River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1909-08-26
SEEMED TO HESITATE MOMENT THEN FOLLOWED SUIT

pocket a silver dealing box such as is
used at a faro bank, and deck of regu-
lation cards. He then proceeded to
show the astonished mining man some
wonderful feats in the way of shutting
up hands and seemed to be able to
get any card he wanted from any part
of the deck at hand. The major had
| played some card games in his time
but admitted that he had never seen
| anything like this before.
Cali you've got to do" explained
Cleland, 'is to go to your bank and
get $4,000 in cash. The rule of the
game is that any one who plays that
much against the game can have the
limit taken off. You wouldn't need
this much, but the lookout would see
there was something wrong if you
didn't change in that much and would
put Floyd wise. All you will have to
do is to play the first deal carefully.
Watch the first three cards that come
out of the box on the first deal and
the order in which they come. These
three will be the last three in the
second deal. You can copper the los
| ing card, play the winner and whip
saw the turn. You also can call the
turn, which pays four for one, and
clean out the bank roll with $4,000
play"
A wish to get even, coupled with
cupidity, made Maj Skinner an easy
victim to the Turing proposition of the
seemingly honest and persuasive Gle
land. 1t was arranged that the play
should be made that afternoon. The
major procured the necessary money
| from the bank and once more sur
prised the few players at the bank
| when he entered and called for five
stacks of chips at $4,000 a stack. He
| followed the instructions of Cleland
to the letter. The first three cards
out of the box on the first deal were
king, eight, seven. He played with
care and caution through that deal and
the next with about even luck. When
| it came time to make the final coup
he remembered that he was to copper
the seven. play the eight to win and
call the turn seven-eight, according
to Cleland's instruction. SO far he
was 1000 winner and without mo-
ment's hesitation he placed $4,000 on
the seven coppered to lose. A like
amount was placed upon the eight to
win. The odds against the call was
four to one and he called the turn Tor
SIS 1000, confident that he was about TO
win small fortune.
There was a moment of GREATNESS
silence. The other players had for
gotten their own bets in watching the
high play of the mining man. Ihen
CIe1and dealt-not seven-eight, as the
arrangement called for, but eight
seven. as Cleland had intended 1t
should be.
Mai Skinner was almost fainting
as he saw his money fade away and
noted saturnine smile pass across
the features of the dealer. Then ne
awoke to the realization that he had
nlaved the old sucker game. OF taking
the hest of it" in a card game. He
could do nothing. Any attempt he
might make at redress through the
law would show him up as having
conspired with the dealer to win the
hackers money. He arose, wiped his
perspiring brow and stalked from the
room without bidding the others good
day.
FLOYD and Cleland were back in the
hotel at Los Angeles from whence
they had started on their trip to the
mining camps. Floyd had sent for
Tommy Jackson and explained to him
that he was to go to Goldfield and re-
omen the offices of the Shawlneck
Mining Company and prepare to again
start work in the shaft.
1--WE are going back east tonight
he said, when he had finished his In
structions. There is little present
here from Maj. Skinner to Mrs. Jack
son. There is $4,000 in the envelope
Give it to her and tell her that my
advice is to keep it in the bank and
let the other fellow buy mining stock
with MS money.
copyright, 1903, by w. G. Chapman.)