The morning times., 1897-01-17

''Com long an play rokaire- Wat for
to waste zc evening taikin'?"
The mask was on again; but it had
once been dropped, and we did not forget
il.
There could he no doubt that Fleechy
lowered head and shoulders above US at
the card table. We had talent, he had
genius He could have reduced us all 10
beggary in a week, and TO man knew
it better than himself. He learned our
metEo1S in five minutes. After we had
gamhled with him for week our play was
reduced to a feeble and frequently unsuc-
cesSful imitation of his. We initiated the
magnificent audacity OF his bluffs, but We
could not initiate the marvellous shrewd
ness which inspired them We initiated
that inscrutable face, but the CLASSY stare,
the steady hand, the To!cc that was never
so unperturbcd as when a years pay lay
on the turn of the cards the diffidence
which inspired us weaker players with on
fidence until we had backed our ha nds for
ten times their YaluC-these were beyond
and aEove us. We could only initiate, not
initiate. We had not the secret of his
play simply because We had rot the secret
per eSSer Feice" That was all the
difference and it sufficed us all. AL
that is to say, except Mokely, who was
a fool
When Mokcly lost at cards he attributed
it to nlIuck. When he won he attributed
it to his skill. So he never learned any
thing. Mokely was one of those men
whom it is customary to describe as
dam eood SORT He was big and red
and rosy; he drank more than we did,
but then, as he himself said, he was
bigger man and could hold more. His
J wife, who was in delicate health, lived in
! England on the interest cf six thousand
| POUNDS; her own property, but not settled
| on her III any way. Our colonel knew
her, and on the rare occasions on which her
| name was mentioned he would speak of
her as woman who deserved worship of
! all good men. How she ever came to marry
Mokely-well, these are life's little irunies.
Some OF us had found out accidentally
that small remittances arrived to Mukely's
address. The discovery was purely acci-
| dental There had been an official inquiry
into some pUstoffice accounts and we had
been asked, demi- officially, to render as
sistance in unraveling the complications.
SO that we saw some names and addresses,
and We knew that Mokely was sponging on
his wife and that he was cur. But it was
customary to call Mckely a damn good
sort
one evening we sat at out usual recrea-
ton. Mokely was inspecting an outpost
fifty miles away, and VI hardly ina gined
that he was likely to return that evening
The game proceeded laZily; and we con-
versed IeisureIy when not enGrossed by our
cards. The colonel complained that he had
discovered Sc1lifC in
Sariat.
Il wish could lay hands on a real ION
est sergeant he said, somewhat hope
lessly.
Hum Fleechy grunted. "w'at you
want wiz a honest MANI Honestly is
dam fine thing, but it must TO be intelli-
gent, or it ruin you.''
One OF us questioned:
Would you rather employ a rascal than
an honest man?'
founded on experience.
YES he said. Give me a rascal and
e will mex monnaie for me. Give me a
honest man and e will ruin me.'
Don't you get cheated?'
"No man cheat ME twice-ne vaire. II
a man cheat me once it is shame to hin
bndI lie rs d TdSCdi- Dot IL Il Ilidn CnedG
me twice it is shame TO me that am q
FOOL
But you can't always be worrying your
men, the colonel objected.
mo, you cannot worry Tommee Atkins
or you get bullet in you back re next
battle. 1 tellin' you Zese Tommies, 'e i.
somethin terreebl. Wen 1 young man /
go in China war to mekka Photographic
| We fightiD' at Taku. Ze cannons an ball;
come somethin' terrifique. / go right in
! front wiz my camera, an one Tommie he
say, 'Shoot-a re bloody photographer ]