Properly speaking, Poker is not the founder, but simply the most famous representative of a very ancient and always very popular family of games, all of which can be traced to one source, the old French game of Gilet, which was undoubtedly of Italian origin, perhaps a variety of Primero. Gilet we find changed to Brelan in the time of Charles IX., and although Brelan is no longer played, the word is still used in all French games to signify triplets, and “brelan-carrÉ” is the common French term for four of a kind in le poker AmÉricain. From Brelan we trace the French games of Bouillotte, and Ambigu, and the English game of Brag; but the game of poker, as first played in the United States, five cards to each player from a twenty-card pack, is undoubtedly the Persian game of as nas.

The peculiar and distinguishing characteristic of Poker we find well described by Seymour, in his chapter on “Brag,” in the “Court Gamester,” 1719: “The endeavour to impose on the judgment of the rest who play, and particularly on the person who chiefly offers to oppose you, by boasting or bragging of the cards in your hand. Those who by fashioning their looks and gestures, can give a proper air to their actions, as will so deceive an unskilful antagonist, that sometimes a pair of fives, trays or deuces, in such a hand, with the advantage of his composed countenance, and subtle manner of over-awing the other, shall out-brag a much greater hand, and win the stakes, with great applause and laughter on his side from the whole company.”

Quite a number of card games retain the feature of pairs, triplets, sequences, and flushes, but omit the element of brag or bluff, and can therefore hardly be considered full-blooded members of the poker family. Whiskey Poker, for instance, has really little or nothing in common with the true spirit of poker, and is simply the very ancient game of Commerce, played with five cards instead of three. The descriptions of this game in the earliest Hoyles betray its French origin; particularly in the use of the piquet pack; the French custom of cutting to the left and dealing to the right; and the use of the words “brelan,” and “tricon.” In later descriptions of the “new form” of Commerce, about 1835, we find 52 cards are used, and dealt from left to right, and the names of the combinations are changed to “pairs-royal,” “sequences,” and “flushes.”

There appears to be little or nothing modern in the game of Poker but the increased number of cards dealt to each player, which makes it possible for one to hold double combinations, such as two pairs, triplets with a pair, etc. The old games were all played with three cards only, and the “brelan-carrÉ,” or four of a kind, could be made only by combining the three cards held by the player with the card which was sometimes turned up on the talon, or remainder of the pack. The blind, the straddle, the raise, the bluff, table stakes, and freeze-out, are all to be found in Bouillotte, which flourished in the time of the French Revolution, and the “draw” from the remainder of the pack existed in the old French game of Ambigu.

The first mention we have of poker in print is in Green’s Reformed Gambler, which contains a description of a game of poker played on a river steamer in June, 1834. The author undertook a series of investigations with a view to discovering the origin of poker, the results of which were published in the N.Y. Sun, May 22, 1904. It would seem that poker came from Persia to this country by way of New Orleans. The French settlers in Louisiana, recognizing the similarity between the combinations held in the newcomer from the East, as nas, and those with which they were already familiar in their own game of poque, called the Persian game poque, instead of as nas, and our present word, “poker,” seems to be nothing but a mispronunciation of the French term, dividing it into two syllables, as if it were “po-que.”

There is no authoritative code of laws for the game of Poker, simply because the best clubs do not admit the game to their card rooms, and consequently decry the necessity for adopting any laws for its government. In the absence of any official code, the daily press is called upon for hundreds of decisions every week. The author has gathered and compared a great number of these newspaper rulings, and has drawn from them and other sources to form a brief code of poker laws, which will be found amply sufficient to cover all irregularities for which any penalty can be enforced, or which interfere with the rights of any individual player.

DRAW POKER.

CARDS. Poker is played with a full pack of fifty-two cards, ranking: A K Q J 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2; the ace being the highest or lowest in play, according to the wish of the holder, but ranking below the deuce in cutting. In some localities a special pack of sixty cards is used, the eight extra cards being elevens and twelves in each suit, which rank above the ten, and below the Jack. It is very unusual to play Poker with two packs.

COUNTERS, or CHIPS. Although not absolutely necessary, counters are much more convenient than money. The most common are red, white, and blue circular chips, which should “stack up” accurately, so that equal numbers may be measured without counting them. The red are usually worth five whites, and the blue worth five reds, or twenty-five whites. At the beginning of the game one player should act as banker, and be responsible for all counters at the table. It is usual for each player to purchase, at the beginning of the game, the equivalent of 100 white counters in white, red, and blue.

PLAYERS. Poker may be played by any number of persons from two to seven. When there are more than seven candidates for play, two tables should be formed, unless the majority vote against it. In some localities it is the custom for the dealer to take no cards when there are eight players, which is thought to make a better game than two tables of only four players each. When the sixty-card pack is used, eight players may take cards.

CUTTING. The players who shall form the table, and their positions at the beginning of the game, must be decided by throwing round a card to each candidate, face up, or by drawing cards from an outspread pack. If there are more than eight candidates, the four cutting the highest cards should play together at one table, and the others at another table. If there are an even number of candidates, the tables divide evenly, but if the number is odd, the smaller table is formed by those cutting the highest cards.

The table formed, the pack must be shuffled and spread, and positions drawn for. The player cutting the lowest card has the choice of seats, and must deal the first hand. The player cutting the next lowest has the next choice, and so on, until all are seated.

TIES. If the first cut does not decide, those tying must cut again. Should two or more players cut cards of equal value, the new cut will decide nothing but the tie; for even should one of those cutting to decide a tie draw a card lower than one previously cut by another player, the original low cannot be deprived of his right. For instance: there are six players.

The 5 and 7 have the first and second choice of seats; the 2 and 4 the third and fourth choice.

PLAYERS’ POSITIONS. There are only three distinctive positions at the poker table: the dealer; the pone; and the age. The pone is the player on the dealer’s right, and the age is the one on his left.

STAKES. Before play begins, or a card is dealt, the value of the counters must be decided, and a limit must be agreed upon. There are four limitations in Draw Poker, and they govern or fix the maximum of the four principal stakes: the blind; the straddle; the ante; and the bet or raise.

The blind is the amount put up by the age before he sees anything, and should be limited to one white counter, as the blind is the smallest stake in the game. In some places it is permissible for the age to make the blind any amount he pleases within half the betting limit; but such a practice is a direct violation of the principles of the game, which require that the amount of the blind shall bear a fixed proportion to the limit of the betting.

The straddle is a double blind, sometimes put up by the player to the left of the age, and like the blind, without seeing anything. This allows the player on the left of the straddler to double again, or put up four times the amount of the original blind. This straddling process is usually limited to one-fourth of the betting limit; that is, if the betting limit is fifty counters, the doubling of the blind must cease when a player puts up sixteen, for another double would carry it to thirty-two, which would be more than half the limit for a bet or raise.

The ante is the amount put up by each player after he has seen his cards, but before he draws to improve his hand. The terms “ante” and “blind” are often confused. The blind is a compulsory stake, and must be put up before the player has seen anything. He does not even know whether or not he will be dealt a foul hand, or whether it will be a misdeal. He has not even seen the cards cut. The ante, on the other hand, is a voluntary bet, and is a sort of entrance fee, which is paid before the hand is complete, but after the first part of it has been seen. The ante is always twice the amount of the blind, whatever that may be. If the blind has been increased by the process of straddling, the ante must be twice the amount of the last straddle, but must not exceed the betting limit. This is why the straddles are limited.

The largest bet, or raise, which a player is allowed to make is generally known as the limit. This limit is not the greatest amount that may be bet on one hand, but is the maximum amount by which one player may increase his bet over that of another player. For instance: If no one has bet, A may bet the limit on his hand; B may then put up a similar amount, which is called seeing him, and may then raise him any further sum within the limit fixed for betting. If B raises the limit, it is obvious that he has placed in the pool twice the amount of the betting limit; but his raise over A’s bet is within the betting limit. If another player should raise B again, he would be putting up three times the limit; A’s bet, B’s raise, and his own raise.

In the absence of any definite arrangement, it is usual to make the betting limit fifty times the amount of the blind. That is, if the value of the blind, or one white counter, is five cents, the limit of a bet or raise will be two dollars and a half, or two blue counters. This fixes the ante at two white counters, or ten cents, in the absence of straddles, and limits the straddling to the fourth player from the age, or sixteen white counters. This proportion makes a very fair game, and gives a player some opportunity to vary his betting according to his estimate of the value of his hand. Where the blind is five cents, the ante ten, and the limit twenty-five, the game ceases to be Poker, and becomes a species of show-down. It is universally admitted by good judges that a player can lose more money at twenty-five cent show-down than he will at two-and-a-half Poker.

There are several other variations in the manner of arranging the stakes and the betting limits, but they will be better understood after the game itself has been described.

DEALING. The age having put up the amount of the blind, and the cards having been shuffled by any player who chooses to avail himself of the privilege, the dealer last, they are presented to the pone to be cut. The pone may either cut them, or signify that he does not wish to do so by tapping the pack with his knuckles. Should the pone decline to cut, no other player can insist on his so doing, nor do it for him. Beginning on his left, the dealer distributes the cards face down one at a time in rotation until each player has received five cards. The deal passes to the left, and each player deals in turn.

IRREGULARITIES IN THE DEAL. The following rules regarding the deal should be strictly observed:—

If any card is found faced in the pack the dealer must deal again. Should the dealer, or the wind, turn over any card, the player to whom it is dealt must take it; but the same player cannot be compelled to take two exposed cards. Should such a combination occur, there must be a fresh deal by the same dealer. If the player exposes his cards himself, he has no remedy.

Should any player receive more or less than his correct number of cards, and discover the error before he looks at any card in his hand, or lifts it from the table, he may demand a fresh deal if no bet has been made; or he may ask the dealer to give him another from the pack if he has too few; or to draw a card if he has too many. Cards so drawn must not be exposed, but should be placed on the bottom of the pack.

If the number of the hands dealt does not agree with the number of players, there must be a new deal.

If two or more cards are dealt at a time, the dealer may take back the card or cards improperly dealt if he discovers the error before dealing to the next player; otherwise there must be a new deal.

A misdeal does not lose the deal. The misdealer must deal again.

Should a player take up his hand, or look at any card in it, he is not entitled to any remedy. If he has more or less than the proper number of cards, his hand is foul, and must be abandoned, the player forfeiting any interest he may have in that deal, and any stake he may have put up on that hand. In all gambling houses, the invariable rule is to call a short hand foul; although there should be no objection to playing against a man with only four cards, which cannot be increased to five, even by the draw.

STRADDLING. During the deal, or at any time before he looks at any card in his hand, the player to the left of the age may straddle the blind by putting up double the amount put up by the age. The only privilege this secures to the straddler is that of having the last say as to whether or nor he will make good his ante and draw cards. Should he refuse to straddle, no other player can do so; but if he straddles, the player on his left can straddle him again by doubling the amount he puts up, which will be four times the amount of the blind. This will open the privilege to the next player on the left again, and so on until the limit of straddling is reached; but if one player refuses to straddle, no other following him can do so. Good players seldom or never straddle, as the only effect of it is to increase the amount of the ante.

METHOD OF PLAYING. The cards dealt, the players take up and examine their hands. The careful poker player always “spreads” his cards before taking them up, to be sure that he has neither more nor less than five, and he lifts them in such a way that the palm and fingers of his right hand conceal the face of the first card, while the thumb of the left hand separates the others just sufficiently to allow him to read the index or “squeezer” marks on the edges.

The object of this examination is to ascertain the value of the hand dealt to him, and to see whether or not it is worth while trying to improve it by discarding certain cards and drawing others in their place. The player should not only be thoroughly familiar with the relative value of the various combinations which may be held at Poker, but should have some idea of the chances for and against better combinations being held by other players, and should also know the odds against improving any given combination by drawing to it.

The value of this technical knowledge will be obvious when it is remembered that a player may have a hand dealt to him which he knows is comparatively worthless as it is, and the chances for improving which are only one in twelve, but which he must bet on at odds of one in three, or abandon it. Such a proceeding would evidently be a losing game, for if the experiment were tried twelve times the player would win once only, and would lose eleven times. This would be paying eleven dollars to win three; yet poker players are continually doing this.

RANK OF THE HANDS. The various combinations at Poker outrank one another in the following order, beginning with the lowest. Cards with a star over them add nothing to the value of the hand, and may be discarded. The figures on the right are the odds against such a hand being dealt to any individual player.

When hands are of the same rank, their relative value is determined by the denomination of the cards they contain. For instance: A hand without a pair, sequence, or flush is called by its highest card; “ace high,” or “Jack high,” as the case may be. As between two such hands, the one containing the highest card would be the better, but either would be outclassed by a hand with a pair in it, however small. A hand with a pair of nines in it would outrank one with a pair of sevens, even though the cards accompanying the nines were only a deuce, three and four, while those with the sevens were an ace, King and Queen. But should the pairs be alike in both hands; such as tens, the highest card outside the pair would decide the rank of the hands, and if those were also alike, the next card, or perhaps the fifth would have to be considered. Should the three odd cards in each hand be identical, the hands would be a tie, and would divide any pool to which each had a claim. Two flushes would decide their rank in the same manner. If both were ace and Jack high, the third card in one being a nine, and in the other an eight, the nine would win. In full hands the rank of the triplets decides the value of the hand. Three Queens and a pair of deuces will beat three Jacks and a pair of aces. In straights, the highest card of the sequence wins; not necessarily the highest card in the hand, for a player may have a sequence of A 2 3 4 5, which is only five high, and would be beaten by a sequence of 2 3 4 5 6. The ace must either begin or end a sequence, for a player is not allowed to call such a combination as Q K A 2 3 a straight.

