Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-08-19

time past. and now that I've got you in a
hole I'm going to throw the cods on top
of you
80 the two hands were duly sealed UP.
and Knox and Knowles went out their re-
spective waysuto get,money. Each got $50
and they canse back to where the sealed
hands lay and bet that without opening
the envelopes.
Want to make II a CALL Knowles ask
ed then, or do yoh want to impoverish
your family by waiting until the morning
and getting another bundle to put on that
mess of yours. withino limit
That's just what was going to pro-
pose said Knox. - - -,
so they abandoned the game for the
night each man deposting his hand. still
sealed up in the envelope with the night
sergeant at headquarters, the name of
each man on the envelope containing his
hand. ,9f"'- gan
Now, all OF this happened without any
body knowing anything about It except the
two players and the two other newspaper
men who had dropped out of the jack. But
the next day the whole city department of
Denver was on to 1t. Knox came to me
and told me, after asking me to pass my
word that wouldn't give it away, what
he had in his hand. and told me that If
wanted to make a little side bet on 1t that
there was a book running on the outcome
at an@Arapahoe street cafe. ] went down
there, and sure enough, there was a regu-
lar betting game going on to the relative
strength of knoxs and Knowles hands.
Knowles had put his friends next to what
he had in his hand. after exacting from
them the promise that they wouldn't give
up it's character, and the Knowles party
looked every bit as confident as the Knox
party. Now, the Knox hand was almost
unbeatable and l took that end of it to
good deal larger extent that I'd care to
have my constituents know, although Dem
verites aren't fnical in these matters.
Just played Knox for a world beater on
that hand of his, and got even money from
the off i,ls
ployes who took the Knowles end of it.
That's the way the betting went-even
money and take your pick, and every man
to whom Knox and Knowles had revealed
his hand kept his word and held on to the
secret of the hand he knew about
During the day the word about those
two hands got all around town among
sporting men, politicians and all sorts of
people inclined to take a chance, and I'd
be afraid to state how much money
changed hands on the result Even money
books were made in all of the downtown
cafes. Both Knox and Knowles had dug
up $500 $500 each to bet on their re-
spective hands, and the sealed hands were
to be opened publicly In the Arapahoe
street place that night.
EVERY man interested IN the opening of
those two envelopeS-and there We're sew
eral scores of them-was on hand that night
when the result was to be made known 1t
is sorrowfui to narrate that the municipal
government of Denver was tremendously
well represented in the crowd.
"At the appointed time Knox and
Knowles stepped to the table wherein the
two sealed envelopes rested and Knox, pro-
ducing So bill. laid 1t down, and said:
"'Five more
"'Knowles produced his s., and said:
"I call YOU
All Of us Knoxitess were on Knox's side
of the table. and, of course we weren't
much excited when the envelope was OPEN
ed, for we knew that Knox's hand was a
sequence flush of hearts, from nine to
king. The KDwlesdgang on the other side
of the table nset UP a yell as the cards
dropped out zone after the other. and at
first, so great,was the shouting, we thought
we were beate but when we heard the veil.
Stand off, we saw We would be able to
draw down pIr maHey. anyhow The cat
was out of the bag before Knowles en-
velope was opened, and we knew that he
had sequence flush of diamonds, from
nine to king. of course. the usual number
of croakers who always maintain that one
suit, in case like that, beats another.
tried to get ID their work. but it didn't go.
and all Of the purses We're split and the
game was declared no contest. / think
that was then biggest poker game. in the
point of the number Of men engaged in it.
ever played in thisa country, and. perhaps.
as much money changed hands on the ont
come of those two hands has happened
In this country sinee the Mississippi river
steamboat days of plunging poker