The Washington herald., 1918-02-27
CHAPTER XIX.
On His Own.

w LIS o"hs
OF course Tommy cannot always be
producing plays under fire but while
in rest billets he has numerous other
ways OF amusing himself. He is a
great gambler, but never plays for
large stakes. Generally. in each
company you will find a regular Can
field. This man banks nearly all of
the games OF chance and Is an undis-.
puted authority on the rules of gam
bling. Whenever there is an argu-
ment among the Tommies about some
uncertain point as to whether Hough-
ton is entitled to Watkins sixpence,
the matter is taken to the recognized
authority and his decision is final.
The two most popular games are
Grown and Anchor and House"
The paraphernalia used in Grown
and Anchor" consists of a piece OF
canvas two feet by three feet. This
is divided into six equal squares. In
these squares are painted a club, dia-
mond, heart. spade. crown. and an
anchor, one device to a square. There
are three dice used, each dice marked
the same as the canvas. The banker
sets up his gambling outfit in the
corner of a billet and starts bally-
hooing until a crowd of Tommies
gather around; then the game starts
The Tommies place bets on the
squares. the crown and anchor being
played the most. The banker then
rolls his three dice and collects or
pays out as the case may be. If
you play the crown and one shows up
on the dice. you get even money. If
two shows up, you receive two to one,
and IL three, three to one. If the
crown does not appear and you have
bet on 1t, you lose, and so on. The
percentage for the banker is large
If every square is played, but If the
crowd is partial to, say two squares,
he has to trust to luck. The banker
generally wins.
The game of House" Is very popu-
lar also. 1t takes two men to run it.
This game consists Of numerous
squares OF cardboard containing three
rows Of numbers, five numbers to a
row. The numbers run from one to
ninety. Each card has a different
combination.
The French estaminets in the vii
lage are open from IL in the morning
until in the afternoon in accordance
with army orders.
After dinner the Tommies congre-
gate at these places to drink French
beer at a penny a glass and to play
House."
As soon as the estaminet is suffi-
cfently crowded the proprietors of the
House Game" get busy and as they
term 1t form a school," This consists
Of going around and selling cards at
a franc 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
table, first breaking up matches into
fifteen pieces.
One of the hackers of the game has
a small cloth bag in which are ninety
cardboard squares, each with a num-
ber 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
attention.
The croupier places his hand in the
bag and draws forth a numbered
square and Immediately calls out the
number. The man who owns the card
with that particular number on it,
covers the square with a match. The
one who covers theS2fteen numbers
on his card first shouS House" The
other hacker Immediately comes over
to him and verifies the card, by call
ing 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 Gays fright" :"
If the count is right he shouts house
correct, pay the lucky gentleman, and
sell him a card for the next school"
The lucky gentleman" generally
buys one unless he has Semitic
trace in his veins.
Then another collection is made, a
school formed. and they carry on
with the game.
The cailer-out has many nicknames
for the numbers such as "Kelly's
Eye" for one. Legs Eleven" for
eleven. ''Clickety-click" for sixty-six,
or TOY of the House." meaning nine
ty.
The game Is honest and quite en-
joyable. Sometimes you have four
teen numbers on your card covered