Six persons play, with three dice, and five points is Game. Each player has a number, from 1 to 6, and is provided with five counters, and the first to get rid of them wins. Each player in rotation has one throw, and no matter what he throws, the player whose number appears on the upper face of any die thrown counts one point toward game. If No. 2 should throw a four and two sixes, for instance, he would count nothing himself, but No. 4 would count 1, and No. 6 would count 2 points toward game. PASSE DIX. Any player can be the banker for the first round, and he holds his position as long as he wins. When he loses, he passes the box to the player on his left hand.
With A J 9 and others, 10 in Dummy’s hand, lead the Jack. With A J 10, Dummy having K Q x, play the Jack, and do not lead the suit again. In trumps, with K Q and others, if Dummy has the J singly guarded, begin with the King as usual, but follow it with the Queen instead of the smallest; for declarer may have passed in the hope of making a Bath coup with both Ace and Jack. In plain suits this is a dangerous lead, as declarer having Ace, and wishing to force Dummy, would hold his Ace as a matter of course. With short suits, such as K x, Q x; or even with King or Queen alone, the honour is a good lead if Dummy has no court cards in the suit. The Queen is rather a better lead than the King, the only danger being that second hand holds fourchette. With Q J x, or J 10 x, one of the high cards should be played. With Q 10 x, Dummy having Ace or King, the Queen should be led. With K 10 x, Dummy having Jack, the suit should not be led. With such combinations as K x x x, Dummy having Q x, the suit should not be led.
The three totals are added, and found, in this case, to be 520, which is the total of B’s loss. We now multiply the scores by the number of players engaged, in this case four, and from the product we deduct the 520 already found. Then the scores balance. When Skat is played for the League stake, which is one-fourth of a cent a point, the results may be found in a still shorter way by adding up all the scores and taking an average, this average being the sum divided by the number of players. Take the results just given for example:-- ------+------+------+--------------------- A | B | C | D ------+------+------+--------------------- 186 | 42 | 344 | 116 = 688 ÷ 4 = 172 172 | 172 | 172 | 172 ------+------+------+--------------------- +14 | -130 | +172 | -56 ------+------+------+--------------------- The average is simply deducted from each score, and the remainder is the amount won or lost, in cents. _=CHEATING.=_ As in all games in which the cards are dealt in groups, the greek will find many opportunities in Skat. The clumsiest shuffler can usually locate some of the Wenzels at the top or the bottom of the pack, before presenting it to be cut, and if the players do not insist on the cards being dealt always in the same manner, the sharper can secure to himself two or more Wenzels, either in his hand or in the Skat. Any person who deals the cards sometimes three at a time, and again five at a time, should be stopped immediately, and no such excuses as changing his luck should be listened to for a moment. Any person who habitually picks up the cards with their faces towards him, and straightens them by lifting them from their positions in the pack, should be stopped at once, and requested to straighten the cards face down.
The Outs are those who go out from the den or goal, where those called the Ins remain for a time. The Outs get the Gegg, which is anything deposited, as a key, a penknife, &c. Having received this, they conceal themselves, and raise the cry, Smugglers! On this they are pursued by the Ins; and if the Gegg (for the name is transferred to the person who holds the deposit) be taken, they exchange situations--the Outs become Ins and the Ins Outs. This play is distinguished from Hy-spy only by the use of the Gegg. One of the Ins who is touched by one of the Outs is said to be taken, and henceforth loses his right to hold the Gegg. If he who holds the Gegg gets in the den, the Outs are winners, and have the privilege of getting out again. The Outs, before leaving the den, shuffle the Gegg, or smuggle it so between each other that the Ins do not know which person has it. He who is laid hold of, and put to the question, is supposed to deny that he has the Gegg: if he escapes with it, he gets out again.--Jamieson. Genteel Lady A player begins thus:-- I, a genteel lady (or gentleman) came from that genteel lady (or gentleman) to say that she (or he) owned a tree.
