The Winslow mail., 1900-07-19
& y
: Mr.. Jobson Plays Poker I
Observation-Disclosures e&cs

a
Jobson, throwing aside the
newspaper he was reading one even
ing some little time back. Here's
story in this paper about a Montana
man who taught his wife how to play
poker, just so they could play together
in the bosom of their own tireslde and
hearthstone, and how, when she hadn t
much more than mastered the value of
the hands, she got winning streak,
won all of his property-which she
made him formally deed over to her
and then turned him into the street.
Ha, hal | say again. The idea OF a
Montana mans wife being able to skin
him at pokerI The idea of any mans S
wife, anywhere, for the matter of that,
being able to beat him at poker; that
is, any man who's one-eighth of one
per cent. stronger in his upper works
than the ordinary horseback of COM
merce!"
do you think it's right for women
to play poker?'' Mrs. Jobson asked him,
as she picked up another stocking to
darn.
For women to play poker?" in
ouired Mr.. Jobson, with a strong ac-
centuation on the word play" Mrs.
Jobson, there never was a woman yet
that played poker; women just play
at it. And as far as its being rights
concerned, of course it's all right, pro-
viding a man and wife just play to-
gether BY Jovel come to think of it,
it wouldn't be a bad scheme for me to
teach you something about poker; that
is, teach you as much about it as a
woman can ever learn. 1 might just as
well dish out the hands to myself and
play solitaire, for don't suppose you'd
ever arrive at the point where you'd
know whether four kings made fours
or just two pairs, but | believe I'll just
initiate you into the value of the
poker hands, anyhow, for the fun of the
thing"
But" demurred Mrs. Jobson, 81
can't get over feeling that for wom-
an to play poker is something dreadful,
and"
Not any more dreadful, or whatever
else you call it, than it is for woman
to play euchre, or old maid, or casino,
Mrs. Jobson," said Mr.. Jobson, in his
best judicial manner. And, as mat
ter of fact'-here Mr.. Jobson chuckled
you'll never, as l say, really
play poker, you know. You'll just
think you're playing, but you won't
be guilty. Where's that deck of
cards?"
Its in that cabinet" said Mrs. job
son, with a finger at her lip. I'D
hate to have the ladies of my guild
know that I'd engage in such an aw-
full
"Oh, I'll bet there are a lot of 'em
who play among themselves for marsh
mallows and gumdrops," said Mr.. Job
son, producing the pasteboards and
riffling them with the insouciant all
of professional aboard the Robert E
Lee or the NatcheZ, on down-rivel
Mississippi cruise. "Just draw your
chair up to the table, and I'll tell yoJ
the value of the hands. Then we car
play with matches for chips, apd it'll
be more fun than a box of monkey!
to see you catch straight fiushes anC
because you think you haven't got any
thing in Your hand fit to play with
tAINb III lOdL nand Ht 10 blnJ m1m
Now, a pair etc Mr. Jobson proceed
ed to tell Mrs. Jobson the worth of the
hands. She couldn't see into the val
ues at all at first, but she got a pen
Gil and pad and jotted down the re
spective values of the hands from pair:
to royal fushes, and after about L;
minutes, during which she chewe6
quite a large piece off the end of hel
pencil, she said she thought she under
stood.
Mr.. Jobson took a hundred par,ol
matches from a box, and divided then
into equal stacks of so each. In pass
ing over Mrs. Jobson's stack TO hel
he said. with an indulgent smile:
''Now. be cautious in betting those
matches. Just try to consider thai
each one of 'em represents a dollar;
and if you do that, and at the same
time get to thinking of the foray yoI
could make on the bargain counter;
if each one of those matches really
was a dollar, / guess you'll be careful
with 'em, all right. I've explained tc
YOU what bluffing is, and if you fee
like bluffing, go ahead and bluff
Here Mr. Jobson took his watch of
the chain and laid it on the table be.
side him.
"And," he continued, "if L don't
have those so matches of yours over
on this side of the table in just &C
minutes, IL redeem every one of 'em
you still possess at the end of that
time with a new, cracking paper dol
lar"
So they began. From the go-off
the bluffing idea upon which Mr.. Job
son had eXpatiated so elaborately
seemed to possess a epculiar fascina-
tion for Mrs. Jobson, as it does for
most women who are initiated into
the mysteries of poker-perhaps be-
cause it looks to them like a case of
getting something for nothing. At
any rate, Mrs. Jobson took the bluff
ing end of it right from the start,
and without anything whatever in her
hand TO back up her bluffs, SO that