The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1897-01-11
HOWELL ON WHIST.
Some OF the Leading Principles of shora
Suit Play.

An automatic principle lies at the bot
tom of "the new whist 1t deals with
the UaEue of tendce. DeschapelIes, Math-
ews and Clay placed much stress on this
idea. Its 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: ''In-
stead of trying to obtain for your small
cards value that does not intrinsically
belong to them the Pole Cavendish
sehemel, you endeavo or to obtain for your
high cards trick taking value that is de-
pendent on their position. " Major Tenace's
argument for the opening of a short suit
In the absence of strength in hand has this
for it's nub, "Avoid leading from any 9TH
er single honor than the ace1 and small
cards, FOR you are moro likely to make
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. F" The editor of Whist
recently answering a correspondents in
quiry as to which is the stronger suit,
king, 7, s, 4, 2 or queen, jack, 8, 8, 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
it. - The present writer in 'fWhist Open
pioneer work devoted exclusively to the
advanced game, expresses the tenace prin-
ciple in this maxim:
Given 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 thu ace, queen flnajor tenace), the
king, jack (ninor tenace), and the ace,
jack (vice tenace); it is necessary also to
feel the wisdom of nursing what little
strength you possess in such q suit as king
or queen, with three or four small cards,
unless, indeed, your hand is otherwise SO
rich in truInps and cards of re-entry that,
even if partner be- unable to give you much
help, you can probably bull the suit
through to establishment.
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 90 establish a
long suit and make tricks with thu small
cards in it, because, by an unsuccessful 1T
tempt TO 90 1AR E01S, you J9OpREnlZ6 your
chances of successfully accomplishing
something mere-namely, making tricks
with what few high cards you have, which,
however, is all you have right to expect
from the plain suit elements of an indif-
feEent has1a.
Furthermore, if you open a short suit
rather thanA long one, you are much more
likely to be able to use your small trumps
for ''ruffing" Fhe "rufing'' 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 a losing card have
called, in E'Whist Openings, y the "gam-
bit,'' and the word has found acceptance
among whist players as q 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 mum Der of small,
and 10, 9, 8, z or g from the top of a suit,
the shorter the better. You cannot go be-
low the without mbsinforning partner.
l append a pretty example of gaxnbit
opening, followed by the bringing in of a
long suit, which could have been accom-
plished only with great difficulty after the
original opening of the long suit. The
hard was played in match. Fl 10 is the
trump turned; North leads; the winning
card in each trick is underlined, and the
card underneath is led next;