The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1897-01-14
HOWELL ON WHIST.
Some OF the Leading Principles of Short
Suit Play.

II.
An automatic principle lies at the bot
tom of the new whist y 1t deals with
the cdIlte of tenace. Deschapelles, Math-
ews and Clay placed much stress on this
idea. It's Importance is recognized by the
few moderns who have contributed to
whist literature Independently of Pole,
Cavendish & Co. Foster, in "Whist STRAIT
egy, says of ''the short suit game: SIN
stead of trying to obtain for your small
cards value that does not intrinsically
belong to them the Pole Cavendish
schemel, you endeayor to obtain for your
high cards trick taking value that is de-
pendent on their position" Major Tenace's
argument for the opening of short suit
in the absence of strength in hand has this
for its nub, "Avoid leading from any 9TH
er single honor than the acel and small
cards, for you are more likely to make a
trick in the suit by remaining quiet. "
Starnes, in Short Suit Whist sums up
the ruling motive thus: every card
individually is more valuable when led up
to than when led.' The editor of Whist,
recently answering a correspondents in
quiry as to which is the stronger suit
king, Z, 5, 4, 2 or queen, jack, 8, 5, 3, pre-
fers the latter, and explains, 1.-THE chances
for sure trick in the king suit are much
better if some one else is permitted to open
1t. - The present writer, in ''Whist Open
ings,'' which has the honor of being the
pioneer work devoted exclusively to the
advanced game, expresses the tenace prin
ciple in this maxim:
'Giyen long suit not headed by Sc
quence of two or more high cards and not
accompanied by such strength in trumps
and the other plain suits that, with reason
able assistance from partner, you can es-
tablish and bring it in, you will be more
likely to win tricks in the suit if somebody
else opens it than if you open it yourself. -
This all pervading truth the student and
player of whist should necessarily bear in
mind and apply in practice. 1t is not
enough to acknowledge the advantage of
holding on to suits composed of small cards
and the ace, queen (major tenace), the
king, jack (minor tenace), and the ace,
jack (vice tenace); it is necessary also to
feel the wisdom of nursing what little
strength you possess in such a suit as king
or queen, with three or four small cards,
unless indeed. your hand is otherwise so
rich in trumps and cards of reentry that,
even If partner be unable to give you much
help, you can probably bull the suit
through to esta blishment.
If you have not trump and plain suit
strength in your hand originally, you
should not try TO play the long suit game
that is, should not try to establish
long suit and make tricks with the small
cards in it, because, by an unsuccessful at
tempt to do all this, you jeopardize your
chances of successfully accomplishing
something more-namely, making tricks
however, is all you have right to expect
from the plain suit elements of an indif-
ferent hand
Furthermore, if you open short suit
rather than a long one you are much more
likely to be able to use your small trumps
for fruffing" The "ruffing" game is not
the most intellectual class of whist strategy,
to be sure, but it wins tricks and is not to
be despised.
The opening with losing card have
called, in "Whist Openings" the "gam-
bit,;' and the word has found acceptance
among whist players as a briefer and more
significant term than the phrase short
suit opening"
In the order of their value the ordinary
gambits are: Queen, from queen and jack,
with or without smaller cards; or from
queen and one small, or queen alone; jack,
from jack and not more than two small, or
from jack, 10 and any number of small,
and 10, 8, s, or from the top of a suit,
the shorter the better. You cannot go be-
low the without misinforming partner.
1 append pretty example of gambit
opening, followed by the bringing in of
long suit which could have been accom-
plished only with great difficulty after the
original opening of the long suit. The
hand was played i'll match. H 10 is the
trump turned; North leads; the winning
card in each trick is underlined, and the
card underneath is led next
North. East. South West.
NJ IL