The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1897-02-15
FOR LOVERS OF WHIST.
Two Things to Be Considered In
Opening Hand.
Long Suit Play Is Simplest - Pole
Cavendish-Trist Theory Unsound.

|
the play thereafter Is correcty" BY the in.
| formatory consideration l mean: "What
| will partner think of my lead? Will he
understand its purpose and be correctly
! guided thereby2" On these two consider.
atlons all systems OF play are based.
OF all systems Of play the simplest IL
| that of Pole and Cayendish and Trist, be.
cause in this system the strategic and the
| infornatory features are virtually iden
| tical. Here the strategic consideration is
reduced to u single proposition, "Open the
! longest suit" and by an easy process
the informatory consideration becomes,
"Show partner the character Of the longes,
| suit by tho card you lead" II simplicity
were the supreme virtue, this system would
be ocstatio. Tho trouble is that the stra
| tegic foundation Of the Pole Cavendish
! Trist theory is unsound. 1t is not always
| best 60 open the longest suit. The truth of
| this statement Is now almost universally
acknowledged by strong players. Hence
the Pole -CGyendish Trist structure falls to
the ground
But if we reject the fundamental stra-
tegic considCrationof the old game and open
| hand sometimes with card from short
suit we must reject also the old informa-
tory consideration, because we no longer
say, by tho original lead, Partner, this IL
the correct number showing card of my
longest suit. 4" We must, indeed, cast about
for an entirely new set Of conscientious,
both strategic and nformatory.
Such was the purpose of the present
writer In whist Openings" to point out
the different forms of whist strategy &c
group all whist hands in classes according
to the strategic treatment demanded by
II al 10 =, .,op,,
each opening 50 that it might bc correctly
informntory. An effort was made to have
the informatory features of the system
spring naturally and logically from the
strategic. Arbitrary information giving
oonventionalities were az far as possible
avoided. The results of the authors effort
as conilrmcd-or, In some cases, modified
by experience, have been given, up 70 O
certain point, In this series of articles.
The player has been told from what va
rieties OF hands the original trump opening
OR trump attack-seemed 10 be advis
able. This was the strategic consideration
in one of its phases. The corresponding
informatory consideration was inevitable
In each case. For instance we lead trump,
short that Is, from less than four--n
we have all round pl;Sn suit strength; pea
contra, since we lead trumps short
partner necessarily infers that our plair
suits are strong al round, as we would moi
otherwise undertake the trump ATTACK
without numerical trump strength. Again,
with ono very good plain suit, re-entry
and four trumps, we lead trumps, showing
four by the American or Trist lead, and
accordingly, seeing the four trumps, part
ner infcrs Tho very good plain suit and the
rc-entry, because this Is the only sort OF
hand Justifying the trump ATTACK with fom
trumps-except the rare case of the forI
trumps accompanying all round strength
In the other nine Q,rds, which degree oi
strength will take hare of itself without
regard TO partpSSys inferepces. Finally
with five or mo'olrumps and support (ter
or better) in every plain suit, we begin
with the trump attack, and partner, from
the number showing lead seeing the FIVE
or more trumps, infers the character OF
the rest of the hand beyond any doubt
save the slight one that with the long
trumps we may have n very good plain
suit, as in the foregoing case.
In tho samo way the small card and high
card openings from plain suits have been
presented. With long trumps GENERALLY
five or more) and n long and weak plain
suit, with re-entry, our strategic consider.
alton Is that the best opening Is the small
est card OF the long plain suit. We no open
the hand, and partner infers our trump
strength just as soon as he discovers the
weakness OF the plain suit lead. With good
trumps, but not many generally less than
FOUR, and u good plain suit, with rc-ontry,
our strategic consideration again points &c
the small card opening from the plain suit,
and partner, when he perceives the quality
OF the suit, infers the character Of the
trump holding.
IL will be observed that the informatory
features Of our openings so far are general;
each opening depending on tho general
character Of the hand, also shows partner
Its general character. In this respect, more
than any other, do the informatory fea
cures OF the old and the new systems differ
The Pole -Cavendsh- Trist idea was TO show
by the original lead all about the longest
suit and nothing else Our idea Is TO show
all we can about the whole hand, because
IL is the whole hand and not the longest
suit alone that we consider In tho choice
of an opening.
/ have gone thus into details, with some
repetition, concerning the strategic and
informatory considerations of the new
whist, In order to exhibit, II can, the |
spirit Of the system. Mechanical whist, |
Whlst ny rule OF thumD, wooden whist, II |
bane Any system, however, no matter |
how logical and sensible IL may be, must
appear mechanical TO the student who does |
not understand it's principles and enter In. |
o. the spirit of the whole.
When we reached the high card game, |
we found that we could not combine with |
the high card opening from the best plain |
suit any Information about the rest of the |
hand. Here then, we have 90 fall back |
on the old informatory consideration |
namely, that of showing the character of |
the suit led as definitely as possible. That |
Is all we can do.
49, Now We arrive at the gambit, which l |
cannot I'm this article trUt beyond the |
point Of saying that its strategic considera- |
ton Is chiefly and broadly speaking n cor
ollary OF the hasic principle Of our game
namely, that IL Is better 60 open short |
and weak suit, inNyhch we do not hope 20 |