The Meeker herald. [volume] (Meeker, Colo.) 1885-current, 1918-02-09
What a
Worm Did

D. r. A MTG14

copyrisht. 1911. wsstsrn Newspaper Usiea-I
"If yor Americans want to get pos
.exsion of Mexico. you don't need to
-nIse big army for the purpose. All
1Ou have to do Is to enlist oil the pro-
'essionnl gamblers In the United
stntes. furnish them with ample funds,
md send them down there to win the
country for you"
| The words were spoken by a man
~ho had lived most Of his life In Mex
co. and had Travelled much In Central
and South America.
1.-THE people Of those regions are all
gamblers" the speaker continued. "and
II Il SUFFICIENT force Of sharpers were
cent among them every foot Of ground.
and every article on II would soon be
in their possession. Thus the gamblers,
Or those they represented, could meet
in convention, vote annexation to the
United States, and the trick would be
done.
II spent q winter in Brazil and every
evening as soon as the days work wns
finished. the set to which belonged
adjourned to the back yard Of an old
fellow named PapiIado. who had q
roulette wheel he had made himself,
and spent the time far Into the night
gambling. The roulette wheel was
made of wood. and there was cover
for II. which was put on while the ball
was still spinning 10 thnt the betting
could be carried on Indefinitely.
"Some Of the gamblers played for
the enjoyment they got out Of the
game, and some played to earn the
money on which they lived. None Of
them was very scrupulous. and would
hnve cheated II they could. taught
them the American game Of poker. but
there was 50 much opportunity for dis
honesty In It TINT It was not fitted for
them. Every player was bent on
cheating. and the game soon broke up
In q row.
There was among them q young
Brazilian who had a very pretty wife.
He had small patrimony. which he
was gradually eating up. He won
about as much as he lost, but he had
to live. It was really a case Of eating
his little fortune. His wife usually sat
beside him. sometimes sewing. and
when their baby was wakeful she
would hold him In her arms. The
mans name was Josi Gomez, and his
wife Maria. for the Virgin.
'If Gomez won hundred pezOs one
evening. lost q hundred the next. and
was ahead in the game twenty-five at
the end of the week. he considered
that he was twenty-five pesos to the
good: though he Ind spent hundred.
His wife took the same view Of the
matter.
AT the time I Joined the circle the
little fortune Of the young couple had
been nearly eaten up and It had be-
come apparent to them that that was
10. They were looking anxious. JOSH
was betting fitfully. Papilado bet like
the others, and won or lost like they
did. He charged nothing for the use
Of the wheel, seeming to play for
amusement only. But one night he be-
gan to show a gamblers greed. He
won a good pile on red Eve; and after
that 1t was noticed that whenever he
bet largely 1t was on red fve.
There y 4 worm down 10 that ell
mnte that gets into furniture, and
bores and bores and bores till nothing
but shell Is left. One may sit down
on chair that looks perfectly strong,
but at the first touch It collapses. This
statement thrust In here seems to have
nothing to do with my story; the truth
Is. the story hangs upon 1t.
"Papilado continued occasionally to
bet of red five, taking care not to at
tract the attention Of the others to
the fact that 1t was a winner. When
he won on 1t he Invariably bet the
next time on some other number. He
said that he didn't believe In light
ming striking the same place twice.
Sometimes he would not bet once on
1t till the wheel had been spun many
times. was not playing myself, and
had an opportunity to watch the 9TH
ers. noticed that whenever Pnpila-
do bet on red five, just when the ball
was heard to drop, his countenance as
sumed a very pleased and covetous ex-
preston.
Il took an Interest In JOsi Gomez,
his little wife and innocent babe. and
one day confided to him my suspicion
that Papilado had some way of know
Ing when the ball dropped into red
i've. JOSH said nothing to me In re-
ply. but 1t was evident TINT he was do
Ing a good deal Of thinking.
1.-THE next evening came the crisis.
Papilado did not bet on red i've till
eleven o'clock, when he laid hundred
pesos on It. JOSH Immediately laid
hundred pesos on another number.
black nine. Pnpilado laid Ave hun
dred more on red FIVE. JOSH laid one
Thousand Of black nine. The others
dropped out. was astonished to see
the two who remained bring out 80
much money. They bet ON and on till
many thousand pesos were on the