Mexico Missouri message., 1902-09-25
SARATOGA HIGH LIFE
JULIAN RALPH DESCRIBES AMER.
IcA's MONTE CARLO.
Wall Street Magnates and Profes.
slonal Gamblers Woo the Goddess
of Chance Together-lmmense
Sums Won and Lost.

The faro games attracted the great
players and the high play. 1t was
difficult for an ordinary man who
earns his living by the sweat of his
hahds or his brow to comprehend
what sums of money were represent
ed by the chips upon these tables. A
great Wall street operator sat In
Napoleonic attitude, with head down
on his breast, hands folded on his
stomach, and hat titled over his eyes,
at the head of the table with half
dozen idlers behind and beside him
one an employe of the place, on
high stool, watching all that went on.
And this stock exchange nabob was
one of the men who were playing.
The stacks of ivory loZenges in front
of him represented $1,000 for each
pile. The casekeeper, with his little
Chinese frame of ivory markers, tai
lied each card played by the dealer
opposite, who dealt In the most leis-
urely manner, stopping to rake In or
pay off the bets, and taking. some
times, seven minutes between deals
There comes stage in faro when two
similar cards cannot or are not likely
to be played one after another, and
then the strong play begins. This
stage had been reached, and all the
players were betting heavily, putting
$500 here, 81 900 there, $3.50 else
where-and topping a pile of chips
with a button now and then. to bet
against instead of on a card. Tho
stock exchange nabob was on tho
other side OF the casekceper, and n
veteran gambler was on the other
| side betting hundreds where Wall
street staked thousands.
A long lean, thin-faced young man.
| evidently from the west, wearing n
lounging suit of blue flannel lightly
striped with white, lounged along, sat
down by the Napoleonic onlooker. and
pulled from a trousers pocket a thick.
fiat pancake of bank notes. Every
note was a 500 bill. He threw out
five of these, received twenty chips,
lost them with promptness and dis
patch and then threw upon the green
cloth $1CO more.
"Who?" | asked.
Johnny of Denver, book
maker"
Getting rid of his days winnings at
the races?" ventured.
mo; he was hard hit at the races
to-day. He always has stacks Of
money"
What an enviable man! What a
delightful reputation and condition!
May he come to no grief, and may the
last man to whom he tosses 500
bill be a stone-cutter, who shall grave
upon his headstone: Here lies John
ME Dash of Denver. He always had
stacks of money"
do not understand faro. ] cannot
master it ION the salary | get" as
Frederic Remington, the artist, would
say. | saw so much money paid out
and paid in and moved about in little
ivory columns OF so many cOlors-all
without the faintest idea of how or
why it came and went or why so much
of it dwadled idly on the board as
in no other game ! ever saw. where
quick and agile croupiers knew their
business that | came away hopeless
| ~ DtlDSStN. ! ptlStN Wy u
roulette wheel A mere boy with the
touch of n mothers Carcsses still on
mis- chubby checks, came by my side
and, rolling up a 500 bin into a pei.
let, flung it or a number The crOu-
pier knew his calling and gathered II
in. The youth crumplcd mp another
yellow rag and tossed 1t after the
first. His aim was true, and 1t fol
lowed its mate, nimby, into the till
Five times he did this, and then, hav.
ing made his sacrifice upon the altar
OF the ruling deity of the village, he
lighted a cigarcttc-with II match
not a bank nOte-and went beside me
into the strect-Julian Ralph in the
Npw York Times