It was evidently the intention of those who invented Poker that the hands most difficult to obtain should be the best, and should outrank hands that occurred more frequently. A glance at the table of odds will show that this principle has been carried out as far as the various denominations of hands go; but when we come to the members of the groups the principle is violated. In hands not containing a pair, for instance, ace high will beat Jack high, but it is much more common to hold ace high than Jack high. The exact proportion is 503 to 127. A hand of five cards only seven high but not containing a pair, is rarer than a flush; the proportion being 408 to 510. When we come to two pairs, we find the same inversion of probability and value. A player will hold “aces up,” that is, a pair of aces and another pair inferior to aces, twelve times as often as he will hold “threes up.” In the opinion of the author, in all hands that do not contain a pair, “seven high” should be the best instead of the lowest, and ace high should be the lowest. In hands containing two pairs, “threes up” should be the highest, and “aces up” the lowest.

ECCENTRIC HANDS. In addition to the regular poker hands, which are those already given, there are a few combinations which are played in some parts of the country, especially in the South, either as matter of local custom or by agreement. When any of these are played, it would be well for the person who is not accustomed to them to have a distinct understanding in advance, just what combinations shall be allowed and what hands they will beat. There are four of these eccentric hands, and the figures on the right are the odds against their being dealt to any individual player:

The rank of these extra hands has evidently been assigned by guess-work. The absurdity of their appraised value will be evident if we look at the first of them, the blaze, which is usually played to beat two pairs. As it is impossible to have a blaze which does not contain two pairs of court cards, all that they beat is aces up or kings up. If it were ranked, like other poker hands, by the difficulty of getting it, a blaze should beat a full hand.

All these hands are improperly placed in the scale of poker values, as will be seen by comparing the odds against them. In any games to which these eccentric hands are admitted, the rank of all the combinations would be as follows, if poker principles were followed throughout:—

When the true rank of these eccentric hands is not allowed, local custom must decide what they will beat.

JOKER POKER, or MISTIGRIS. It is not uncommon to leave the joker, or blank card, in the pack. The player to whom this card is dealt may call it anything he pleases. If he has a pair of aces, and the joker, he may call them three aces. If he has four clubs, and the joker, he may call it a flush; or he may make the joker fill out a straight. If he has four of a kind, and the joker, he can beat a royal flush by calling his hand five of a kind. In case of ties, the hand with the mistigris wins; that is to say, an ace and the joker will beat two aces.

A player holding the joker may even call it a duplicate of a card already in his hand. For instance; he might hold the A J 8 5 of hearts and the joker against the A K Q 7 3 of clubs. If he calls the joker the king of hearts, the club flush still beats him as it is queen next. He must call it the ace, which makes his flush ace-ace high.

PROBABILITIES. In estimating the value of his hand as compared to that of any other player, before the draw, the theory of probabilities is of little or no use, and the calculations will vary with the number of players engaged. For instance: If five are playing, some one should have two pairs every fourth deal, because in four deals twenty hands will be given out. If seven are playing, it is probable that five of them will hold a pair of some kind before the draw. Unfortunately, these calculations are not of the slightest practical use to a poker player, because although three of a kind may not be dealt to a player more than once in forty-five times on the average, it is quite a common occurrence for two players to have threes dealt to each of them at the same time. The considerations which must guide the player in judging the comparative value of his hand, both before and after the draw, must be left until we come to the suggestions for good play.

THE ANTE. The player to the left of the age is the one who must make the first announcement of his opinion of his hand, unless he has straddled, in which case the player on the left of the last straddler has the first “say.” If he considers his hand good enough to draw to, let us say a pair of Kings, he must place in the pool, or toward the centre of the table, double the amount of the blind, or of the last straddle, if any. This is called the ante, because it is made before playing the hand, whereas the blind is made before seeing it. The player is not restricted to double the amount of the blind or straddle; he may bet as much more as he pleases within the limit fixed at the beginning of the game. For instance: If there has been only one straddle he must put up four white counters or pass out of the game for that deal. But if he puts up the four, he may put up as many more as he pleases within the limit, which is two blues, or fifty whites. This is called raising the ante. If he does not care to pay twice the amount of the blind or straddle for the privilege of drawing cards to improve his hand, he must throw his cards face downward on the table in front of the player whose turn it will be to deal next. Reasonable time must be allowed for a player to make his decision; but having made it, he must abide by it; a hand once thrown down cannot be taken up again, and counters once placed in the pool, and the hand removed from them, cannot be taken out again, even though placed in the pool by mistake.

The player who has the first say having made his decision, the player next him on the left must then decide. He must put into the pool an amount equal to that deposited by the first player, or abandon his hand. Suppose there has been no straddle, and that all conclude to stay, as it is called. They each in turn put up two white counters until it comes to the age. The one white counter he has already put up as a blind belongs to the pool, but by adding one to it he can make his ante good, and draw cards, always provided no player has raised the ante. If any player has put more counters into the pool than the amount of the ante, all the other players must put up a like amount, or throw down their hands. Suppose five play, and A has the age. B antes two counters, and C puts up seven, the ante and a raise of five. If D and E come in, they must put up seven counters also; and the age, A, must put up six to make his ante good. It now comes to B, who must either lose the two he has already put up, or add five more to them. Let us suppose that D puts up the seven, and that E, the dealer, puts up twelve. This will force the age to put up eleven; B to put up ten; and C to put up five more. This will make each player’s ante an equal amount, twelve counters, and they will then be ready to draw cards. No one can now raise the ante any further, because it is no one’s turn to “say.”

It will thus be seen that every player in his turn can do one of three things, which are sometimes called the a b c of Poker: He can Abdicate; by throwing down his hand, and abandoning whatever money he has already placed in the pool. He can Better; by putting up more money than any player before him, which is sometimes called “going better.” Or, he can Call, by making his amount in the pool equal to the highest bet already made.

Should any player increase the ante to such an extent that none of the others care to call him, they must of course throw down their hands, and as there is no one to play against him, the one who made the last increase in the ante takes down all the counters in the pool. This is called taking the pot, and the cards are gathered, shuffled, and dealt again, the deal passing to the player who was the age.

DRAWING CARDS. All those who have made the ante good have the privilege of discarding, face downward, as many cards as they please, in the place of which they may draw others. The age has the first draw, and can take any number of cards from one to five, or he may stand pat, refusing to draw any. A player cannot receive from the dealer more or less cards than he discards; so that if a person is allowed to play with a short hand, of four cards only, he will still have only four cards after the draw. If his hand was foul, it will remain so after the draw. In drawing, a player may keep or discard what cards he pleases. There is no rule to prevent his throwing away a pair of aces and keeping three clubs if he is so inclined; but the general practice is for the player to retain whatever pairs or triplets he may have, and to draw to them. Four cards of a straight or a flush may be drawn to in the same way, and some make a practice of drawing to one or two high cards, such as an ace and a king, when they have no other chance. Some hands offer opportunities to vary the draw. For instance: A player has dealt to him a small pair; but finds he has also four cards of a straight. He can discard three cards and draw to the pair; or one card, and draw to the straight; or two cards, keeping his ace in the hope of making two good pairs, aces up. The details of the best methods of drawing to various combinations will be discussed when we come to suggestions for good play.

In drawing cards, each player in turn who has made good his ante, beginning with the age, must ask the dealer for the number of cards he wants. The demand must be made so that every player can hear, because after the cards have been delivered by the dealer no one has the right to be informed how many cards any player drew. When the dealer comes to his own hand, he must distinctly announce the number of cards he takes. He must also inform any player asking him how many cards he took, provided the question is put before the player asking it has made a bet, and it is put by a player who has made good his ante to draw cards.

In dealing the cards for the draw, the pack is not cut again, the cards being dealt from the top, beginning where the deal before the draw left off. As each player asks for his cards he must discard those he wants replaced, and he must receive the entire number he asks for before the next player is helped. In some places it is the custom for all those who have made good the ante to discard before any cards are given out. This is not good poker, as it prevents the dealer from seeing that the number discarded is equal to the number asked for. Should any card be found faced in the pack, it must be placed on the table among the discards. Should any card be exposed by the dealer in giving out the cards, or be blown over by the wind before the player has touched it, such card must not be taken by the player under any circumstances, but must be placed with the discards on the table. A player whose card is exposed in this manner does not receive a card to take its place until all the other players have been helped. [The object of this rule is to prevent a dealer from altering the run of the cards in the draw.]

Should a player ask for an incorrect number of cards and they be given him, he must take them if the next player has been helped. If too many, he must discard before seeing them. If too few, he must play them. If he has taken them up and has too many, his hand is foul, and shuts him out of that pool. If the dealer gives himself more cards than he needs he is compelled to take them. For instance: He draws three cards to a pair; but on taking up his hand he finds he had triplets, and really wanted only two cards. He cannot change his draw, and must take the three cards he has dealt off. There is a penalty for not following the strict rule of the game, which is for each player, including the dealer, to discard before he draws.

Should the dealer give any player more cards than he asked for, and the player discover the error before taking them up or looking at any of them, the dealer must withdraw the surplus card, and place it on the top of the pack. Should the dealer give a player fewer cards than he asks for, he must supply the deficiency when his attention is called to it, without waiting to supply the other players. If a player has more or less than five cards after the draw, his hand is foul, and he must abandon it, together with all he may have already staked in the pool.

The dealer may be asked how many cards he drew; but he is not allowed to say how many cards he gave to any other player. Each player must watch the draw for himself.

The last card of the pack must not be dealt. When only two cards remain, the discards and abandoned hands must be gathered, shuffled, and presented to the pone to be cut, and the deal then completed.

BETTING UP THE HANDS. All those who made good the ante having been supplied with cards, the next player who holds cards on the left of the age must make the first bet. Should the age have declined to make good his ante, or have passed out before the draw, that does not transfer the privilege of having the last say to any other player; because the peculiar privilege of the age,—having the last say,—is given in consideration of the blind, which he is compelled to pay, and no other player can have that privilege, because no other player is obliged to play. Even if a player has straddled the blind, he must still make the first bet after the draw, because he straddled of his own free will, and knew at the time that the only advantage the straddle would give him was the last say as to whether or not he would make good his ante and draw cards.

If the player next to the age has passed out before the draw, the next player to the left who still holds cards must make the first bet. The player whose turn it is to bet must either do so, or throw his hand face downward in front of the player whose turn it will be to deal next. If he bets, he can put up any amount from one white counter to the limit, two blues. It then becomes the turn of the player next on his left who still holds cards to abdicate, better, or call. If he calls, he does so by placing in the pool an amount equal to that staked by the last player, and it then becomes the turn of the next player on the left to say what he will do. But if he goes better, he adds to the amount staked by the player on his right any further sum he sees fit, within the limit of two blues. Each player in turn has the same privilege, the age having the last say.

Suppose five play, and that A has the age. B has straddled, and all but the dealer have made good the ante and drawn cards. There are sixteen white counters in the pool, B’s straddle having made the ante four instead of two. Suppose B bets a red counter, and C then throws down his hand. D sees B, by putting up a red counter; and he then raises him, by putting up two blues, increasing his bet as much as the limit will allow him. The age must now abandon his hand or put up one red and two blues to call D, without knowing what B proposes to do. Let us suppose he sees D, and raises another two blues. B must now retire, or put up four blues to call A, without knowing what D will do. He can raise the bet another two blues, or one blue, or a red, or a white even, if he is so minded. If he declines to raise, he cannot prevent D from so doing, because D still has the privilege of replying to A’s raise, and as long as a player has any say about anything, whether it is to abdicate, better, or call, he can do any one of the three. It is only when there is no bet made, or when his own bet is either not called or not raised, that a player has nothing to say. Let us suppose B puts up the four blues to call A. It is now D’s turn. If he puts up two blues, each will have an equal amount in the pool, and as no one will have anything more to say, the betting must stop, and the hands must be shown. But if D raises A again, by putting up four blues instead of two, he gives A another say, and perhaps A will raise D in turn. Although B may have had quite enough of this, he must either put up four more blues, the two raised by D and the further raise by A, or he must abandon his hand. If B throws down his cards he loses all claim to what he has already staked in the pool, four blues and a red, besides his straddle and ante. Let us suppose he drops out, and that D just calls A, by putting up two blues only, making the amount he has in the pool exactly equal to A’s, eight blues and a red, besides the antes. This prevents A from going any further, because it is not his turn to say anything. He is not asked to meet any one’s raise, nor to make any bet himself, but simply to show his hand, in order to see whether or not it is better than D’s.

SHOWING HANDS. It is the general usage that the hand called must be shown first. In this case A’s hand is called, for D was the one who called a halt on A in the betting, and stopped him from going any further. The strict laws of the game require that both hands must be shown, and if there are more than two in the final call, all must be shown to the table. The excuse generally made for not showing the losing hand is that the man with the worse hand paid to see the better hand; but it must not be forgotten that the man with the better hand has paid exactly the same amount, and is equally entitled to see the worse hand. There is an excellent rule in some clubs that a player refusing to show his hand in a call shall refund the amount of the antes to all the other players, or pay all the antes in the next jack pot. The rule of showing both hands is a safeguard against collusion between two players, one of whom might have a fairly good hand, and the other nothing; but by mutually raising each other back and forth they could force any other player out of the pool. The good hand could then be called and shown, the confederate simply saying, “That is good,” and throwing down his hand. Professionals call this system of cheating, “raising out.”

