Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1897-08-18
Wilkin 4 Go.
VIOLIN BOXES (WO0D) SIPS.

and together they began to hunt 1or
others. They struck a couple or TEL
lows and went to room over a care
on Front street. There's brick build
ing there now, but then there were
only frame buildings. 1t was terri
bly, cold night, and everybody snuggled
up to a hot stove wherever he could
get one 1t got noised around about
midnight that pretty good game was
going on over the Front street cafe,
and | went down there to look on
awhile before going to bed. AS usual,
Staples was losing. Hibbs was doing
better. but the money was gradually
drifting over to the other two players,
who had already scooped In a hundred
or more each.
Il remember it was long about half
past two in the morning. The room
was crowded, and everybody hated to
think about going to his hotel, it was
so cold. Hot applejack was the order
of the hour and everybody was filled
up to the top notch. Suddenly a jack
pot blossomed out on the table, and
the cards were thrown around three or
four times before anybody caught
openers. Then Staples opened the pot
for $50. Nobody came in excepting
Hibbs.
"Tm going to stay with you, old
boy he said, and throwing down his
hand. colled for five cards.
"Give me three, said Staples, who
looked at his hand and showed up 500.
That don't scare me- said Hibbs,
I'll see that hundred and bet you an
other
Staples fingered his cards for min
ute or two, as if studying them to find
out whether they would win or not.
Then he said he guessed he'd better
not lay them down, and raised HibbS
$500. Hibbs was in the act Of pulling
a roll of bills out of his pocket, when
somebody in the street yelled fire. The
next minute a fellow came running up
the stairs and said that the back of the
building we were in was burning. There
was a general rush for the stairs, and
by the time we got out in the street the
blaze was under full Roadway. Tren-
ton didn't have the fire department in
those days she's got now, and before
the fremen got there we knew that
the building was a goner. The bucket
brigade got to work and the chemical
engine did all it could, but the hre
couldn't be stopped.
The whole building seemed to be
afre, when somebody holered out that
Staples and Hibbs were inside. There
was great excitement then, and every
body began to look around for a lad
der. Somke was beginning to come out
Of the windows of the room over the
cafe pretty lively when Staples and
Hibbs stuck their heads out and yelled
for a ladder. A ladder was put up to
the window and the two men came
down. They were all right, barring a
little smoke in the lungs and eyes.
When we had all gone to warm
quarters at the hotel, Staples said:
That fire was the luckiest thing
that has happened to me in a long
time, because it has broken up the
game. I'd been betting Hibbs now il
it hadn't been for the fire. You know
we were up against a jack pot that 1
had opened on a pair of jacks, and I
drew two more. Hibbs made a five
card draw, and 1 naturally thought he
was my meat, and l was tickled about
to death when l found him willing to
bet all kinds Of money. We kept it
going until the room was so full OF
smoke that we could hardly see the
cards, when Hibbs called me, as he
said, to wind up the game. Think OF
that, being called with four jacks;
why, I'd r played all night bEk Of
that hand, but had to lay them down,
and Hibbs laid down four kings and
took the money. That fire saved me
money, because I never would have
stopped betting the jacks. But what's
the use of going up against a man that
can draw four kings in a five-card
draw. ANYHOW? New York Sun.