The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1907-01-24
By MARGARET Z. sANesTER.

BY MARGARET &. SANGSTER.
Playing cards for money has be
come a very common occurrence with
women Of fashion. Whatever the
sum hazarded the principle remains
the same. Gambling has crept In By
imperceptible degrees and has famil-
iarized itself as a society pastime.
A generation ago, it would have
been regarded as shocking and dis
reputable in the extreme for decent
and Virtuous women, mothers and
wives and sisters to play at games
OF chance. here in America. People
knew that such things were done at
Monte Carlo. and that the feyerlsh
lust that is the fatal poison Of the
inveterate gambler sometimes found
its way into the life of a woman 9th
erwise moral. But, taking it all in all,
is was not supposed that decent wom-
en- would stoop to card playing for
money or would lend themselves to
the excitements that follow in its
wake.
In Edith Wharton's spectacular
novel, The House Of Mirti," a
glimpse is given Of the desolation that
may come to an individual life when
a girl at once poor, proud and beau
tifdl, sits down at the card table and
presently finds herself in the clutches
Of debts that she cannot pay. There
are those who fancy that Lily Bart's
predicament is exaggerated and who
have no federation for her tempta-
tions. They do not see that Mrs.
Wharton's book is less. work of i'm
agilation than a succession of pho
tographs. She simply told in nara
tive form. that which she had seen in
the society Of big cosmopolitan
city.
Since bridge whist became ponu-
lar it has monopolized the attention
and time and formed the chief diver
sion Of elegant women in homes
where luxuries abound and a golden
stream flows in a full tide from the
pockets of men whose names are po-
tential in Wall street. and in the
finances of the world The money
kings make possible the costly amuse-
ments of the money queens and the
money princesses. When little
4 country cousin comes to town for the
season with a trunk filled with pretty
/ furbelows and the sweet enchanting
grace of youth in her dimples and her
bright eyes, she is set down at the
card table, and perhaps fnnocently
begins to play, not imagining that
losses are to be taken seriously
Sometimes there comes to her a mo
ment Of extreme bitterness when she
discovers that her losses are SC
large that to settle them will alb
sorb all that her father gave her fol
the winters outfit, or that she must
apply at home for a cheQue to save
her from disgrace. Yet this is better
for her as an experience than to re
ceive a generous sum in the opposite
direction. Winnings are much tor
apt to turn youthful head and tC
lead the fortunate player away from
discretion and into greater haz
ards.
A few months ago, a girl visitor a.
a country house found herself sin
gled out for observation and treat
ed with patronizing insolence and rid
icule by fellow guests because she
had the courage of her convictions
and her training and absolutely re
fused to be a partner in any game
that was played for money. If ONLY
young girls and older women in 50
ciety would accept the position takeE
by this conscientious and fearles.
young woman an enormous amount
Of misery and suffering would be
prevented, and the tide Of reckless
passion in society gambling woult
be stemmed.
At the root Of gambling lies tn,
falsity Of trying to get something fo
nothing. SO long as we pay ou