The Bon Homme County independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1904-1913, 1905-08-17
Tricks Of the Bookmaker. )

sheet writer. IN one which requires pa
tience. auickness Of vision and q perfect
mastery OF the are Of handling n chang
Ing money. The work would be vastly sim
piined. 90 a matter OF course. n he wers
not required 20 do two different things st
ose and the same time. But he In.
'sHe In required to receive the money
coming IN from the bookmaker and make
change for the new bets. and to pay od
the winning line nc the same m or ats
years n number Of the ~bookmakers have
ampi.ned their crews by engaging an &C.
sistant cashier. VINO n the ray-of' man
the man. that In Co nay. who hands out &c
the winners the amounts OF their bets
while the cashi~r ls attending solely to tins
reception OF new money from the hands OF
his employer and making change. But
the assistant cashier who does the pay
ing on is n luxury enjoyed by only q mi
nority or the bookmakers yet. 30 that most
OF the cashiers are stu acting both -
receiving n paying teiiers during the az
ternoon's racing.
TO sec q b~ookmaker's cashier thus
examining money into the satcheF sus-
pended by n strap around his neck and
open In front OF him ut MS waist line. and
pulling money out OF the satchel almost az
the same time. n TO study the performance
OF q man whose hands are nicely adjusted
to the dictation Of HIS head. The money
Eoet INTO MS HAtCuel IN n utHorurfeu mat.s
Ike 20 much material for q rag carpet.
and u comes out In much the same fash
Ion. 30 that the deftness with which ~
cashier reduces the confusion OF lucre I'm
his satchel TO order. separating the yellow
bills from the green ones with ths merest
movements OF the fingers OF one hand. 10
remarkable.
are open at both ends. 90 to speak. In
the first place he 10 listening to what the
bookmaker has to say. The bookmaker
passes him over q go bill. saying fifteen
change at the same moment that the
next man In the pay-ofr line IN announcing
the numbe OF his badge and naming tins
amount coming 20 him.
I'm addition to handling the money COM
Ing and going. and TO listening to the fig-
ures submitted by two persons at the same
time. h cashier has 20 make q p~enctied
ring on the pay-on sheet rou The
amount OF each paid-off bet al he hands
the winning wager out TO It's collector. 80
that the bookmaker's cashier comes pref
~ close 20 being n several times buster
from the rear end or the old-time circus
ticket wagon.
Very few Of the bookmakers' cashiers
ere bonded men. and yet there ere few
cases on record OF bookmakers' cashiers
having proven dishonest. They belong 20
the vast fraternity OF sports" which.
their employers consider. 70 actually bond
enough. for the bookmakcrs' cashiers
know that IL they were ever caught with
the goods 20 the extent OF . single dis
honest dollar OF their employers money
they YOU be barred from every race
track In the world for the remainder OF
their lives: and no layers cashier could
contemplate such possibility without shud-
dering.
..Nsn. A. ut~. A,t
wardman. although the 'b.g stores have
two and sometimes three az members or
their crews. Even the casual visitor at the
race track knows tho wardman-knows
his elbowing. ~piunging. ~jostiing. catapultio
way OF getting through the ring crowd
even on tho biggest days.
The outside man is. naturally enough.
accounted n nuisance by the race going
public on account OF his method or charg-
lng along without regard to the toes or the
ribs OF anybody he may encounter. hut he
IN a necessary nuisance. TO the bookmRker.
at any rate. In these days. when the
prices against the horses are not indie
pcndently made by the bookmakcrs. but
are virtually dictated by one OF Two biG
members OF the ring. the outside man IL
nm absolutely Indispensable member OF tho
crew.
III there were no outside man there
would be no prices. when one OF the big
bookmakers chalks up the prices against
the horses In a race on bis slate all OF the
outside men are already surrounding him.
and one or them calls OF the figures 10 his
mates. who Jot them down on their pro
Then they all separate I'm one
tremendous rush TO give the quoted prices
to their employers.
There II no chance for them 10 bs
dainty In the picking OF their way toward
their principals stools. IL IL their Job TO
get the figures 10 their employers within
something less than half n minute after
they are announced. so that the taking In
OF money on the race may begin. and they
know 10 likely to happen TO them 10
they llnger.
''Once tho outside man has given hIs
principal the initial prices. II is his busl-
ness TO hustle through the ring. especially
around the stools OF the biz layers. Co
watch the shifting or the odds. and to
make constant reports OF these variations
TO his principal. He has also TO keep hts
eye upon the big plungers.
IF there IL n sudden heavy play on ons
OF the horses. the ouside mar has to RAGS
At top speed. no matter how many obsta.
cles In the shape OF human beings he may
encounter. 10 his employers stool 10 &c
quaint him with the fact. Outside men IN
this way frequently NV their bookmakers
thousands OF dollars by reaching their
stands before the commissioner OF thu
plungera have got along TO get the bis
none down ut n larger price than that
prevailing along the path where they have
spread their huge markers.
The outside man keeps a foxy eye.
when he has the time. upon certain owners
who are known TO bet only when they
know that they have almost n certainty OF
winning. and he warns his employer OF all
these little facts.
when an outside man gets through hts
afternoons work he does not feel much la
need Of exercise. A foot ball team com.
posed OF stalwart bookmakers' outside
men ought 10 be a pretty hard combina-
ton TO beat"