The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1893-07-18
A STIFF GAME.
The Biggest Ever Known Played in
Dakota.
A Poker Session in Yankton Thirty
Years Ago-The Town Site of
Pembina Staked and Lost.

\ Judge of a Dakota court and an old
newspaper man from Chicago met in the
Hoffman House, New York, the other
day. Both men simultaneously spoke of
the biggest game of poker that was ever
played in Dakota. The newspaper man
subsequently told a Sun reporter the
story:
Back in the sos, when the northern
portion of the Territory of Dakota was
hardly more than a bleak waste of un-
cultivated ground, the town OF Pembina
was founded by Enos Stutsman. Suits
man was a man as remarkable for his
eccentricities as he was for his physical
deformity. He emigrated to Dakota from
the huckleberry districts of Connecticut
and located in the Upper Red River Val
ley, while he filed and proved upon 80
acres of land, which was the ground on
which Pembina now stands.
StutSman had the head and body OF q
giant, but his legs were hardly more than
a foot long, and he was unable to travel
without the aid of two short and power
fui crutches. He was a shrewd, calculat-
! ing fellow, and soon became a recog-
nized leader among the handful of emf
grants who had taken up their place in
his neigh borhood. AS political diplo-
mat he never had an equal in the Terri
tory. For four consecutive sessions he
was Chairman of the Council in the upper
branch of the Territory Legislature, and
the old warehouses who weathered the
political battles in the early days in the
Territory, when the old story-and -a-half
shanty i'll Hankton that did humble duty
as IA Capitol building rang as often with
the report of a revolver as with the voice
of a lawmaker, to-day testify to the abil-
| ity Of Stutsman as a parliamentarian
Stutsman died in 1880. He was buried i'll
the lonely cemetery on the hillside half q
mile north of Pembina. The only monu-
ment to his memory is the county of
Stutsman.
Stutsman was one of the most famous
draw poker players in the Territory. lie
numbered among his close friends DO
neer named Judd La NJ cure, who owned
line of stage coaches running between
| Grand Forks and PembIna. The advent
of the railroads killed Judd's coach line
| finally, and he settled down into profit
| able grocery business in Pemblna. These
two men played the stitfest game of poker
that was ever played in the Territory. 1t
was in 1862 The game was played in the
old Levee Hotel in Yankton, and it
lasted from 10 o'clock Friday evening
until 3 o'clock Sunday morning.
THE LEGISLATURE ADJOURNED.
The game created public interest, and
during its progress the people of the
town assembled in the hotel and watched
the two men as they fought like bull
dogs over the piles of red, white and blue
checks. The Legislature was in session
at the time, and, as Stutsman, who was
Chairman of the Council, refused to
leave the game, that branch of the Legis-
lature adjourned until the following
Monday and the members watched the
game to the finish When the game
started Colonel Alexander Mckenzie,
Sheriff of Burleigh County, and Major
Edwards, editor of the Fargo argus,
took a hand, but after a few hours tussle,
with no change in their fortune, they
dropped out and left the battle to Suits
man and La Moure. Early in the game
the formers luck was wonderfully good,
and he played with recklessness that
surprised everyone. Later on the tide
turned against him, and the chips began
to flow in the direction of La Moure,
who sat with his slouched hat pulled
down over his eyes watching every move
! OF his opponent.
Slowly but surely Sutsman's chips
went over to La Moures side OF the table,
and, work what trick or artitice he
1 would, he could not turn them back.
/ Matters went this way until past mid
night of saturday, when Stutsman threw
two $50 bills OH the pile of chips IN the
center of the table and called 500 bet
made by La Moure. Stutsman held
king full on queens, and he felt sure that
! the pot was his, but when La Moure
| threw down his cards there were four
/ deuces, and Stutsman, gritting his teeth,
exclaimed:
d it, Judd, the devil himself could
not beat you tonight. Pm broke.
! You've got my last dollar"
Cant help it, Stutt; it came my way
| and had to rake il in" replied judd, as
( he showed big roll of Stutsman's money
| in his pocket.
| Stutsman eyed the roll enviously, and
Just as 1t went out Of sight he struck the
| table with his fist and said:
Judd, tell You what I'll do. You've
won 8, 500 Of my money. If you'll put
81, 500 more with it Phi stake the town
site of Pembjna against you and will
play for it in lump, to win or TO lose at
one deal"
"Do you mean it," asked Judd.
"Iou bet l do" replied Stutsman.
''All right, it's 60" said Judd, as he
threw down 5000 in bills and drew a
check for s., 500 to make up the balance.
My word is good, amt it Judd?V
asked Stutsman, looking across the ia
BILE.
LAS good as gold,' replied Judd.
Then" continued Stutsman, 'if l lose
I'll deed you go acres Of land in the center
of the town of Pembina."
CARDS DEALT FACE UP.
The men shook hands. According to
agreement the hand was to be dealt by 4.
4. Williams of Bismarck, the Speaker of
the House of Representatives, the cards
to be thrown on the table face up. When
the five cards had been dealt each man
was to discard and draw, the cards being
thrown face up by the dealer as before,
and when The cards had been dealt the
highest hand was 20 take the pot.
Excitement ran high, and TO prevent