The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-04-11
WISDOM AT OLD
 MAN GREENHUTS' Exposes Freely Ofa Good Thing
 -More THAN IT WILL STAND  Funny How Capable Poker Player Gets Stuck on One Particular Play and Does It Too Often For
 His Good.

queer hisself sometimes aettin' stuck on some one p'tic'lar play an doin' of it too frequent" observed old man Greenhut. "More'n likely they got the 1dee i'm scripture, count O the Good :. Book sayin' Whats futh doin' s wuth doin' twicet,' but that's the way with them that don't study with on- derstandin'
 Pears like they overdoes it. Don't foller because thing cn be did twieet t man d oughter keep on doin of It till he gets caught
 There was Bill Fillmore him t was raised over to Greenville an left there like most O the young fellows t ever come to anythin later on. There want no question but what he was the best eddicated boy in town when he was risin' IS. Pears his folks all died fore he was 5 years old, 'xceptin' a uncle O h1sn what run a poker room in Green vile an what undertook to raise him. grudgin' like, but sort O pledged to do It, bein' as there want nobody else to tackle the job.
 This here George Fillmore what was the uncle, he were a bachelor, not hay in no use fir women folks onl a old nigger nanny, what done raised him, bein' as he were orphan, too, an he turned young Bill over to her to take keep of, not talSin' no p'tic'lar notice O him, on'y to pay fr his keep. till he come to be fl or 15 year old.
 'More'n likely he wouldn't ha' re- membered him then, on'y fir seein' him into fight one day with a boy about two sizes begger'n he were. Young Bill, he put up a to1'ab1e good fight, but tother feller was too heavy fir him, an when he got Bill down an begin goug- in his eyes Bill hollered 'Nuffp
 70, co.'s. 1t was up to tn other boy to quit when Bill give up, but pears like he were consid' able het up, an he kep' right on tryin' f'r dig Bills eye out an George Fillmore seen it was up to him to putin, so he catched the big feller by the collar, an yanked him off, an perceeded to give 'em both some good advice.
 T want there but f what Bill told me later on, seems his uncle told the big feller what he done wrong not to quit when Bill hollered Nuff'
 Hits all right for to keep on,' he says, If you're in a reel fight fir your life,' he says, 'bein' as t'other mans liable for to holler just fir a trick to make you stop st he c'n get time maybe to draw 8 gun or knife. In a fight like that the best way Is not to stop till you're plumb certain
 
 ly fight like this here, among neighbors just for practice like, no gentleman Il gouge out another mans eye ater he's done give up. You'd oughter be ashamed
 '-Then, Bill said, his uncle turned to him an says, As fr you, you want to re- member what if I ever hear O you hol- lerin' Muir again in a fight I'll lick the stuffin' outen you. You don't never want to give up into fight If t'other feller Is too big for you to lick get a club or dornick or knife or anything, but don't never holler. I reckon your consid able young for to tote a gun, but you come up to my room an I'll give yo1 a knife what you c'n carry if you're liable for to fight anyways frequent
 Then. when he'd talked a spell an, scent they'd both got their wind he made 'em fight again, an he tells Bill what if he gets licked this time he'd get a wuss un later on, so Bill he goes in an does t'other feller good an proper. an that tickles his uncle so is t he starts in for to give him thorough edication.
 Consequence was inside O three or four years there want boy in Green vile cd lick Bill Fillmore, nor there want one cd play draw poker like he could, nor ride, nor shoot. nor swim as
 
 hand fir books, but he learned Bill every. thing useful what there was to learn, an Bill sure did turn out wonder. Hit got so t he'd back Bill in a freezeout fr any amount. against anybody t wanted to play with him.
 70 course there wouldn't no amount of edication did all that fr Bill Fillmore. nor no other young feller, not 'thouten he'd had talents natural, like Bill had, but havin' 'em he profited much, like the Scripture says, ar likely he was the best poker player of his weight an age In the hull south.
 .'He knowed all the wrinkles what his uncle cd learn him, an bein' talented like I said he learned some new ones outen his own head. Likely he was the best hand at markin' cards ever played in Greenville. There wrs others marked the cards, O course, afore he learned an some t cd read 'em right smart when they was marked, but Bill /9 Stud jed up new marks of his own what no- body cd read, an he'd put the marks on while he was playin' thoughten nobody bein' the wiser.
 "He uster say, Anybody c'n mark a deck O cards if they cn get at em afore they're played with, but the trick is to play with the other feller's deck, what he knows ain't marked an be able ito tell every ace in it afore they been dealt a dozen times I reckon he was the first man t ever sharpened pint onto his little finger nail puppose f'r markin' em. There's others done it later, but he was the fust.
 Then he'd begin on aces. and when he'd spotted em all. sos t he cd tell 'em face down s wells he could right side up he'd mark the kings an queens an so on. Inside O half hour if t,other fel1er didn't call fir a fresh deck Bin knowed every card bigger'n a seven. Mostly he didn't bother with nothin' smaller.
 Just nachully he didn't talk about what he was doin', on'y him an me was some confidential, long O him playin' in the s'loon where I kep' bar an me standin' with the game when 1t come to a sucker makin' kick. He useter tell me I'd oughter study up on the game like he did, an we'd go partners, but I says no.
 "'Every man. I says. must foller his own talents, an mine is more in the way O runnin' a kitty I says. Mebbe you don't make so much to oncet,' says. but it's heap safer, an pays more in the long run.
 "Bimeby Bill Fillmore he begin to see what Greenville want no place f'r a man as gifted as him, an he says to me what he's goin' to take to the boats.
 CT reckon there ain't nobody round Greenville,' he says, what plays poker Us got any more money, 'thouten it's Uncle George If c'n clean him out he says, T reckon my days O usefulness is over 30 fur as Greenvil1e goes
 But George Fillmore he want no fool. an knowin' Bin as we'll as he did he