When the hands are called and shown, the best poker hand wins, their rank being determined by the table of values already given. In the example just given suppose that A, on being called by D, had shown three fours, and that D had three deuces. A would take the entire pool, including all the antes, and the four blues and one red staked by B after the draw. It might be that B would now discover that he had laid down the best hand, having held three sixes. This discovery would be of no benefit to him, for he abandoned his hand when he declined to meet the raises of A and D.

If the hands are exactly a tie, the pool must be divided among those who are in at the call. For instance: Two players show aces up, and each finds his opponent’s second pair to be eights. The odd card must decide the pool; and if that card is also a tie the pool must be divided.

If no bet is made after the draw, each player in turn throwing down his cards, the antes are won by the last player who holds his hand. This is usually the age, because he has the last say. If the age has not made good his ante, it will be the dealer, and so on to the right. There is no necessity for the fortunate player to show his hand; the mere fact that he is the only one holding any cards is prima facie evidence that his hand is the best. On the same principle, the player who has made a bet or raise which no other player will see, wins the pool without showing his hand, as he must be the only one with cards in his hand; for when a player refuses to see a bet he must abandon his hand, and with it all pretensions to the pool. If he wishes to call, but has not money enough, he must borrow it. He cannot demand a show of hands for what counters he has, except in table stakes.

During the betting, players are at liberty to make any remarks they see fit, and to tell as many cheerful lies about their hands as they please. A player may even miscall his hand when he shows it; the cards speak for themselves, just as the counters do, and what a player says does not affect either in the slightest. If a player says: “I raise you two blues,” the statement amounts to nothing until the blues have been placed in the pool, and the owner’s hand removed from them. There is no penalty if a player, during the betting, tells his adversaries exactly what he holds; nor is he likely to lose anything by it, for no one will believe him.

JACK POTS. The addition of jack pots has probably done more to injure Poker than the trump signal has injured Whist. In the early days, when poker parties were small, four players being a common number, it was frequently the case that no one had a pair strong enough to draw to, and such a deal was regarded as simply a waste of time. To remedy this, it was proposed that whenever no player came in, each should be obliged to ante an equal amount for the next deal, and just to demonstrate that there were some good hands left in the pack no one was allowed to draw cards until some one had Jacks or better to draw to.

The result of this practice was to make jack pots larger than the other pools, because every one was compelled to ante, and this seems to have prompted those who were always wanting to increase the stakes to devise excuses for increasing the number of jack pots. This has been carried so far that the whole system has become a nuisance, and has destroyed one of the finest points in the game of Poker,—the liberty of personal judgment as to every counter put into the pool, except the blind. The following excuses for making jack pots are now in common use:

After a Misdeal some parties make it a jack; but the practice should be condemned, because it puts it in the power of any individual player to make it a jack when he deals.

The Buck is some article, such as a penknife, which is placed in the pool at the beginning of the game, and is taken down with the rest of the pool by whichever player wins it. When it comes to his deal, it is a jack pot, and the buck is placed in the pool with the dealer’s ante, to be won, taken down, and make another jack in the same way.

The usual custom is to fix the amount of the ante in jack pots, a red, or five whites, being the common stake. In some places it is at the option of the holder of the buck to make the ante any amount he pleases within the betting limit. Whichever system is adopted, every player at the table must deposit a like amount in the pool. Players are sometimes permitted to pass a jack; that is, not to ante nor to take any part in the game until the jack is decided. If this is to be allowed, it should be so understood at the beginning of the game.

The High Hand jack pot is played whenever a hand of an agreed value, such as a flush or a full, is shown to the board; that is, called. In some places four of a kind calls for a round of jacks, every player in turn making it a jack on his deal.

Only Two In. It is a common custom in large parties, say six or seven players, to make it a jack when no one but the dealer will ante. Instead of allowing the blind to make his ante good, and draw cards against the dealer, each player contributes two white counters, the age adding one to his blind, and the cards are redealt for a jack pot. Another variety of this custom is when the blind is opposed by only one ante, to allow the age to make this player take down his two counters, and to pay two counters for him, to make it a jack. For instance: Five play, and A has the age. B and C pass, and D antes two counters. The dealer, E, says: “I pass for a jack.” A then puts up three counters, one of which is added to his blind, the other two paying D’s ante in the ensuing jack. D takes down his two counters, and the cards are redealt. This cannot be done if more than one player has anted, nor if the ante has been raised or the blind straddled. In the example just given, had D raised the ante to five counters and E passed, the age would have had to put up four more white counters and draw cards, or allow D to win his blind.

Progressive Jacks. In some localities it is the custom to make the pair necessary to open a jack pot progress in value; Jacks or better to open the first round; Queens the next; then Kings; then Aces; and then back to Kings, Queens, and Jacks again. This is very confusing, and is not popular.

Fattening Jacks. When the original ante is two counters only, and no one holds Jacks or better on the first deal, each player must contribute another white counter to “fatten,” and the cards are dealt again. This continues until the pot is opened; that is, until some player holds a hand as good or better than a pair of Jacks. The fattening process is followed when the dealer can make the original ante what he pleases; but if the ante for jacks is a fixed sum, such as a red counter, it is not usual to fatten the pot at all. This saves all disputes as to who is shy, one of the greatest nuisances in Poker.

Opening Jacks. As there is no age or straddle in any form of jack pot, the player to the left of the dealer has the first say, and must examine his hand to see if he has Jacks or better; that is to say, either an actual pair of Jacks, or some hand that would beat a pair of Jacks if called upon to do so, such as two pairs, a straight, or triplets. In some localities it is allowed to open jacks with a bobtail; that is, four cards of a flush or straight. If the player on the dealer’s left has not openers, or does not care to open the pot if he has, he says: “I pass;” but he does not abandon his hand. The next player on his left must then declare. In some places players are allowed to throw down their cards when they pass; but in first-class games a penalty of five white counters must be paid into the pool by any player abandoning his hand before the second round of declarations, as it gives an undue advantage to players with medium hands to know that they have only a limited number of possible opponents. For instance: If six play, and the first three not only pass, but throw down and abandon their cards, a player with a pair of Jacks will know that he has only two possible adversaries to draw against him, which will so increase his chances that it may materially alter his betting.

If no one acknowledges to holding Jacks or better, the pot is fattened, and the cards are reshuffled and dealt. The best practice is for the same dealer to deal again until some one gets Jacks or better. This is called dealing off the jack. If any player has forfeited his right in one deal, such as by having a foul hand, that does not prevent him coming into the pot again on the next deal with rights equal to the other players.

If any player holds Jacks or better, he can open the pot, or “the jack,” for any amount he pleases within the betting limit. The expression “open” is used because after one player has declared that he holds Jacks or better, all restrictions are removed, and the pool is then open to any player to come in and play for it, regardless of what he may hold. Each player in turn, beginning on the left of the opener, must declare whether or not he will stay. If he stays, he must put up an amount equal to that bet by the opener, and has the privilege of raising him if he sees fit. If he passes, he throws his cards face downward on the table in front of the player whose turn it will be to deal next. Should the opener be raised, and not care to see that raise, he must show his hand to the table before abandoning it, in order to demonstrate that he had openers. Some players show only the cards necessary to open, but the strict rules require the whole hand to be shown before the draw. When once the jack is opened, the betting before the draw proceeds exactly as in the ordinary pool. Any player on the right of the opener, who passed on the first round, may come in after the pot is opened. For instance: E deals. A and B pass, but hold their hands. C opens, and D throws down his hand. E sees the opener’s bet, and it then becomes the turn of A and B, who have passed once, to say whether or not they will play, now that the pot is opened.

When all those who have declared to stay have deposited an equal amount in the pool, they draw cards to improve their hands, just as in the ordinary pool, the player on the dealer’s left being helped first. All those who draw cards, except the opener, throw their discards into the centre of the table as usual; but the opener is obliged always to place his discard under the chips in the pool. This is in order that he may be able to show what he held originally, in case he should conclude to split his openers in order to try for a better hand. For instance: He has opened with a pair of Jacks, but has four of one suit in his hand. Four other players have stayed, perhaps the bet has been raised, and he knows that his Jacks will probably be worthless, even if he gets a third. So he breaks the pair, and draws for a flush. As the opener always places his discard under the chips in the pool, it is not necessary for him to betray his game by telling the whole table that he is drawing to a bobtail.

False Openers. Should a player open a jack without the hand to justify it, and discover his error before he draws, the best usage demands that his hand is foul, and that he forfeits to the pool whatever amount he may have opened for, and any raises that he may have stood. There are then three ways to play: First. Those who have come in under the impression that the pot had been legitimately opened but who have not openers themselves, can withdraw their money, and allow any one to open it who has openers. This is very unfair to those on the left of the false opener who have abandoned their hands. Second. Those who have come into the pot after the false opening are allowed to stay in, and play for it, no matter what their hands are. Third. On discovery of the false opening, each player is allowed to take down whatever amount he may have paid into the pool, including his original ante and all fatteners, and the false opener must then make the entire amount good. The cards are then dealt afresh. This is a very harsh punishment for a very trifling and common error.

The second method is the most popular, and probably the fairest, and is now the universal rule.

If the false opener does not discover his mistake until he has drawn cards, his action is at least suspicious, and he should be compelled to put up the total amount in the pool, as in case three. In some localities such a player is barred from playing the next two jacks, but compelled to ante his share in each.

Betting Jacks. When a jack pot has been properly opened, and all have declared whether or not they will stay, and have drawn cards, the players proceed to bet on their hands. As there is no age in jack pots, the rule is for the opener to make the first bet; or, if he has been raised out before the draw, the player next on his left who still holds cards. The opener may decline to bet if he pleases; but if he does so, he must show his openers, and then abandon his hand. If no bet is made, the last player holding cards takes the pool without showing his hand. If a bet is made, each player in turn on the left must abdicate, better, or call, just as in the ordinary pool. At the conclusion of the betting, if there is a call, the best poker hand wins, of course. If there is no call, the player making the last bet or raise takes the pool without showing his hand, unless he is the opener, when the whole hand need not be shown, as it is no one’s business what the opener got in the draw, no one having paid to see it. All he need show is openers. But should the opener be one of those in the final call, he must show his whole hand. Should it then be discovered that he has not openers, the false opener is compelled to ante for all the players at the table for another Jack. This is usually called giving them a “free ride.”

The Kitty is now an almost universal adjunct to the pool. In clubs, it pays for the cards, and for an occasional round of refreshments; in small poker parties it defrays the expense of the weekly supper. When the amount is excessive, or accumulates too rapidly, it is often used to give the players a “free ride” by paying all their antes in a “kitty jack pot.”

The kitty is usually kept by the banker, who takes a white counter out of every pool in which triplets or better are shown to the board, and a red counter out of every jack pot. These counters must be kept apart from the other chips, and must be accounted for at the end of the game by paying the kitty so much in cash, just as if it was one of the players.

Gambling houses and poker rooms are supposed to derive their entire revenue from this source, and those of the lowest class invent endless excuses for taking out for the kitty. In many houses there is a sliding scale for various hands; one counter being taken for two pairs; two counters for triplets; three for straights or flushes; and a red for fours, jack pots, and misdeals. It is not uncommon for the proprietors of such games to find thirty or forty dollars in the kitty after a night’s play with five-cent chips.

TABLE STAKES. This is one of several variations in arranging the stakes and the betting limit. In some localities it is the custom to allow each player to purchase as many counters as he pleases; in others it is the rule to compel each to buy an equal number at the start, usually two hundred times the amount of the blind. In table stakes the betting limit is always the amount that the player has in front of him; but no player is allowed either to increase or diminish that amount while he has any cards in front of him. Before the cards are dealt for any pool he may announce that he wishes to buy counters, or that he has some to sell to any other player wishing to purchase; but for either transaction the consent of all the other players must be obtained. No player is allowed under any circumstances to borrow from another, nor to be “shy” in any pot; that is, to say, “I owe so many.” If he has any counters in front of him, his betting is limited to what he has; if he has none, he is out of the game, for that hand at least. As a player cannot increase the amount he has in front of him during the play of a hand, it is best to keep on the table at all times as much as one is likely to want to bet on any one hand.

It is the usual custom, and an excellent one, to fix upon a definite hour for closing a game of table stakes, and to allow no player to retire from the game before that hour unless he is decavÉ, (has lost all his capital). Should he insist on retiring, whatever counters he has must be divided among the other players, and if there are any odd ones after the division, they must be put into the current pool.

In table stakes, any player may call a sight for what money or counters he has in front of him, even should another player have bet a much larger amount. For instance: A has bet three dollars, and B has only two dollars in front of him, but wishes to call A. B calls for a sight by putting his two dollars in the pool, and A must then withdraw his third dollar from the pool, but leave it on the table to be called or raised by any other player. Should C wish to call A, or even to raise him, A and C may continue the betting independently of B’s part of the pool. Should C have even less money than B, say one dollar, he may still further reduce the original pool, leaving the two dollars aside for settlement between A and B, and A’s third dollar still aside from that again for the decision of any other player.

Let us suppose that A and C continue the betting until one calls. When the hands are shown, if either A’s or C’s is better than B’s, B loses his interest; but if B’s hand is better than either A’s hand or C’s hand, he takes the part of the pool for which he called a sight, while A and C decide the remainder between them. For instance: A calls C, and C shows three tens. Neither A nor B can beat it, and C takes everything. But if B had three Jacks, and A only three fives, B would take the part of the pool for which he called a sight, and C would take the remainder.

