Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1900-10-18

| wives, who naturally found time hang
heavily on their hands, so the EN-
peror devised amusement for them by
inyenting cards-that Is, if we are
to put any belief in the words Of the
Chinese historians. There were thirty
cards in each, and three extra su
perior cards. The Chinese cards
we're oblong, as ours are, while those
| of the Hindoos were round.
Surprising though it may seem, it
is nevertheless true that the queen in
our suits is a comparatively modern
innovation. The picture cards were
at first entirely military-king, knight
and knave. The Italians We me
first, it is said, to give the lady a
| place in the pack.
There have been from time to time
many changes in the suits. Old Ger
man cards have bells. acorns and
leaves, instead of clubs, diamonds
and spades. Many writer's have I'M
the symbols used upon the cards, and
one French writer endeavored to de-
duce a military moral.
The club, he said, with its trefoil, is
the 'trefe," or clover, which abounds
in the meadows of the French. This
shows that a general should encamp
his forces where forage is to be
found The spade is the "carreau,"
or heavy square headed arrows shot
from a crossboW. "Croeurs," or
hearts, signifies the courage Of the
soldiers. The ace is the Latin "as,' -
representing money, sinews or war,
and so on through several pages Of
fantastic symbolism.
The history of cards in this country
marks many interesting periods in the
nations growth. The famous cotton
plant" back cards are remembered by
many old time players. These cards
were mostly used in the south, but
were known the country over. One
of the most beautiful designs of this
kind easily drew a prize over the best
British exhibits at the first of the
Crystal Palace exhibitions, in Lon
don, during the ''fifties" During
those days a pack of cards of similar
design sold for $40 in gold.
History of Cards Here.
The old Steamboat" cards, first de
signed for use on vessels plying up
and down the Mississippi river, have
never lost their popularity, and are
still in general use. In the old days
of gambling on the Mississippi a
steamboat company was known to
take as high as 81 800 worth of cards
on a single order. From 1850 to 1858,
owing to the great rush to the mines
of Calf >'nia, it is estimated that the
annual output of playing cards went
as high as 100000 packs; but after
the war, when times were hard, it
fell to less than 100000, and since
then has grown to double that
again.
In war times the ingenuity of the
manufacturers was turned toward de-
vising patriotic ideas and emblems
to take the place of the kings and
queens and other insignia of the or
binary deck. Andrew Dougherty, who
started in the business in 1S4S, having
| also associated with himself his
three sons-Edward, Andrew, Jr., and
| William-was one of the leaders in
| patriotic notions. One deck that he
devised, and which was ''entered ac-
| cOrding to act Of Congress-" in the
later days of the war, substitutes for
the four ordinary suits pictorial rep
reservations of the Monitor, the
| Merrimac, a zouave in the uniform of
drummer boy. Thus, instead of the
nine of spades, there would be a card
with nine little pictures of the Mont
tor upon it, the arrangements fol
lowing exactly the positions Of the
| spades on the ordinary cards. One of
! the strangest things associated with
| this device is that a few years after
the war Mr.. DougheTty received an
| order from a man in Dublin Prison
| for two packs of these war cards.
| Works of Art
At one time an experiment was
| tried of having beautifully engraved
! pictures of women and men in royal
! robes for monarchs of the deck, and
! l., Il