New-York tribune., 1909-01-24
SEEN AT MONTE CARLO.

,..-- fo- & 5av to do the Casino. remained
- weeks and even then the human interest in
80 80 mace was unexhausted. The beautiful set
49, ~ this favored spot charmed me; the
nogntaius the rocks, the ever-blue sea- grim
IA Monaco, with the Italian shore IN the as
.onoe all cOndUce to give IT an air OF distinction
s -,-nauce The color and movement of the
.nsmnpolitan -, we'll dressed crowds, the fine or
Sss+ra the beautiful pigeons, afternoon tea in
80 Csfs de Paris. the music in the moonlight,
- Ts1atiaI Casino with its daily supply of
newspapers from all parts of the world free to
Yisitors), all attractions Tor the tourls1 the
.,nden+ and the man OF the world.
Vas sitting one morning in quiet corner,
-hen two elderly men sat down beside me. One
was evidently Scotchman. and the other. L
rsfhered from Yorkshire The forKer re-
marked Il have just managed it, ThiS dis
covered meant win Of 20 francs Their daily
-ontine was to appear at the same roulette table
~ sn carly hour and play the lowest stake of
I'VE francs on even chances-that is, on black or
red CT on the odd even numbers They
vould lose and win and win and lose; but they
remained calm and self-contalned. and perse-
reTed until they had each 20 francs to the good.
/ oheerved them daily; some mornings they
scooped in the amount in twenty minutes, and
~ other times il was a tough struggle until
luncheon time before they managed it never
saw them fail once, and 1 learned that they had
pursued the same plan for four months One
thing was Clear-nOthing could tempt them TO
go beyond the modest stake, and they had the
will 10 stop when they won the stipulated
amount II was really of the best illustra-
;ions Of viii power | have ever seen, for few, in
deed, who enter the portals of the Casino are
able 10 resist the compelling atmosphere of the
tables 10 play on If losing and TO plunge il
winning
Wnen these two old philosophers were not at
rsv they might be seen in the reading room, In
Che gardens or sitting in the lounges discussing
rrobiers of all kinds with other visitors One
dsy heard the Casino and gambling discussed
from all points Of view. and a more exhaustive,
fair and candid consideration Of a subject have
seldom listened TO. This to happen within the
walls Of the Casino was curious experience
Another day the subject was Vegetar1anisn, and
Il was really laughabl to listen to a heated dis
cassiou of the simple life in what many peo-
pie consider the wickedest place on earth, where
everything is on a scale of unstinted luxury and
extravagance and money is scattered about in
hahdfuls.
Needless to say, gamblers are the most super
Ettious of people and very small sign. indeed.
VII often cause them to change their plans.
sou will see them examining the number of
heir cloakroom checks and begin their play
sith Il. or it may be the number of their bed
rooms, the date Of the month they were born in,
or some chance mention Of a number that gives
them the cue to start from 4 story is told of
Colonel T.. who had lost heavily, and. in fact,
awaiting q remittance from London TO meet
his hotel bin He went to church on Sunday
morning, and the number Of the last hymn was
81 the words Of which seemed to haunt him.
Ssuntering aiulessly into the Casino. the first
thing he heard was Sc shouted by croupier at
the first table; and, taking that good omen,
ihe put down his last five-franc piece, which he
. kept for luck. Again Sc turned up. and he won
sl5 francs. and before he left he had made
enough 10 pay his bill ten times over
A young Frenchman confided to me that b
was his lucky number. and said that he would
Show me how he played Well, II so happened
ihat, although he backed his favorite forty times
n succession. II did not turn uD, and when 1t
dc come al the fCrty-first turn Of the wheel and
Eo1 be was out Of pocket But now he quad
rlpled his stake and. his number coming out on
me third, seventh and tenth rounds. he made a
large His rule was to stop when he made
sa francs at q sitting, and mis- wife. who car
ned the purse got the winnings. They had
small business in a provincial town, and this
/ vas how they spent their monthly weekend
hohdsys-J NJ. in Chambers's Journal