Chapter V (6)

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 manœuvres 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.

🂻 🃚 🂨 🂧 | 🂹 🃘 🂧 🃆

IN-BETWEEN STRAIGHT. OPEN-END STRAIGHT.
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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.