Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-01-11

Makes First Start.
Well. the friend did not deliberate long
and saw where he could make nice
little sum OF money in handling the boy
from Kansas. He gave money for inn
mediate needs and they were to meet the
following day.
Sam Chapman. the best player in the
state in that period was running bill
lard room on the corner of Bush and
Kearny streets. 1t was upstairs in an
old two-story frame building long since
gone.
Jake and his friend met per schedule
and went to Chapman's and there played
a decoy game. with Chapman as a much
interested spectator. Finally Jake offer
ed to play any one in the house for 50 to
so a game and Chapm jumped at the
chance.
From an even game Jake handicapped
himself until he was playing Sam a grand
discount Of 300 points. When the game
stopped Jake and his friend divided $3.50
and has probably never since been broke
or where he had to resort to such tactics
to get a stake.
Jake always played a better uphill game
than when he was out in the lead. One
incident will illustrate this and show his
wonderful nerve. 1t was in a game
Jake played and won in Eureka, New.
Jim Orndorff remembering it welD, under
circumstances that would put player
ANH'S SASeAi ~
Merry Player.
He was matched with Tony kraker, a
we'll known biliardist and afterward a
resident of Los Angeles This was in
1875. Kraker was. of course, a much
inferior player, and a newspaperman
named ChantZ who knew this posted
some of his winning friends about it.
They were the typical miners of the day.
a rough and ready lot and ready to bet
freely. They covered every dollar put
up by kraker's friends, who were mostly
gamblers.
Bill Meelick, big, burly miner. was
selected one of the three judges and
the game was on. The winners were
much elated as they saw Schaefer forge
slowly to the front. But Schaefer began
/ to lose some of his accuracy after passing
the 300 mark and Kraker took the lead
The game was 800 points and 80 for
Schaefer. The judges were called on to
see that the winners got fair play and the
suspicion was aroused that Schaefer had
been bought off to lose. Bill Meelick was
equal to the emergency. He whipped out
his big siX-shooter and spoke these cheer
full and reassurinS words to Schaefer:
"founSster. you have the balls in a good
position. and if there's any more monkey
work I'll blow the top of your head off.
You win this game"
He looked as if he meant it and Jake
got busy. 1t was a squaliy period. as me
room Was 1ull OF men representing OppOS-
ing factions. A shooting scrape was in
the air and it all depended on Jake's ac-
curacy of play. Any other man would
have collapsed under the strain but
steadily he continued and never missed
until the game ran out, a run of 19O
points. He was all in at the finish
Some time ago | gave few Of Schaef-
erS exhibition shots. They were only q
few and | will give new lot in some
succeeding article. He attained such re-
markable proficiency that nothing was
impossible and his remarkable stroke
made for him counts that others less
gifted could never make. He is re-
markable character and, like all geniuses,
to a certain degree eccentric.
AS a business man he was a failure.
He has owned several billiard rooms, but
could not resist the attractions of the
table and would play himself. When he
played all business stopped and tnat
spelled failure. He is getting pretty we'll
along in years, but is still in the game
and bids fair to continue for some time
yet.