The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1914-09-19

never let on. He let US trim sheep
man out of thousand.
1T was hard work, for the sheep
chaperon was foxy and he did not
want to play with our cards. he
bought a pack from the porter and II
was straight playing. but we were two
to one and we got it.
"Towles got us in the smoker and
suggested that if the porters carried
marked decks it would be pretty soft
for anybody who didn't like to bet on
a full house against fours. That's all
he said, but he explained that he had
charge of all the cars on that road
put up all the supplies.
I'VE looked interested in the details,
but We didn't bite until We got back to
Chicago and found out he was what
he said he was and not railroad de-
tective. Then we Topped and Towles
was reasonable.
He could put marked decks on
every car that carried them, and all
he wanted was ten per cent. he
didn't even ask us to wear cash reg
isters
We'll, Don had friend who made
beautiful ink. II wasn't the sort they
sell suckers and come-ons who answer
ads, but the real goods. II cost us ten
dollars for about a teaspoonful but
it blended perfectly with the print
ing.
1T took us three weeks to mark Up
a stock, and then We had to wait until
the cars were stocked. That was
another couple of weeks. and then
just as though luck was made to or
der-I got tip from Pickering, the
chap in New York told you of once
that Bob Brown was headed for
home.
You've heard Of Bob Brown. He
fell down a stump hole and came out
with a broken leg and bonanza
mine. He was going back to Califor-
MIA, and he had chap with him who
owned three or four counties in Texas,
and had so many COWS 1t took three
men five weeks to count them.
Three days on the train with them,
and them liking poker and being will
ing to be murdered II 1t was done
nice!
Pickering wised us that the old
flngerwork wouldn't 60. They knew
the tricks-Bob had lost about three
millions. and you're bound to get some
wisdom for that-but Pickering knew
could mark angel backs to fool even
professional
Pickering got fooled himself once,
and he wrote that he thought We
could get to them with some good
marked papers.
Don and me were on the train that
carried Brown and his pal, and after
breakfast the next morning we broke
in. Don landed them first and dragged
me in last, pretending he didn't know
me.
Il suggested that l had a couple of
new decks In my grip. but Don
couldn't see that. He thought the
train-cards were good enough, end the
wink he handed Brown and his pal
made them sure that Don was wise
and on the level.
The porter brought the cards in,
and II the train had run of the track
just then I'd have given the engineer
cigar. paid the porter the dollar
he asked, but wanted to ram it down
his throat and make him choke over It,
They were the same sort Don and
me had almost ruined our eyesight
on, but they weren't our work!
There we sat with men who'd drop
a couple Of hundred thousand before
the train got down out of the Sierras
and never bat an eye-winker, If they
thought the game was on the level!
A couple of hundred thousand, mind
you, and me and Don with our hands
tied!
Those fellows could play poker
too, and we dropped most of our big
bank-roll before the porter called din
ner. When lamps were lighted Dor
and me were playing five-cent ante
with whisky drummer. and those
easy-marks were playing with a pat
ent-medicine manufacturer and the
cards I'd paid for"
Griscom stopped speaking and
puffed savagely at his cigar.
But was the porter to blame?"
asked.
WAS he to blame?
Man, he was rotten thief, that's
ala black-hearted son of a pirate
king. What do you think of thai
dinge? Here he was, getting from
fifty dollars to seventy-five dollar 6
round trip in tips and thief! In
stead of getting the cards we hae
marked from the dining-car conductor
as he should have, he was carryins
his own cards as a side line ant
cheating the company out of the profit
That's why I've hated the Who'll,
race Of porters ever since.
"A clean chance at couple of hun
dred thousand. and to be burned on
by a thief Of porter stealing fift,
centsy'