The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-06-16

don't any of you know me, and you
won't any of you be likely to see me
again after we separate at the end OF
the trip. If you knew me l wouldn'
care to tell it just as ii was, and II
wouldn't be worth telling any other
way. The first narrow escape l had
was from state prison, and a good deal
worse. AT least l count it worse, for
/ would have taken with me TO prison
the consciousness that ] deserved to
go, and according TO my notion the
knowledge that you deserve punish
ment is a deal worse than the punish
ment itself.
THE game fascinated me. as it fas-
cjnates everybody, l think, who plays
it much. l played more and more, and
as / generally held my own, and won
more often than 1 lost, got to playing
harder and harder until 1 was not
contented with anything but a big
game-the bigger the better. L had
Travelled three times all the wav be-
tween Chicago and Washington to get
into a game with genuine high-rollers.
OF course J couldn't do that sort of
thing without a good supply of ready
money and a considerable amount of
spare time. | had both, for / had fair
cash capital and business of my own
that paid me well. And my business
was in such a condition that 1 would
leave it TO my employees for week
at time.
"One night there was a particularly
stiff game at the club L freGuented
most in New York, where I then lived.
The limit was off and a raise of
a thousand was made several times
during the evening. / had eX-
pected hot work and had put $1,000
in my pocket that afternoon. There
was one man in the game that I par
ticularly wanted to beat, partly be-
cause he was noted player and I had
never met him before. watched him
carefully, and twice IN t.ae course of
three or four hours play 1 was salts
fed that he took in a fairly large Dot
on bluff. I had nothing in my own
hand either time and didn't care to
pay to see his cards, but I felt sure
that if he had bluffed twice successful
ly, as l was positive he had, he would
do It again.
Presently he tried it. OF course 1
could only suspect him unless ca e'i.
but 1 decided to risk it, though L had
only a pair of sevens when 1 came in
after the jackpot was opened, and !
hadn't bettered in the draw. 1t had
been opened for five hundred and my
antagonist had raised il a thousand
before the draw. That's what made
me come in on so small hand, for l
concluded he was trying to steal the
pot. which was big enough to justify
the attempt, for there was over a thou
sand in it before he spoke.
Il stood the raise and so did the
opener, who stood pat. My man drew
two cards and I drew three AS / said,
1 caught nothing. The opener bet a
thousand and my man went back at
him with another thousand. l simply
made good, but the opened lost his
nerve and laid down a small straight
without calling. My man had evident
" reckoned on my dropping out also.
but my bet became a call when the
opener quit, and he showed down two
skies.
I'VE had some little chaff over it, and
the game went on. / didn't know till
next day how near ruin 1 had been.
When l went TO my office in the morn
ing l found that my cashier had gone
to Canada, and that instead of having
several thousand dollars in bank, as
supposed l had, my account was over
drawn. That does not sound like ruin.
1 confess. but l was the trustee of Ger
tain funds amounting to $1,000 and
was called on for a settlement that
very day. If it hadn't been for my win
nings the night before I couldn't have
settled, and if it hadn't been for win
ming that pot on a pair of seve.ls I
WOULD nave naQ 10 quit the game, IOr L
was a loser before that hand The
consequences would have been fright
full.
Another narrow escape / had was
from being married man. ] was en-
gagged TO b. married to lady who
broke the engag ament because she
learned that ! PLAYED poker. Perhaps
ought not to speak Of this as an as.
cape. but l know that She made the
man she afterward married most
miserably unhappy What would have
happened if 1 had married her l can't
say. and l don't enjoy thinking apol it.
The most woldersll piece of luck
that ever happenei to me, though. was
in a poker game in San Francisco,
when the stakes were not particularly
heavy In fact, we were playing u So
limit. and no body won ~ losI more
than a couple Of hundre1 in the game.
the men in it were all members u my
club and were supposed to lie gentle
men. though one of them, as it proved,
was not. We had played till after mid
night, and there was nobody but the
five players in the room whe:l we
caught this fellow cheating
The accusation made a row.. of