The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-01-30
AROUND THE WHIST TABLE.
"A HEATED DLsCUssIoN REalRDING
PRIVATB CONVENTIONS.

khnNtI Of bEhNhNe BnaDEMNIbtNnRu ~ " HN1yb
AmenG the Members or . Team-Absur-
aities OF the Present situntiou-The True
Remedy-whist without RiEpais-Probiems.
One Of tho most heated discussions In the his
tory Of whist has lately been started between
the advocates and advorsarles of so-called pri-
vate conventions, and n good deal OF strong
Language has been used on both sides. On the
one hand II Is urged thatit is impossible 10 play
whist without a system OF some kind, and that
there must be some previous understanding
among the MEMBERS OF a team In order TO insure
proper confidence at the whist table. On the
ether side II is commended that these previous
understandings are not restricted to drilling the
team In the Fundamental principles Of whist
strategy, as they should be. but become arrange.
ments Of n private nature, and lead to the habit
OF agreeing upon certain plays which are to be
suggested by signals previously explained and
practiced.
That this is done by our crack teams must be
acknowledged, and as time passes these private
understandings increase and multiply ut an
alarming rate. each addition to the stock being
usually the result Of some mistake at the whist
table which has been thoroughly discussed after
the game. and has led to some agreement on a
signal that will prevent a similar catastrophe in
the future. In many cases these agreements
arc transferred to paper. and are conned over
by the members of the team from time to time.
In other cases they arc simply stamped upon
tho memories of the players. the original i'm.
preston. perhaps. being strengthened by the
loss of an important match or a ive-trick swing
on q particular hand.
should keep a record Of the little things that the
players have threshed out of their whist expert.
match with a rival team each side should sub.
nit to- the other a typewritten statement of tho
forty-nine articles in their respective creeds.
DerhnDS a week In advances. nny new wrinEICS
thought of a few. days before the match or
pFIrssS 81 p mpestiS SR to th g. t S"ITeS Thl Mb sS'n ne to tea shs
met for the actual contest each would be, pre-
s.umably. thoroughly familiar with the others
Before PLAYING to any trick il would be the
Ger to see IL the card led conveyed any occult
meaning. Having done so. and played accord.
study carefully not only tho probable meaning
OF his partners lead, but also the hidden mys-
@6iss of mi tae f Ss thdP Sls ssiSn by t 6t a se sigma, hs sSai
cards ,h. Of d it; or som ct / Sc Of that ki1d; aGscording
the third hand had played. the fourth hand
wonld have to study over, the forty.nine posi-
nine probabilities Of his own partners conven.
tons. and the ,forty-nine permutations of the
with the original lead. as modified by the inter.
pretations Of the second hands play.
prineipies, sf not ,sn take nsni longer la tSsn f Il w Souiis
r re p5ny w Gne t6 by s s2sFs si%p sendin;s sn m 4 se eSsil Is nc
should not be able to finish the game before The
next congress. in July. Saturday evening might
might have Sunday to themselves in order to
think over the various combinations suggested
ferent combinations of forty:nine different con-
yentions: We have not yet reached this stage.
ago. Ave hours was a long match; now the tine
Is twelve, and IN a year or so 1t will be a week.
to render an exact statement OF all the petty
details of its system: and it therefore becomes
necessary to determine what things it shall be
never trump doubtful tricks IL they hold four
number If they are not particularly anxious to
have trumps led. Such questions must be dis
who ruffs in SO freely may insist that he e Is right
and persist in his course. The other members
S SomS to 1u ,risEs das. , the esocs.a that m his ruling
r 1rgmPs; Are s,t they ey t. tb, explain sxstsm that to to the The " d
them; but Smith will lead them with nothing
nonsense. because It would then be binding on
description. or they would DO accused OF de-
parting from the system"
always be subject to exceptions, and the fact
that one player follows the exception. more fire.
quenuy tnan the rule does not constitute q SyS-
tenn Of play, although his popularity may be
thoroughly understood by the other members Of
the team: and allowance must be made for it in
their estimate of the possibilities OF his hand.
The things which clearly come under the head
Of private conventions are predetermined mean.
when played under certain conditions. Tho test
Of such conventions Is that they are foreign
must Be exPiainedp to the partner in ,asa::
vance in order that they may DO under:
a team uses the original lead of a queen. nine.
or eight as a specific call for a trump to be led
through an honor turned, there must have beens
be as unintelligible as a rotary, discard; and tho
failure to lead such a card when an honor is
II team agrees that tho discard OF a club shall
show that hearts is the strongest suit, the dis.
of the sur erior strength Of the heart suit. The
lead of an inferior card from a plain suit, to
tenn OF play. carries with t the absolute denial
OF four trImps when the lowest card of plain
When teams once begin to adopt these private
conventions, they usually add to their stock
from time to time, d%ropping one thing and
agreements, When suddenly called. upon to
many things must be forgotten, or only partially
explained. The rednements of meaning and the
stances, which It has perhaps taken hours ofdis-
SGsslon TO- settle, cannot be explained In tho
sneh th Gn tw inst be m,nst tss k asnei'y tbs 6fyq Is wh TO
we hear certain, teams charged with OK:
planning nsort only My, ha,f ho. their n, mei,hiods; and
full explanation that is rather hastily. and
probably unjustly, charged by the Cleveland
team against Philadelphia.
1t is more than probable that the Philadelphia
players did their best to explain their system,
for granted that everybody, knew them. The
Cleveland PLAYERS may not have quito under
stood all the wrinkles, or may have been con-
The Incident was unfortunate. because it led
some writers into calling hard names. and in
the general storm OF indignation that was
aroused the whole Philadelphia team was
blamed for adopting principles for which. as
pointed out in THE Sun Jan. 0, one person
~criticise, players, who are led astray by
thoughtlessly,. following, a bad example, and
The Sun believes tho better way Is TO put
the blame where IT b longs. and to trace the evil
to its source. When a man whose whole stock
in trade is a lot of unfair and unsound tricks
and lodges at the whist table poses as n leader
and an authority. and boasts OF the success OF
these lodges in match games. thereby leading "A
great many well-meaninR people to follow-in his