts crowd fast upon
She'll pawn her virtue 10 preserve her honor.
Hogarth, in his picture entitled
".Piquet. or Virtue in Danger. realized
exactly the female gamblers fall; and
his truthfulness was amply testihed
to by frequent occurrences in actual
life. A single illustration OF these
may suffice. A lady was married
while very young to an English noble
Ere long she was introduced to pro-
fessional gamestress, was led into play
and lost more in single night tnan
ever she C ,uld hope to pay. Her honor
paid the debt Soon afterward the
| gamblers boasts revealed the truth to
the lady's husband. and duel was the
necessary result. The gambler was
shot dead by the injured husband, aiter
which the latter actually offered 70
| pardon his wife and restore her TO her
| former position. The wife refused,
gave herself up entirely to gamollng
and its consequences, and the husband
| died OF broken heart
The stakes for which ladies played
/ during the closing years of the eigh-
teenth and the opening years OF the
present century. were often of consld-
cradle magnitude. In 1776, a lady in
fashionable quarter Of London. lost. at
single sitting according to the AN
| nual Register"-no less than SOU
guineas at loo; and at Lady Bucking-
hamshire's faro table in St James
square, there were often enormous sums
lost in play.
Lady Bucltinghamshire. it may be re-
marked, was perhaps the most notori-
Gus gamestress OF her day. She actu-
ally slept with pair of pistols and q
blundcrbuss by her side for the pro-
lection of her cherished bank. Her
career, however, was a somewhat
checkered one. In the Times for
March Is, 1897. there is a police court
report which goes to show that Lady
Buckinghamshire's speculations were
not always free from worry. A couple
OF days prior to the appearance of the
report her ladyship. together with
Lady L. Luttrell and Mrs. Sturt, was
brought UP at the Marlborough street
police court and fined ESQ for playing
at faro, while Henry Maftindale. her
manager, was mulcted in f20O.
Later in the same year her croupier
got into trouble through the disap-
pearance of the cash-box. Awkward
stories of stolen purses, snuif-boxes and
cloaks began to be told, and finally
Martindale became a bankrupt to the
tune of f32S, 900, besides debts of
honor" to the amount OF El50,OOO.
Lady BuclSinghamshire by the way,
was not the only titled dame OF the
,, olden days who not only gambled, but
! kept gambling establishments. One OF
these professional gamestresses actual
0 ly applied to the House of Lords for
, protection against police intrusion on
e the plea that she was peeress oi
Q Great Britain.
II, Dame Mary, Baroness OF Mord.
!, ington," ran the petition. do hold o
house in the Great Piazza, Coveni
a Garden, for and as an assembly where
n all persons of credit are at liberty tc
: frequent and play at such diversions as
are used at other assemblies and
demand all those privileges that belong
to me as a peeress OF Great Britain, ap
pertaining to my said assembly"
The House of Lords very properly re
! fused her request All the Year Round
y -