Should C have raised and bluffed A out, or have bet so much that A finally refused to call, A would have no interest in either pool, and C would take all the money outside the pool for which B called a sight. Should it then transpire, on the show of hands between B and C, that A had laid down a better hand than either of them, that would not entitle A to claim the sight pool from B, because in laying down his hand he has practically acknowledged that C’s hand is better, and has retired from the game. If B’s hand is better than C’s, B takes the sight pool.

FREEZE OUT. This might be called a variety of table stakes. At the start, each player is supplied with an equal number of counters; but no one is allowed to replenish his stock, or to withdraw or loan any part of it. As soon as any player has lost his capital he is decavÉ, or frozen out, and must permanently retire from the game. The other players continue until only one remains, who must of course win everything on the table. This is not a popular form of Poker, because it is sometimes a long time before a player who is frozen out can get into a game again.

SHOW-DOWN POKER. This is a variety of draw poker, in which each player takes the five cards dealt to him and turns them face up so that all the other players can see them. Each player discards and draws in turn, eldest hand first. As soon as a hand is beaten it is thrown into the deadwood, all the cards drawn being dealt face up.

FLAT POKER. In this variety of the game, before the cards are dealt, the age puts up, for a blind, any amount he pleases within the limit. Those who are willing to bet a similar amount on the possibilities of their hands put up a similar amount. Those who decline are not given any cards. There are no straddles, raises, or antes. Immediately after the deal each player who is in the pool draws cards, the age first. There are then two ways to play: The hands are shown and the best wins; or, beginning with the age, each player may say if he will back his hand against the field; i.e., all the others in the pool. If he will, he must put up as much as their combined stakes. He cannot be raised; but if any one player or combination of players call him, and one of them can beat his hand, the field divide the pool. For instance: Age makes it a blue, and three others stay with him. After the draw C puts up three blues against the field. D and A call it, and all show hands. If any of the three, A, B or D can beat C they divide the pool, B getting his third, although he did not contribute to the call. This game is a pure gamble; except that a bold player may occasionally bluff the field off.

METHODS OF CHEATING. Poker and its congeners have received more attention from the greeks than any other family of card games. In fact it is generally believed that the term greek, as applied to a card sharper, had its origin in the Adam of the poker family, which was a gambling game introduced by the Greeks in Italy.

So numerous and so varied are the methods of cheating at Poker that it is an axiom among gamblers that if a pigeon will not stand one thing he will another. The best informed make it a rule never to play Poker with strangers, because they realize that it is impossible for any but a professional gambler to know half the tricks employed by the poker sharp. It is a notorious fact that even the shrewdest gamblers are continually being taken in by others more expert than themselves. What chance then has the honest card player?

There are black sheep in all flocks, and it may be well to give a few hints to those who are in the habit of playing in mixed companies.

Never play with a man who looks attentively at the faces of the cards as he gathers them for his deal; or who stands the pack on edge, with the faces of the cards towards him, and evens up the bunch by picking out certain cards, apparently because they are sticking up. Any pack can be straightened by pushing the cards down with the hand. The man who lifts them up is more than probably a cheat.

Never play with a man who looks intently at the pack and shuffles the cards slowly. If he is not locating the cards for the ensuing deal he is wasting time, and should be hurried a little.

Never play with a person who leaves the cut portion of the pack on the table, and deals off the other part. In small parties this is a very common way of working what is known as the top stock. If such a dealer is carefully watched it will usually be found that he seizes the first opportunity to place the part cut off on the top of the part dealt from. The top stock is then ready for the draw, and the judicious player should at once cash his chips and retire from the game.

Never play with a man who continually holds his cards very close to his body, or who completely conceals his hand before the draw, or who takes great care to put his discard among previous discards, so that the exact number of cards put out cannot be counted. He is probably working a vest or sleeve hold-out. Some clumsy or audacious sharpers will go so far as to hold out cards in their lap, or stick them in a “bug” under the table. One of the most successful poker sharps ever known, “Eat-um-up Jake” Blackburn, who had a hand like a ham, could hold out five cards in his palm while he carried on all the operations of shuffling, dealing, and playing his hand. Such men require great dexterity and nerve to get rid of their “deadwood,” or surplus cards, without detection. Holding out is regarded by the professional as a most dangerous experiment, but it is very common.

Never play with a man who keeps his eyes rivetted on the cards as he deals, and who deals comparatively slowly. He is probably using marked cards, or has marked the important ones himself during the play. Poker sharps who mark cards by scratching them with a sharp point concealed in a ring are obliged to hold the cards at a certain angle to the light in order to see the scratches. Those who dig points in the cards with the thumb nail depend on touch instead of sight. If you find such points on the cards, either dig other points on other cards, or retire from the game.

Against the hold-out or marked cards there is no protection, because the dealer does not care how much the cards in the pack are shuffled or cut; but every method of running up hands, or stocking cards, can be made ineffective if the pone will not only cut the cards, but carefully reunite the packets. If the two parts are straightened after the cut, it will be impossible for the dealer to shift the cut, and bring the cards back to their original position. The dealer will sometimes bend the top or bottom card so as to form a bridge, which will enable him to find the place where the cards were cut. This can only be overcome by shuffling the cards instead of cutting them, which every player has the right to do. If you insist on shuffling, the greek will do the same in his turn, and will run up hands to be dealt to himself. It is perfectly useless to endeavour to protect yourself against a poker sharp; the only remedy is to leave the game.

Many persons have a strong prejudice against playing with a man who shuffles his chips. The mere fact of his being an expert at chip shuffling has nothing to do with the game of poker, the accomplishment usually being the result of long experience at the faro table. The reason for the prejudice is that a chip shuffler is usually cold blooded, courageous, and seldom a loser at any game that requires nerve.

SUGGESTIONS FOR GOOD PLAY. Volumes might be written for the guidance of the poker player without improving his game a particle, unless he possesses at least one of four qualifications: Control over his features and actions; judgment of human nature; courage; and patience. The man whose face or manner betrays the nature of his hand, or the effect of an opponent’s bet or raise, will find everyone to beat his weak hands, and no one to call his strong ones. Unless he is a fair judge of human nature he will never be able to estimate the strength or peculiarities of the players to whom he is opposed, and will fail to distinguish a bluff from an ambuscade. Without courage he cannot reap the full benefit of his good hands; and without patience he cannot save his money in the time of adversity.

Of one thing every player may rest assured, and that is that Poker cannot be played by mathematical formulas. Beyond the most elementary calculations of the chances in favour of certain events the theory of probabilities is of no assistance. It is not necessary to call in a mathematician to prove that a player who habitually discards a pair of aces to draw to three cards of a suit will lose by the operation in the long run. Nor will any amount of calculation convince some players that they are wasting their money to stay in a jack pot in order to draw to a pair of tens, although such is the fact.

The various positions occupied by the player at the poker table may be briefly examined, and some general suggestions offered for his guidance in each of them. In the first place he should look out for his counters. It is always best for each player to place the amount of his ante or his bet immediately in front of him, so that there need be no dispute as to who is up, or who is shy. Above all it should be insisted that any player who has once put counters in the pool, and taken his hand from them, should not again take them down.

The Age is the most valuable position at the table, but it is seldom fully taken advantage of. The age should never look at his hand until it is his turn to make good his blind. He may pick up his cards, but he should use his eyes in following the manner and facial expression of the other players as they sort their cards. One of the greatest errors made by the age is in thinking that he must save his blind. The player who draws to nothing because he can do so cheaply, will usually have nothing to draw at the end of the game. The age can usually afford to draw to four-card flushes, and to straights open at both ends, but should not do so when there are less than three who have paid to draw cards, or when the ante has been raised.

If the age holds Kings or better before the draw, he should invariably raise the ante unless there are five players in the pool besides himself, or unless some other player has already raised. If he holds two pairs, he should do all his betting before the draw. If any other player has raised, or his own raise is re-raised, the age must use his judgment of the player and the circumstances. It is useless for the age to disguise his hand by such manoeuvres as holding up an odd card to a pair, unless he raises the blind at the same time. If he draws one or two cards only, and has not raised the blind, every one will credit him for a small pair and an ace, or for a bobtail, and will inevitably call any bluff he may make. The age is the poorest position at the table for a bluff, but it is decidedly the best in which to win large pots with moderate hands.

The Dealer has the next best position to the age, and in large parties there is very little difference in the way in which the two positions should be played.

The first bettor has the worst position at the table and he should seldom come in on less than Queens. He should seldom raise the ante, even with two pairs, as he will only drive others out. In this position very little can be made out of good hands, because every one expects to find them there; but it offers many excellent opportunities for successful bluffing. A player in this position should never straddle. Many players endeavour to force their luck in this way, but it is a losing game, and the best players seldom or never straddle. Having to make the first bet after the draw, it is usual for the player in this position, if he has an average hand, to chip along, by simply betting a single counter, and waiting for developments. With a strong hand, it is best to bet its full value at once, on the chance that the bet may be taken for a bluff, and called.

Other Positions. As the positions go round the table from the first bettor to the age, they become more desirable, and little need be said of them beyond the consideration of the average strength necessary for a player to go in on.

GOING IN. There is a great difference of opinion as to the minimum value of a hand which should justify a player in drawing cards if he can do so for the usual ante. In close games many players make it a rule not to go in on less than tens, while in more liberal circles the players will draw to any pair. In determining which course to follow, the individual must be guided by his observation and judgment. Suppose five play, and A observes that B and C constantly draw to small pairs, while D and E never come in on less than tens. If A has the age, B, D, and E having anted, A may be sure that there are at least two good hands against him, and will guide himself accordingly. But if B and C are the only players in, A may safely draw to a small pair. It can be mathematically demonstrated that what is called an average go-in hand should be at least a pair of tens; but a player who waits for tens in a liberal game, in which others are drawing to ace high, will ante himself away if there are many jack pots, and will get no calls when he gets a hand.

BETTING. Good players are guided by the general character of the game in which they take part. Some parties play a very liberal game, and the players bet high on medium hands, and give every one a good fight. It is best to have liberal or lucky players on your right; because if they sit behind you, they will continually raise you, and you will be forced either to overbid your hand on the same liberal scale that they adopt, or lose what you have already put up. If a liberal player sits on your right you will often be able to make large winnings on moderate hands. In a close game, when the players bet in a niggardly manner, the liberal player is at a great disadvantage; for he can win little or nothing on his good hands, but will lose large amounts when he runs up the betting on a good hand which is opposed to one that is better. When a liberal player finds a close player following him freely, he may be sure there is a very strong hand against him.

VARIETY. Above all things a player should avoid regularity in his play, because observant adversaries will soon learn his methods. The best players usually play two pairs pat, without drawing, about half the time. This gives them the reputation of betting on pat hands which are not genuine, and when they get one that is real, they will often succeed in getting a good bet, or even a raise, from those holding triplets or two large pairs, who have noticed them play two pairs pat. In the same way it is advisable to hold up an odd card occasionally, without raising the ante; so that when you do hold triplets, and draw two cards, you will not frighten every one at the table. The chances of improving a pair by drawing three cards, are one in three; and by drawing two cards only, one in four. The difference is worth the moral effect of the variation in the play.

PROBABILITIES. The endless poker statistics that have been published are of little or no value to the practical player, and there are only a few figures that are worth remembering. It is a general law in all games of chance that you should never do a thing which you would not be willing to repeat under the same circumstances a hundred times. The best example of the application of this law is in drawing to bobtails. If you have a four-card flush to draw to, the odds against getting it are about four to one; and unless you can obtain the privilege of drawing to it by paying not more than one-fifth of the amount in the pool, you will lose by it in the long run. The best players never draw to four-card flushes except when they have the age, and the ante has not been raised.

There are some players who pretend to be so guided by probabilities that they never go into a pool unless the chances in favour of their having a good hand after the draw are at least equal to the odds they have to bet by going into the pool. This is all nonsense; for no player knows when he goes into a pool how much it will cost him to get out, and the value of his individual hand is an unknown quantity at the best, because it cannot be compared to the others. One thing only is certain, and that is that in the long run the player who goes in with the strongest hand will still have the strongest hand after the draw. This is an important thing to remember in jack pots, in which the value of at least one hand is known. If you draw to a pair smaller than Jacks, you do so with the full knowledge that the pair itself is not strong enough to win. Now what are the odds against your winning the pool? Suppose you hold tens, and draw three cards. Your chance of improving your hand is a little better than one in five. The opener of the jack pot has exactly the same chance, and if both of you draw cards a hundred times under those circumstances, he will beat you in the long run, to say nothing of the other players who may come in and beat both of you. It is therefore evident that in backing tens against openers, it is four to one against your beating the openers to begin with, and if you do beat them the odds are still against your winning the pot. If there were five players, and the jack pots were all equal in amount, you would have to win one pot out of five to make your investment pay. Can you make this average when your original pair will not beat openers?

There are three principles with regard to the draw that should never be lost sight of:

(1) An average go-in hand is a hand which will win its proportion of the pools, according to the number playing, taking all improvements and opposition into account. This can be demonstrated to be a pair of tens.

