The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1900-03-17
COMEDY AT MONTE CARLO.

was too much for the regulars.
Probably it wasn't a. new form either.
They must have had the same experience
before and have learned that discretion
in similar cases is the better part of val
or. At any rate they sighed weariy
shrugged their shoulders, sat back ir.
their chairs without their risking a louis
on the issue. The fat man lost the first
deal. He is a man who perspires pro-
fusely every time he plays and who al
ways tucks AN immense handkerchief
into his collar as soon as he stakes his
money. The rolling beads of perspira-
ton are his sole sign of agaitatioil, but
it fascinates the players and the Group
iers can scarcely pay the bets they are
so deeply interested in watching the dew
of honest, toll gather on his chin. Af>-,
losing once the fat man won few thou
sand.
"Im going to leave it there till it wins
three times,'' he announced to all his
friends within earshot. Then he lost
1t doesn't make much difference how
the thing came out; except to the Ameri-
can crowd which watched with glee the
tournament between the two men. The
land of the free and the home of the
brave buffer at poker does not insist
on man making deaf mute of him.
self when he CANDLES. So the Ameri-
cans had a beautiful time. They talked
and they laughed, and occasionally they
swore in what was an undertone fur
them, but was three keys above the or
binary tones of the Casino
And the regular players grew mere and
more trritated, shrugged and twitched at
a frightful rate, and breathed low male
dictions on the invaders. The fat man
drove out the first American, who went
away mad, and finally the fat man him
self pocketed his wad Of bills and went
off, probably to hunt up his irate friend
and spend some of his gains in the work
of reconciliation. The other Americans
dr1fted away, too, and with great sigh
of relief the regulars sat up and tried
to piece together the shattered systems
of play, the dealers voice resumed the
familiar phrases and all was quiet again.
These men were betting in hundreds
and thousands of francs, but two Ameri-
can women with SO apiece had made lust
as much of a disturbance at a roulette
table during the, day. They sat at the
end of the table, with a croupier-poor
man!-between them. No matter what
happened, they leaned in front Of the
croupier and told each other all about it,
If they won they told each other all the
mental processes which had led them to-
stake their big, round dollar where they
did. If they didn't bet they exclaimed
aloud that it was too bad because they
would have won if they had yielded to
secret impulse. And so On. When they
had lost their $40, they sat there and
told each other how they would bet if
they had any money left
But all Americans are not of these
types. Most of the green ones know that
they are green and try to slip their money
onto the table without attracting the
attention even of the croupier. The old
hands here, who are having hard luck,
do not scruple to pick up somebody else's
money occasionally on the chance that
the other person will be too green to
know that he has been robbed. Tie
American newcomer is often the victim
because, even if he knows he has been
robbed. he will let it go rather than
make himself conspicuous get into an
alteration in which he would be ct
disadvantage because of his ignorance of
the language. keep your eye en- the
bail, is a better rule for golf than for
roulette keep your eye on your money
is good advice for Monte Carlo.
OF course every American girl that
passes this way has to try her luck
Tier favorite method is to borrow FIVE
francs or a louis from male relative or
friend. Everybody knows that luck comes
to borrowed money. If she is travelling
with other women she decides with much
inward agitation to risk five francs of
her own. Then you see her going around
for an hour or two, wandering from ia
bic to- table in search of just the right
place, carrying the big silver piece in
her feverish hand. When she finally puts
it down it is SO hot it almost scorcnes
the cloth-which does not, however, pre-
vent the croupier from whisking it into
his pile with a suddenness which makes
the girl gasp.
IQere are then, five kinds of Americans
at Monte Carlo There is the man to
whom. it is an old story who CANDLES
in a desultory way according as the spirit
moves him. There are the rich novices
who make as much disturbance in tie
Casino as a bull would in a china shop
There are the garrulous women, who are
ridiculous; and the tinn:dly determined
girls who are amusing since their aeita-
Uon>is a matter Of only dollar or two.
And there are the men and women wno
risk a few louis quietly, for the sake
chiefly OF the experience. Take them all
together they form very small proper
ton of the crowd; but they attract more
attention in proportion to their number
than any other nationality to be found
at Monte Carlo-Monte Carlo Correspond
cree New York Sun.