The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1903-01-23

circulation in the neighborhood and
were accepted everywhere at their face
value. M. Blanc's counters were as
good as government notes.
A Clever Procedure.
But in 1870 suspicious seem to have
crossed the philanthropic BIanc's mind.
for he announced that all his counters
were to be recalled. Two hundred
thousand Of them according to the
2 company's books) had been issued. Nj.
Blanc's feeling may be imagined when
he found that 100000 claimed to be re-
deemed. The Societe des Bains &c
Mer has stuck to hard cash ever since.
A similar example of shady astute-
ness Is recorded of the period when
the rouleauX dor were used. AS their
name implies, these were rolls Of gold
coins Cfive-louis pieces, locally nick
named plaques), done up in paper.
Each paper packet-which was sealed
and Stamped-contained ten coins. its
value being, therefore, 1000 francs.
Players very frequently bet by placing
these packets, unopened, on the CLOTH
One bland Frenchman who gambled
thus lost his packet twice, but each
time bought it back from the bank.
explaining apologetically that he had
an impression that this special rouleau
was lucky. Each time he bought it
back he retired to try his luck at
fresh table. He won at the third ia
bic and the croupier duly paid him
his winnings of 1000 francs.
The Jagsers System.
But" he protested, II put 10000
francs-the maXimum-on the cloth
and you are only giving me i ,GO0!"
and with an aggrieved air he tore the
paper off his lucky" rouleau, revealing
QnStead of a row of gold coins) a
brass tube stuffed tight with bank
notes He had skillfully unseaIed the
roll, substituted a tube exactly the cir
conference of the coins, and then re-
sealed it.
The croupier, of course, contested the
point. Nevertheless, the banks UNI
p1re ruled in the players favor, stat
ing that the stake had been accepted
and therefore must be paid. Rouleaux
were opened after that, though.
The history of the Yorkshire man
who netted, it is said, $4,000 after
some six months work at Monte Carlo,
is one which, like those cited" above.
can never now repeat itself. This en-
terpr1s1ng Mr.. Jaggers engaged a staff
OF clerks who noted, hour in and hour
out, day in and day out, week in and
week out, the result of every game
at every roulette table. The figures
were tabulated and Jaggers found, as
he had hoped, that each roulette wheel
possessed a bias.
Certain numbers came up and GER
tain combinations occurred more fire.
quently on some Wheels than would be
the case if the mechanism ran true.
Jaggers and his staff staked accord
ingly, and with the aid of large cap
ftal, soon cleared $780, 900 profit.
Lost and Then Gained.
Their plan was then discovered, and
the wheels altered so as to be inter-
chanSeable from table to table Jag
gers, not knowing that the wheels
were now shifted nightly, continued
playing on his system, and promptly
dropped 100000. Like a wise man,
he stopped and set himself to the task
of discovering what was wrong. He
soon did so; discovered, too, that each
wheel had some distinguishing mark,
so that he could recognize it wherever
it was in use. Tracing his biased
wheel daily from table to table. Jag
gers was rewarded by recouping his
lost 100000. Finally, the Casino me-
chanics devised a plan by which not
the wheels, but the compartments of
the wheels, could be interchanged.
Movable partitions were too much for
Jaggers. He paid off his clerks and
returned to Yorkshire to enjoy the
fruits of his observative faculties.