(2) The draw is much more valuable to a weak hand than to a strong one, and weak hands will improve in much greater proportion than strong ones will. For instance: The chances for a player to improve by drawing to a pair of Queens are one in three and a half. He may make two pairs, or triplets, or a full hand, or four of a kind. The chances of improvement for a player drawing to two pairs, say Eights up, are only one in thirteen. This consideration leads players to adopt two lines of play: To bet all they intend to on two pairs before the draw, in order to prevent weaker hands drawing cards and improving; or, to discard the smaller pair in order to increase their chances of improvement.

(3) The smaller the number of players, the greater the value of the hands; and the larger the number of players, the greater the chance that any given hand will be beaten. When only two play, you can safely bet the limit on a pair of Eights; but in a party of eight players they are hardly worth drawing to. For this reason average hands should force the weaker out, and reduce the number of players before the draw.

For the benefit of those interested in such matters the probable improvement by the draw may be briefly given.

It is 2½ to 1 against improving a pair by drawing three cards; the chances against making triplets or two pairs being 8 to 1; against a full hand, 61 to 1; and against four of a kind, 364 to 1. It is 4 to 1 against improving a pair by drawing two cards; the chances against triplets being 12 to 1, and 8 to 1 against two pairs.

It is 12 to 1 against making a full hand by drawing to two pairs.

It is 8 to 1 against improving triplets by drawing two cards; 14½ to 1 against a full hand, and 23 to 1 against four of a kind. It is 12 to 1 against improving if one card is drawn; 16 to 1 against the full, and 46 to 1 against four of a kind.

It is 11 to 1 against making a straight out of a sequence of four cards which is open in the middle, or at one end only. It is 5 to 1 against making a straight out of a sequence of four which is open at both ends.

It is 4½ to 1 against filling a four-card flush. It is 23 to 1 against filling a three-card flush. It is 95 to 1 against filling a two-card flush.

It is 3 to 1 against improving a four-card straight flush which is open at both ends. The chances against getting the straight or the flush have been given; the odds against getting the straight flush are 24 to 1. The chance for getting a pair exists; but the pair would probably be worthless.

It is 4 to 1 against improving a four-card straight flush open in the middle, or at one end only; the odds against getting the straight flush being 46 to 1.

There are several minor or speculative draws which may be of interest. Drawing to an ace and a King, it is 3 to 1 against making a pair of either. It is 4 to 1 against making a pair of aces by drawing four cards to an ace; and 12 to 1 against making aces up, or better. It is 24 to 1 against making a straight by drawing to three cards of it, open at both ends. It is 12 to 1 against making either a straight or a flush by drawing to three cards of a straight flush, open at both ends.

HOW TO WIN AT POKER. There have been many alleged infallible receipts for winning at Poker. Proctor thought that refusing to go in on less than triplets would prove a certainty; but in the same paragraph he acknowledges that the adversaries would soon learn the peculiarity, and avoid betting against the player. Triplets before the draw occur about once in every 45 hands. If five were playing, a person following Proctor’s advice would have to blind 9 times, and ante in at least 12 jack pots in every 45 hands, to say nothing of fattening. This means an outlay of at least 75 counters. When the triplets come, will he get back 75 counters on them? He will probably win the blind, and one or two antes; but the moment he makes his own ante good, every player who cannot beat triplets, knowing his system, will lay down his hand.

An extensive observation of the methods of the best players has led the author to the conclusion that the great secret of success in Poker, apart from natural aptitude for the game, and being a good actor, is to avoid calling. If you think you have the best hand, raise. If you think you have not the best, lay it down. Although you may sometimes lay down a better hand than the one that takes the pool, the system will prove of immense advantage to you in two ways: In the first place, you will find it a great educator of the judgment; and in the second place, it will take almost any opponent’s nerve. Once an adversary has learned your method, it is not a question of his betting a red chip on his hand; but of his willingness to stand a raise of two blues, which he will regard as inevitable if you come in against him at all. The fear of this raise will prompt many a player to lay down a moderately good hand without a bet; so that you have all the advantage of having made a strong bluff without having put up a chip. The system will also drive all but the most courageous to calling your hand on every occasion, being afraid of a further and inevitable raise; and it is an old saying that a good caller is a sure loser.

The theory of calling is to get an opportunity to compare your hand with your adversary’s. Now, if you think that after the comparison yours will prove the better hand, why not increase the value of the pool? If, on the contrary, you fear that his hand will beat yours, why throw good money after bad? If you don’t think at all about it, and have no means of forming an opinion as to the respective merits of your hands, you are not a poker player, and have no business in the game.

BLUFFING. There is nothing connected with Poker on which persons have such confused ideas as on the subject of bluffing. The popular impression seems to be that a stiff upper lip, and a cheerful expression of countenance, accompanied by a bet of five dollars, will make most people lay down three aces; and that this result will be brought about by the five-dollar bet, without any regard to the player’s position at the table, the number of cards he drew, his manner of seeing or raising the ante, or the play of his adversaries before the draw. The truth of the matter is that for a bluff to be either sound in principle or successful in practice, the player must carefully select his opportunity. The bluff must be planned from the start, and consistently played from the ante to the end. To use a common expression: “The play must be right for it, or the bluff will be wrong.”

There are many cases in which a bluff of fifty cents would be much stronger than one of five dollars; the difference depending on the player’s position at the table, his treatment of the ante, and the number of cards he had drawn. As an example of the play being right for a bluff, take the following case: Five play in a jack pot. A and B have passed when C opens it for the limit. D and E pass out, but A and B both stay, and each draws one card. C takes two cards, and as it is his first bet he puts up the limit on his three aces. A drops out, but B raises C the limit in return. Now, if C is a good player he will lay down his three aces, even if he faintly suspects B is bluffing, because B’s play is sound in any case. He either could not, or pretended he could not open the jack; but he could afford to pay the limit to draw one card against openers, and he could afford to raise the limit against an opener’s evidently honest two-card draw. As a matter of fact the whole play was a bluff; for B not only had nothing, but had nothing to draw to originally.

Another variety of the bluff, which is the author’s own invention, will often prove successful with strangers, but it can seldom be repeated in the same company. Suppose six play in a jack pot. A passes, and B opens it by quietly putting up his counters. C and D pass, and E, pretending not to know that B has opened it, announces that he will open it for the limit, although he has not a pair in his hand. He is of course immediately informed that it has been opened, upon which he unhesitatingly raises it for the limit. Whatever the others do, E stands pat, and looks cheerful. The author has never known this bluff to be called.

Holding a strong hand, a player may often coax another to raise him, by offering to divide the pool.

The successful bluffer should never show his hand. Even if he starts the game by bluffing for advertising purposes, hoping to get called on good hands later, he should not show anything or tell anything that the others do not pay to see or know. Bluffing is usually more successful when a player is in a lucky vein than when he has been unfortunate.

POKER LAWS.

1. Formation of Table. A poker table is complete with seven players. If eight play the dealer must take no cards, or a sixty-card pack must be used. If there are more than seven candidates for play, two tables must be formed unless the majority decide against it.

2. Cutting. The players who shall form the table, and their positions at the beginning of the game may be decided by drawing from an outspread pack, or by throwing round a card to each candidate, face up. If there are eight or more candidates, the tables shall divide evenly if the number is even, those cutting the highest cards playing together. If the number is odd, the smaller table shall be formed by those cutting the highest cards. In cutting, the ace is low. Any player exposing more than one card must cut again.

3. The table formed, the players draw from the outspread pack for positions. The lowest cut has the first choice, and deals the first hand. The player cutting the next lowest has the next choice, and so on until all are seated.

4. Ties. If players cut cards of equal value they must cut again; but the new cut decides nothing but the tie.

5. Stakes. Any player may be the banker, and keep the kitty, if any. In Draw, Straight, or Stud Poker, each player may purchase as many counters as he pleases. In Freeze-out, Table Stakes, Whiskey Poker, and Progressive Poker, each player must begin with an equal amount.

6. Betting Limits. Before play begins limits must be agreed upon for the amount of the blind, the straddle, the ante in jack pots, and for betting or raising.

7. Shuffling. Before the first deal the pack must be counted to see that it contains the proper number of cards. Should the first dealer neglect this he forfeits five counters to the pool. Before each deal the cards must be shuffled. Any player may shuffle, the dealer last.

8. Cutting to the Dealer. The dealer must present the pack to the pone, [the player on his right,] to be cut. The pone may either cut, or signify that he does not wish to do so, by tapping the pack with his knuckles. Should the pone decline to cut, no other player can insist on his doing so, nor do it for him. If he cuts, he must leave at least four cards in each packet, and the dealer or the pone must reunite the packets by placing the one not removed in cutting upon the other.

9. If in cutting, or in reuniting the packets, a card is exposed, the pack must be reshuffled and cut.

10. If the dealer reshuffles the pack after it has been properly cut, he forfeits five counters to the current pool.

11. Dealing Before the Draw. After the age, [the player on the dealer’s left,] has put up the amount of the blind, the dealer distributes the cards face down, one at a time, in rotation, until each player has received five cards.

12. The deal passes to the left, except in jack pots, when it may be agreed that the same dealer shall deal until the pot is opened.

13. Misdealing. A misdeal does not lose the deal; the same dealer must deal again. It is a misdeal: If the dealer fails to present the pack to the pone; or if any card is found faced in the pack; or if the pack is found imperfect; or if the dealer gives six or more cards to more than one player; or if he deals more or fewer hands than there are players; or if he omits a player in dealing; or if he deals a card incorrectly, and fails to correct the error before dealing another.

14. Irregularities in the Hands. Should the dealer, or the wind, turn over any card, the player to whom it is dealt must take it; but the same player cannot be compelled to take two exposed cards. Should such a combination occur there must be a new deal. If the player exposes cards himself, he has no remedy.

15. Should any player receive more or less than his proper number of cards, and discover the error before he looks at any card in his hand, or lifts it from the table, he may demand a new deal if no bet has been made; or he may ask the dealer to give him another card from the pack if he has too few, or to draw a card if he has too many. Cards so drawn must not be exposed, but should be placed on the top of the pack. If a bet has been made, there must be a new deal. Should the player take up his hand, or look at any card in it, he has no remedy.

16. Should a player take up a hand containing more or less than five cards, or look at any card in it, such a hand is foul, and he must abandon it, forfeiting any interest he may have in that pool. If one player has six cards and his neighbour four, neither having lifted or looked at any card, the dealer may be called upon to draw a card from the six hand and give it to the four hand.

17. Straddling. During the deal, or at any time before he looks at any card in his hand, the player to the left of the age may straddle the blind by putting up double the amount put up by the age. Should he straddle, the player on his left may double the amount again, provided he has not seen any of his cards; and so on, until the limit of the straddling is reached. This limit must not exceed one-fourth of the betting limit. Should any player in his turn refuse to straddle, no other player on his left can straddle.

18. The Ante. After the cards are dealt, each player in turn, beginning with the one to the left of the age, or to the left of the last straddler, if any, must either abandon his hand or put into the pool twice the amount of the blind, or of the last straddle. When it comes to the turn of the age, and the straddlers, if any, they must either abandon their hands, or make the amount they have in the pool equal to twice the amount of the blind, or of the last straddle, if any.

19. Raising the Ante. Each player, when it is his turn to come in, may add to the amount of the ante any sum within the betting limit. This will compel any player coming in after him to equal the total of the ante and the raise, or to abandon his hand; and it will also give such following player the privilege of raising again by any further amount within the betting limit. Should any player decline to equal the amount put up by any previous player, he must abandon his hand, together with all his interest in that pool. Any player who has been raised in this manner may raise again in his turn; and not until each player holding cards has anted an equal amount will the game proceed.

20. Winning the Antes. Should any player have put up an amount which no other player will equal, he takes whatever counters are then in the pool, without showing his hand, and the deal passes to the next player on the dealer’s left. Should only one player come in, and the age decline to make good his ante, the player who has come in wins the blind, unless jack pots are played. Should any player have straddled the blind, or raised the ante, there can be no jack pot.

21. Making Jacks. If no player will come in, it is a Natural Jack, and all the hands must be abandoned, each player putting up for the ensuing deal the amount agreed upon. If no one has straddled the blind, or raised the ante, and only one player has come in, the age may do one of four things: He may forfeit his blind; or he may make the ante good; or he may raise it; or he may demand that the single player who has come in shall take down his ante, the age putting up twice the amount agreed upon for jack pots; once for himself, and once for the player who came in. All the other players must then put up for the ensuing deal. This is an Only-Two-In Jack.

22. Drawing Cards. When two or more players have come in for an equal amount, the others having abandoned their hands, each of them in turn, beginning with the one on the dealer’s left, may discard any or all of the cards originally dealt him, and draw others in their place. The number discarded and drawn, if any, must be distinctly announced by each player, including the dealer; and the fresh cards must be given face down from the top of the pack, without any further shuffling or cutting. Each player must receive the entire number he asks for before the next player is helped. No player shall receive from the dealer more or fewer than he discards; so that if he is playing with a short hand, such as four cards only, he will still have four cards after the draw; and if his hand was originally foul, it will so remain.

23. Exposed Cards. In dealing for the draw, should any card be found faced in the pack, or should any card be exposed by the dealer in giving out the cards, or be blown over by the wind before the player has touched it, such cards must be placed on the table with the discards. The player whose card has been exposed does not receive another in its place until all the other players, including the dealer, have been helped.

24. Incorrect Draws. Should any player ask for an incorrect number of cards, he must take them; unless he discovers the error before the next player has been helped. If too many have been asked for, he must discard before seeing them. If too few, and he lifts any of them, he holds a foul hand. No player is allowed to take back into his hand any card that has once been discarded. If he has taken up the cards, or has seen any of them, and has too many, his hand is foul, and must be abandoned. If the dealer gives himself more cards than he needs, he must take them; but if less, he can supply the deficiency, provided he has not looked at any of the drawn cards.

