Martinsburg W Va evening journal. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1913-1920, 1918-03-22

but uH tht NdSt hHhl bts II you play
the crown aud one shows up on the
dice, you get even money. II two show
up, you receive two TO one. and II three
three to one. II the crown does not ap-
pear and you have bet on 1t, you lose,
and so on. The percentage for the
banker Is large If every square is
played. but II the crowd is partial to,
say two squares. he has to trust to
luck. The banker generally wins.
The game of blouse" Is very popular
also. II takes two men to run It. This
game consists Of numerous squares Of
cardboard containing three rows Of
numbers, five numbers TO row. The
numbers run from one to ninety. Each
card has different combination.
The French "estaminets" In the VIII
lages are open from eleven In the morn
ing until one In the afternoon In ac-
cordance with army orders.
After dinner the Tommles congre-
| gate at these places to drink French
beer at a penny glass and play
House"
AS soon as the estaminet is sufii-
GENTLY crowded the proprietors of the
blouse" game get busy and, as they
term 1t, form school," This consists
of going around and selling cards at
frame each. If they have .ten In the
school, the hackers of the game de-
duct two francs for their trouble and
the winner gets eight francs.
Then the game starts. Each buyer
places his card before him ON the la
BILE. first breaking up matches into If
teen pieces.
One of the hackers of the game has
small cloth bag in which are ninety
| cardboard squares, each with num-
Der printed thereon, from one to nine
ty. He raps on the table and cries
out: Eyes down, my lucky lads"
All noise ceases and every one is at
| tention.
The croupier places his hand In the
bag and draws forth numbered
square and Immediately calls out the
number. The man who owns the card
with that particular number on it,
covers the square with match. The
one who covers the fifteen numbers on
| his card first shouts House" The
other hacker Immediately comes over
to him and verifies the card by calling
out the numbers thereon to the man
with the bag. AS each number Is
| called he picks 1t out of the ones
picked from the bag and says. Fright"
If the count is right he shouts, "House
correct, pay the lucky gentleman, and
sell him card for the next school,
The 'lucky gentleman" generally buys
one unless he has miser trace In
| his veins. n
| Then another collection is made, q
! school formed, and they carry on with
the game.
The caller-out has many nicknames
for the numbers such as 'Kelly's Eye
for one, Legs Eleven" for eleven
"Clickety-click" for sixty-six. or '"ToI
of the house" meaning ninety.
| The game is honest and quite en-
joyable. Sometimes you have fourteen
numbers ON your card covered and
1
called. In an imploring voice you cal
out, "Come on. Watkins, chum, I'm
sweating on 'Kelly's Eye"
| Watkins generally replies, "Well
keep out of IA draft, you'll catch cold
| Another game is "Pontoon," played
with cards; it is the same as oul
''Black jack" or "Twenty-one."
A card game called Drag is als'
| popular. Using casino deck, ths
dealer deals each player three cards
1t is similar TO our poker, except fol
the fact that you only use three cardl
| and cannot draw. The deck is never
shuffied until man shows three of 1
kind or ''prile" as 1t is called. TIT
value of the hands are, high card, 1
pair. run, flush or three of hn'
or "prile." The limit Is generally |
penny, so 1t is hard to win fortune
The next in popularity is a care
game called map" II Is well named
Every time played 1t went to sleep
Whist and solo whist are played b,
the highbrows of the company.
When the gamblers tire Of all othe
games they try Banker and Broker.
spent week trying to teach SOM
of the T0mmies how to play poker, bu
because / won thirty-five francs the,
declared that they didn't ''fawncy" tn
game.
| Tommy plays few card games; tn
general run never heard OF poker, eu
chre. seven up. or pinochle. They hav'
game similar to pinochle caiie'
"Royal Bezique," but few know how &
play it.
Generally there are two decks o
cards In section, and In short tim
they are so dog-eared and greasy, yo'
can hardly tell the ace Of spades iron
the ace Of hearts. The owners Of thes
decks sometimes condescend to lem
them after much coaxing.
So you see. MIR. Atkins has his flu
mixed In with his hardships and. con
! trary to popular belief, the rank an
file of the British army In the trenche
Is one big happy family. Now In VII
gInia, at school, was fed on old Nc