The times., 1899-10-15
IT'S FOOLISH TO PLAY POKER.
So Declares Man Who Speaks
From Experience.
(From the New York Pres.


Poker? Not again. At least, not just
now And I would advise all young men
who have regulations to make or charac-
ters to sustain to avoid the game. II they
can hold their own and have a desire to
find all the flaws in alleged friends, why,
my brethren, say play poker The lovely
game of draw shows up man. 1t strikes
right at the heart and brain, his liver and
bowels. One who can go through sea-
son without reproach is friend to grapple
to ones soul with hooks of the finest
Harveyized steel as big as bridge cables.
Never let him get away for he is about
the scarcest article in the universe.
No man can play poker in reason or
with reason unless he is born with a gold
spoon in his mouth and everything turns
to diamonds. Some of the closest friends
| ever had were exposed at the poker ia
BILE and we do not associate now.
found out more about them in six months
at that game than forty years of intimate
acquaintance would have taught me in
any other line of friendship" Poker
costs young man valuable time, lots OF
money and stacks of friends. l use the
word friends" in a general sense, which
means such chaps as young fellow
| runs with" One real friend is as much as
| man can expect All the others try to
| do him. Damon had one friend; Py-
| this one. and their friendship is prettier
| than anything in the Bible.
have been through the poker mill
| When my table was ready and the cards
| were ready, the chips ready, the rum
ready the cigars ready. and your humble
] servant was ready TO lose and be banker,
| my doorbell rang at all hours, and my
| friends" were numerous. They would
| willingly sit up with me all night. and
| in 10 brpalffacf
| saw so sacrificing a lot of fine fellows
! Sacrificing me,) Some were hogs, others
were swine, and still others were pigs.
/ Each who reads this will know that refer
| to him. A few were gentlemen. Ny little
| home was turned into a sty. They spat on
| the floor, wiped their feet on the table,
| swilled beer like vats,, and guzzled whisky
as If all Kentucky had gone dry. When
| sandwiches were placed before them, they
needed Fred Eberlin, sig1-"Please take
| the one on top; they are all alike; don't
| handle the whole outfit. ~
One night a good many years ago l sat
| up late thinking about the poker business
1t was real hard thinking. too. l had
been lifted out by "ffiends,' hung up by
friends" and had friends" to come up
| when in my debt to 'play It off, A case
of beer in sitting was nothing A gallon
of whisky was only aigtilp9 A box of ci-
gars was merely pun rage now when
| | think of what was wasted on the eanaille
| that worked me- Reason returned
tore up every card l had. cast out my
chips and said mo more poker," From
that day to this ] have not touched card
am happy in forgetting the nightmare OF
draw. But no one of the old gang comes
near me now. Nothing is to be made al
my table | cannot be skinned; therefore
they have no use for me. They have found
pastures new.
A few old friends, who did not come
around when we had poker, have come
back to visit me since | had the sense to
quit It, They are not on the make, as the
phrase goes. They come to talk and swap
lies and have a sensible, quiet, gossipy
scandalizing time. / am an older man than
you think, but there are other old folks
who passed the meridian before they
learned that they couldn't play poker II
could have won every night ! wouldn't
have cared for the loss of my friends, -
BUT to lose them and my money too was
what brought me around. l gamble tc
win. So does every honest man. He Is
not gambling 10 lose When one says: 90
| we'll, | don't want to win your money" he
lies. Tell him so in his teeth.