The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1897-12-12

years eff age, but inasmuch as every
player stood upon exactly the same
! basis, with no possibility for favoritism,
1t is evident the matter OF vaTnish and
| ARTISTIC effects was not a material fac
tor SO far as downright fun was con-
cafned.
Several devices, involving the element
of chance, altogether new to me, were in
use among them a roulette table con-
Structed out of a cracked wooden chop
ping bowl, arranged with four pockets
ON the sides, numbered from one to four;
a large cigar box, having circular hole
an inch in diameter cut i'm the top. To
play this latter The operator stood over
the box and end saVored to drop marble
into the orifice. Success meant two add
tionaI marbles; failure she loss of the one
dropped. There were thrze of these boxes
and all were i'm full blast at the time of
my entrance upon the scene. Then the
boys had this rear wheel of q cart hung
upon a peg; the spolxes painted six differ
emit colors; nails driven into THE rim
midway between spolSeS and a cafidbo3 nd
indication so fastened above the wheel
that when turned the indicator would b.
hit by the passing Mails Pieces of card
board with the same colors upcm them
as adorned the spokeS were sold at
cent EACH and when a half dozen had
been disposed of-and the boys sad they
went like hot cakes-the wheel was given
a violent turn. When IT stopped the indi-
GATOR pointed to one of the six colors, and
the boy holding the card of thaitseolor put
5 cents lin his pocket, net profit of 1 csnt
always going to the wheel, which seemed
to be the property of two of the larger
boys.
"A board foot wide and two fest long
into which perhaps fifty shfngle nails
had been driven so as to leave an inch
protruding was a lso coming in for a good
share of. attention. Stalls had been par
tilionsd off the lower end, and numbered.
Marbles were rolled in ait the top and
eventually worked their way into one or
the stalls. In some tsalls the boy lest
and in othars he doubled his investment.
There were a dozen or fifteen boys in
the shed, among them my own boy, all
eagerly engaged in one game or another.
/ made inquiry as to what they were
doing and several replied, Just having
some fun / discovered that this was
the third Saturday my shed had been
converted iDto a gambling room, and
that a number of others were in opera
ton ait that time in the nedghborho9u,
and new clubs were being organizer
weekly 1t appears that the boys put
forth unusual efforts during the week
to get money that they might play the
penny games Saturday afternoon, ana
that some of them went home with WIN
nings of from 20 to so CENTS.
"When l informed the boys that what
they derominated as fun was gambling.
pure ana SlInple, anu tilolI CFCiJ ~
them was liable under the laws OF uhe
district for violation thereof every race
became long enough ITO eat oats out OF
a churn. They were thoroughly fright
ened, and I allowed them to worry sew
eral minutes while l gave them some
good advice Finally upon Their promise
the practice discontinued and other
clubs notified, l agreed to give no
that the appliances should be destroyed,
names to THE authorities. Since then my
boy says he has heard nothing further
of Monte Carlo"