The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-04-08
LIVERY STABLE WAGERED
Spice of Humor Introduced in the
Game by Earnest Worker In
chicago-Lamb Wouldn't
Take a Joke.


meal stations. Well, one evening we were
bum supper, when some one suggested a
little game.
Everybody shook his head. That small
village by the Golden Gate had cleaned
US out completely.
"Cant afford It, said a captain.
Rats. put in the senior Major. Let's
make it a practical game. Let's play for
our meals.
The idea took. in a few minutes we
were perched about a table doing some Of
the looniest stunts you ever laid eyes on.
Each man had lot of slips of paper, and
when he bet he wrote down what he was
putting In, signed his Initials and threw
the slip in the pot
THE limit was one meal, This is about
the way the talk went
A jack for a cantaloupe all around.
Captain, you are shy your canta-
loupe
" Nobody opens. Sweeten it pickle
I open for a mince pie
I see that mince pie and boost it a
watermelon.
T see the raise, and elevate that water
melon a glass OF cream.
And a meal
-. I call that meal
Its your food.
And so on. When the dust cleared
away had coming to me a meal, nine
pickles. two apple pies, a glass of milk
cheese and bottle of beer 1t was the
most substantial return / ever got from
card game"
Il saw curious bet once-but 1t was
good deal more serious" remarked the
planter. 1T happened down at Ever
green, Alabama.
Six of us were playing-two travelling
men, a livery stable owner a couple OF
other cotton growers and myself. The
limit was the beautiful but lofty North
Star. Until the hand I'm talking about
nothing unusual happened
"A five-dollar jack had been passed all
around twice. The deal was on my right.
got a pair of kings and opened for thirty
The travelling man on my left raised me
fifty.
THE others dropped. to the dealer. the
livery stable man, who tilted il a hundred
more. | threw down my kings.
1.-THE travelling man saw the hundred
and drew one card. He had had aces up
He pulled the ace of spades. The dealer
took two and caught the fourth ten to his
threes.
THE opener bet hundred. The dealer
raised him a hundred. They whipsawed
back and forth that way for a few sec
onds. Then the travelling man said:
Is my check good for q thousand?
It. Is answered the dealer
THE travelling man scribhled off a
check and tossed It on The table
And a thousand he said.
1.-THE dealer hesitated
Is my livery stable good? he asked
with the thirty horses? demanded
the travelling man.
'Thirty-one, answered the dealer
counting the lame bay mare
Yes said the travelling man weakly
The dealer wrote out a check for a
thousand. Then he scratched on a piece
of paper I, o. U. my livery stable C. B.
T. and pushed 1t in the pot.
And my livery stable, he said.
THE travelling man turned pale, and
had the sense to drop. That was the big
gest bet l ever saw
The fat man moved heavily
Jokes and funny bets may go some
times at poker" he said, "but the man
who tries to inject a spice of humor into
that little game is monkeying with the
buzz-saw, all right. | saw a couple of
wits eat dust once on account of their
spirits-and It was a lesson to me.
I'VE will call them Albert and Herbie
They We're fresh from college, learning
their papas' business on the road, and the
heavy man was their lay They met me
on the train about an hour out from
Chicago
when they found out that was bound
for the same hotel they got as thick as
thieves. and started TO book me for a
game that night. I thought it looked
easy, so l agreed
When | showed up In their room I
found that they had corralled two quiet
earnest workers, who wore big diamond
pins and solitaire rings, and waxed their
mustaehes. l had never laid eyes on them
beforehand they had never laid eyes on
each other. they said.
"hen | saw them lingering their papers
for the first time / wished / was out at
prayer meeting instead of at that par
ticular board. However nobody seemed
TO get much action. though the game was
table stakes, and Albert and Herbie were
rolling in dough. Each had a wad of yell
low bills in front OF him that would make
bank presidents mouth water.
ut was on towards midnight. when all
of a sudden the tallest worker pulled out
his watch.
The devil he said. It's after eleven.
Don't deal me a hand. / have to tele-
phone. I'll be back in five minutes
Well take another drink and wait for
you, said Herbie.
All right" answered the tall one-and
he disappeared.
I'VE took our drink and sat waiting.
I've got an idea cracked the other
earnest worker to Herbie. Let's stack the
deck on him and give him a roaring good
hand Then when he puts his whole wad
up Well spring it on him that he's an
easy mark.
Albert and Herbie thought that was
such a good thing they could harly wait
to push it along but I hung off.
=" This game | said has cost me too
much to monkey with it. Go ahead-but
I'm out
They arranged for the tall one to get
four aces. Albert was to deal. Herbie
was to give fake cut.
when their lamb came back the jokers
started and everything went smoothly.
The olt passed off o. X
THE short worker had made it a five
calls ten proposition. ! dropped The
tall one pushed in his ten. Herbie gigled
and footed him fifty. Albert went fifty
more. Inc snort one Dettereu tnat nun
dred.
THE lamb looked dazzled and showed
out five hundred shekes. Albert and
Herbie could hardly restrain themselves
They rolled out yellow boys in punches.
THE short one got permission to intro
duce check. So did the lamb. | began
to get leary, and carelessly swept my wad
off the table and put IT In my pocket.
'Iierbie and Albert were nearly in hys-
teries. Between them they had more than