The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-05-27
eUYoN's POKER TABLE.
a Device Which is Said to Have Won
100000 for It's Inventor.

a Device Which is Said to Fave Won
$500, 900 for It's Inventor.
From the Chicago Herald.
In the vault at police headquarters is
an innocent-looking table, which is the
cleverest contriyance of its kind ever in
vented by an ingenious gambler. 1t was
at this table that Charles F, Stokes, pres
ident of the Stokes Manufacturing Com
pany, 293 Wabash avenue, was robbed of
l,oOO the other night. If Mr. Stokes
ever plays poker with strangers
again it is safe TO say he will examine
the table on which the cards are dealt.
He will not only tap it and turn. up the
cloth, but will example every chink and
crack underneath.
The table at which Stokes sat while his
hard cash disappeared is one said TO have
peen invented by Bert GuYon, California
gambler of many aliases. who worked the
contrlvance for every cent the bicycle
manufacturer of Wabash avenue had in
his pockets. As the story goes, four we'll
known confidence men and gamblers.
whose names appear on the police records
as Bert Guyon, Frederick S. f Usher, Hugh
Dunn and "Deafy'' Morris, induced Stokes
to join them in little game of poker in
Wabash avenue hotel 'Deafy" Morris
made the acquaintance of the victim. and
then introduced three suave individuals
entlre strangers to "Deafy,' who were
anxious to sit in the game. Stokes lost
$1,000 at several seapces. He put the
matter In the hands of Inspector Shea,
and Detectives Meyer and Murnane ar
rested the four men Tuesday night. The
table was captured, and, after long and
careful scrutiny. Inspector Shea discov-
cred the trick, and the innocent-looking
piece OF furniture was put away for safe
Keeping until the case against the gam
blers comes up for trial.
As Guyon was the most expert hand at
the contrivance, he sat opposite the
drawer, which was placed in such
position that any player would know it.
contained only poker chips. The table
was of the ordinary circular kind, four
feet in diameter, with green cloth CEN
ter and four inches of dark colored wood
around the edge. Between the cloth and
the wood just above the drawer lay the
simple continuance which won Stokes
money Looking from above, one could
not see any gap between cloth and wood.
In fact, the point of thin knife blade
could hardly find room there The drawer
did not extend under the table, and di-
rectiy behind it Guyon,s invention was
placed
With his finger Guyon drew out Of a
Sill behind the drawer a thin steel blade
four inches long something like a letter
opener. lie placed his knee against the
edge of this blade The game began.
"Deafy' lost, but the victim. kept even
with the game. Then came the trial of
the Guyon machine. Before the first
hand had been dealt the cards were
counted and found to be all right. During
the game Guyon. managed to procure four
trays as they were dealt to him by one of
his partners, and with another card he
slowed them away After the next deal
he crossed his hands in front and allowed
the five cards to lean against his ringers.
He held the cold hand there, too, and
as he pressed the steel blade to thel left
with has knee small steel clamp pushed
its way up silently between the cloth and
the strip of wood. The green cloth bulged
up little, but the victim could not see
what was going on behind those closely
locked fingers. 1t was easily done. A
slight movement and the hand containing
the four trays was caught tightly by the
clamp. The knee went back and the
cards disappeared. Guyon played and
lost and then gave the signal to his con
federates
Three kings were dealt to Stokes. and
he called for two cards and drew A pair
of fives. With fall house" he leaned
back and waited. Guyon drew three
cards, and the others apparently had
nothing more than a pair. Fisher threw
in small bet, which the victim raised n
little. Morris raised this, ana Guyon
raised again. Fisher dropped out and
Stokes raised GuyoH. Morris dropped
out at this point, Guyon coming back at
the victim with a roll of bills. The two
players see sawed back and forth until
Stokes called Guyon. Guyon had again
pressed the blade underneath the table
and the cold hand' appeared He shifted
the hand, the original five cards dropping
out of sight. Stokes showed a king full,
but Guyon had four trays. The victim
was out $500. He played on the follow
ing night and succeeded in dropping
s. GOO altogether. u was absolutely i'm
possible for him to beat such game. II
was.a sure SYSTEM He was suspicious,
however, and reported to matter to the
police. la6 4fle. n 49,.
The table can be taken apart so as To
admit of convenient carriage Throughout
the country. .GuSon has travelled in every
state ot.the unlortwith it and has never
failed to secure victims 3st
80 lit is the simplest and most ingenious
machine even id vented TO fleece the I'M
wary, said Detective Murnane last night.
"Itirst heard of tia bout six wears ago
A man reported to the police that he had
lost $500 in poker game at one of the
large hotels, and was sent out to invest
igaIe the matter. / soon learned that
Bert Guyon was one of the men who
helped to fleece the sucker While
working on the case ran across a gam
bier from the Pacific coast, and he told
me of Guyon's ingenious table.
Search warrants were sworn out
for The table, and every large
hotel in Chicago was searched from top
to bottom, but the table was not found
Reports began to come in from all over
the country about Guyon's phenomenal
luck at poker He has played in all the
large cities, from San Francisco TO Port
land, Me-, and don't think it would be
an eXaggeration TO say he has cleaned up
100000 with the wonderful table.
"Guyon always has three confederates.
'Deafy' Morris, who was arrested with
him here. was driven out of New York
by Inspector Byrnes several years ago.
His right name is Morris Holland. He is
a very clever man. Frederick S. Fisher
used torun saloon and hotel at Kansas
City. His real name is Bishop Hugh
Dunn has been gambler in Chicago for
thirty years"