The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1912-05-21
LUCKY
CARDS
BY JOSEPH E. COUCH

at time when it was the wild ives
1t seemed to me that every one gam
| bled, There were all kinds of game:
from the most honest to the most ras
cally.
/ very soon found that to be like
other people | must do as they did-iI
other words. ] must gamble. l had
| played poker occasionally In the east
with my friends to pass the time, and
| finding it to be the prevailing game In
my new home, / concluded that since
l must play / would play the national
| game.
One evening l won very large pot
| on three mines. When / showed my
! cards every one at the table exclaimed:
Dead mans hand, by thunderp
l asked what was meant by dead
mans hand, and one OF the party told
the following story:
"A few years ago young fellow
came out here to look over some min
ing property. A prospector had struck
gone east to put the property into a
company. He had failed at that, but
had induced this young man to come
out to investigate and, If satisfied, fur
nish the money to open the vein.
'Johnston--that was his name-had
a wife and couple of kids He had
had hard luck in making a living and
was scraping bottom when his wife
received legacy Of $4,000, He was
visionary enough to persuade her 10
give it to him to make the investiga.
tion Of the mine with and to use for
development purposes il the case look
ed promising.
Johnston came out here with the
money to make the investigation and
while he was doing it attended to bust
ness, A company was organized, two
thirds of the shares TO be his on pay
ment of the $4,000; Hammond, the
prospector who had discovered the
vein and owned it. to have the rest
Johnston had made the investigation
and determined to invest the money In
the mine. While he was waiting for
the necessary legal steps to form the
company. having nothing to do. one
day he stepped into q place where
some men were having a small game.
There was something fascinating to
him In the rattle Of the chips. and
wasn't long before he called for $40 in
worries and sat down at the table.
at was the worst thing he could
done, for the very next day be was to
put up the money for the shares and !
to receive contract for them. He
won little at first, but not much; then /
he began to lose. He realized that II /
he lost any of the money he was to in /
vest he might better have stayed at |
home, and this made him nervous. He /
didn't play with any kind Of skill, be- /
ing timid when he should have been
bold and bold when be should have
been timid. The game was fair enough, |
there not being a professional gambler
in it, but man can get cleaned out at
an honest game as well as AT dishon-
est one.
Just as soon as Johnston began to
lose he began to plunge. 1t wasn't
long before he had lost 5000. After
that he insisted on making all sorts Of
foolish bets. His face got red, and his
eyes were wild Some Of the men
who were in the game with him tried
to stop it. but he demanded his re-
venge, and they couldn't well get out
about midnight Johnston had lost
all but about $1,000 Of his pile. Next
hand was a jack pot. He opened 1t
with 500, and most everybody stayed
In. 1t seemed that all had something
10 bet on, for the pot kept growing
bigger and bigger. Toward the end of
The betting it was noticed that John
ston's face instead of being red was
white.
"Wel. the money kept plling up on
he table. No one knew how much
here was of it because it was a heap
IF dust and gold and silver and bills.
At last some o the players seeing that
Johnston was looking kind o queer,
allied halt Nobody bet any more,
ind, as for Johnston, he had pulled his
lat down over his eyes so as to con-
zeal his face. When the showdown
vas called he had his elbows on the
able and his jaws in the palms of his
lands.
every man turned his cards over
Except Johnston, who sat looking down
Il their backs. The others thought
hat he saw himself beaten and hadn't I
my stuff left in him to turn them over. :
rhe hands against him weren't large. I
There were three Fights, three fves
nd several double pairs.
Wake up, Johnston, and look at
our cards some one sang out.
"But Johnston didn't move. One of
lis opponents turned his hand 'over
nd showed three mines. He had won
yer the Fights by one point.
" Johnston. you've wont
Somebody pulled his hat from off his
Drehead and exposed his face. There
-as a stony stare in his eyes that sent
thrill of horror through ALL Z
"The man was dead
zone of the players scooped the mon
i Off the table and put it away. When <
was counted there was $10227 in it. ;
he next day IT was turned over for
lie shares, and they made Johnston's
III, III