The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1905-05-27
eAMpLrNe SYSTEMS.

tors have gone to Monte Carlo with
infallible systems it is impossible to
say, but probably they are to be num-
bered by millions, and not one of
them has returned the victor. 1t is
the ambition doubtless of every visi-
tor to the fascinating tables of Monte
Carlo to "break the bank" Any
player with an extraordinary run of
good luck and the nerve to press it
is liable to break the bank, " as the
expression is commonly understood,
butno one will ever break the bank"
at Monte Carlo in the true sense of
the phrase.
AT the famous gaming rooms there
is not one, but many tables at which
players may stake. Each table starts
play for the day with capital of Ioo,-
oas francs, and when that sum is ex-
l1austed the bank at that particular
tablets broken, and playis suspended
untila fresh bank of 100, 900 francs is
brought by the attendants matter
of a minute or two.
Butto break the bank in the true
sense would be to exhaust the entire
capital of the casino, and that will
never happen, for three simple reasons.
The first is that the bank lays un-
fair odds to the player. This I will
illustrate as simply as possible.
At roulette, the most popular form
of gambling, there are thirty-seven
numbers-from I to 80 inclusive and
o, or zero. 1t is plain that the fair
odds against player correctly pick
ing one of these thirty-seven numbers
are 80 to 1. But the bank only lays
IS toI.
Hence the bank has always, roughly
speaking, a 8 per cent. advantage
over the player. To put it another
way, if player backs the same num-
ber thirty-seven times he ought, ac-
cording to the fair odds, to come out
exactly square, but at Monte Carlo he
cannot do so. He must lose point.
This advantage of the bank applies
to all the other chances besides the
numbers on which the player may
stake.
Take, for example, the so-called
"even'' chance of red or black. Of
the thirty. seven numbers eighteen are
red, eighteen black, the ttirty-sev-
enth, zero, having nominally no color.
It is obvious that if player backs
red there are nineteen chances (eigh-
teen blacks and zero) against his
being correct. The fair odds are
nineteen to eighteen against him, but
the bank only lays even money.
The advantage to the bank does
not end here, for when zero turns up
the bank takes all stakes except those
on zero and the even money chances.
The latter are put aside-"en prise"
is the technical term.
If on the next turn of the wheel
the player on these even chances wins
his stake is released, and he may pick
it up, but he wins nothing.
To win he must stake again, and
thus when zero turns up it is at least
two to one against player on an
"eveu money" chance.
The second reason why the bank
must always win in the long run is
the existence of the maximum"
The maximum 10000 francs, or
24o pounds) is the highest amount a
player can win on any one chance.
If player with unlimited resources
could go on playing "double or quits"
with the casino indefinitely he would
eventually break the bank in the full
sense of the term. But you cannot
play double or quits" with M. Blanc
for long.
Starting with the minimum stake
allowed-viz, S francs-and doubling
your stakes each time, your eleventh
stake, supposing you to win or lose
consecutively, would be over 5000
francs, and you could double no
longer.
| In other words, you would have
come to a point at which you could
not on one turn of the wheel either
double your winnings or recoup all
your losses.
] All systems are designed to nullify
the effects of zero and the maximum.
If one could be certain that zero
would turn up, as it ought to turn up,
once in every thirty-seven turns, it
could be provided against, and the
casino, even with the help of the
maximum, would be in a bad way.
| But no such certainty is possible,
and therefore every system splits on
this rock. And so with themaximum.
| Perhaps the most fatal systems OF
all are those based upon the theory
that if red has come up a certain mum
her of times running black will fol.
low. To illustrate the folly of this
theory, take the following example
If you toss penny in the air 1905
times and it comes heads ooo times il
is of course only even money on its
being tailst the next time.
The third reason, if, indeed, another
be needed, why the bank must alway:
win is that the human and fallibls
player is always playing against al
| infallible machine.
The slightest mistake in calcula
ton, the least inattention, and the
system breaks down. And to err il
human.
So Monte Carlo fourishes and al
ways will flourish SO long as the Law
allows it to exist.-Pea7Son'S Weekly
MODERN ENGLISH.
"Aincha hungryf"
ttVoc -