The Daily Alaska empire., 1930-04-01
Chapter IA
PAY HE" SAYS TEDDY

The lady with the brown eyes had departed. Teddy still sat alone at the table. His light care free manner was gone. The fu- tiire seemed dark and uninspiring.
 His usual bon vivant's taste for very palatable dishes was supplant- ed bv a dislike for food. He wanted to get away.
 He went into the buffet and sat ploomily at a small table with cup of coffee and an opulent cigar.
 He was heavily depressed. He had sat alone with his dark thought for several minutes when three men entered the crowded buffet. one of them borrowed a newspaper from Teddy's table and so opened con- yersation. Soon he was joined by his two companions.
 Their advances seemed wellmeant and harmless and they proved a congenial trio so Teddy did not mind.
 They had a large experience of life and could tell a good story They very soon had Teddy laugh ing and cheerful again, and he was glad enough to be cheerful
 His three new friends were good fellows. He liked them, and their unflagging cheerfulness did nm good They talked for an hour and were merry.
 Then somebody suggested a thea ter. "Too late.' said one of the others. What about adjourning to rav flat for little round or two of cards?"
 Teddy was quite agreeable, al- thoueh at this point he began to suspect the presence of the cloVen hoof. if he could not see it. The prospect did not depress him 1T tbe least. If there was one thing he did know something about, it was cards
 So he accepted willingly. They cc,ld mt take much from him. In his pocket were three l0-shlillng notes and little loose silver II they could take that from him by fair means they were welcome to it. If they were under the impression that he was bulging with wealth and was easy to fleece, well, per haps they would be wiser when they were a little older.
 They all squeezed into taxi, and went for a short drive. Teddy had resigned himself entirely to fate. and took no note of the di- rection in which he was being driv- en It did not matter to him Nothing mattered.
 They alighted at block Of flats and went up to the third floor Here. in a small, well-furnisheo suite of rooms, they began then little game.
 So far as Teddy was concerned all went well from the beginning and he won steadily. The men were cheerful and lost cheerfully They played for fairly heavy stakes which suited Teddy well enough because after the first two or three deals, he was playing with thelr money, and always he had been a plunger.
 In an hour Teddy began to see brighter prospects for the immedi- ate future. He had accumulated 3 little pile of winnings amounting to nearly a hundred pounds.
 Then he began to lose, and after two or three rounds, he saw quite clearly that his companions wert cheating. a.4
 But they had made serious so' cial error. Teddy not only knev practically all there was to know about straight card playing, a which he had spent very censid erable portion of his career and hl' money; but also was an adept a crooked play.
 In the early days he had sui fered at the hands of card sharps Then he had become interested Il cheating, and had made a study q it. He had made it one Of hi hobbies, and in an amateur wa was quite an expert at variou sleight of hand devices in connec ton with cards.
 Teddy had never won penn. bv unfair means, but when he say his opponents cheating and doini it rather clumsily, he said nothing but began cheating himself.
 He continued to win their monel quicker than before. Their cheer fulness vanished. Their faces wer' study, and Teddy's pile of win nings grew rapidly from the l0' pounds to 200 and more.
 When it had reached 250, and thu luck was still on Teddy's side. ons of the men stood up with snari flung his cards on the table, shooh
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