The herald., 1898-11-15
A STORY FROM LIFE

"Ths playing faro with limit" said my
friend, the gambler, sis comparatively an in
novation. l am not on the retired list my
self by any means, and am disposed OCCASION
ally to regard myself as a colt, yet can
readily recall the time when such thing as
a limit, except for the size of the bank roll
or the height of the roof, was unheard of in
faro games. In those days they rolled high,
too; yet not so high as romancers might
have you believe. l have heard of many
fabulous turns of the card, but the plays
were made only in the incense of the pipe.
The biggest faro turn ever made was in
New York, and it was for $57, 900, no more
and no less. 1t was made, too, about the
time the limit was put on games. / think it
was a little afterward, and that the big
money was played for under a special ar
rangement.
"A man named Pettibone, who originated
in Washington, is the person responsible for
faro banks limiting the hazards of the player.
Pettibone used to arise in the morning and
have his colored servant deal him experiment
tai games. He discovered that by a system
OF progressive bets--by adding a certain per-
centage to his losings on the next bet-he
could eventually beat the bank No, it was
play, and is dangerous. 1t was simply add
ing a smaller, although, when you come to
figure out faro chances, quite u heavy per-
centage of the original bet.
For instance, he would stake, say $50.
Ii he lost, the next bet was increased by SO 25.
Ii he lost that, he would add $3.50 to the
original $50 bet. When he won, he would
pinch down his stake to the size of the bet
he originally started on.
"Pettibone won $5OO,OOO by playing his
system, and the faro bankers prevented him
from becoming millionaire by fixing an
arbitrary limit"
But about that $4,000 turn. the high
mark in faro? Where was that game?'
There is nothing particularly picturesque
about that. The game was played as thou
sands of others have been and will be. sIt
was at Morrissey's place, when he dealt
bank down on Broadway, near Great Jones
street. Ben Wood was the winner. He is
a newspaper man now, and was then, for
all | know. But at all events, he was Il man
who had all the confidence in the word in
his luck, and had plenty of wha. men are
pleased to call nerve. He dropped into
Morrissey's place with Judge McConnan--
l think that is his name-but, anyway, it
was the judge who obtained some unpleas-
ant notoriety in connection with the Stokes
case. Wood had $4,000 with him and lost
it. Miles Farren, who died a year or so ago,
was dealing, and when he had rakel the
900 into his war bag he started to close
up. But the fever was on Wood, and had
communicated to his friend, the Judge
Have you any money, judge" asked
Wood.
No, but I've got what represents it,
he replied. I've got some property
" I'D like to get $4,000 more to go on a
hunt for that S25,OOO' said Wood.
80 they called Morrissey, who knew the
judges property, and who was wiling to
take mortgage upon it for S25000. Tn,
papers were drawn up by the mortgage
himself, and even before the deed was in
Morrssey's hands Wood had twenty five
chips, as representative of the $4,000.
''One thousand dollars for chip is rather
high game, there is no question about it,
The deal went on with varying fortune. AT
one point | remember, the cards split. and
Wood took $500 check and tossed it across
the table at Billy Cook, a great friend of
Tweed, who was standing there, n spectator
of the big play.
Buy cigars with it. Billy said Wood,
as he tossed the ivory over.
Cook was an economical man and is now
living in Paris on his savings. He turned
the chip in to Miles Farren and took $500 in
return. He bought the cigars with $40 note
Of his own.
The game went along, as said, until it
came down to the turn. The trey. nine and
seven remained in the box. Wood took off
his chips at random-he had quite stack
by that time-and put thirty-four of them,
coppered, on the trey. He took another un-
counted bunch, which he played open on the
nine. In this latter bet it was found, when
II came to size them up, that there were
twenty-three chips. The cards came out
trey -nine and Wood won S57 600.
AS | have said, it was the biggest turn
ever made at faro here or elsewhere, the
California rainbow stories to the contrary
The two bets made a dif
ference of Sl44,OO0 in the game. Besides
those ne had arbitrate1 on the turn, Wood
had thirty-six left He therefore cashcd in
for Sl5o,OoO, getting back his original So, 900,
winning out his friends mortgage and car
ried away clean sl00,0Of TO the good.
"As he was leaving the room Wood of
fered Morrisey bonus of $1,000 to deal him
Il 100000 snap, which Morrisey declined,
and the box was turned up."-Ncw York
Sun.