The Savannah morning news., 1900-07-20
FORTUNE IN FOUR sEvENs.
Loser Bet the Wages of Working
men and Skipped-Winner Paid

Them.
From the Minneapolis Tribune.
You don't hear much of stud poker
nowadays said an Old railroad man the
other night, but there was a time when
il was favorite among gamblers md
they played II with a vengeance. l was in
one game where three good hands came
out together on one deal and player
who held full house raked In about $40
000 including a bill of transfer of $500
worth of railroad ties. The man with the
crossties took a wild shot, but he CON
sidered ID safe, and in fact almost auy
player would have taken similar chances.
IL was "a play where only one card a sew
EN- spot, could win, and three of the four
seven We're face up on the table. Only
twenty cards had been dealt and there were
thirty-one chances to one that the seven
was not the card in the hole. But it was
This game happened a good many years
ago, when | was out with the officials OF
my road on a tour of inspection. I had
been travelling with the general manager
in his private car. but was left over at a
small town one afternoon to take a train
at midnight over one of the branch lines
/ was dropped into the town about D. m
and IL looked like a weary wait for me.
spect and receive 10000 crossties. already
delivered at the railroad track. The sec
ton man, however, had really inspect ed
the ties, and all | had TO do was issue a
voucher for payment, based on the state
ment given me. The ties sold for 30
cents each, and so my voucher called fer
200, a snug sum for the man who got
them out. When this work was finished
] went over to a rather dilapidated-loo
hotel A. b,y
Mr.. Buckner. to whom / had given the
voucher for The ties, was with me, and
he introduced me 70 several men about
the hotel. We had an early supper and
TO knock away the dun moments some
body-I think il was Buckner-suggeste
that we have a game OF cards.
Men who were sidetracked as we were
are not slow about getting into a game OF
any kind, If they have sporting blood. and
we must have had It, A small room
known as the reading room. was delivered
20 our care by the landlord, who made no
pretensions TO style. as he did not
even wear a collar on his shirt and in
little while we were playing Stud poker
had been suggested, and II was adopted
had played the game "a few times, but
II was not my strong suit. and / was slow
about risking too much on chance shots
| played carefully, and / might be nut
/ got away not far from an even break
The stakes at first were not high, but an
understanding was that II two players
or all, for that matter. wanted to make
a sky limit they could do so.
Before | had been playing an hour
saw that was up against plungers and az
my cash was not big played cautiously
Besides. I had to stop before midnight 10
catch a train. There we're foar Of us at
the table myself, Buckner. drummer
named Whitfield and lawyer, Mai. Mott
who had come 10 the town on legal bust
ness. He was 80 years old and gray and
] heard afterward that in his younger
days he was rounder of the finest type
He still showed signs of II in his playing
The game went along nicely for a time,
and the luck was about even, although
Whitfield must have been way ahead
One or two failures 10 land pot had made
Buckner rather reckless and he seemed
determined to hit hard to win His luck
came back TO him, and he played with
skill.
81 will always remember the hand that
ended the game and sent Buckner away
from the station that night on the train
with me, unnoticed and unannounced
while a hundred workmen were sleeping
quietly with the expectation of getting