25. Incorrect Dealing. Should the dealer give any player more or fewer cards than he asks for, and the player discover the error before taking them up or seeing any of them, the dealer must withdraw the surplus card, and place it on the top of the pack. Should the dealer give a player fewer cards than he asks for, he must supply the deficiency when his attention is called to it, without waiting to supply the other players. Should the dealer give cards to any player out of his proper turn, he may correct the error if none of the cards have been seen; not otherwise.

26. The Last Card of the pack must not be dealt. When only two cards remain, and more than one is asked for, they must be mixed with the discards and abandoned hands, and the whole shuffled together, and presented to the pone to be cut. Discards of those who have yet to draw must not be gathered.

27. After the cards have been delivered by the dealer, no player has the right to be informed how many cards any player drew; and any person, bystander or player, volunteering the information, except the player himself, may be called upon to pay to the player against whom he informs an amount equal to that then in the pool. Any player who has made good the ante and drawn cards may, before making a bet, ask how many cards the dealer drew, and the dealer must inform him.

28. Betting After the Draw. The first player who holds cards on the left of the age must make the first bet, whether he has straddled or not. If he declines to bet he must abandon his hand. The fact that the age is not playing makes no difference, as his privilege cannot be transferred to any other player. Bets may vary in amount from one counter to the betting limit. If no player will bet, the age takes the pool without showing his hand; or, if he has passed out before the draw, the last player on his right who holds cards wins the pool.

29. Raising the Bets. Should any player make a bet, each player in turn on his left must either bet an equal amount or abandon his hand. Should any player bet an equal amount, he has the privilege of increasing the bet to any further sum within the betting limit. The players on his left must then either meet the total amount of the original bet and the raise, or abandon their hands. Any player meeting the amount already bet has the privilege of increasing it to any further amount within the limit, and so on, until no further raises take place. Any player whose bet has been raised must abandon his hand or meet the raise, with the privilege of raising again in return. Should one player make a bet or raise which no other player will see, he takes the pool without showing his hand, and the cards are shuffled and cut for the next deal.

30. Calling the Bets. As long as one player raises another’s bets, he gives that player the privilege of raising him again; but if a player who has made a bet is not raised, the others simply betting an equal amount, the first bettor is called, and all betting must cease. The players must then show their hands to the table, in order to decide which wins the pool.

31. Bets must be actually made by placing the counters in the pool, and no bet is made until the player’s hand has been withdrawn from the counters. Any counters once placed in the pool, and the owner’s hand withdrawn, cannot be taken down again, except by the winner of the pool.

32. Betting Out of Turn. Should any player bet out of his turn, he cannot take down his counters again if he has removed his hand from them. Should the player whose proper turn it was raise the bet, the player who bet out of turn must either meet the raise or abandon his hand, and all interest in that pool.

33. Mouth Bets. Any player stating that he bets a certain amount, but failing to put up the actual counters in the pool, cannot be called upon to make the amount good after the hands are shown, or the pool is won. If the players opposed to him choose to accept a mouth bet against the counters they have already put up, they have no remedy, as no value is attached to what a player says; his cards and his counters speak for themselves. Any player wishing to raise a mouth bet has the privilege of raising by mouth, instead of by counters; but he cannot be called upon to make the amount good after the hands are shown, or the pool has been won.

34. Showing Hands. When a call is made, all the hands must be shown to the table, and the best poker hand wins the pool. Any player declining to show his hand, even though he admits that it is not good, must pay an amount equal to the ante to each of the players at the table; or, if jack pots are played, he must put up for all of them in the next jack pot. When the hands are called, there is no penalty for mis-calling a hand; the cards, like the counters, speak for themselves.

35. Rank of the Hands. The best poker hand is a Royal Flush; A K Q J 10 of the same suit, which beats a

Straight Flush; any sequence of five cards of the same suit.

Four of a Kind; such as four 10’s and an odd card.

Full Hand; three of a kind and a pair, such as three 8’s and a pair of Q’s, which beats a

Flush; five cards of the same suit, but not in sequence.

Straight; five cards in sequence, but of various suits. In straights, the Ace cannot be used to form such combinations as Q K A 2 3; but it may be used as the bottom of 5 4 3 2, or the top of 10 J Q K. Straights beat

Three of a Kind; such as three K’s and two odd cards.

Two Pairs; such as two 9’s and two 7’s, with an odd card.

A Pair; such as two Aces and three odd cards.

If no pair is shown, the Highest Card wins.

A short hand, such as four cards, cannot be claimed as either a straight or a flush.

36. Ties. In case of ties, the highest of the odd cards decides it. Ultimate ties must divide the pool. When combinations of equal rank are shown, the one containing the highest cards wins, the rank of the cards being, A K Q J 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2; so that two pairs, K’s and 4’s, will beat two pairs, Q’s and J’s. Three 5’s and a pair of 2’s, will beat three 4’s and a pair of aces.

JACK POT LAWS.

37. The Antes. There is neither age nor straddle in jack pots. Every one at the table must ante an equal amount. Any player may decline to ante, by saying: “I pass this jack;” and the dealer will give him no cards.

38. Opening. After the cards are dealt, each player in turn, beginning on the dealer’s left, may open the pot for any amount he pleases within the betting limit, provided he holds a pair of Jacks, or some hand better than a pair of Jacks. If he does not hold openers, or does not wish to open the pot with them, he must say: “I pass;” but must not abandon his hand, under penalty of paying five counters to the pool.

39. False Openers. Should a player open a jack without the hand to justify it, and discover his error before he draws, his hand is foul, and he forfeits whatever amount he may have already placed in the pool. Those who have come into the pool after the false opening, stay in and play for the pot, regardless of the value of the hands dealt them.

40. Fattening. If no player will open, the cards are reshuffled, cut, and dealt, usually by the same dealer, and each player adds one counter to the pool.

41. Coming In. If any player opens the pot for a certain amount, each player in turn, on his left, can come in by putting up a similar amount, regardless of the value of his hand. Any player on the right of the opener who passed on the first round may now come in. Any player declining to put up the amount for which the pot is opened must abandon his hand, and all his interest in the pool.

42. Raising the Opener. Any player coming into the pool has the privilege of raising the original opener any amount within the betting limit, and he may in turn be raised again, just as in the ordinary pools. Should the opener decline to meet such a raise, he must show his entire hand before abandoning it. If he declines to do so, he must pay the antes for all the other players for another jack. It is not enough to show openers before the draw, the whole hand must be shown.

43. Drawing Cards. Each player in turn who has come in, beginning on the left of the dealer, may discard and draw, to improve his hand. The opener is allowed to split his openers, provided it is the rule of the game that the opener shall always put his discard under the chips in the pool, whether he is going to split or not. The opener’s discard must never be gathered in with other discards when the pack runs short for the draw.

44. False Hands. If a false opener does not discover his mistake until after he has drawn cards, his hand is foul, and must be abandoned. As a penalty he must put up an ante for each of the other players at the table for another Jack.

45. Betting the Hands. The opener makes the first bet; or, if he has withdrawn, the player next on his left. Should the opener decline to bet after the draw, he must show his openers before abandoning his hand. He need not show the cards he has drawn. If no bet is made, the last player holding cards takes the pool without showing his hand. If a bet is made, the game proceeds as in the ordinary pools. Should the opener retire during the betting, he must show his openers; if he is in the final call he must show his entire hand, whether it is the best or not. If he or any other player declines to show his hand when a call is made, he must ante for all the other players for another jack.

46. Shy Bets. If any player is shy in a jack pot, whether from failure to put up his ante, to fatten, or to substantiate his mouth bets with counters, nothing can be collected from him after a call has been made, or the pot has been won.

STRAIGHT POKER.

Straight Poker or Bluff is played with a full pack of fifty-two cards, and any number of players from one to eight. The arrangements for counters, seats, and deal are exactly the same as in Draw Poker, but the method of anteing and betting up the hands is slightly different. There is no draw to improve the hand, and no such combination as a straight flush is recognized, four of a kind being the highest hand possible.

The ante and betting limit must be decided before play begins. The first dealer is provided with a buck, which should be a penknife, or some similar article. Before dealing, he puts up the amount of the ante for all the players, and then passes the buck to the player on his left, who must ante for all the players in the next pool. There is no variation of the amount of the ante under any circumstances, and the buck is passed round the table in this manner irrespective of the deal, which is taken by the player winning the pool. The laws for the deal and its irregularities are the same as in Draw Poker, except that it does not pass to the left.

The cards dealt, each in turn, beginning with the player to the left of the dealer, may either bet or pass. Should all pass, the holder of the buck antes, making a double pool, and passes the buck. The deal then passes to the left. Should any player make a bet, each in turn, beginning with the one on his left, must call it, raise it, or abandon his hand. Players who have passed the first time, must now decide. The rules for seeing, raising, calling, and showing hands are precisely the same as at Draw Poker.

Owing to the absence of the draw, there is no clue to the strength of an opponent’s hand, except his manner, and the amount of his bet. The hands shown are much weaker than the average of those at Draw Poker, being about equal to hands that a player in that game would come in on. Triplets are very strong at Straight Poker, and two pairs will win three out of four pools in a five-handed game. The great element of success is bluff.

STUD POKER.

The arrangements for the cards, seats, antes, buck, etc., are precisely as at Straight Poker; but in dealing, only the first card is dealt face down, the remaining four being turned up by the dealer as he gives them out. Each player in turn then looks at his down card, and the betting proceeds as in Straight Poker, each player having the privilege of passing once before a bet is made.

A much more popular method is to stop the deal at two cards, each player having received one face down, and another face up. The best card showing then makes the first bet, and each player in turn must meet it, raise it, or pass out of that pool. If no one will call, the player making the bet takes the pool, and the next deal. If a bet is made and called, those in the call do not show their down cards, but are each given another card, face up, and the same betting process is gone through, the best hand showing face up making the first bet in each round. As long as two or more players remain in the pool they are given more cards until they have five. Then the final betting is done, and if a call is made, the down cards are shown, and the best poker hand wins the pool. Straight flushes do not count.

WHISKEY POKER.

The arrangements for the cards, seats, etc., are the same as in Draw Poker. Each player is provided with an equal number of white counters, which may have a value attached to them, or which may simply represent markers. If the counters represent money, each player should have at least twenty; if they are only markers, five is the usual number.

If the game is played for money, each player puts one counter in the pool before the cards are dealt. There is no raising or betting of any kind.

An extra hand, called the widow, is dealt face down at Whiskey Poker. The dealer gives each player and the widow five cards, one at a time, beginning on his left, and dealing to the widow just before he deals to himself. Each player in turn, beginning with the age, then examines his hand, and has the option of exchanging it for the widow; keeping it for the purpose of drawing to it; or risking his chances of winning the pool with it as it is.

If he wishes to exchange, he must place his five cards face upward on the table, and take up the widow, but without showing it to any other player. The hand he abandons then becomes the widow. If he prefers to draw to his hand, he says: “I pass,” which transfers to the next player the option of taking the widow. If he wishes to stand on the merits of the hand dealt to him, without drawing to it, he knocks on the table, which also passes the option of taking the widow to the next player on his left.

If any player takes the widow, the next player on his left can do any one of three things: He may discard from his own hand any card he pleases, taking one from the widow in its stead; the card which he discards being placed on the table face upward, and becoming part of the widow; or he may exchange his entire hand for the widow; or he may stand on the hand dealt him, and knock. Whether he draws one card, exchanges his entire hand, or knocks, the next player on his left has the option of drawing, exchanging, or knocking; and so on, until some player does knock.

Should no player take the widow until it comes to the dealer’s turn, he must either take it, or turn it face upward on the table. Even if the dealer knocks, he must turn up the widow, and allow each player an opportunity to draw from it, or to exchange his entire hand for it.

When a player knocks, he signifies that no matter what the players following him may do, when it comes to his turn again the hands must be shown. A player cannot draw and knock at the same time; but a player can refuse to draw or exchange after another player has knocked, not before. In some localities it is the rule to turn the widow face up at once if any player knocks before it is taken; allowing all those after the knock an opportunity to draw or exchange; but this is not the usual custom.

Suppose five play. E deals, and A passes; B takes the widow; C and D draw from B’s abandoned hand, and E knocks; without drawing, of course. A, who passed the first time, now has an opportunity to draw or exchange. So have each of the others in turn, up to D; but after D draws or exchanges, the hands must be shown, because the next player, E, has knocked.

When the hands are shown, there are two ways to settle: If the counters have a money value, the best poker hand wins the pool, and the deal passes to the left. If the counters have no money value, there is no pool; but the player who has the worst hand shown puts one of his counters in the middle of the table. This continues until some player has lost all five of his counters, and he is then called upon to pay for the whiskey, or whatever refreshments may be at stake upon the game. Hence the name: Whiskey Poker.

THIRTY-ONE.

This game is sometimes called Schnautz. A pool is made up by any number of players. The dealer takes a pack of fifty-two cards and gives three to each, face down, and three extra cards to the table, dealt face up. Each player in turn to the left can exchange one of his own cards for one of those on the table, the object being to get a flush of three cards of some suit having a pip value of thirty-one; or else to get three of a kind.

