Tonopah daily bonanza. [volume] (Tonopah, Nev.) 1906-1929, 1907-09-22
FROG, MEXICO'S
GREAT CARD GAME
is SOMETHING LIKE sKAT AND
Is MUCH BETTER THAN
BRIDGE.

Frog is the aristocratic card game |
of Mexico. While conquian is con-
sidered the national game of that
country, it bears about the same re-
lation to frog that euchre does toi
bridge in the United States. Frog
requires a high order Of intelligence
to play 1t well, and those WHO have
had experience with it like it as well,
IL not better. than bridge.
1t is up to modern standards in the
matter of elasticity and variety. with
the element of bidding, and the re-
suit depends on the players own
judgment, untrammeled by the luck
of partners hand, unfettered by the|
fear of his criticism at the end. I'M
these respects frog is very huch likel
skat, and has been suggested that the
idea of frog is evidently borrowed
from skat. Even the name frog,
moye be construction of ''frage,"
which was one of the variety of skat
in the early days.
Frog is played with pack of thir-
ty-six cards, all below the six being
thrown out. These cards rank A, 10,
K, @, j, 9, s, z, 6, and the five honors
have the same pin value that they
have in skat-the ace being worth
i IL, the ten 10, king 4, queen, 8,
Jack 2.
| This gives 100 points as the total
pin value of the four suits, and the
object of the game is to get the ma
jority of these 100 points--that is.
Gil or more--in the tricks taken in
; during the course of play. Tricks as
; such are of no value, only the points
| they contain being counted, SO that a
player winning trick with two aces
and ten in it would get more for his
one card than player who won four
or five tricks with nothing in them
by kings and jacks and spots.
There are three active players, but
! four or five may make up the table.
When four plays the dealer takes no
cards. When five play the dealer
' gives card to the two on his left and
, the one on his right
,I 1t does not matter who deals first,
! providing some record is kept so that
each of the players shall have the
I deal an equal number Of times. When
. it comes to the turn of the one mar
' who dealt first, that ends a round
i and it is usual to stop the game al
: the end of round. Z
v The cards are dealt one at time
beginning on the dealers left ant
giving o. card to each OF the three
players in turn and one to the widow
: face down, for three rouns. After
y that no cards are dealt to the widow
= so that when the Wnole pack of thir
> ty-six cards have been dealt out eacl
Il player will have eleven cards and tn,
widow will have three.
2 The player on the Dealers left
y Vorhand, has the first bid for TIL,
y privilege of playing against both tn,
IS others. There are only three classe
Q of games to bid upon.
ID Frog, In which hearts are Away
e trumps, is the cheapest game. be
:, cause 1t is played with the assistanc
u Of the widow, which is surne. fac
SC upward on the table, SO that tn
IL players snail see what cards it con
'e tanned. After showing the wido,
q the player who has bid frog take
r the three cards into his hand and dis
3, cards anything he pleases. so as t
" reduce his hand again to Gle, !.
lie cards.
"a The three cards he lays off re
n main his property, exactly as If h
le had won them in a trick, and tn
n, points in them will count for him q
~ the end of the hand Every poir
Of over sixty he succeeds in gettin
O. home counts one for him in a fro,
T. and he must be. paid by each of th
ne other active players at the table,
ne any, who hold no cards.
ID Should the bidder fail to get sixt
er he must pay everyone at the table, ii
X Guiding those who hold no cards,
any; SO that II there are four at til
table, the PLAYER wins from two, bi
loses to three. Sixty is a tie. A
X over sixty wins for the players, an
III he pays for as many points as he fal
he short of reaching sixty.
The next higher bid is chico,
yn which the player names any suit bl
he hearts for the trump and plays h
" hand without any assistance from ii
nv widow, which remains on the tab
in face down and untouched until IL
" end of the hand, But the points four
90 in it will count for the player, pr
no cisely as they do IN solo at skat.
~ The value of the points in chico
ay two each, or double what it is in fro
f. The fourth player. If any, must