The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-01-14
STORY OF A HOT SPORT.


vatery expression around the corners OF
his mouth.
| Well. said Jim, inquiringiy. after he
had waited q decent interval for the other
: tC go on with MS speech.
| Il was going to say that I'd like a
Mamie Taylor. or an absinthe frappe. or
some one o. those complicated CONNECTIONS
; that you pride yourself on said the Hot
I Sport. after a pause, but l think the
occasion calls for couple O. champagne
cocktails. You may split a small bottle.
Jim, and I'll take q half of it.
And how about the other half?'' asked
| Jim.
''Oh. well, If it gets past you, you
might hand it out as q contribution TO
some deserving member OF our circle in
society It'd be better. though. if you d
drink with me to the good health and
| prosperity of the Earl o. Roslyn.''
Cert" said Jim. but for why?"
We'll, he seems to be the right sort.
don't know whether il was stage money
he lost in that poker game on board ship
OF not. but he dropped a wad. an never
made a squeal. L spose he can't help it
If he has got a title. He's grown up
anyhow.
There's only one thing on earth, Jim,
that's worse than a squealer. an that $
q welcher. An the worst thing about a
souealer is that he'll always be a welcher,
zoo, If he gets q chance-or most al
ways
You seem to feel bad about it, said
jim.
Il do replied the Hot Sport. did l
ever tell you about the way a country
postmaster I'm somewheres in Michigan
come to New York a while ago. an did
UP the gang?''
Never heard of IT, said Jim.
Well he was one o. these too intelli-
gent yaps that wise an beneficent Prov
iGence puts on earth for the purpose o
providing spending money for the nom
productive class in big cities. / don't
know what his name was. for it's my
rotion that he'd changed it so often that
he'd forgotten it. himself. what he start
ed out with, but he called himself Waters
Bill Waters, from Battle Creek. Bein'
as he didn come from Battle Creek at
ALI faint likely that his name was Wa
tiers. but that's what he gave out.
WELL Waters had been postmaster
somewhere. long enough to know all
about the green goods game, an the gold
brick industry. an the con business. an +,
like good many others. he came to the
conclusion that he could stack up against
EN- an win out. Walked into ii with his
eyes wide open, like a good many does.
an got did UP in the usual way.
HE come TO town with a Wau tnat
must been enough TO live comfortable
on out in the country where he come from
for there was several hundred left after
he'd got through with the three enter
prises | mentioned, an l heard in some
roundabout way that they had all soaked
him good an proper before he butted
into the club an wanted to have a shy
at draw.
when he come in, though, an asked
- - - a1N.lxr
seemed to get on to the real situation.
He was there, an he had money, an he
wanted to play poker, so just naturally
he was accommodated.
Il was in the game, an so was Hunter.
an Jackson. an Peters. If you can fig
ure out how any Michigan postmaster
could sit in with that combination an
get away with anything more than his
collar button, you're good one. It'd pay
you to open bucketShop right next door
10 the Stock Exchange.
We'll, say; you'd a been ashamed TO
lcok on an watch that game. Hunter
looked at me two or three times. an |
looked at Peters. to sort o. find out if
there was any shame in us. but 1t was
gettin' on toward cold weather. an it
didn't look right to let a man like that
Waters go around with money in his
clothes. 1t did seem. though, like chokin'
Little children an takin' the pie out o.
their mouths, for fear they'd eat too
Icuch an make themselves sick.
Honest, 1 don't believe there was a
card held out in the whole game, an as
for framin up any mits, there wasn't
one o the crowd would a been guilty of it,
II wasn't necessary.
Waters didn't know any more about
draw poker than any other man l ever
saw in my life with q deck o cards in
his hands. An he played up to what he
didn't know with more absolute precision
than | s'posed was possible. Actually, he
called Jackson once, on a pair o tens,
when jackson had opened the pot an
drawn one card. l asked him what he
did it for. You see, ii was toward the
end O the game, an we'd all OF us got
over any notion O. treatin' him like he
knowed anything. An he said it looked
to him like Jackson had likely split his
openers. an didn't have anything.
"Of course, playin .he way We did,
he'd win pot once in a while. We didn't
feel like we'd have any self-respect left
if we took every pot, an when it looked
like he had a pretty good hand we'd all
lay down. An then you ought TO heard
him cackle. You'd ha' thought he'd open
ed a gold mine an was sellin certifi-
Gates.
THE beggar had luck. too. He'd fill
a straight once in a while an then ex-
plain. sort O. bashful like, that he'd
drawed to an interior An twice he
drawed three cards an showed down a
flush. o. course. with such luck that,
he'd ought to have cleaned us all out, If
he'd knowed anything about the game.
but he could lose more money on nothin'
at all than he'd win on four of kind.
We'll. after a while Hunter an / got
tired. It was like cuttin' a dogs tail off
in sections, an we reckoned we'd wind il
all up quick, SO the next time I opened
an Waters stayed, Hunter raised 1t.
Then we double crossed him till he had
his pile all up. an Hunter scooped the
pot, him havin three aces an Waters
three bein' queens
There wasn't much said. / expected
to hear him squeai. for he'd dropped near
eight hundred. an ne didn't look like a
man that could spare that much. but all
get up an walk over to the sideboard.
an ask the darky for a drink. O. course
he gat it, an we went on playin' while
be was drinkin IL Actually We didn't
dare TO look at each other. nor say any
thing. an we didn't any OF us more
say good night when he said il. an
started out o the door.
But. say there was sonethin' doin'
right on the minute when he got the
right outside with two men. waitin. an
they come in with him when Waters turn
ed back with grin on his face.
20 course. I tumbled an looked ar
the cap'n TO see what The blue blazes
he meant an SO did some o the others.
but he took me 10 one size an SAYS: It's
10 use. This yap has got the best Of rs
He come round % the station with a
shyster lawyer he's hired. AZ made
complaint about the house. 7 told him
about not beIn' able TO get evidence. an
nc said he'd provide all the evidsnce nee /
.ssarr- Th.- be cnunial OFT his %ad 70