The aces are worth 11, the other court cards and the ten, 10 each. If no one can get a flush worth thirty-one, three of a kind wins the pool. If no one has three of a kind, the highest pip value shown in one suit wins. Drawing is kept up until some player knocks, after which only one more draw is allowed, the knocker not being allowed to draw again. A player can knock without drawing at all if he wishes to prevent the others from beating his original hand.

PROGRESSIVE POKER.

There are several ways to play Progressive Poker, but the description of one will suffice. The simplest method of arranging the players is to take two packs of cards, one red and one blue, and to select two aces from each for the four positions at the head table; three deuces, treys, etc., for the six positions at each of the other tables until the last or booby table is reached, at which there must be only four players at starting. If there are not enough players to make exactly six at each of the intermediate tables, the numbers may be varied from four to seven, cards being selected to agree with the number required; but the head and booby tables must start with four only. The cards thus selected are then thoroughly shuffled, and presented face downward to the ladies to draw from. Each lady takes a red-backed card, the gentlemen drawing the blue cards only. The number of pips on the card drawn will indicate to each person the table at which they are to sit. Should the number of men and women not be equal, some of the men must represent women or vice versa.

Each player is provided at starting with a certain number of counters, usually fifty. The head table is supplied with a box of counters differing in colour from any of those used by the players, and also with a bell. The choice of seats, deal, etc., is decided at each table exactly as at Draw Poker.

One deal is made at each table, ordinary Draw Poker is played, and when the pool is decided at the head table the bell is struck. This is the signal for the winner of the pool at each of the other tables to move up to the table next above. At the head table, the chips are counted, and the player with the smallest number in his possession goes down to the booby table, unless he was one of the players in the call. Should the player with the smallest number of chips be the winner of the pool, or one of those who called the winner, he retains his seat, and the player with the smallest number of counters who was not in the call goes to the booby table. This arrangement effectually prevents players at the head table from waiting for big hands. In case of ties, the players cut to decide which shall go down, the lowest cut remaining. The winner of each pool at the head table is given one of the special chips provided for that purpose, and which are usually yellow, the others being red, white, and blue.

Any player losing all his counters at any table must get a fresh stake of fifty more from the banker, and must then exchange seats with the player at the booby table who has the most counters.

Three or four prizes are usually provided for: One for the player who has won the greatest number of yellow chips at the head table, and one each for the lady and gentleman winning the greatest number of counters during the evening’s play. Those who have been provided with an extra stake must be charged with it when settling up. In case of ties for the number of yellow chips, the player with the largest number of ordinary counters wins. The booby prize, if any, is usually given to the player with the smallest number of ordinary chips, or the fewest number of yellow ones.

BRAG.

There are two varieties of this old English game; single, and three-stake Brag. Both are played with a full pack of fifty-two cards; the positions of the players, arrangements for counters, decision of the betting limit, etc., being the same as in Draw Poker. Three to twelve players may form a table.

There is a special value attached to three cards which are known as braggers. These again have a rank of their own; the best being the ace of diamonds; then the Jack of clubs, and then the nine of diamonds. All other cards rank as in Poker. A player to whom any one of these braggers is dealt may call it anything he pleases. If he has a pair of nines and a bragger, or a nine and two braggers, he may call them three nines, and bet on them as such. In this respect braggers resemble mistigris, already described in connection with Draw Poker; but in Brag a natural pair or triplet outranks one made with the aid of a bragger. Three eights will beat an eight and two braggers.

The dealer must put up an ante before the cards are cut. This ante may be any amount he pleases within the betting limit. No player can straddle or raise this ante until the cards are dealt. Beginning on his left the dealer distributes the cards face down, and one at a time, until each player has received three. Beginning with the age, [eldest hand,] each player in turn must put up an amount equal to the dealer’s ante, or abandon his hand. He may, if he chooses, raise the ante any further amount within the betting limit. All those following him must meet the total sum put up by any individual player, increase it, or pass out. In this respect Brag is precisely similar to the betting after the draw at Poker.

If no one will see the dealer’s ante, he must be paid one white counter by each of the other players, and the deal passes to the left. Should any player bet an amount which no other player will meet, he takes the pool without showing his hand. Should a call be made, all the hands must be shown, and the best brag hand wins.

Pairs and triplets are the only combinations of any value, and of course three aces is the best hand; two aces and the club Jack being the next best. If none of the hands shown contains either a natural pair or a bragger, the highest card wins, the ace ranking above the King. In case of equal natural pairs, the highest card outside the pair wins. Should the pairs tied both be made with a bragger, the highest bragger wins. Two odd cards, seven high, with the club Jack, would beat two cards seven high with the diamond nine.

Three Stake Brag. In this variation each player puts up three equal amounts to form three equal pools. These amounts must be invariable, and should be agreed upon before play begins. The dealer then gives two cards to each player, one at a time, face down; and then a third card to each, face up. The highest card turned up in this manner wins one of the pools, the ace being the highest and the deuce the lowest. The diamond ace, being a bragger, outranks any other ace; the club Jack any other Jack; and the diamond nine any other nine. Ties are decided in favour of the eldest hand, or the player nearest him on the left.

The players then take up the other two cards, without showing them, and proceed to brag on their hands as in single stake Brag. The winner takes the second pool; but those who pass out do not abandon their hands until the third pool is decided. If no bet is made for the second pool, it is won by the dealer.

All hands are shown to decide the last pool. Each player counts up the pip value of his three cards, reckoning the aces for eleven, and court-cards as ten each. The player coming nearest to thirty-one takes the third pool. Ties are decided in favour of the eldest hand, as before.

In some places a further variation is introduced by allowing the players to draw cards for the third pool, in order to increase the pip value of their hands. Beginning with the eldest hand, each player in turn pays into the pool a counter for each card he draws. These cards are given by the dealer face up, and one player must be given all he needs before passing to the next. Should a player pass thirty-one, he is out of the pool. Some judgment is necessary in drawing in this manner, for all the hands are exposed, and each player knows exactly what he has to beat.

In American Brag, there are eight braggers; the Jacks and nines of each suit, and they are all of equal rank when used as braggers. Pairs or triplets formed with the aid of braggers outrank naturals, so that three Jacks is an invincible hand, beating three aces. Two braggers and an ace outrank two aces and a bragger; but the absurd part of the arrangement is that three Jacks and three nines are a tie.

The method of playing differs from English Brag. If the players simply equal the dealer’s ante, nothing unusual occurs, and all the hands are shown at once. But if any player raises, and another sees this raise, these two immediately exchange hands, without showing them to the other players, and the one who held the worse hand retires from that pool, returning the better hand to its original holder, who then awaits a call or raise from the next player in order, the entire amount staked still remaining in the pool. This lose-and-drop-out system is continued until only one player remains to dispute the pool with the dealer. If they come to a call, both hands are shown to the table. If the bragger is not called, he takes the pool without showing his hand.

COMMERCE.

This old English game is evidently the forerunner of Whiskey Poker. It is played with a full pack of fifty-two cards, and the arrangements for the seats, counters, etc., are the same as at Draw Poker. Three to twelve players may form a table. There are two methods of playing Commerce; with and without a widow. We shall take the older form first.

Without a Widow. The counters have a money value, and each player deposits one in the pool. The dealer then distributes the cards one at a time, face down, until each has three. The players then examine their cards, and each in turn, beginning with the eldest hand, may exchange one card. If he trades for ready money, he gives his card and one white counter to the dealer, and receives another card, face down, from the top of the pack. The discard is left on the table, and the counter is the dealer’s perquisite. If he trades for barter, he passes his discard to the player on his left, who must give one of his own in exchange before looking at the one he is to receive. If the player will not exchange, he must knock on the table, to signify that he will stand by the cards he has. If he exchanges, he takes up the offered card, and then has the privilege of trading for ready money or for barter himself. The trading goes on in this way round and round, until some player knocks, when all trading is immediately stopped, and the hands are shown. The best hand wins the pool, the rank of the various combinations being as follows, beginning with the highest:—

Triplets. Three aces being the highest, and three deuces the lowest. Pairs have no value.

Sequence Flushes; the ace being allowed to rank as the top or the bottom; Q K A, or A 2 3.

The Point; the greatest number of pips on two or three cards of the same suit in one hand, counting the ace for eleven, and the other court-cards for ten each. A single card of a suit does not count for the point. In case of ties, a point made with three cards will beat one made with two cards. If the number of cards is also a tie, the dealer, or the player nearest him on his left wins.

If no triplet is shown, the best straight flush wins. If there is no straight flush, the best point wins. The deal passes to the left, and a misdeal loses the deal, as the deal is an advantage, owing to the trade for ready money.

If the dealer does not win the pool, he must pay one white counter to the player who does. If the dealer holds a combination of the same rank as the one that wins the pool, he must pay one white counter to every other player at the table. For instance: No triplet is shown, and a straight flush, Jack high, wins the pool. The dealer has a straight flush, 9 high, and must pay one counter to every player at the table. If the dealer had no sequence flush, he would pay the winner of the pool only.

With a Widow. This is almost three-card Whiskey Poker. Each player is provided with three counters only, which are of no value, and three cards are dealt to each player and to the widow, face down, and one at a time. The widow is turned face up immediately, and the dealer has the first say. Before he looks at the cards he has dealt to himself, he may exchange his whole hand for the widow, otherwise the eldest hand has the first draw. No other player may exchange his whole hand, but each in turn may draw one card until some player knocks. The moment any player knocks, all drawing must cease, and the hands are shown at once. Triplets, straight flushes, and points determine the value of the hands, as already described, and the best hand takes the pool. The dealer makes no extra payments, as he has no perquisites. The first player to lose his three counters pays for the whiskey; and if two or more are frozen out at the same time, the one with the worst hand pays. The game is sometimes varied by playing freeze-out, a value being attached to the three counters, and players who are decavÉ retiring from the game until all the counters have been won by a single player.

Two other combinations are sometimes introduced in either form of Commerce: A flush, three cards of one suit, ranking next below the straight flush; and a single pair outranking the point.

Another variety of Commerce is variously known as My Ship Sails; or My Bird Sings. The counters have a money value, and three are given to each player. Three cards are dealt, face down, and one at a time. There is no widow. The eldest hand may then exchange one card with the player on his left, who must give his card before seeing the one he is to receive. The exchange goes round to the left. The moment any player finds himself with a flush, three cards of the same suit, regardless of their value, whether dealt to him, or made by exchange, he says: “My Ship Sails;” and all exchange is stopped, and the hands are shown. Should there be more than one flush, the pips win, counting ace for 11, and other court-cards for 10 each. If no player has secured a flush after two rounds of exchanges, the hands are shown, and the highest number of pips in the two-card flushes wins the pool. The elder hand wins ties.

BOUILLOTTE, OR BRELAN.

This is an old and famous French gambling game, often referred to in stories of fast life in European society. It was the rage during and long after the French Revolution, but has lately had to share public attention with Baccara, and even with Le Poker AmÉricain. It has many points in common with three-stake Brag, and is evidently descended from the same stock. By many persons Bouillotte is considered superior to Poker, because it offers the player many opportunities to speculate on winning by the aid of cards that are not in his own hand.

Cards. Bouillotte is played with a piquet pack, reduced to twenty cards, only the A K Q 9 8 of each suit being retained. The ace is the highest card in play and in cutting. If five persons play, the Jack of each suit is added; if only three play, the Queens are discarded, reducing the pack to sixteen cards. Two packs are generally used alternately.

Counters or chips are used, as in Poker, instead of money. Any player may be the banker.

Players. Three, four, or five persons may play; but four is the proper number, and all descriptions of the game suppose it to be four-handed.

Cutting. To decide the positions of the players, a sequence of cards is sorted out, equal in number with the number of players. These cards are then shuffled, face downward, and each player draws one. The highest of the sequence has the choice of positions, and so on down until all are seated. The player who draws the King deals the first hand.

Stakes. Each player purchases an equal number of counters from the banker, usually 100. This original cave cannot be added to or deducted from. As long as a single counter of it remains the player must call for a sight, just as in freeze-out or table stakes; and not until he is decavÉ, [has lost everything,] can he purchase another stake, the amount of which is usually at his own option.

Blind and Straddle. Before the distribution of the cards, the dealer puts up a blind, usually five counters, which the player on his right has the privilege of straddling. If he straddles, he may be straddled again, and so on. In Bouillotte the straddle practically buys from the dealer the privileges of the age. If it goes round until the dealer buys it back himself, the straddling must then be stopped.

Dealing. As in all French games, the cards are cut by the player on the dealer’s left, and are dealt from right to left. Three cards are given to each player, one at a time, face down, and the thirteenth is then turned face up on the pack. This card is called the retourne.

Misdeals. If any card is exposed during the deal, either in the pack or in giving it to a player, it is a misdeal; but the distribution of the cards is continued until each player has received three cards, the exposed card being given out in its regular order. If any player can show triplets, he receives one white counter from each of the other players, and the hands are then abandoned. If more than one triplet is shown, the inferior does not pay the higher. If no triplet is shown, the cards are redealt. A misdeal does not lose the deal.

The deal passes to the right; but should the player whose turn it is to deal have lost everything on the previous deal, and have just purchased another stake, the deal passes to the player beyond him. If a player withdraws from the table when it is his turn to deal, the deal passes any newcomer who may take his place.

