The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-10-08
pW Dice ARE LOADED.
ID Manipulated to the Cost OF the
Uninitiated and Rural
Sucker.

8& 0tAAAAAbASsSN ~ &E&HW4@
Sucker.
here Are Many Ways to Cheat,
EVENT. the Cubes Are
Honest.
MAR whose Business It II Il Make
Crooked Dice-Ths Professianal
"Crap'' Player.
n great many people will be slow to be-
I've that there In In st. Louis 4 man who
for years made o business Of preparing
order crooked dice Of all descriptions,
y the 1T. Louis Globe Democrat. II it's
nsthing ordinary he has 1t in stock, or If
has not he takes a set OF honest dice
A quickly makes it crooked. II you
W an idea OF your own he is an adept at
trying II ont. just AS Your shoemaker fits
ar shoe 10 as to make ii easy on a corn
bunion. The common way is to .'load"
dice, and this very clever man does this
perfection, 30 clevsrly, indeed, as to de-
We one, even after he has been told that
} die ID crooked. The everyday way to
Id Z die ste bore a small hole on the side
the cube. which will give the desired ef-
~, fll the hole with lead and then paint
over. Another way 10 to file out q gutter.
II with quicksilver and coyer it over
th bone dust. The heavy side will OF
nrse remain down, and the light side
me mp when the dice are thrown out of
box. Thus a set Of dice can be 30
Edsd by boring and filing the six side of
} cube a. TO throw acas every time, or. in
ker dice. a "full house." Then this
yer man fits you out with another set ex-
y need it in your game, supplies you with
econd box exactly like the one from
ich You throw the crooked dice. Or
rhaps o want a set Of dice with the
mbers irrcgularly arranged. There is
thing at all difficult about this. The lit
spots can be placed just where you want
pm and in whatever order, and that very
A0AAys " NJ AAdVAOlA uAI EACCAA"
Of green countrymen can sec that there
nothing straight about dice, and that, If
allows himself to be pulled into a game,
will certainly get tho worst Of it.
+ the inventive genius Of the gambler
d been turned in legitimate directions
world would have had the telegraph and
ephone long before it did. The number
crooked dice games have been numerous,
d ~ one passes out others are thought of.
9 CRAP game, SO popular among the
ored people, is one which will probably
We lasting life. There ia nothing the
srage colored man would sooner do than
by ~craps-that sport comes even before
termelon and 'possum and sweet pota-
pa. The crap game may be played hon
bly, but it has become ar exceedingly
ooked game, particularly as it ia played
the river steamboats,. The roustabout
always provided with dice, and
nerally with two sets, OIL four dice,
9 being required in the game. The
o he uses are loaded so that they can not
10, the other two being honest and used US
myers" When he captures what he calls
sucker" he deftly rings in the honest
for the victim, while he uses the loaded
e. A great many people wonder how 1t is
ev always lose at this same. This ia the
PLANTATION. The writer went on a recent
or exc1rsion-a stag party--and the steam
had barely gotten out into the stream
ien a game was started BY the rouaters,
filtered by a suspended tarpaulin. 1t was
rty could stand, and one after another
ey went behind the tarpaulin, joined in
. game and gave up 80 nearly everything
ey had that the bar suffered greatly.
icy didn't see how it could be, but it was,
d that settled it. Though they were men
in the ways of the world, they couldn't
> anything crooked, or if any of them
spectsd it, they kept their mouths shut.
Another old game that does not even
pompanion, ''high" dice. Loaded dice
. used in both Of these. an honest set be-
X adroitly run.in for the victim. Another
~ of cheating is to have dice, the lowest
mbsr on which will be four or fves, with,
before, nm honest SGT for the man who is
ing robbed of his money. This is some-
lat desperate, however. For instance, if
rec SKIES or three aces should turn up,
d the victim should see another ace or a
would be very apt to think
ere was something wrong some place,
ID, investigating, would quickly discover
b location of the "nigger in this wood pile
be game ia much more easily worked
thigh" dice, where but one die is
cd, while in poker there are five. There is
great deal of straight high" dice in st.
puis, no wever, occasional bets of $500 On
o turn of a single die being heard of.
ooked dice are not always necessary to
eat in poker, however. Many play ers
. crooked enough and skillfuI enough to
complish any purpose without such as
tance. Some players, for instance, can
Their three dice In the closingof the hand,
Id by the little finger. shake the box, and
SO doing rattle them against a watch
ain or the buttons of his vest in such a
~Rlistio that the victim would al
psf DO willing to swear this dice had been
the box. Then, with a swift throw or
rn of the hand. two dice are thrown ont
the box and the three behind the little
kger are deposited on the table face up
b way they have been set to come.
IA favorite game for catching the country
usin il called stop and bottom - for want
a better name though that is one which
~ fully describes it, It is played with
rec dice. A true set of dice has the six ON
Q Opposite side of the cube from the ace,
Q five from the deuce, the foul from the
~, 80 that the top and bottom, in what
er position placed, count sever Thus,
tn three aces up there will be three skies
the bottom and the count total will ba
enty-one. The bottom and top must al
lys count twenty-one. The ''capper ok
aims all this to his country cousin, or to
Q victim he has selected, and becoming
endly they 20 into a saloon for a drink.
40 top and bottom t%wenty-one is prac-
tally illustrated, and the ''oapper's" part
r coming in, though not showing any
,ns of acquaintance, becomes interested.
b allows this interest to be seen. and the
apper'' suggests to his victim, "We'H
st stick this follow for the drinks" The
ctim is sure Of the game, places the dice,
d the other fellow bets the drinks tho
unit ia not twenty one. He loses tho
inks, and the victim thinks he has a soft
Ing, r%earranges the dice and bets