The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-08-25
The Result Of a
Friendly Game
Bv EDWARD ]. STEWART

ing cards Tor money ~ ,..s
cravat and other clerical indiculion'
entered and said: at
"My friends, you're making ~
aHow do YOU make that out parsonF
"Drop YOUR game for few minutes
and will tell you .
The players assented. and the cierks
man told the following story:
.Do you see this white necktie! wen;
Tho reason I'm wearing 1t is because Vi
playing for money with FRIEND W ia.
occurred turned my attention TO usihs
what gifts I possess to fighting evil
DYoung fellows from eighteen 10
twenty-one are apt to play these little
games with each other to pass Tue
fine. At that age they have to learh
hv experience that since no one OF theHl
wishes to quit loser the game IS emu,
less. When they get older they nhu
II doesn't pay and usually give IL up
"When | was twenty years ola !
was one of a set Of young fellows WIZ
played poker in one anothers roonls'
At first none of us was ever OUT more
than n 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 III
variably oppose breaking up. no mat,
ter how late the hour. Not only dlu
our sittings grow longer. but our
stakes. our winnings. our losings grew
larger.
ION one occasion we came togetner
at s o'clock in the evening. ana at III
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
bank clerk on thousand dollars
year. and his mother needed most OF
his salary. I was the principal win
ner and readily assented to giving him
q 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.
Il didn't want his money, and |
didn't wish to spend my nights giving
him chance to win 1t back. | offered
to give back all had won This
made him very angry. and he asked
me If l thought him child to make
such a proposition. So l 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 / made up my mind
when we came together again to bet
high on my low hands and low on nv
high hands.
"The next time we sat down to play
the rest of the party had dropped out
They seemed to think that the game
was getting too stiff for them Dick
produced a lot of bills and insisted on
playing for cash instead of on tab, as
we had been playing thus far. | was
surprised, but had enough money to
start in with, so assented. Somehow
the cash on the table seemed more tan
gible than I o US. and. though
didn't try to win, | didn't try to lose.
The luck continued with me. and Dick
was so anxious to win that whenever
he had fair hand he would bet very
high, and l was sure to overtop him
by one or two points. Once he held
three mines to my three tens. Another
time l held a pair of queens on three
Tours, he a pair of kings on three
deuces.
AT O'Clock in the morning 1 had
won all the cash he had brought with
him. He was the worst broken I'D
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 IN
somehow to your satisfaction. | don't
want your money. and only wish TO
find out how | can return IL 70 Won
without trying to lose it to you through
the cards.
On, that's what you have been do.
ing-trying to loser he said angriIv
II you don't want my money don't
want your generosity
He was so hot that l feared ba
would strike me. | endeavored to
soothe him, but failed.
Generosity be hangedr he kent m
bitterly. More likely the reason I,vo
lost so heavily to you is that you,ve
been manfp-
IF l hadn't been so young I sunnoso
might have endured the insult that
was coming. l certainly should have
done so without resentment, for he and
We're intimate friends, and 1t was tho
devil speaking through the cards and
not Dick. My right arm went out ana
Dick went over.
NO sooner had l struck him than
was sorry for what I had done Ha
rose and was coming for me like q
fury when slipped out throuob .
door behind me and, darling into INV
bedroom, locked the door. He follow
ed me and after calling me coward ana
other names went dovrr~.ot =