Birmingham state herald. (Birmingham, Ala.) 1895-1897, 1896-04-12
A GOLDEN. TIGERS LAIR
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Experiences of a Young Lady at
Monte Carlo.
.s~
THE DELICIOUS EXCITEMENT
She Won Pile of Money and Was AwfuIly
Scared a Captain Recouped
His Losses.
THE DELICIOUS EXCITEMENT 7

A young Englishwoman, evidently of
good birth, has written a chatty book I'M
der the nom de plume "Aureole,' IN
which she gives brisk accounts of Monte
Carlo happenings. She says:
"a swing door yields with the thought
and 1 stand in the far-famed temple of
the golden calf A few officials lounge
around, but the building seems strangely
empty and desolate. l advanced few
PAGES shyly, and at the extreme end of
the magnificent hall perceive struggling
group Of well dressed people
"Why do these people battle around
that mysterious portal?-men ana W.
men hustling and showing for dear IRE!
Il hover inqusitively on the OUTSIDE
edge A clock booms slow twelve ana
a face appears in the widening aperture
Then a magnetic vitality thrills the walt
ing cue. A Frenehman, with halr en-
brosse, glasps my hand in hurry OF pus-
mess, exclaming: 'Vite, vte, meess, par
icin and with a great swirl | am porhe
along in the GREATNESS rush.
when i come to my senses 1 ma my
self seated in front of what | have rea-
son to believe is a roulette table; ana as
people. are standing round 1t daWnS on
me that this fuss Is merely to secure
chair Well, I am anxious to see the IA
"A remarkably gentleman-hke young
man ssts next to me and | watch his
maneuVers closely. / have always heafd
that hands are an infallible indication
of breeding, and my neighbors are SO
long and white and waxen, with hilbert
nails and polished pearly crescents. He
wins every >stroke and those dazzling
fingers draw in gold and rouleaux inces-
sanity. He must have felt my interest,
for he eXclaimS suddenly:
"'FolloW my play, madam; l am en-
veine-I feel inspired. Six dernier. Thir-
ty-two. Quick! Quick!
Delicious Excitement.
How 1 extricated a purse from the
innermost recesses of my being, in cold
blood | cannot tell; but | flung a napo-
leon on the number suggested as the
'Jeu ne va plus rang out. The next in
slant heap of gold and silver is thrust
into my hand Bah! How easy! How
gloriuos! My handsome adviser laughs
at my unsophisticated pleasure.
yes, gambling may be wicked; but
having accidentally made the coup, the
best thing evidently is to fling it back
onto the tables. Once or twice l followed
my leader with magnificent results, and
money pours on me in a golden shower
A delicious excitement sent the blood
coursing through my veins. i.
"Bill and breakfast go clean out of my
quaintance I literally plaster the green
cloth with coins. / begin to suspect that
this man with the deferental manners
must-be one of the grand dukes or altes-
SEES royaleso who swarm, locust-like, at
Monte Carlo.
of our luck. Well, raking in the louis
dor to the end of those monotonous
voices fs'a'real dream of delight. !
Il had lost a considerable stake for the
first time and was consulting the UNI
known eagerly. My fingers were spread
greedily over a pile of winnings and l
slowly raised a flushed face
bill was standing exactly opposite.
1.-The sight brought me back to earth
with a run, though | laughed at his dean,
astonished, sacred expression of coun-
tenance | turn to bid adieu of my COM
panion in crime, but, hocus-pocus,
Prince Charming has vanished.
with a light heart and a heavy pocket
] am soon vending my way at Biz
side across the place, wickedly elate and
joyous.
All! a friend of yours? I'm so glad;
best chiropodist in London"
How Captain Recouped.
Here is a different tale: He was the
captain of a trading ship intrusted with
10000 francs. Putting in accidentally at
an adjacent port, he thought he would
visit the gambling rooms.
AlluIeu by the HOTIlDie ldSClIldllOl, lie
Ventured small stake. Like all begin
ners, he won coup after coup until an
upsetting turn of the tide. He carried
the precious notes in his pocket, and, his
own money exhausted, was tempted to
borrow from the sacred trust. In a few
nightmare hours he found himself PEN
niless, ruined and dishonored man.
But the old boy didn't take long to
make up his mind. Broad and burly, he
presented himself to the administration"
and explained the awful state of the case.
Naturally they refused to refund the
money. Then the mariner grew terrible
in his despair.
Under these circumstances, gentle
men," he said, life is valueless. / shall
go back to the boat, and if l don't receive
1000 francs within half an hour / shall
blow cut my brains; but before sending
in my checks I'll have the satisfaction
of bombardng your confounded casino
/ take my oath to that. Good morning"
He was soon busy loading aiming and
placing his saluting cannon; but in some
thing, under twenty minutes the vessel
was hailed by trim employe from head
quarters
Captain" said the visitor politely
your preparations will be unnecessary;
you can unload. Here are your 10000
francs Bon voyage"