The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1899-08-18

Mexican will learn in time. They are
an honorable people in games of
chance, as well as the most genuiaely
polite folks in the world. Formerly it
was the custom of a man who wanted
little sport to walk into a room where
blanket game was in progress, go up
to the table, lay roll of bills down
and say that he would bet so much on
certain card. If he won he received
the amount he stated, and if he lost his
roll was taken, and, when counted, was
found always to contain the exact
amount. That is the way the Mexi-
cans did it. The Americans worked
this to death in a little while. They
bet in the same way, and if they won
they were paid all right. If they lost,
however, their rolls, when examined,
were found to be of brown paper on the
inside, with couple of trifiing bills
for the covering. Now, down in Mex
leo, when a man throws a roll on the
table the dealer counts it through be-
fore he turns card. A suburb of the
City of Mexico is called Tacubaya, and
there they run the largest gambling
bank in the world. Talk about Monte
Carlo! At Monte Carlo the most man
can win at one bet is $1,000. AT Tacu-
baya the limit is the size of the bank
roll. That is habitually $4,000 in gold,
silver and bills, placed in front of the
dealer. The game is monte, and the
number of players, as in faro, is linn
tied only by the size of the tables. I
used to know freight conductor
named Hunter who ran into the City
of Mexico over the Mexican national
line. His run extended clear up to the
Rio Grande, and he got to the city not
oftener than once in two weeks. He
frequented Tacubaya, and figured on
beating the game, but could arrive a.
no way to do it. Then he thought of a
fellow named Matterson, who lived at
most expert short-card men in the
world. The two of them devised their
scheme, and Hunter took Matterson
down in his caboose. They had 50 500
between them. 1 was in the city at
the time, and Hunter had told me of his
contemplated coup. He did not ex-
plain it, but l knew that some sort of
stealing was contemplated. 1t was
not my business, however, to interfere.
They worked it in this way: Matter
son walked into the monte room at Ia
cubaya early in the evening and took
a seat opposite the dealer. He bet for
an hour, trifing amounts, and at the
end of that time was not much ahead
or behind. Then Hunter entered and
sat down at the table some four or five
chairs from him. No greeting was ex-
changed. The men were apparent
strangers. In monte, at the beginning
of each deal, the dealer hands the pack
to each player in turn and asks him to
cut. This is privilege which bars the
percentage against the cutting player
for that deal. Hunter waited for Is
minutes before it came Matterson's
turn to cut. That was the agreed mo-
ment. AS soon as the layout was
made Hunter bet $4,000 on the queen
of clubs against a deuce of diamonds.
The dealer paused as the bet was called.
methodically counted the roll, found e
correct and began to pull the cards.
Queen won.
Hunter was paid, stuffed the money
in his pocket and rose with the remark
that he was no hog and had enough.
Here Matterson'S nerve failed him
slightly. He should have sat still, but
he rose also. Now the dealer, an old
gambler knew that he had been robbed.
E. l.
But he did not know how it had been
done and, not knowing, he could not
object. He looked steadily at the two
men, bowed his head gravely and said
in Spanish:
"'Senores Americanos, very well
done-very well done, indeed!'
Full of glee, Hunter and Matterson
came to me at the Hotel 1turbide,
showed me their wealth and told me
how it was done. The thing was in
genious, but absurdly simple. All
Mexican monte decks have backs of the
same pattern. 1 think that the cards
are made by the same firm. Matterson
had bought a large, heavy red silk
handkerchief. He bent four pins and
stuck them into the corners of this
handkerchief. While sitting at the
table he had taken the handkerchief
from his pocket and fastened it by the
four corners to the inside of his trous-
er legs, making himself an artificial
lap. When it came his turn to cut he
merely substituted his own for the
dealers deck, handed his deck to the
dealer, and, with a single motion of his
hand, emptied the dealers cards into
the handkerchief. While all eyes were
| intent upon Hunters bet, Matterson
had unlocked the handkerchief,
wadded it up with the cards in it, and
stuck the whole business into his
pocket. He had rung in cold deck"
The one-legged brakeman, who had
been impatiently waiting chance to
break in, said: "Them MeXikins amt
got no sense. I heard onct of a al
calde in the little town of Valladeras,
out in Noovo Leou, close to the narrer
guage. There was hole five feet deep
an six feet across in the middle O. tn
only street, an some Amerikins that
happened along arsl1ed him wy he