The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1899-09-28
THE INYINCIBLE
DEAD MANS HAND
Colonel Bill Johnson Tells How it
Mas Beaten.
STORY OF HIS TWO BIG GAMES,
STORY OF HIS TWO BIG GAME
Encouraged by the Reception OF His
War Story lie Attempts Another.
Butan Analytical Friend Brings
Him TO Grief.

participated I'm q number OF hard-fousht
battles over the green cloth. and he has
almost invariably proved a winner. To
his new acquaintances. however. he has
been a source of JOY from the remarkable
ability he displays as a story teller.
II was 3 o'clock i'm the morning two
days ago when the game broke mp be
cause the Colonel had cleaned out the
entire party. The game had been COM
posed OF Crocher0n and The Colonel anu
the three man named Antilles. Dyer and
Doran. The crowd congratulated him ON
his good fortune, but the Colonel puiied
out his chest.
Its a mere bagetolie." said he with n
grandloquent gesture. "But there was
one game iu which I played that heat
anything in my life for excitement. our
cousin Joe. Antilles. was IN the game. and
+ am surprised that he never told you
anything about 30. Maybe he thought
that you were too young 20 talk poker 70.
This is a war story. and ths game was
played when We were IN the trenches oe-
fore Vcksburg with Grants army. q was
hot work in those days. but your cousin
Joe. myself and two other fellows that
messed with us. were all poker hends'
We would sooner play O game OF Craw
than eat. Whenever the order would come
for us 10 rest on our arms ana get dinner.
we four instead Of getting our cohee ara
salt horse roady. would get out a greasy
old deck OF cards and start 10 play. DO
you know what the dead mans hand isF'
Everybody confessed Ignorance.
THE DEAD MANS HAND.
well" continued the Colonel, "an old
story has it that long ago In a Western
town there was a man VINO had been los
ing his money steadily at poker for sew
eral days. lie as getting down TO close
quarters. and one night he said in a dis
gusted sort of way. L believe If 1 did get
% winning hand. I'd drop dead The
next hand had barely been dealt, and
The bets made. when he pitched over
across the table. dead. They looked az bis
cards when the body had been carried
away and they found that me mad held
the winning hand. an right. The hand
Wa aces and Fights. and since then IL
has always been known as the dead man 5
hand. Some poker players have % super
sttion that it can't lose. ana they viii
play BE- harder than they would "a straight
or a flush. Now. Jack Tucker, one of our
p0ker-Dlaylng quartet, was one VI those
players.
eff there is one thing I pride myself on,
f. is my wonderful Quicknoss in sizing up
the situation and not being taken by sur
prise. no matter what happens. on this
particular day Of which speak. the bull
lets were flying pretty thick and we mad
been fighting like thunder, when suddenly
an order came for as TO cease hring ana
TO get something 20 cat. ont came the
inevitable pack of cards. After several
hands. / got q pair OF nyes. L drew three
cards and caught o. four. a nine and a
ten. Tucker stood pat and so dd your
cousin. but tbs fourth man dropped out.
/ determined 90 try 90 win the pot 10y
blufflng. Tor Tucker. the only mar OF
whose hand / was afraid, had a habit OK
making a swell play. and II You would
come back nc him hard. be would drop
without calling you. But this time. TO my
dlsmay. Tucker played 'em good and hard
and finally your cousin Joe called the pair
Of us.
"Ive got a pair OF aces. said Joe.
and { believe that you're all bluring and
that it's the best hand out at that
i've got the dead mans hand shouted
Tucker. triumphantly. as be- reached Tor
the pot. i would bet on that hand tl
the cows come home. You can't beat that
hand. Johnson
81 was lying there on the ground with
my cards spread out In front of my face
like a fan. just as I was about 70 throw
my hand on the ground. a bullet came
along. and crashing through the center
of one of the cards, went through my
can. was about 90 yen az my narrow es.
cape. when noticed with my characterls-
tie perception and presence of mind. that
that bullet hole was I'm the four spoL and
I'm whirling through. the ball had torn a
-.-..r .r-. fHnf rruFa the fUHH anNf look
exactly like the five OF clubs. ] saw that
the others had not noticed the circum-
stance and So I coOlly laid down my hand
and said 10 Tucker, Don't be Doe "a hurry
and burn your fingers with that pot, I've
got fifteen
"sayl Tuck looked at the three dvcs, as
he thought. as If he could not believe his
ewes. Before he could detect the fraud.
the order came 20 renew firing ANA
scooped 90 the pot in The confusion. / told
Tucker how I fooled him the next day,
and would YOU believe 81. be was immense
ly relieved. He said that Doe knew mat
the dead mans hand could POT be beaten
ON the level and frankly. aith'dtA B tH
not a BIT supersittious. ! d0n't think that IL
can either"
The whole crowd looked at Che colonel
I'm dazed admiration and several rounds -
drinks were promptly ordered. Then Col
Bin said that this was not a circumstance
To- a game in which he had once played on
an ocean voyage.
81 never tell a story that can't be
proved" said he. Two got the caro-
home al Dayton now as "a souvenir. TINS
other game. however, was one that marx
cd the holding of the most marvellous sets
OF hands that was ever seen. i was com
ing home from Europe and VIC started the
game. There was Oscar Patten, Q
theatrical manager. jim Mccormick o
politician: Ed. Goblet. an advance agent
Bin Mcclure. a newspaper man and my
self. Mcclure dealt. patten drew one
card Mccormick took three, CObbett two
myself one. and Mcclure. who was 'deal-
ing stood pat. We bet and bet and raised
until an Of us had risked far more than
we could afford to lose. Finally there
was a call all around.
Mcclure laid down his pat flush. Pat
ten showed four Fights. he had held three
Of them and caught the other. McCor.
mick felt good for a moment as ne showed
four nines-ha had caught two to HE
original pair. Goblet laid down four tens.
having caught one IN his four card q -aw.
But l made 'em an look sick when i play
ed a hand that / held but once I'm my life
before. II was a royal husn on hearts
gentlemen. and'-
Hold on. Col. Bill" shouted Crocheron
''you said Goblet held four tens How
many tens were there IN that packY'
"Crocheron." said the Colonel. after a
silence that had been so dense that you
cannot cut chunks out OF II. ''Crocheron
your mind Is TOO analytical. I have moth
ing 10 say In my defence. ! was carried