The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-11-17
BLACK PRINCE OF CALIFORNIA
Tells How He Became "a Follower of
Chance.

A negro stood in the lobby of the West
minister hotel, in this city, this afternoon
| looking absent-mndedly up and down
Main street. He had just arrived in town,
and was evidently expecting some one.
His dress attracted the attention of every
| one who saw him, and even the street
| boys came in and looked in the big win
dows at the man. He wore garments of
the latest fashion and finest fit. His lin
en- was Immaculate, and the light over
coat that hung on his arm was of most
| expensive fabric. He wore a silk hat, and
| carried gold-headed cane. Three large
! diamonds blazed from his shirt bosom,
| and two smaller diamonds were in rings
! on his fingers, and still larger diamonds
| sparkled on his cuff buttons.
The man was James StilIman, better
known as the BLACK Prince" He is
| probably the richest negro gambler in
| America, and one of the best known and
| cleVerest gamblers on the Pacific Coast.
| Thousands of persons in this part of the
| union have heard of Stillson, the colored
| gambler, but have never seen him. He
| owns $4,000 worth of houses and lots in
| San Diego, and has half-interest with a
| white man in a seashore hotel at Santa
| Barbara, worth at least $4,000, besides
! string of running horses that have made
| some fine records at the Pacific Coast
| races. A conservative estimate of the
value of his real estate and horses is
| $1350O0.
How did 1 become gambler" said
| Stllson, as he took a cigar from his mouth
| and laughed. 81 guess 1 was born to gam
| BILE. 1t came just as natural to me to gam
| BILE as to breathe. l was born on a planta-
| tion along the Ohio river somewhere along
/ about 1916, and / can't remember when L
| / wi m
/ could not have been more than six years
| old of betting watermelons with river boat
| men. / used to match pennies with the
| white youngsters, and there I first discov-
cred my fortune in risks. Later 1 became
| cabin boy on a New Orleans packet
steamer, Everybody gambled on MISSISSIPPI
| pi river boats. was no exception. My good
| fortune continued, and when we reached
| Cincinnati on one of our trips found had
| $50 clear | left the river and started
! small gambling room for the benefit of
| people of my own race. l was getting along
| finely until one day man came in and
| broke the faro bank, which meant 5000 to
| me. Then | bush-whacked about the coun-
! try for time. When / could earn a dollar
| 1 played the bank. Some times L had hun
dreds and occasionally thousands, only to
| lose 1t all another day.
"One night L cleared up $1,700 in a New
Orleans bank. 1 went to Chicago, in spite
| of the prejudice against a colored man
| around a faro table, and determined to
open an establishment for myself. A crowd
followed me UP from New Orleans to
| break me. / got $1,000 from a Cincinnati
| friend, now a Detroit man. to help me out.
| We had it hot and heavy, but l came out
| $1,000 winner. l afterward started a second
bank in Memphis and both of these are
| running now.
How do you play?"
"only big limits-$lOO. 5000 or $500 to call
| a card. San Francisco banks play 500 linn
it's, but it is mere tomfoolery to play such
| a game. / have always made it a principle
to make or break-that is, clean out the
bank or myself. That's the only true way
to gamble. My advice to one who engages
in 1t is to stop forever the. minute he makes
decent pile.
Have ever broken banks? Yes; about
fourteen. l have played the highest game
on this coast in the last twenty years
call-card faro for $1,000 a crack. Remem-
Der, this was not a combination arrange
ment; l played my money alone. My larg-
est cleanings have been in Saratoga and
Chicago. In Saratoga a few years ago l
broke a bank for $4,000. That was the
largest bank ever broke, though l have
made more money than that off one sit
ting"
After long years experience In gamb-
ling, what do you think of such a eareerY'
Mine out of ten of the gambling men
] have known have died poor. / knew a
man once in Portland, Ore, who, in few
weeks, made several thousand dollars from
$40 and dropped dead with heart disease
| at the faro table. He is one of the persons
who quit way ahead of the game. But the
fascination of the game is Irresistible, and
not one person in a hundred can have a
career of gambling behind and go into
another pursuit If they had any money
left
81 have been in the minstrel business
l ffrar ina nd fria n .f,,.l
with the details of the route, the theaters
and the moving from town to town, but |
soon tired of that life. It's not lively
enough for me; I've got to risk something
all the time. 1 can't eat or sleep unless !
am either getting ahead or losing on the
game, 1 have made more money on the
coast in the past two years in betting on
races than / have made i'm playing cards.
The times are bad for the kind of game
i like to play. l have found New Orleans
the best city In the south for men Of my
business, but there are times when a pile
of money can be made with little risk in
Seattle and El Paso. 1t all depends upon
the rules of the game of the city you go
into"
Where have you seen the best gamb-
ling?"
"The most scientific and business-lixe
, games l ever saw played in my lifetime
among gamblers were those on the Mssis-
sippi. Those men were the best poker
and faro players ever known.
81 remember one day in May in 1889 /
was cabin boy on the famous Robert
Ward-the finest boat ahoat on the river
and when we left New Orleans there were
aboard 300 OF the greatest faro dealers.
horse trotters and all-round gamblers in
; America. Every one had money. for the
racing season had been a grand success,
and every one of the gamblers was on his
way TO Saratoga or to the White Sulphur
Springs for a summer with the New York
and Philadelphia bloods. The Robert