The Helena independent., 1892-01-13
A TALE OF THE BETTING RING

NOneSLU6s = 8FsAASJ
aelely on public form and private lnforma-
tion.'
Il "a. in the lobby Of one Of Chicago's
large hotels. The racing season was y ,uAl .a
blast. The races was the TOPIC 81 wy
hour, and men gathered togethef ~ pairs
and groups eagerly discussing the mo1loWs
i card.
n ! corner of the room. two men settled
themselves into easy Attitudes, taen.se
fresh cigars. and prepared for prosfaoteu
a;.,r.aian. Both we're we'll known about
+own Frank Montrose being proMlhehs
l.wvar. who followed racing az pastims,
ana Rartie Wilcox. a model turf pluhGee.
The latter was d bold and fearless better,
.,,1avaa according to public form, ana vas
;ntanselv adverse to 'systems' and omena
s.Hare Il the racing card for tomorrow.
No who will probably be the favorlts 1or
+ha frst race?'' asked Frank, as the areu-
ment waxed warm.
.sWarrior Chief. most cersalhly' A'o44 n''
previous performances.
.Well. I am willing to wager tnao can
chanoe the betting on that horse ten polnts.
solely on sunerstition.
.Anreed,' gleefully replied befsie.
s.Whv. Frank, the bet is foollsn. Wouio
r.an the odds down, simply BY WeiRnt o1
money ~
bet.''
son. very we'll. How much shall y pc!
Tlllet YOU off easy.
IA thousand dollars.
."Ihat's rather a large sum for sucn pe-
culiar bet.
.The experiment will be rather e1pen-
sive.''
ria two men shook hands and deposited
the money with the clerk OF the hotel'
leaving q sealed envelope containing the
conditions Of the bet. As they turned to
sanarata the voice of the pool-seller sang
ont from the further end Of the lobby; i,
.sWhat am I offered for nrat cholce!
sOne hundred dollars.
..Hundred and fifty
..1Twn hnndred,n came in quick success
~ Sold at two hundred,'' and the auction
Ger nodded to short, horld taced man,
with iron grey hair. 4,
s.Who bought that pool Bertie?"
uMr. Bowman, the owner Of warrior
Chiet.''
disposed Of at $50 respectively, and the nela
at $50. .x;4a
"Ihe Chlef Is an essa moneS
aTha betting must be ten to one at the
# track to-morrpW, or win my wager.
ssWarrior Chief will be the outsider for
+ha frat raoe.,' Frank Montrose replied
quietly but confidently.
Something extraordinary mus' nappsn
it he u.s. J,
1something extraordinary will happen,
The two men separated. Montrose sought
ont Bowman.
aIs Warrior Chief for sals?''
.WelI. it depends on the price, OF course
Anv horse of mine can be bought-at my
give You s., 500"
&S .onsidering that he has got a olnoh TO
the first race tomorrow, he's cheap a
$S,0oo''
~ annnose the arrangements I've mad
for his race tomorrow will be all right
IN, little anxious, as I've bought MIN II
eyery POOL sold tonight
,'0h,, yes! Only of COURSE h''A carry my
."rhat's of no consequence. The horse
fit and we'll, and will be big favorlte
II hardly think 80, Mr.. Bowman. Yo'
had better wait until tomorrow ana secure
better Odds"
"Why. what could change the betting
He's meant, amt he?''
"Certainly: only he'll carry my colora.
Frank Montrose walked away, leavlngth til
old man perple1ed and bewldered, and sc
cretly wondering il he was insane.
Al soon as the sale was announced ru
rnors began to fly about the lobby an
speculation was rife as to the change 0
owners. Montrose's honesty could not
questioned, and as No.amac's name wa
still up TO ride, BERTHE secretly conRratu
lated himself on the wisdom of his bet.
- &kn rfaII TTc
an impossibility.
Montrose'a mysterious remarks about b
colors affected Bowman not a little. Wht
could he mean? Maybe he was slmp
acting as ths agent for another party. B1
what influence would that have on the be
ting2 1t was 4 very perplsxlng question
answer, and he wisely concluded not
trouble his head about it.
Tho next morning dawned clear al
bright. BERTHE got up an hour earlier ths
ugual went through his books and figure
out that Warrior Chief could give any hor
resolved, therefore, to plunge upon b
chances. thereby keeping down the ode
and teaching lesson to superstltlous be
tors.
By one O'clock he was at the track al
eagerly scanned programme. Here "
No. 13, 113, Warrior Chief, blk. b., 4,
Deceiver-Desolation. +. Montrose
Colors: black, emblem on back. He hi
never particularly noticed this rather war
ing pedigree before, as the horse was we
known as most consistent performer
either dry or muddy track. TO get No.
he thoughr was tri1e singular, but
weight he knew was wrong, ag it y
scheduled the night before at 118.
AS the betting had not yet commenced
took seat IN the grand stand and await
developments. He saw Frank rushing alb,
AZ if anxiously seeking some one. up
fellow" he thought to himself, 'wha
scrape he has got into. The Chief will Y
In a walk, and everybody knows it,
just then powerfully-built black ho
came laundering down the track. He
going like machine and the boy was no
ing tho lines taut.
"lhat boy riding weighs at least 19
said Berthe, levelling his glasses just
time to see Bowman at the quarter K
shut his watch and turn away with srl
that suffused his whole face and neck "
scarlet.
"Why, it's cinehn' he calculated to h
self. He rushed down stairs just as
horse came trottinc back. He noticed v
aome wonder how jet black the horse y
Rs the rider dismounted. There was nc