Rock Island Argus., 1906-01-15
DAILY SHORT STORY
A GHOSTLY GAME.

1
| party of my intimate friends. 1 don't
expect any one to believe it, though
knowing Devereux as l do, believe II
myself:
Il never gamble, and if / did gamble
| 1t would not be with my associates
| Gambling eXcites the most beaStlike
| passion there is in human beings-cu
| pidity. l would rather play with pro
| fessional gambler than n friend. for in
| the former case it becomes tranSac-
lion between two persons who it is un-
derstOod are trying TO get the better OF
| each other. while in the latter it is not
SO understood. and yet such Is the fact
1.-TWO years ago there were half a
dozen of us who used to play in my
rooms. There were Tom Atherton, Billy
Sanford and myself, who were regular
attendants, and several others who
would drop in occasionally. We began
with penny ante, ten cent limit, but
the second week we raised the limit to
quarter and in the third week
raised the ante to ) cents. We only
played for enjoyment, and only three
of us We're well to do. These were Tom
Dlilf Oic
night we three and several others Were
playing little heavier game than usu-
al. First one, then the other of these
others dropped out. Tom Atherton pro-
posed that for once we should have Il
more exciting game. and we raised the
stake and the limit. 1t wasn't long be-
fore Tom began to be winner
stood about even, while Billy lost.
soon noticed n look q Toms face
didn't like, the look Of a huntsman
mercilessly running down \ deer. The
nDre Billy lost the more covetous of
his money seemed Tom. We played all
night, or. rather, Tom and Billy did.
for toward morning l withdrew from
the game and went to sleep Oh Il
lounge. The other two broke of Just
before breakfast time and agreed to
renew the game the samNevening
They played all the next night and
the next day. l begged them to stop.
but they would not listen to me- Final
ly about O'Clock in the afternoon Bill
sheet, and went ont.
you've got everything 1 own I
heard him say to Tom, but I'll get
even with you. You he here at 10 to-
night. I know where / can get
stake
"Of course l didn't want this thing
going on in my rooms, but what could
L do? Tom was on hand at the ap-
pointed hour, but at 10 O'clock Billy
hadn't come. and l begged Tom not to
wait for him. Tom was about to COM
ply when there was q ring at the tele-
phone, which was in the room we occu-
pied. / took down the receiver, and
Billy spoke to me.
II can't come tonight. but l want
you to play for me for awhile by tele-
phone
II tried to beg off, but it was no use,
and to satisfy him 1 agreed to play
for little while.
Il lived in a suburban town and had
my own private wire. We carried the
card table into another room, l took
SO from my pocket at Billy's request
to start him, and the game began. I
Billy's hands to him. and he
told me how to bet. The process was
necessarily slow, and Tom, who lost
from the first, proposed an unlimited
game, to which proposition Billy as
sented. The hands ran high, and it
required but a single hand
to change several hundred dollars
from one player to the other.
''It seemed to me that the cards We're |
oewitched. Such hands L never saw |
before and never expect to see again. |
Tom would win on tAree |
If a kind, but at the next deal he |
would hold a full hand, and Billy |
would overtop him with four. or Tom |
would hold four queens while Billy |
would hold four kings. Not only was |
he strength of the hands remarkable, |
,ut that two large hands should come
% often together, and in nine cases in |
en- Billy held the larger hand.
"One by one the l. o. Us Billy had
,iven passed from Tom back to Billy.
r, rather, into my pocket for Billy's
ccount. Then Toms money was heap
d up before me and lastly his L. o. US
lied my vest pocket, but during the
wo hours we played, in the last half
our seyen-tenths of Toms fortune
assed into Billy's possession, the other
hree-tenths having been lost in the
rst hour and a half. Tom asked me
D figure up his I. o. US, and when
ave him the total he fell on the floor
4 dead faint. / picked him up, laid
i'm on the sofa and. going to the tele-
hone room, called to Billy to report
hat Tom was not in condition to play
,nger. / got no reply to my call. l
-as very much astonished, but hadn't
me to think about 1t, for had to go
ack to Tom. / got him together, but
lere was a wild. hunted look on his
ace that was awfully distressing.
alling carriage took him home and
ut him to bed. Then 1 went home and
-ent to bed myself.
'I awoke about A o'clock the next |
fternoon. While I was dressing q :
,rvant threw an evening paper. as !
sual, into my room. 1 rang for
zeal TO be brought up from the restau-
INT below and sat down to look over /,
q Ia 4 .