The evening leader., 1916-10-31
The Result of a
Friendly Game
By EDWARD J. STEWART

mining camp sat around table play
ing cards for money. A man in a white
cravat and other clerical indications
entered and said:
"My friends, you're making great
mistake"
"How do you make that out. parsonT
"Drop yonr game for a few minutes
and 1 will tell you"
The players assented, and the clergy
man told the following story:
"Do you see this white necktie? Well.
the reason I'm wearing 1t is because OF
playing for money with friend. What
occurred turned my attention TO using
what gifts / possess to fighting evil
Young fellows from eighteen to
twenty-one are apt to play these little
games with each other to pass the
time. At that age they have to learn
by experience that since no one OF them
wishes to quit loser the game Is END,
less. When they get older they find
II doesn't pay and usually give 1t up.
when | was twenty years old !
was one Of a set of young fellows VINO
played poker in one anothers rooms
At first none Of us was ever out more
than a few dollars at sitting. But
our sittings grew longer and longer
There was always some one OF the
gang that was loser. and he would IN
variably oppose breaking up. no mat.
ter how late the hour. Not only dio
our sittings grow longer. but our
stakes. our winnings. our losings grew
larger
ION one occasion we came together
at O'clock in the evening. and at In
the morning we adjourned till O'CLOCK
the same evening. One of the party.
Dick Collins, was out $50. He seemed
quite upset over the loss. for he was a
bank clerk on q thousand dollars a
year. and his mother needed most or
his salary was the principal win
ner and readily assented to giving him
a chance to recoup as soon as the day
was done. We played all the next
night. and. though gave Dick every
chance to get even. my cards ran SO
strong and he bet so high that instead
of winning he lost. At 6 o'clock in the
morning he owed me about 5000
81 didn't want his money. and ]
didn't wish to spend my nights giving
| him a chance to win it back. l offered
to give back all | had won. This
made him very angry. and he asked
me if thought him child to make
such a proposition. So consented
that after one nights sleep would
continue the game. was getting anx-
ious to have him regain what he had
| lost, for he seemed to be very badly
shaken up. So l made up my mind
when we came together again to bet
high on my low hands and low on my
high hands.
1.-THE next time we sat down to play
the rest of the party had dropped ont
They seemed to think that the game
was getting too stiff for them Dick
produced a lot of bills and insisted on
playin" for cash instead Of on tab, a.
we had been playing thus far. wa
surprised bur had enough money t.
| start in with. so assented Somehow
| the cash on the table seemed more tan
| gible than | 0 US. and. though
didn't try to win. | didn't try to lose
| The luck continued with me- and Dick
was 50 anxious to win that whenever
he had fair hand he would bet very
high. and | was sure to overtop him
by one or two points. Once he held
three mines to my three tens Another
time / held pair Of queens On three
fours. he a pair Of kings on three
deuces.
"At 3 O'clock in the morning / had
won all the cash he had brought with
| him. He was the worst broken up
man l ever saw. His nerves were all
on edge.
"'Go home. Dick said, and go to
sleep. Tomorrow evening wen dine
together, and We'll fix this matter up
somehow to your satisfaction. ! don't
want your money, and | only wish to
find out how l can return it to you
without trying to lose 1t to you through
the cards
"'Oh. that's what you have been do
ing-trying to loser he said angrily.
If you don't want my money don't
want your generosity
HE was so hot that I feared he
would strike me. endeavored to
soothe him, but failed.
Generosity be hangedr he kept on
bitterly. More likely the reason rve
lost so heavily to you is that you've
been manip'-
'If l hadn't been so young suppose
might have endured the insult that
was coming. l certainly should have
done so without resentment, for he and
were intimate friends, and it was the
devil speaking through the cards and
not Dick. My right arm went out and
Dick went over
mo sooner had / struck him than
was sorry for what l had done. He
rose and was coming for me like
fury when l slipped out through
door behind me and, darting into my
bedroom, locked the door. He follow
ed me and after calling me coward and
| other names went downstairs, and /
hnn /, =