The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-04-29
POKER TRICKS.
Why Unsophisticated Card Players
Lose in a Game With Gamblers.

From the -. Poul Pioneer Press
There are men who think themselves
good poker players. In fact they pride
tn emselves on their ability to play the
game, and occasionally boast of their
winnings. IL must be truthfully said
that some Of these men do know how to
play draw pOker-that is, as far as play
ing a square game is concerned-but
their money would not be worth cents
on the dollar gambling with a profess
sional gambler
Professional gamblers are continually
travelling. They go from place to place,
always looking for game They gener-
ally travel IN pairs, under the guise of
legitimate business agents or of wealthy
pleasure seekers. They have letters of
introduction from prominent people, and
as result they are introduced into the
fashionable clubs, and subsequently into
the game. They will try to hide their
winnings as much as possible, so as to
avoid suspicion, and very often they will
claim to be losers, when, in reality thew
have won many dollars
Some are known as paper man." other
as "hold-Outs,N while more are called
second Dealers
They all, of course, have general
knowledge Of the various methods of
cheating, but they excel, as rule, in some
Of these systems.
In conversation the other evening with
retired gambler, who in his time was
the most skilled second dealer'' in the
country, he said:
ut took me over four years of hard
practice to learn how to deal seconds
properly. A second dealer is a man who
can deal cards from any part of the pack
without detection, so that, previous to
the players drawing cards, he skilfully
slips his thumb along the bottom of the
pack and catches a glimpse of the cards
to be dealt. II he sees anything he needs
he can deal it to himself as easily as it it
were on the top of the deck. If he has a
partner he will know by signs Just ex-
actly what he wants, and if he can't
give it to him he will motion him to stay
out.
'If his partner has a pair he will look
through the deck, and if he observes the
other pair of the same there he will make
sign TO the partner, who will thereupon
raise the price to draw cards. AS a rule,
partners sit together when they play, so
that one can cut to the others liking, and
this itself is a science, for the man cut
ting the cards will do it to the satisfac-
ton of the whole board, as he apparently
mixes them up, while in reality he does
not disturbe his partners arranged
cards
Now, in this instance, the man who
cuts the cards cleverly is dealing. so that
his partner is the one to draw first. Now,
it is rather difficult to pull two card from
different parts of the pack, and then all
eyes are watching the dealer when he is
giving out the first cards, so that while
holding the pack in his left had, lust be-
fore starting to deal to those drawing. he
will tnd some pretense for reaching his
right hand across the table, and in this
manner he will hide the deck. He will in
that instant skilfully shift with his tin
gers one of the cards his partner needs to
the top of the deck. He will repeat this
movement the same as before, and bring
the other card on top. His partner will
draw three cards, and will, of course,
| hold four of kind They will continue
this system of playing, ana will undoubt-
! eddy get the money
He then showed how he could bring
cards from the center to the top of the
! pack Holding the pack in his left hand
I as If about to deal, he would shove his
| torehnger between the deck and right
| above the card he was TO bring on top.
! He would then raise his forefnger, there
! by lifting the cards above il, and with his
middle finger he would slide the wanted
| card out about half an inch toward his
/ fingers Then he would press down on
| the edge of the card, and in this manner
raise IL ouside the pack. He would then
| remove his foreinger, there allowing the
| cards TO fall back again. The needed
card would be standing on its side along
side the pack, and it would then be an
easy matter to shift 1t on top. He did
this slowly several times, aud it appeared
easy enough until tried, and then it was
found diuicult