Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1896-03-06
IRRITABLE AT WHIST
NEITHER AGE, RANK NOR SEX
RESPECTED BY EXPERTS.

Bishops Forget While as Play That
That IL Is a Part of Their Duty
TO He Charitable - Some OF the
Anecdotes Attached 10 the Long
History OF Whist.
New York Sun.
Beyond question or doubt there is
no game in existence better calculated
to raise the ire of humanity than
whist. The man who can play cannot
brook a blunder on the part of part
ner, no matter whether that partner
belongs to the gentler sex or not.
Inveterate whist players tolerate no
! mistakes.
The tempers of some of the most
eminent clergymen, bishops, priests
and deacons. and, in fact, OF all OF
more than average ability. has been
raised beyond control in so-called
friendly game of whist. Families have
been separated and matches broken off
all through failure to return u part.
ner's lead. Two distinguished mill.
tary veterans met some years ago. 1t
was at dinner party. Whist was
proposed afterward.
A young fellow of unquestionable
antecedents was one of the guests.
He was an aspirant for the hand OF
Colonel BIS daughter. The family was
not we'll known to Colonel B. He
asked his old companion in arms.
Colonel A., what he thought OF the
aspiring youth. Colonel A. replied in
n voice that sounded like distant
thunder:
"He's ID scoundrel. He
trumped my trick less than week
ago." This precluded all possibility
of the match. No man who was guilty
of trumping partners trick could
marry into Colonel BIS family. 1t is
curious that whist, which really should
conduce to equsnimity of mind and
rest of body, should have almost count
lees anecdotes of irritation and displays
of bad feeling attached to its long his
tory. There is . story told in the
west Of England OF famous lieuten'
ant general of the Royal marines who
was playing one evening with the IA
nous Mrs. Ellis, and who much wished
for a return of his lead of trumps.
But the lady made no response to his
call, and when the trick which she
led was lost he threw his cards in her
face, saying in his wild rage, "If you
are not going to lead trumps, the
game is lost" When the marines
wrath had cooled somewhat. the lady
showed him her cards, and it WAS seen
that she had not single trump in
her hand.
For the most part the modern whist
player knows his company and his
company knows him. Year after
year, as Major Pendennis in his own
corner, he faces the same foes and
plays his hand to the same friend. In
skill and judgment, even in enthusi-
asm, rs Mr.. James Payn bears witness,
he is beyond any card playing product
OF the century. And, above all, he is
not q gambler. In many ways he
dates entirely from Cavendish and
the little set which regenerated whilst
at Cambridge in the year 1854. Cam
bridge, indeed, has always nutured the
love of the stately and scholarly occu.
patton and has carried it even into
church. The anecdote of the old
chapel at St. Johns, where in Bishop
Fraser's chansry you could deal your
cards at the very first note OF dearly
beloved brethren" and continue the
rubbers until the dean exhorted you
to "let your light 80 shine" is still
new and to be told in the rooms OF the
freshman. Alas, that an unusually
rhetorical preacher, pausing one day
suddenly in fine passage, allowed the
ominous words, What's trumps?" to
float mp from the chsntry to the very
stalls of the dons themselves, from
which day whist was no longer q fea.
ture of the corner, nor were the cor.
ners a feature OF Johns.
Bishop Bathurst thought that the
attention which he gave to the game
OF whist contributed to sharpen and
keep his faculties alive by an amuse.
ment Of which he was always fond.
Only once did the beloved pastime
move the worthy bishop to great
anger. They sent to him priest who
could not play whist, and he cried
aloud in his agony, have served
the Wings all my life, and now they
send me down q canon who doesn't
know clubs from spades" In the list
of minor clergy Mr.. Courtney does
even better. The great Paley said
some of the best things over the whist
table. A lady who was seated at the
same card-table in Lincoln with him
was we'll known to her friends for her
affection for the game, but thought it
proper to dissemble her love by put
ting in mitigating plea for the prac-
tice. She remarked to the archdeacon
at one OF the intervals in the pursuit
that" the only excuse for their play
ing WAS that it served to kill time" !"
The archdeacon's answer was, "The