The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-08-09
browns SURE THING
ID HAND AT POKER.
Play on a Steamship That Aroused
the Suspicious Of Conseien-
tious Spectator.

Poker. like prizc-hghting. has ire
mendous fascination for very many con-
scientious persons who read about 1t and
talk about il and know lot about IL but
would no more play game than they
would 20 to see the biggest fight that was
ever bippodromed The stories told so
offer in the newspapers about the grafters
who travel on the big liners during the
summer season, skinning living out Of
unsuspicious men who play the game for
the pure love of it, are especially familiar
10 these people. This is the story of how
1t worked on one of them.
The steamer sailed from Liverpool about
O'clock in the afternoon. Half past
4 found the fat, good -natured young
man from the middle West leaning over
the rail watching tho men on coal barge
throw in the last OF the 1000 tons the big
ship was going TO burn on the voyage.
Some one strobe down the deck and gave
Gers.
Dave! old man, the thumper exclaimed,
what the devil you doing here? Thought
you were on the ranch!"
Hello, JIM" responded the other. you
over here too? Me2 l just thought I'd
see how much sea could put in in two
weeks from New York. Got here this
morning, didn't like the place and con-
Guided to go back"
Jim had him bv the arm before the ex-
PLANTATION was half through and was head
ing him toward the smoke room. explaining
that it was surely all occasion which justified
LII Ii h.
smoke room Jim found four other young
men making similar demands on the
steward.
Here" he called out, you fellows get
into line here and meet the real thingi
This il Dave Brown, who OWNS more cattle
in Wyoming or some other God forgotten
country than there are straws in bale OF
hay
Then he introduced the rest OF the crowd
tho son OF a millionaire oil man from New
York, the head Of theatrical syndicate
from Philadelphia. another Philadelphia
man, son Of millionaire whose name il
known on both sides Of he Atlantic, and
a young lawyer from Cleveland who won't
starve IL he never gets client.
This said jim, when the -hows" were
all said, "is the red necktie brigade and
YOU are now formally initiated. Tom
fetch out the badge OF membership"
The lawyer pulled out OF his pocket a
staring red necktie with bright yellow
spots and Jim began to fasten it around
the throat of the cattle man.
This MEANS ne explained, that you
are member in good standing Of the
brigade. You observe that all the rest OF
us are wearing the badge. The business
of the brigade is to play poker every minute
Of the voyage home that we can keep awake.
1t is to be the biggest game ever played
on q transatlantic steamer. Chips are
fiyes, tens and hundreds, with markers for
anything you like"
He came close to the cattle man and
dropped his voice.
That's for public consumption, he
added. We settle up the morning we
get into New York on the ten-cent limit
basis"
aPm in responded Dave. heartily,
what's the limit Of membership for the
brigade9'
used the others. Game begins right
nowl Every member stays III through
out every session, and sessions last all day
except during meal hours
1t was going down the Irish coast from
Daint's Rock 70 Fastnet What the super
heated conscience found it's chance 10
get it, and met it's surprising rebuff,
The session began as soon az the screws
began to churn after the last of the mail
was aboard The six brigadiers just filed
one of tho round tables in the smoking
room, but there was comfortable room
left for onlookers, and the man with the
extra developed conscience found place
behind the cattle man, whose hands he
scr,Itinized over the players shoulder as if
his own money were AT stake.
1t was a good, liberal game, with LOT OF
fitting back and forth and considerable
side comment on the part ofth players al to
what they intended to do to one another
before the voyage was ended. Brown
won steadily, and the piles of chips in front
Of him grew constantly in size and shaded
always to blues.
The amounts ST aked on Indifferent hands
fairly took the breath away from the super
heated conscience as its owner watched
the cattlemans play Before long word
went around the ship that a very fast game
was going on in the smoking room and
there were comments not contested with
entire success as to the shame it was 10 see
such young men playing for such sums.
The brigadiers wnked occasionally at one
another and get to 1t all the harder,
There began to be side talk among some
OF them as TO the regularity of Browns
winnings 1t was little suspicious, they
thought, that luck should set so persis-
tentlv toward him. and then followed
naturally the covert threats of combining
to beat him.
Let's rock old Dave" one would say
as he raised the pot.
Tilt him again" would be the response
from the other side of the table, as il was
raised again after Brown had come in
Then Brown would win and remark that
the way OF the transgressor was certainly
hard.
So il had gone until Fastnet was nearly
abeam Then the great hand uncovered
itself
II was a jackpot that had gone around
unopened for three or four deals. and was
highly sweetened. Finally the theat rical
man, who was sitting third from Brown
on the right, opened with a bunch of blue
chips, that represented in the large lam
guage OF the game, a hundred dollars each
instead Of he ten-cent pieces Of settlement
dav. The Philadelphia merchant, who
was next, came in wit n whoOp and then
Tom, the Cleveland lawyer. followed.
Brown looked at his hand and seemed
to study the chances He had a pair of
jacks. an ace and two spot cards
The superheated conscience behind him
breathed very hard, nearly bursting with
desire TO warn the Cattleman not to go in
But his telepathy was faulty, and Brown
didn't know Of the bunch, so he followed
his luck and Clipped along, Then Jim,
who sat on his left hoisted il ano her bunch
of blues with the cheerful remark that he