The Baltimore County union, the Towson news., 1909-10-09
When the Winner Lost.
(From the New York SUM-

Full of the Joy of living, tingling
with the satisfaction of assured pros
perity, exhilarated with the sense oi
youth and health, deeply grateful and
ipordinately happy that he had
triumphed over his numerous rivals
in the affections of the girl he loved,
Aleck Hurd strobe down the street
humming a merry tune, neither
knowing nor caring whittier he was
going. A brief hour with his sweet
heart had passed early in the evening,
and when she pleaded fatigue after a
journey and promised to spend the
morrow with him he left her with the
feeling that life had few greater prizes
than he had already captured. A
happy man indeed, he saw no cloud
over his future.
Suddenly he saw under the electric
light nearly a block ahead of him her
brother, captivating young fellow
whom Hurd had learned to like
extremely we'll, first on her account
and afterward on his own.
Quickening his steps, he had
almost overtaken him when young
Ryder turned abruptly in at shell
tered doorway, rang and was admitted
SO quickly that the door was shut be-
fore Hurd reached it.
The aspect of the house puzzled
him at first, but glance at the
number reminded him that it was a
notorious place-none other than
Marsters's gambling hell, known OF
all men but immune from police
interference, rumor said, because of
political influence.
He was no Puritan bur a sane,
healthy man to whom vice offered no
special attraction. and never having
entered house of the kind himself,
he felt a shock more of surprise than
horror when he realized that Ryder
had been Admitted so readily as to
indicate that he was an habitual
visitor.
After a moments hesitation, how
ever, he rang the bell and a little
wicket in the door was instantly
opened. Then, almost as quickly,
the door itself was opened, and an
obsequious darky, bowling low,
exclaimed "Come right in. Marse
Aleck. Yo' sho' is welcomed
why, Rastus. you old rascal,
how do you come to be here3" asked
Hurd, who recognized Immediately
an old family servent of his fathers,
who had disappeared year before.
The darky grinned in delight.
"Dis yere sutt'nly is de place fur
easy money, Marse Aleck. 'Tain't
'zackly high toned, like family wu'k,
but dar's heap mo- money hyah.
Walk right in, sub, an mex yo'se'f
to home.
Then having barred the street door,
he ushered the new arrival to the
parlor and turned back to his post
with a hearty "Wish yo' luck, Marse
Aleck.''
Half laughing and half indignant,
Hurd started to say something in
explanation, then thinking better of
it, he went on in. Ten or twelve
men were clustered around long
table in the rear ofthe spacious room,
and he saw Ryder walking toward
them, but finding himself alone and
unnoticed in the doorway, he paused
and looked about curiously.
The appointments were luxurious.
A few pictures hanging on the walls
were, he saw at glance, costly and
choice, but the furniture seemed
strange to his unaccustomed eyes. A
handsome roulette wheel, two faro
tables and table marked for rouge
ct noir were the most prominent
features of the furniture excepting
a huge buffet, on which was lavish
display of cut glass with all the para
phernalia of a modern bar. Near
this stood another negro of jovial
aspect who, when he saw Hurd look
ing around, waved his hand courte-
ously toward the buffet with obvious
hospitality.
Hurd shook his head smilingly and
continued his inspection, Attractive
as the place certainly was to the eye,
there was something sinister inthe i'm
preston it made upon him, and he
was at loss at first to understand
why this was SO. The mere fact
that it was a gambling house did
not explain it, for though he had
never gambled extensively he had
played poker with his friends, had
occasionally bet on horse and once
or twice had taken modest flyer in
the Street, but these things had never
inoculated him with the gambling
fever, and he had not learned either
to love or to dread the "hell.
Unused to the etiquette of such
establishments, he was more or less