Las Vegas optic., 1914-11-09

chaperon was foxy and he ana not
want to play with our cards. lie
bought a pack from the porter ana 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
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.
eve 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
listers.
"Well, Don had friend who made
beautiful Ink. 1t wasn't the sort they
sell suckers and come-ons who answer
ads, but the real goods. 1t cost us ten
dollars for about teaspoonful but
it blended perfectly with the print
| ing.
ut 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 a tip from Pickering, the
chap In New York l told you of once
that Bob Brown was headed for
home
You've heard of Bob Brown. He
fell down sump hole and came out
with 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 it took three
men fve weeks to count them.
"Three days on the train with them,
and them liking poker and being will
: ing to be murdered if it was done
nice!
pickering wised us that the old
fngerwork wouldn't go. They knew
the tricks-Bob had lost about three
millions, and you're bound to get some
wisdom for that-but Pickering knew
3 | could mark angel backs to fool even
professional.
pickering got fooled himself once,
r and he wrote that he thought we
/ could get to them with some good
marked papers.
I don and me were on the train that
t carried Brown and his pal, and after
! breakfast the next morning we broke
In. Don landed them first and dragged
I me in last, pretending he didn't know
! me-
~ suggested that had a couple ol
: new decks in my grip. but Dor
J. couldn't see that. He thought the
J. train-cards we're good enough, and the
wink he handed Brown and his pa
l. made them sure that Don was wise
y and on the level.
e THE porter brought the cards in
e and If the train had run off the tract
{ Just then I'd have given the enginee'
cigar. | paid the porter the dollal
(, he asked, but wanted to ram 1t dowI
G his throat and make him choke over 1t
K "They were the same sort Don AM
Q me had almost ruined our eyesigh
e on, but they weren't our work!
q There we sat with men who'd drol
IS couple of hundred thousand befor
n the train got down out of the Sierra
s. and never bat an eye-winker, II the,
thought the game was on the level
s A couple of hundred thousand, min
t. you, and me and Don with our hand
d tied!
e. Those fellows could play poker
l. too, and we dropped most of our BIZ
o bank-roll before the porter called dir
d ner When lamps were lighted Do
Ie and me were playing ive-cent ant
d with whisky drummer, and thos
It easy-marks were playing with a pal
ent-medicine manufacturer and tn
g cards I'd paid for"
d Griscom stopped speaking an
q. puffed savagely at his cigar.
III "But was the porter to blame?"
to asked.
d, was he to blame?
le Man, he was rotten thief, that
N ala black-hearted son Of a pirat
king What do you think Of ths
Id dinge? Here he was, gettirg froi
IT, fifty dollars to seventy-five dollar
n, round trip In tips and thief! i
as stead Of getting the cards We ha
marked from the dining-car conducto
lr- as he should have, he was carryir
e. his own cards as a side line ar
ell cheating the company out of the prof
We That's why I've hated the who
sr- race of porters ever since.
be "A clean chance at couple of hu
dred thousand. and to be burned o
he by thief Of porter stealing fif
lis centsl"
er Leual TaufoIouv.