The Savannah morning news., 1901-10-28

Tacubaya. In front of the dealers gold
was ranged in massive piles. Not less
than a hundred thousand dollars of il
stood in front of a slender, dark mar
with a pointed mustache. who fingered
the cards smoothly and impassively.
Make your bets, gentlemen!" he
said. from time to time, in sonorous
Spanish. On his right sat another
man, silent and armed to the teeth,
He was there to protect the game.
Some so men were in front of the
dealer. some wagering, others looking
on. Strong waited his chance. slipped
into a vacant seat and produced his
roll of bills. 1t looked pitifully small.
How much can l bet?" he asked
nervously.
The dealer smiled. ANY amount
that the senior wishes" he replied.
cOurteously. IF we have not enough
before us, we will get more"
Without another word Strong placed
a hundred dollars on the queen, and
lost it. 1t had taken him two months
70 save that money, and now IL was
gone in less than a minute. He felt
sick, bet another hundred, and lost it.
More than a years accumulation went
to swell the dealers hoard before he
had been a quarter of an hour at the
table. When he bet timidly. he won;
when he grew holder. he lost
Near him was young fellow who
had barely passed his majority, a
Mexican, evidently hidalgo. or the
son of a hidalgo. He was wagering
rouleaux of gold, a hundred dollars in
roll. He had stacks of the rouleaux
in his front, and near by his side stood
two servants who held yet more. Hav-
ing plenty of money and no idea what
to do with 1t. this youngster could not
lose. Strong thought:
Loss or gain is of no moment to
him. Therefore fortune favors him. IT
l follow his betting l can but be ruin
ed. Ruined I shall be to a certainty
If | trust to my own star"
He examined the bills in his hand
and found that he had less than $500
left. With reckless gesture. he placed
the entire amount next to a rouleaux
belonging to the Mexican. The card
was the king Of hearts: opposed to il
was the trey of clubs The king won.
and Strong grasped his money with
feverish haste. The dealer marked him
and smiled subtly. The hidalgo noAre-
ly glanced at him, then stacked $1,000
upon the deuce as opposed TO the trey.
ital, now amounting to some $500 The
Strong followed with his entire cap
deuce won. The hidalgo raked his gold
toward him, fingered it moment,
hesitated, then called for a bottle OF
wine, permitting the deal to pass He
filed a glass and proffered it to
Strong with a courteous.
I'VE are brothers in fortune" he
said, softly. Let us drink
Something in the tone seemed vague
ly reminiscent to the American. but
he drank and handed back the goblet
with a muttered word of thanks.
Where had he heard that voice before
Wherever ii might be it was certain
that some unpleasant memory was
connected with it. Where was it?
The impassive dealer had shuffled
his pack and handed it to Strong to
cut. He did so mechanically. and the
game started anew. From the 1.-THE
brown fingers an ace of diamonds and
four of spades f1uttered down. The
hidalgo bet instantly a thousand on
the four. Strong followed suit with
his thousand, and the four won. The
six of clubs took the place of the
defeated ace, and the hidalgo backed
it. In a mental haze Strong bet his
81. 000 and won. The deuce of dia-
monds followed and the pair show
cred gold on il. 1t won. The four
of hearts was shown. Using both
hands now to handle the coin belong
ing to him, Strong showed the double
BdBiGS lOWdIu IT. ne h6AlCdH was
as eager. Their card showed almost
in an instant. The dealer was not
impassive now. Two small purple
dints were near his nostrils, and he
was breathing quickly. The knave
of clubs took it's place, face upward
on the table.
1.-THE layout" the dealer said in a
tense tone. lis the four and the knave
Make your play, gentlemen"
The hidalgo laughed. THE knave, of
course" he said. Ten thousand on
it,"
That laugh cleared Strong's memory.
The leader of the bandits had laughed
as they clambered up the hillside. Here
was the man cheek by jowl with him.
and gambling in unison. The robbery
seemed far away however. He felt no
resentment. Instead, he laughed also,
and bet $4,000 on the knave.
Success to our second meeting, Sc
nor" he said. The Mexican smiled.
With a tremor in his hands that he
could not control. the dealer stripped
the cards. The knave showed
"One last turn he said, throwing
the five of spades upon the cloth.
still on the knavel" the bandit said.
showing $4,000 toward the card.
My bet, also" said Strong, reckless
~ scooping his $4,000 forward. The
size of the stack steadied the dealer.
One by one the cards fell from the
deck Strong felt no special excite
ment. 1t seemed to him almost that
another man was gambling, The
knave won.
The dealer said, simply: The bank
is broken"
The hidalgo said: "Adios. senior"
and walked out. leaving his servants
to gather up the gold.
Strong dumped his $4,000 of winnings
into sack and staggered down the
steps with his burden. There was
nearly a hundred pounds of it. He is
selling mining machinery to his own
account now. and his wife regards
him as a man of remarkable business
ability. who borrowed a large amount
of capital. and paid it back within a
year.