The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1896-05-10
AROUND THE WHIST TABLE
TALUE or THE RUFFINo GAME AND
oBJIC TIONs MADE TO IT.
Importance NJ Making Trunps Separately
The RumnE Game Versus tho Long
Suit Gnu~-OpIsions or Writers on the
Singleton stton OF SiHnaia.


= The RuHnr Came Versus tho Lont
: Suit Gnu~-OpIHions OF WRITER'S on th'
Z Singleton rad-Que stion OF Signals.
In writing on a game in which the chief oh
ject is to win tricks, IL would naturally b
Imagined that every possible way OF MAXIM
tricks would be carefully examined and tina
authors Of text books would pay the creates
attention to the methods that won tho mos
tricks. In whist this has not beon the case
For the past thirty years almost all the book
written on tho game have confined the readers
attention to one theory of play. tho long suits
a theory which has been shown In these articles
to be fnliacious.
DR.. Pole. IN his enumeration Of the variou,
ways in which tricks may be won at whist,
states that Tho third method OF trick making
is by trumpinR. n system almost ms fascinating
to the beginner as the realization of master
cards; but the correction Of this prediction
requires much deeper study" Docs he mean
by this that the prediction for making tricks
must be corrected2
II Is remarkable that during q century and n
half Of experiment and analysis. only one at
tempt has ever been made to outline the princi-
pies that should guide players who prefer the
ruling game 10 the long suits. This is n short
chapter in Fosters Whist Strategy. page p07.
After giving some general directions for this
style OF play the author says: at must not be
w 'ha' there nothlhs "uoau'S ,
troSeru"' "uu Inat inc NUMBER Oh tricks Una.
may DC game" IN one mana by that means VIII
Offset a great many partial successes In playing
io"H VII l1'uaV De SET down ~ an axiom tna'
"h'h there u a choice oetwoen inc Two metn-
DDS, to play for tho suit or for the run. both
oe'"k 'leariJ III manu. inc run Is inc oetter
k"'e' inns !" constantly oNeriookeu oy o'en
~ ~ p'ayeIs'
a'ery "hIs' payer knows that there Is no
Surer way vi saving trlcks IN the race OF Htrong
auNerso h"noo 'hah oy masking trumps sep
ar"teiS. IL II d iaVorlte remark OIL Knowles OF
wv noStoh sport-sult team th"t IL Two partners
'ou'u Always h'akethe'r truihps separately 'hey
"ou'u win every game thcy played ANY por-
son NJ all taipiiar with double dummy knows
tn"' tne ruPng game Is snch n TRICK winner
th"' IL oiteh pays 10 trump partner 5 aces to
he'p RUIZ anu 'h"t tho most reh'arKaoie
eoo'es '"h u 'uaue against Overwhelming nd
verse s'rehgtn II n cross-ruH can DC got going.
i'ot u uealeI turn up the heart = MS partner
hou'nst he H. hp';C .. hQJ;D.
- a. u 'he lender ana MS partner nave each
-FOUR sn"'i' ruihpS' one having no diamonds ana
inc other no CLUBS they viii make two ov cards
oeiore inc oeAier ana MS partner can taxes
lricK' no motter what the dealers cards are.
ne 'ocai'eu LUKE OF Cumberland hand Is an
other example. Hearts are trnmps, the leader
holds H., KJo7: c., A X; d. X j; S.,
O. The dealer has no card HIGHER tban n
sixand only five small trumns Uis n,rtner
has only two face cards the A O NJ trrmrs.ord
,o. ,ho.a 49, u,ts.San,a Wv
yet THESE wv" miserable hands make a slam
Drayson saws he believes more game. ~ ,ost
..mnis, hr "a ~ "eU
in any other way. III | were to enumerate the
of rutbers I have seen lost bv a n,avsr
weak in trumps refusing to force his partner
should count them by thousands" He points
out that it is lAo unusual hand in which you are
strong enough 10 reserve the trumps Tor the sole
long suit. In tho great majority Of hands the
500 ' " ""N' ~
best use your trumps can be put to is In trump
Ing the adrersarics' winning cards.
- 10" priSo ",' ,% I'M i'ouU minus anu count
the sinai cards Of long suits and the number
TINT are won by making trumps separoteIv be
ma 70 : y am 'iu"is sephra.ei'' ne
wiz iha inc iFIAhs game WINS ABOUT eighteen
tricks to the long suits one. Knowing this.
.ino InA ~ Neen q "pportuh,,
tes 10 lore" ehch other anu TO make small
separately. If the hand has not been
~, haorn = s,nnaI ,hs. 49,. ~"
not begun " signal they force each other at
every Opportunity, regardless of their trump
strength. The force NAV so6ms,imos ho unfor,r
800. = tl lna' oo uhiortu-
nate ana lose p tricK or Two; but this occasional
that can be pe ked up by prompt and judicionHs
r,r s,vc, p,n
"
Inc popular IMPRESSION or the ruthng game is
inc original Lend or n snehk.' Persons who
before ihry think VIII tell. you that all
Wllst aullotitS Is oppnseu 10 tne singleton lead.
II may surpris. such, to learn that there Is not n
single WORD IN any book on whist TO show that
me 1ead OF tha singleton Is bad. or any pretence
NAT ~ ihiHht 'ot oe a trlck winner. The leader
not blamed for the sneak, but all the books
That Inc partner Will make n fool of
by getting out the ,trunps and then
INC e'lt PACK. Inc read is MI right II
I IS property followed up by the partner; no
1he denies that; mt the tricks are lost by the
.hlru hand insisting on playing the long-suit
game without a long-suit hand himself, simply
m the ASSUMPTION that his partner has some
hing.
Here Is what all the great writer's on the game
nave TO say about leading singletons:
Mathews says: Two objections are made, :
which il Cannrt be denied may and 40 happen. 4
he first. that II your partner has. tho king Of ,
lie SUIT guarded ana the ace Is behind IL, he
oseS II. The second and most material is. that
our partner, " he wins the trick. NAV lead out
rumps on the superstition 1t is your strong suit. 4
IN the contrary. the constant and certain nd 7