Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1898-03-19
WHIST.
On Change Your Shit to Trumps'' and the
'Sub-Echo,"

A. ST. iii Whist.
More than twenty-five years ago, to-
wards the end of a hand, / held six
CARDS, VIZ, ace. king, queen and 10 Of
spades, the Z and of diamonds Clubs
were trumps, and had all been played
IL was my partners lead. I was S.
N. my partner) led king Of diamonds,
on which played the 7. He then led
ace OF diamonds, on which | played
The 2 He then led the Of diamonds,
on which e. played the s. / discarded
~ OF spades, and w. won with the 9
OF diamonds. w. then led queen, then
jack OF diamonds, on which | discarded
queen and king of spades w. then
was compelled to lead his last card, a
spade, anG | made my ace
mus n and S. won three tricks only
out OF the six. Ii my partner, in
stead of leading third round of dia
monds, had led a spade, we should
nave won the whole six tricks. as two
spades had been discarded. My part
ner, having only three small spades,
considered it safer to take a third
round Of diamonds than to open the
suit of spades, in which he had not
even a Strengthening card. And from
his point OF view | consider he was
right.
On rejecting about this disaster, as
it may be termed it occurred to me
that it would be very important if
some signal could be invented by
which you could inform your partner
noe to take third round of the suit
he was leading, but to try some other
suit. At first | could perceive no
means by which such information
could be conveyed, but it suddenly
dawned upon me that a system was
meet the case, if the silly terms used
appropriate language.
At present, when a player plays an
unnecessarily high card. and then
plays a lower card, this play is termed
calling for trumps." Such an absurd
term renders eXcusable the remark OF
the young whist player who, having
played in this manner without mean
ing anything, was censured by his
partner for having called for trumps.
Il beg your pardon" said the young
player; Il didn't speak a word.
The meaning Of playing an unneces-
sarily high ccrd at the commencement
of the play of hand is an intimation
to your partner that, no matter what
suit has been led, or is being led by
him, you request him to change his
suit to trumps" There is no more
difficulty or complication in saying TO
oneself, My partner is telling me to
change my suit to trumps, than there
is in saying, my partner is calling"
Of the two terms the former is the
more common sense and explicit. Hav-
ing by habit become accustomed to
say, My partner is asking me to
change my suit to trumps," what con-
clusion would a reasoning mind come
to when his partner gives the signal,
by playing an unnecessarily high card,
TO change the suit to trumps" when
all the trumps are out? 1t requires no
ponderous amount of intelligence to
come to the conclusion that, as all the
trumps are out of the hands, therefore
'trumps' are out of the demand or re-
quest, and there remains only Change
your suit or, in even palmer Ian
guage, Don't lead third round of the
suit you are now leading"
Had my partner understood this sim
pie signal in the case mentioned in the
commencement of this article, we
should, in one hand, have won three
additional tricks. But at that date |
had not thought out the solution of the
problem, though | sadly felt its want
That the majority of good whist
players should still use the term, you
called for trumps," and rarely, if ever
say, You asked me, or gave me the
signal to change my suit to trumps,"
is an indication of how hard it is to
get men out of an erroneous groove to
which they are accustomed
From one signal, therefore, we can
obtain two results and give double in
formation. We can at the commence
ment of the play Of hand inform our
partner that we wish him to change
his suit to trumps,' and when all the
trumps have been played, or the lead
of a trump cannot be asked for, such
as when the partner holds the thir-
tenth trump, etc. then the play of an
unnecessarily high card means,
change your suit"
It may sometimes happen that a
partner who has been requested to
change his suit, may have two other
suits in his hand. Which of these two
he is to lead, is to him a puzzle, but
the signal to change your suit" means
anything will be better for me than
to continue a third round ofrthe suit
you are now leading.
Having instructed various players of
the additional use that could be made
of the so termed "call for trumps,"
and they having become accustomed
to use the term change your suit to
trumps," they very soon became as
much accustomed to this as average
PLAYERS are to calling for trumps."
When | have had the good fortune
to possess such a partner | have won
many games, which | sould have failed
to win had my partner not been ac-
ouainted with the change your suit
Ito trumps), but had been one of the
old-fashioned players, who merely
comprehend that the playing Of an I'M
necessarily high card meant calling
for trumps," as he would know that
all the trumps We're out, he would
probably conclude that by mistake |
had played a wrong card.
If | play the before the 2, I am
"whisnering for trumps." II ! play
The or s before the or 2, / am call
ing for trumps' If | play the or 3
before the or 2, am then shouting
for trumps. ;,
Having adopted the term calling"
another signal has been named the
"echo." which is not an inappropriate
name if we call or shout. An