Omaha daily bee., 1909-12-26
BORN WITH GAMBLING FEVER
Ran Its Course Through Fifty Years
Of Pat Sheedy's Life.
PLAYED AROUND THE WORLD
R~ecOlleetiOns Of "A Prince of the Gam
inE Table, Some of His Experi-
ences, and His Breezy
Talks.

ences, and HIS Breezy
Talks.
The most noted of Americas professional
gamblers passed away with the death Of
Pat Sheedy In New York the other day.
He gambled around the world, controlled
palaces of chance from Chicago to Cairo
and Calcutta. and played the game wher-
ever the opportunity offered. A square
gambler" he was called by his intlmates.
He won fortunes and lost fortunes, and
when American laws made the occupation
a risky one for professionals, Sheedy
turned from the green baise to painted
canvas as a fad.
Il became a skilled gambler while still
in school," Sheedy has been quoted as say
ing. "At u I could bunoo any boy in my
class at a game Of chance. We used to
play for the headmarks we got in school.
My parents died and l had to get out and
stir for myself. 1 naturally turned to
gambling, though 1t was in a small way at
first. 1 was encouraged by success and
the first thing 1 knew l was a profess
sional. 1 started first in Boston, where I
won several thousand dollars, and then
struck out for New York.
There I opened a faro bank in 1870. I
reaped a golden harvest in two years and
Travelled extensively, crossing the Pacific
ocean and taking in China and Japan. All
the while / gambled there. and many were
the times I got low in finances.
81 settled in Chicago in the late sos and
ran a wide-open house in that city for a
long time. Next I became manager for
John L Sullivan. After my capital over
Tapped the million mark I Joined in the
games and frequently wound up disheart-
ened and heartless, Once 1 held $1,000, 900
In the palm of my hand; an hour after
ward I couldn't lay claim to a cent. I sat
three lays and four nights in a poker
game.
Playing Around the World.
when the so-called gambling bells were
suppressed in Chicago my purse contained
something in the neighborhood Of $500, 900.
1 went to play at Monte Carlo, playing
carefully at first. But one night I went
into the place with 200, 900 francs in my
pocket. I left Monte Carlo that night with
out the price Of a supper.
II went to Russia, Germany and Asia
Minor. and Learned their languages in a
few months stay. Going then to Bombay,
India, I introduced American gambling
methods there. In the autumn OF 1892 ]
left Bombay with a fortune and went to
Cairo, Egypt. The casino was in a palace.
1t had cost $4,000 900 to build. 1 got a twen-
ty-five year lease on 1t, and so altered II
that every traveller who passed through
Cairo for years afterward patronized It.
There were balls and reception every
afternoon and gambling in the evening.
We played roulette and baccarat. Two
hundred people came every night, no one
LII r--- l. oOEn - ~ -
dividual losses sometimes reached $40, 600
my income from the place being about S25,.
900 a month"
In the history of betting, Pat Sheedy is
credited with having broken more banks
than any man in the country. One of his
most famous coups took place in John
Days Twenty-ninth street game, when It
was running some years ago. Sheedy is a
believer in "bulling your luck" when win
ming, and he had a winning streak on that
night. He induced the house to remove
the limit, and inside of half an hour stood
$2s, 900 ahead. Every play he made brought
him more money, his luck being truly
miraculous.
Pat was in mighty fine humor, and when
ever he made a bet he would say to the
players about him, Nov, boys, all get
aboard and Wen copper the ace" Men who
we're just in the place sightseeing were SC
impressed with his luck that they riske
gtOdly sums playing just as he played.
All the regulars were in his wage and
soon the whole house were playing his
cards. This made the proprietor mad. They
gave Sheedy a very hard cali-down, and
told him to take his winnings and cave,
Almost fearful they said to him You're
not satisfied to win yourself, but you want
to see every one else win, too"
AS soon as Sheedy left, the bank began to
get back some of its money from the other
players, who were ali at sea without their
Header.
Famous Picture Recovered.
1t will be emembered that the Gains
borough portrait which Sheedy restored to
the world of art had been missing for
twenty years.
The picture had been bought by c. Nor
land Agnew at an auction sale for $751; 600
and arrangements had been a to have
a celebrated engraver make a plate.
Some $4,000 had been subscribed toward
the project when the English public was
mortified by the news that thieves had
broken into the house where the portrait
was kept and had cut 1t out Of the frame.
And all trace was lost for twenty-six years.
10 DC buIcI uolCSlANNH q pN~SAAS 49,
WINGED that Adam Worth, one Of the mosI
inventive and daring thieves of modern
times, had engineered the theft and con-
trolled the portrait, but nothing had come
Of it.
Incidentally, however, the detectives
had asked sheedy to assist in bringing about
the restoration Of the portrait, II the oc-
casion offered.
Finally the occasion did offer. Worth
was released from a prison In New Hamp-
shire. Sheedy ran across him, aided him
financially, and began the negotiation that
resulted in the return Of the picture. II
was part Of the conditions imposed by
sheedy that Worth should not be prose
cuted.
This was Sheedy's first introduction &c
art and he dabbled more or less in pictures
after that. In 1905 he exhibited what he
said was a Correggio given to him by
RaIsuli, the bandit, and another was q
Magdalen attributed TO Murillo. which we
described as a legacy from Adam Worth.
Sheedy had az art store in Hartford as
we'll as In New York and was eloquent IN
impressing on customers the value Of the
Oldest attainable masters.
sheedy was an amusing talker and gam
80 - a.