Betting. The cards dealt, each player in turn, beginning with the one to the right of the dealer, or to the right of the last straddler, if any, can do one of three things: Equal the amount of the ante; increase it as much as he pleases within the limits of his cave; or pass, retaining his cards but betting nothing. If any player opens the game by making a bet, the player on his right may equal or raise it; but he cannot pass after the game is opened, unless he withdraws from the pool. Any player may call for a sight for the amount in front of him, but that does not prevent the others from continuing the betting. If no one will open, the deal is void, and each player puts five counters in the pool for the next deal. If a player opens, and no one will equal or raise him, he wins the antes and straddles, if any. If any player makes a raise which no one will meet, he takes whatever is in the pool, unless a player has called for a sight for a small part of it.

Calling and Showing. If only two players bet against each other, either may call the other, and demand a show of hands at any time; but if three or four are betting, the privilege of calling falls upon each in turn from right to left. For instance: A, B, C, and D play. D blinds five counters, and deals. A passes, and B opens for five reds. C passes out, while D and A both meet the bet of five reds, but neither will raise it. This does not call B, who has the privilege of raising the bet if he pleases. Suppose he raises, and D and A both meet it. On this second round, C having passed out, it is D’s turn to say whether or not he will raise. On the next round it will be A’s turn, and after that it will be B’s second turn, and so on. Should any player meet the bet but refuse to raise, although it is his turn, he still cannot call. If he does not avail himself of his privilege of raising, he must pass the word to the player on his right; that is, transfer the privilege to him. If he declines, it is a call; if he raises, it goes on until every player has refused to avail himself of the privilege. If a player chooses to raise without waiting for his turn, of course he can do so. One of the fine points in the game is knowing when to raise the bet yourself, and when to pass the word.

Rank of the Hands. If a call is made, the hands are shown, and the best Bouillotte hand wins. There are only two classes of hands recognized in Bouillotte, the brelan, and the point; but there are three kinds of brelans, which rank in the following order:

A Brelan CarrÉ is four of a kind; three in the player’s hand, and the fourth turned up on the pack. If any player holds a brelan, [three of a kind,] of a higher denomination than the brelan carrÉ, the player may turn up the card under the retourne, and if this makes his hand a brelan carrÉ also, he wins the pool. In addition to winning the pool, the holder of a brelan carrÉ receives from each player four white counters.

A Simple Brelan is three of a kind in the player’s hand, three aces being the highest, and three eights the lowest. In addition to winning the pool, the holder of a simple brelan receives one counter from each of the other players at the table. If two are shown, neither pays the other. Should the brelan be formed by uniting the retourne with two cards in the player’s hand, it is a brelan favori, and the holder of it receives an extra counter from every player at the table, whether he wins the pool or not. For instance: The retourne is an eight; a brelan of Queens is shown, and wins the pool. Another player holds a pair of eights, and claims brelan favori. He does not pay the winning brelan, but receives one counter from its holder, and also from each of the other players. If the brelan favori wins the pool, it is paid two counters by each player. If two simple brelans are shown, the higher wins the pool; but both must be paid by each of the other two players, who did not hold brelans.

The Point. If no brelan is shown, the hands of all the players are shown, including those who passed out during the betting. This will expose thirteen cards, including the retourne. The pips in each suit are then counted, the ace reckoning for 11, court cards for 10 each, and the 9 and 8 at their face value. Whichever suit has the greatest number of pips is called the suit that wins, and the player who holds the highest card of it takes the pool; provided, of course, that he was one of those who backed his hand until the last call. If the player who holds the best card of the winning suit has dropped out during the betting, his cards count for the player who has the highest card of the suit among those who backed their hands. For instance: D deals and turns the heart 8. A and B have passed out, but C has made a bet which D has called. Neither has a brelan, so all four players show their cards, and it is found that they lie thus:—

Spades are the winning suit: but neither C nor D has a spade, and as neither A nor B is in the call, the spade suit cannot win anything. As between clubs and hearts, D’s point is 40, and C’s 38; so D wins the pool. C of course had a great advantage in betting, as he knew four hearts were out, his own and the retourne; and all he feared was a brelan. A would have won the pool if he had backed his hand, because he would have had the highest card of the winning suit.

Calling for a Sight. Suppose four players have the following caves in front of them: A, 35; B, 60; C, 120; and D, 185. D blinds five, deals, and turns the heart 9. A puts up all his 35 counters. B passes out. C raises 50, putting up 85; and D bets everything, 180 more than his blind. A demands a sight for his 35, and C puts up the remainder of his 120, and calls a sight for them. Then D withdraws his superfluous 65, and it is a call. No one has a brelan, so all the hands are shown, and the cards lie thus:—

The point is exactly even for clubs and spades, 40 in each. In case of ties, the dealer, or the player nearest him on the right wins. In this case A wins on account of his position, so clubs is the winning suit, and A has the best card of it. But he can win from C and D only the amount for which he called a sight, i.e. 35 counters. He therefore takes down 105 as his share of the pool, leaving 170 to be decided between C and D. Now, although C has a better point than D, it is one of the principles of the game that the suit that wins cannot lose at the same time; and as D has a card of the winning suit, while C has not, D wins the remainder of the pool. If neither C nor D had a card of the winning suit, C would win from D on account of his better point.

If we transposed the club ace and spade ace, spades would be the winning suit, because the elder hand, A, had the best card of it; but C would take the remainder of the pool, because he held a spade, while D did not.

As it is, C is decavÉ, and must purchase another stake, or retire from the game. If C had lost this pool with a brelan in his hand, he would not be decavÉ; because after losing the pool, and all he had staked therein, B, who had passed out, would have to pay him for the brelan, and with this one white counter he would have to call for a sight in the next pool he entered.

Methods of Cheating. As in all games in which winning depends entirely on the cards held, and not on the manner of playing them, Bouillotte offers many opportunities to the greek. The small number of cards in the pack, and the consequent ease with which they may be handled, enable even the clumsiest card sharpers to run up brelan carrÉs, make false shuffles, and shift cuts. There is one trick, called the poussette, which consists in surreptitiously placing more counters on the table when the player finds he has a hand worth backing. Marked cards, and packs trimmed to taper one way, biseautÉs, are among the most common weapons of the French tricheurs. As in Poker, it is best to avoid playing with strangers.

Suggestions for Good Play. Beyond the usual qualifications necessary to succeed with any member of the poker family, Bouillotte requires some study of the probable value of the point, which value will vary with the number of players engaged in the coup. For instance: The first player to say, having only 21 in his hand, should ante; but if two other players had already anted, 31, or even 40 would be a doubtful hand. If a bet had been made and met by another player, such a point should generally be laid down.

With good cards it is always better for the eldest hand to pass, especially with a brelan, for he will then have an opportunity to judge of the value of the hands against him, and he can raise the bet to his advantage. Good players will not bet on an ace alone, unless the suit is turned up; nor on a point of 21 with a weak card of the turn-up suit. If three play in a pool the point should be very strong to follow beyond the first raise; and if four players are engaged, it is almost a certainty that brelans will be shown.

When a player with a brelan has frightened off his opponents with a big bet, it is usual to stifle the brelan, as it is considered more to the player’s advantage to leave his adversaries under the impression that he may have been bluffing than to show the hand for the sake of the one white counter to which it entitles him. With three cards of one suit to the King, it is usual to bet high, in order to drive out anything but a brelan. Any player holding ace and another of the suit will of course abandon his hand, as his point is worth only 21 at the most, and the player with three to the King will get the benefit of his cards when the point is counted.

AMBIGU.

Cards. Ambigu is played with a pack of forty cards, the K Q J of each suit being deleted. The cards rank in the order of their numerical value, the 10 being the highest, and the ace the lowest. Two packs may be used alternately.

Players. Any number from two to six may form the table, and the arrangements for seats, first deal, etc., should be decided as at Bouillotte.

Stakes. Each player begins with an equal number of counters, the value of which must be determined beforehand. A betting limit should be agreed upon, and one player should be the banker for the evening.

Blind. Before the cards are dealt, each player deposits one counter in the pool; there is no straddle.

Dealing. The cards are cut to the left, and dealt to the right, and two cards are given to each player, one at a time, face down.

Method of Playing. Each player in turn, beginning on the dealer’s right, examines his hand, and if satisfied with it he says: “Enough.” If not satisfied, he may discard one or both of his cards, and receive others from the top of the pack. In either case he places two white counters in the pool for his ante. All having decided to stand or to draw, the remainder of the pack, exclusive of the discards, is reshuffled and cut; each player is then given two more cards, one at a time, and face down. Each in turn examines his four cards, and if satisfied he says: “I play;” if not, he says: “I pass.” If all pass, the dealer has the choice of two things: He may gather the cards and deal again, each player putting another counter into the pool, or he may put up two white counters himself, and compel the players to retain the cards dealt them, the dealer keeping his also.

Any person announcing to play may put up as many counters as he pleases within the betting limit. If no person will stay with him, he takes back his raise, leaving the antes, and is paid two counters by the last player who refuses. If two or more declare to play they can either meet the amount offered by the first player, or raise him. If any player declines to meet a raise, he must abandon his hand. If no one will call the last raise, the player making it takes the pool, and then shows his hand, and demands payment from each of the other players for whatever combination he holds. If two or more players call, by making their bets equal, they again draw cards, having the privilege of discarding any number from one to four, or of standing pat. After the draw each in turn can pass or play. If all pass, the hands are abandoned, and the pool remains; each player adding one counter for the next deal. This is to force players to bet on their hands. If a bet is made, the calling and raising proceeds as in Draw Poker.

When there are not enough cards to supply the players, the discards must be gathered, shuffled, and cut. Any player with too many or too few cards must abandon his hand as foul. Any player showing his cards must abandon his hand, and forfeit four counters to the pool.

The general laws of Poker governing all irregularities may be applied to Ambigu; but it must be remembered that the French are very much averse to penalties of all kinds, and if an error can be rectified without doing an injustice to any player, it is usual to set things right in the simplest manner possible.

Value of the Hands. There are seven combinations of value in Ambigu, which rank in the following order, beginning with the lowest:—

The Point. The total number of pips on two or more cards of the same suit. A single card does not count for the point. Three cards of one suit are a better point than two cards, even if there are more pips on the two cards. If no higher combination than a point is shown, the player with the winning point receives one counter from each of the other players at the table, besides winning the pool, and everything in it. In case of ties, the player having two cards in sequence wins. For instance: an 8 and a 7 will beat a 10 and a 5. If this does not decide it, the elder hand wins.

The Prime. Four cards of different suits, sometimes called a Dutch flush, is a better hand than the point. If a prime is the best combination shown, the holder wins the pool, and receives two counters from each of the other players. If the pips in the prime aggregate more than thirty, it is called Grand Prime, and the holder receives three counters from each of the other players, instead of two. If two or more primes are shown, the one with the highest number of pips wins. If this is still a tie, the elder hand wins.

A Sequence is a bobtail straight flush; that is, three of the four cards are in sequence, such as the 2, 3 and 4 of spades, with an odd card, such as a 9. This is a better combination than a prime, and the holder receives three counters from each player. In case of ties, the highest sequence wins. If the sequence flush is one of four cards, it is a doublet.

A Tricon, or three of a kind, is better than a straight, and entitles the holder to four counters from each of the other players. Pairs have no value.

A Flush is four cards of the same suit, not necessarily in sequence, and is better than a tricon. The holder is paid five counters by each of the other players, in addition to winning the pool.

Doublets. Any hand containing a double combination will beat any single combination. For instance: A player holds three of a kind, and the fourth card in his hand is of a different suit from any of his triplet. His hand is a double combination, prime and tricon, and will beat a flush. A sequence of four cards of the same suit is a double combination, and will beat anything but a fredon. When doublets are shown, the holder is paid for both combinations, six for tricon and prime, or eight for sequence and flush, as the case may be.

A Fredon, or four of a kind, is the best possible hand, and the holder is paid ten or eleven counters by each of the other players, according to the pip value of his cards. He is paid eight counters for fredon, and two for the prime, if it is smaller than 8’s; but he claims grand prime if he has four 9’s, or four 10’S, and gets eleven counters.

In case of ties which cannot be decided by the pip values, the elder hand wins.

Even if a player has lost his entire stake in the pool, he must pay the various combinations shown, and it is usual to reserve about ten counters for this purpose.

Betting the Hands. After the last cards have been drawn, the players proceed to bet upon their hands precisely as at Poker. If a player makes a bet or raise which no one will call, he takes the pool, and then shows his hand and demands payment for the combination he holds. It is very unusual for a player to stifle a hand at Ambigu, as he would at Bouillotte. If a call is made, the players in the call show and compare their cards, and the best hand wins the pool. Only the player who wins the pool can demand payment for combinations held.

TEXT-BOOKS ON POKER.

• Draw Poker, by John W. Keller, 1887.
• Round Games, by Baxter-Wray, 1891.
• Complete Poker Player, by John Blackbridge, 1875.
• Proctor on Draw Poker, 1883.
• Schenck’s Rules for Draw Poker, 1872.
• The Poker Book, by Richard Guerndale, 1888.
• The Gentlemen’s Handbook of Poker, by J.W. Florence, 1892.
• Poker Rules in Rhyme, by Geo. W. Allen, 1895.
• Science of Draw Poker, by David A. Curtis, 1901.
• Poker, Brentano’s Pocket Library Series, by R.F. Foster, 1897.
• Practical Poker, with complete laws, by R.F. Foster, 1905.
• Treatise on Poker, by E.P. Philpots, 1904.
• Poker probabilities, by Alleyne Reynolds, 1901.
• The Game of Draw Poker, Mathematically Illustrated, by H.T. Winterblossom, 1875.