The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1894-07-22
RELICS OF RIVER DAYS
somsTHINe OF THE oLD-TIME MIS-
sIssfPPI GAMBLERS.
Stories Told bya Venerable Sport who
riourished when Travellers Were Flush
and willing TO Stake Money.

common Oellsnt OF tneifS Is 10 relate tne
elories OF gambling on the river In the
GOOD old days before railroads hemmed IN
he Mississippi up and down each bank
fr0m source TO mouth. Tom Ellison. now
lettering about Nicksburg on warm days
and showing the effects OF severe rheuma
tem and seVenty-two years Of age IN
very movement, is probably the most
widely known OF any OF the Oh PROBES
s.onal river gamblers now living. Inc
f6,tr!sts from the cold north In TINS region
every winter make a favorite OF Tom FL
uson and he recOunts to them II any n
drilling tale Of the time when ne mace
$1,000 and over I'm one night ana lost IL
al the succeeding night.
There isn't any more gambling now"
said Tom Ellison the other day 10 cor
respondent OF the New York sun and no
gamblers either. Look at what they call
gamblers nOw-kids. nothing but Kids,
mo haven't got either sense or manners.
The river used 10 be the place for gamb-
INK but that's been dead for over twenty
years. and don't guess itll ever come to
he again. But those were the days, my
loy-great days for the town, with thirty
sN steamboats, all at the wharf at once,
me levee covered with drays. and every
sport with stun In his pockets and lots OF
good clothes. 1 guess there was 800 men
who worked the boats between here and
New Orleans, and there's no telling how
much money they did pull off the travel
,rS. II was dead easy money, too, all the
time. Everyone who travelled had lots or
bet high. so when "A fellow did win he
won right out OF the hole at once. Those
southern planters used TO lose money
Just like fun, and were skinned right ana
LIT. Occasionally they caught on ana
there was a shooting match, but the boys
didn't take much chance on being plugged
I've seen forty gamblers on one boat
the John Dickey. That was in 1851. when
the officers at Natchez cleaned all the
gamblers out of town. The whole gang
met the boat at the wharf and started
d 4.tfe
let them on unless they promised not TO
MAY card abroad. They promised and
ie took them on and the boat came on
nm the river. They kept their promise not
- play a card. but how they did skin pas
sergers on other games. George DevOll
got little piece OF tinfoil. wrapped II
around some salt and, sitting down near
he stove, warmed II and put IL up against
his cheek. He'd hold II there a while,
warm % again, and put IL back. Presently
q passenger who got acquainted with one
Of Georges pals observed his actions and
inquired what he was doing. George said
he Was curing his neuralgia, and he ex-
plained the cure. After he had done so he
kept up the thing for awhile, and then he
left the cure on the stove hearth and
went ont
Then Georges pal marked the pack
axe and suggested that IL would be
good joke 10 change the salt for ashes,
Just TO observe what strength Devolls
belief had in curing his neuralgia. The
passenger. a planter. fell in and changed
the salt for ashes and left it on the
hearth. Devoll comes back and begins
his monkey business again. and the plant
er comes around and guys George about
the cure being no good, and finally George
Is so dead sure he is cured himself that
the planter gets hot, and says that he'll
bet there Is no salt in the tinfOil. George
puts him off and his pal shows the plan
ter what a dead sure thing he has got
and works him up for George in great
shape. They finally bet-s30o was the
money-and Of course George shifts
duplicate of his first package on the
planter and shows up the salt The
planter was clean concerned but he
was working George on a dead sure thing
and couldn't squeal.
well. sir, those gamblers got all on
that boat, and, though they didn't touch
a card, they cleaned out pretty near
everybody that had stuff We landed at
a woodplle 10 take on wood. and the
passengers all got out on the bank and
running jumps. and of course the pas
sengers dropped in. SO they'd run off
the gangplank and up to a tree to jump,
when the first gambler would say, Hello. |
what's here" and stop. Behind the tree |
one Of the gang had begun throwing |
,hree-card monte. while the other got |
~ the jumping scheme. The gamblers |
won just TO make the game good, and |
the way those fellows skinned the pas |
sengers was horrible. The captain got |
on TO the scheme and when the boat |
started off up stream the whole gang |
forty OF 'enr-were tust maroOned there /
n the woods on a cold night.
That wasn't gafnblng-it was robbng; |
put mats what went as gambling in |
hose times. The fellows had to be pref
3 slick. / can tell you. When a boat
Il gamblers would be on board. They
we're often well-educated fellows. and |
lways fine dressers. All they did was
ust get acquainted with men with
CfZ bprt l.
his was easily done, because card play
ng was the only thing to pass away !
he time. These cappers wouldn't win |
ny money. They. were just to do the
oat their pals came on at some point
p the river with a full knowledge of
0w much money there was on the boat,
nat men had IT, and how these men
ere best approached. 1t wasn't hard |
} get acquainted. and II wasn't hard TO |
p up game of euchre after a drink. |
nee the game was on the thing was |
nooth; the dealer fixed the deck and
'alt out good poker hand 10 the mark,
NJ better one 10 his own partner, who !
-0mptly declared:
We got good hand I'd like to bet
% SO have t. replied Mr.. Mark and
en- they got into betting and the strang-
got skinned right and left. The cards |
ere stocked and marked on-the back. so
az ne didn't have any chance at all 10
~ All tHt pldylUB was done with |
star backs. I've seen fellows rick
cry card in pack and call ii without
issing once. I've seen them shuttle
EN- one for one all through from top
bottom so that they were in the same
sition after dozen shufiles that they
re In at first. They'd just flutter them
Ike flock Of quail and get the aces, | !
1gs, queens, jacks, and tens all togeth- s
as easy as pie. a sucker had no more
ance against those fellows than a a
oWban has in a red hot oven. Every /
ok was marked. I
When the fellow was roped into the /
me the gamblers went TO the bartender | /
. bought a deck for IA dollar. They /
ned all the decks. The bartender US a
ny stood in. and that's where most
those old river men got their money.
Dn anything, so his only chance was TO i
and In with the gang They divvied | |
v,,y fair in those times. / have known
Iians 10 stand in and take their share \
De plumber like little men. The bar I
eyer often came In very handy. When
81 show up with the drinks ordered e
The gambler. He'd get there just after A
iund the drinks on the tray. 1t wasn't v
trouble TO just carry a marked deck n
Ter the tray and drop II down while
King up the cut deck. The deal went -
and the suckers got skinned. l have q
% this shift made often. and a fellow |
uld hardly believe IL can be done so
ckly.
Another scheme was to get the suck
70 bet on picking out the cards Eay |
Jacks He'd bet the sharper couldn't |
X out the jack of spades. and the
rper would miss IL couple Of times
complain that his head was wrong. |
managed 70 20 away just then and
We the deck behind him, when his pal \
lld suggest the plan OF stealing the =
and then beating MS own game. ~
victim fell I'm, OF course, and they "
h the tack and he hid il In his pOck- "