Evening star., 1939-01-01
In Local Bridge Circles
Bridge Continues Gaining in Popularity

solitaire and learn much from the
experience Of the experts. This has
been followed by the offering of a
more simplified device, perfected by
local player, C. B. Pennebaker,
which goes still further toward
bringing the actual play of inter-
esting tournament hands to the
average player and the novice and
enables them to learn more of the
game. Then there also has been
presented her the same old game in
new form, known as Hi-Lo bridge,
the merits and success of which are
yet to be demonstrated.
The system Of master point rat
ing, which has been perfected to a
scientific basis, has been welcomed
in Washington by duplicate players,
many of whom have been able to
enroll themselves on its list Club
players and private game players
who prefer rubber bridge to dupli-
cate have not generally gone in for
master point ratings. as the system
does not lend itself to this character
of play, and it is for this reason that
many who are entitled to be classed
as experts have not sought to at
tain master points.
The Washington sphere of bridge
influence has been extended during
the last year to several nearby
towns and communities where tour
naments have been organized and
will continue to be held each year.
Notable among these are the Old
Dominion Tournament, the North
ern Virginia Tournament, the Ha-
gerstoWn Tournament and the An
napolis Roads Tournament. Local
players constitute large part of
their patronage. Local posts of the
American Legion, which inaugu-
rated their first bridge tournament
last year, have also decided to make
such entertainment an annual af-
fair.
Accompanying the success which
bridge has attained during 1898,
there have been some signal fail
ures, the most notable of which
was the attempt to foster so-called
Five Suit Bridge All contract
players remember that abortion of
the game. 1t reached New York
from London in February, and for
two or three months following it
scared to great propaganda heights.
Some very prominent players, es-
pecially in the East, seized upon it
with avidity and declared that with
in six months every contract player
would be playing the Crowns" or
the Eagles" as the cards were
called. The fifth suit in green was
known as Crowns abroad and as
Eagles in the United States.
Others stood on the fence, neither
endorsing nor condemning it, but
ready to leap either way, according
to whether it should meet with pop
ular favor or be rejected by the
card playing public
A few instructors fastened to
New York to learn the new form of
| the game and then returned to
Washington prepared" to teach it..
Books were written over night pur-
porting to describe the technique
Of the game and card manufacturers
rushed 65 cards decks from the
| presses. Several local players gave
| their prestige toward promoting the
| game but failed ANONYMOUSLY.
| Players did not like it and no
amount of promoting would induce
them to accept it.
Dealers who bought stacks of the
new decks were able to sell only a
few specimen packs to those whose
curiosity was aroused. and the re-
mainder remained uncalled for on
their shelves. There has been some
disposition of part of this stock
by withdrawing the extra suit, re-
ducing the deck to the normal So
cards, recasing them and selling
them at reduced rates.
One duplicate game of five-suit
bridge was attempted in Washing
ton by few players at the Shore
ham Hotel. but it proved to be a
flop. In most of the social clubs
where bridge is played a five-suiter
deck has never been introduced in
only one or two of the clubs was
there ever trial of the game and
then only for experimental purposes.
Instead of five-suit bridge becoming
the popular form of the game, with
everybody playing it within six
months. as had been predicted. it
was dead long before the expiration
of that period.
There are no reports of it being
played anywhere in the country,
not even in the ra-bridge organi-
cations of New York City. If there