The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1900-01-17

cape nelr SOdt-IHS!CS''Io ~ N
Worlds Most Famous Gambling
Rooms.
TO tho right Of the Moorish salon, the
second from the entrance IN the great
gambling rooms of Monte Carlo, stanas
the suicide table.
This accused piece OF furniture Aas
a record OF causing Il3 suicides in ten
years, according to the count Kept py
G. Bcnvenisti formerly chief OF the de-
tectives in this room.
Even the chairs Of this table differ
in the intensity of their hoodooed state.
The chair TO the left OF the croupler
facing the entrance door has claimed
seventeen victims. The twenty-third
chair accommodated eleven SUICIDES,
six women and five men. The others
have records of eight, five, four. three
and one death.
One day FIVE years ago. writes NJ.
! He1venisti in the Chicago Inter-Ocean.
my neighbor at the table was young
Par!sian He sat in one Of the one
death chairs, and won. When the doors
closed he carried off 100000 francs.
Imagine my anticipations when next
morning ! found him installed to the
! left Of the croupier I felt like tearing
| him away or slipping a card into his
! hand. 20 warn him against the seat he
had chosen, but my official character
! forbade me to interfere, and, besides,
/ my advice would have been scorned,
! for the fellow gambled like one mad.
| He lost his winnings OF the day before
| and 100000 francs of his own money.
When his last LOCO franc note was gone
he rose. and swaying to and fro like
drunkard. stumbled out Of the hall,
laughing immoderately.
Two of my men led merry chase
for this unfortunate, ard when they
caught up with him he jumped off the:
railway bridge, knocking out his brains.
Another case that haunts my
dreams One day an elderly gentleman,
Signor Antonio Cesare, who knew my
connection with the Casino compelled
me to give him the seat I was occupy
ing. next to the croupier. I did so with
g bleeding heart, for this old man was
the very picture Of health, and was
an intimate friend of his cousin, the
Mayor Of Bentimigli.
Well, this gentleman lost nearly a.
hundred thousand francs in the day
and evening. When he got up, his own
mother wouldn't have known him. He
looked ten years older; his flesh had
fallen away; madness stared out of his
eyes. Next day they fshed his body
from? the lake at Mentone.
Then there were the Parlingtons, re-
fined English people. They were on
their wedding trip. never forgot the
look Of delight with which young Mrs.
Pa.lircton pocketed her first small
gain The pretty bride fairly coaxed her
husband TO stake 10 francs.
When night came they had a couple
of thousand francs in their pockets.
Next morning they took chairs Nos.
% and -. No. % brought them the usu-
al luck. They gained 10000 francs. But.
on the following day came the inevita-
Die change. The $4,000 francs went back
TO rs, and the couples little fortune
followed. They walked from the room
dcathly pale, hand in hand.
Nv detectives informed me that they
took the train for Nice without troub-
ling about their baggage. They shot
and Killed themselves in the Windsor
Hotel :here Everybody can see that
the cloth on the suicide table is Of moro
recent make than the rest. Yet the
Casino company is only 31S francs the
poorer on that account.
Here are the figures: Cloth for double
table. go francs, painting of yellow fig.
ures. 50 francs; mailing down, IS francs;
total, 2lS francs.
Against these figures there is an off
set of 500 francs, which the Casino
company would have been obliged to.
pay the young Russian for travelling
expenses. This Muscovite Prince re-,
fused to become a persioner Of VI.
Blanc's heirs, and blew out his brains
over the table where he had dropped
his all,-i00G00 francs.
Il happened two years ago. and it
nearly cost me my job. The circum-
stances that one Of the directors Of
the company drew me into a corner
to talk about the same Russians per-
sistcnt iil-luck Just II minute before
the shot rang out-that alone saved
NE from disgrace.
The incident itself was soon forgotten
and had no bearing on the game. 1t
has nothing to Go with the supersti-
tons attaching 20 the suicide table.
The Ill reputation Of that piece of fur
niture was Of many years standing
wbea the Russian committed his flag
rant breach of Casino etiquette. He
was No s. on my list Of unfortunates.
When l saw q man or woman ap-
proach the s.sicide state, my first care
was to prevent him or her from spoil
ing more cloth. I signailed my men to
press around the party. and prevent
him or her from putting q hand IN the
pocket or from striking The croupier
Many desperate c&se3 I approached
as fellow gambler. offering to assist
them and paE their tlomeward journey.
T dare say my ntervention-which
cost me nothing, as the company re-
conpej} me-has saved many poor
tic"il's life
Whether suicide candidates have a
foreboding OF evil when they come to
! our table don't know. but a few try
tc escape their goal. They come fanked
! BY prayers or holding piece Of hang
mans rope Others try to insure their
fortune by paving the croupier 100
francs before the days work begins.
OF course he accepts tie bTibe. He ism t
tanlperin9 with his employers profits.
Robert =. Jennings. was Lel. u2 on
4 street car near the corner Of Wash
I ington avenue and Broadway. st.
Louis, Mo. Oct 81. and robbed Of