The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-06-18
THE sHARPER's DICE.
Tricks Praoticsd With Eleotrioit and
the Ivory Cubes.
From DC New York World.


The World recently gave an account of
some devices for cheating at cards de-
scribed by John Nevil Mastelyne, a we'll
known English sleight-of-hand performer,
in his book, "Sharps and Flats" In the
same book he tells how dice are loaded
and otherwise falsifed, by which means
Innocent gamblers are cheatef II as much
money as at cards.
Methods of cheating with dice are di-
vided into two classes--the manipulation
of the proper dice and the employment of
improper ones.
The familiar "loaded dice" of romance
are clumsy affairs now little
used. They do not spin properly, which
reveals their peculiarities TO intelligent
people. The commonest way of manipu-
lating fair dice is called securing" One
die is held against the inside edge of the
box, while the Others are ratified freely in
the box. One, therefore, falls 10 the
table in the position in which it has been
held The inside edge of the box is
roughed with glasspaper to prevent the
die from slipping.
The die to be secured is taken from the
table with the six upward, which fail
from the box again in that position. OF
course. it requires great skill and care To
remove the fingers so that the die falls on
the face intended. Only practice makes
perfect
BY this method the lowest possible
throw with two dice will be seven The
average of an infinite number of fair
throws is seven. With one die secured it
is necessarily much higher.
Dice which do not bear the correct
number Of spots on their faces, are called
"dispatchers." Loaded dice are, of
course, loaded in one side and tend to fall
with one side downward. Electric dicen,
are the very newest device.
Dispatchers are of two kinds, high and
low. In high dispatcher three adjacent
sides of die are marked with two, four
and six, respectively. In fair dice the
two opposite sides number together seven
spots. In dispatchers, the side opposite
six is six, opposite four is four and oppo-
site two is two
in a low dispatcher three ad accent
sides are marked one, two and three A
high dispatcher cannot throw less than
two, and a low more than three. If the
sharp uses high dispatcher and gives a
low one 70 his opponent, each using one
fair die as well, the former will average
30 per cent. better than the latter in his
throws.
A price-list Of gambling commodities
says:
LOADED dice-Made of selected ivory.
loaded with quick silver aud can be
shaken from the box so as to come high
or low, as you wish. With set of these
you will lind yourself winner at all dice
games, and carry Off the prize at every
ratfie you attend. Sold in sets of nine
dice, three high, three low and three fair
Price per set complete, s5.'
Electric dice are made Of celluloid A
cylindrical cavity is bored from the six
sides almost TO the face of the ace side
AT the bottom Of the cavity, immediately
hn Fe J. 4 fatr 90
cavity is filed in with cork. and a loaded
disk Of the same weight as the iron one,
leaving space for the insertion OF q eellu-
loid plug bearing the six spots. The die is.
therefore, evenly balanced and will spin
like fair one.
These dice must be used on a table hav-
ing an electric magnet beneath it (which
can be put in and out of effect at the will
of the sharp The magnet brings the ace
side, near which is the iron disk, against
the table and turns up the six. The
sharper demagnetizes the magnet before
lifting the die from the table, otherwise
Its eaorts 10 stay there would be noticea-
bic.
Unfair dice are usually "rung in" after
the game has commenced.
Electric dice are particularly useful in
hazard. A pair OF dice being made TO
fall six and one. he can throw a mick"
whenever he pleases. II he gives his
dupe "a pair, made 10 fall both skies or
both aces, the dupe can be made to throw
"crab" whenever his opponent pleases,
A dice top. OF teetoJum. can be made &c
fan on any particular side, after the man
ner OF a loaded ole.
In false roulette wheels the copper
points forming the recesses into which
the ball falls arc made to move
in two sets. BY moving one of these
slightly the man VINO spins the wheel can
close all the high numbers or all the
small ones, according TO the betting.
Odette Tyler. who vas 10 have been Mrs.
Gould. is in Richmond, Va and viii soon sail
for lsnrore. she IS writing a novel OF Vir.
~ q. d 10 .----Ln = 20 m. -Lr--Lu..n %