=_ After drawing from the stock and before discarding, a player may lay out any three cards, but no more than three at one time. Or he may add one card from his hand to any combination already laid out by another player, but he cannot add more than one card in this way. He may add a card to a combination laid out by himself if he wishes to. _=CALLING OUT.=_ Each player in turn to the left draws, lays out and discards in this manner until some player gets rid of his last card, when he calls out, and the game comes to an end. The last card in a player’s hand may be got rid of by laying it out in combination, or by discarding it if it is the only card left. _=SCORING.=_ As soon as any player calls out it is too late for any other player to lay down any combinations he may hold. Each player in turn to the left shows his hand and the winner gets credit for the pip value of his cards, jacks being worth 11, queens 12, kings 13. It sometimes happens that the stock is exhausted before any player calls out.
Lincolnshire Glossary_. Biggly Name for Blind Man s Buff. --Dickinson s _Cumberland Glossary_. Billet The Derbyshire name for Tip-cat. --Halliwell s _Dictionary_. Billy-base A name for Prisoner s Base. --Halliwell s _Dictionary_. Bingo [Music] --Leicestershire. [Music] --Hexham. [Music] --Derbyshire.
=_ Two players sit opposite each other. Three, five or seven sit according to their choice. Four sit as at Whist, the partners facing each other. Six, playing in two partnerships, sit alternately, so that no two partners shall be next each other. Six, playing in three partnerships of two each, sit so that two adversaries shall be between each pair of partners. Eight, playing in two sets of four each, or as four pairs of partners, arrange themselves alternately. If we distinguish the partners by the letters A, B, C, D, the diagram will show the arrangement of the tables. [Illustration: B C A B A B +------+ +------+ +------+ | | D| |C B| |A A| |A | | | | | | C| |D A| |B +------+ +------+ +------+ C B B A B A THREE PAIRS. FOUR PAIRS. TWO FOURS.
The dens must always be occupied by some players. If all the players get into one den, King Cæsar can go into the empty den and say, Crown the base, one, two, three, three times before any of the other players get across to that den. If he succeeds in doing this, he can select a boy to run across from one den to the other, which that boy must do, King Cæsar trying to catch him. Other and bigger boys can help this one to get across, to save him from being captured, either by carrying him or running across with him. The game ends when all have been captured and are in the centre. King Cæsar and the other captured boys can leave the centre if they each successively catch three players.--Barnes (A. B. Gomme). This game is called King-sealing in Dorsetshire.
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.
A _=greek=_ who possessed sufficient skill to do this without detection would be very foolish to waste his talents at the whist table; for, however large the stakes, the percentage in his favour would be very small. When whist is played with only one pack, a very skillful shuffler may gather the cards without disturbing the tricks, and, by giving them a single _=intricate=_ shuffle, then drawing the middle of the pack from between the ends and giving another single intricate shuffle, he may occasionally succeed in dealing himself and his partner a very strong hand in trumps, no matter how the cards are cut, so that they are not shuffled again. A hand dealt in this manner is framed on the walls of the Columbus, Ohio, Whist Club; eleven trumps having been dealt to the partner, and the twelfth turned up. In this case the shuffling dexterity was the result of fifteen years’ practice, and was employed simply for amusement, the dealer never betting on any game, and making no concealment of his methods. _=SUGGESTIONS FOR GOOD PLAY.=_ Although whist is a game of very simple construction, the immense variety of combinations which it affords renders it very complicated in actual practice; there being probably no game in which there is so much diversity of opinion as to the best play, even with the same cards, and under similar conditions. It has been repeatedly remarked that in all the published hands at whist which have been played in duplicate, or even four times over, with the same cards, no two have been alike. It would be useless to formulate rules intended to cover every case that might arise, because the conditions are frequently too complicated to allow the average human intellect to select the exact rule which would apply. All that can be done to assist the beginner is to state certain general principles which are well recognised as fundamental, and to leave the rest to experience and practice at the whist table. _=GENERAL PRINCIPLES.
Tricks should be carefully stacked, there being the same penalties as in Boston for calling attention to the score. The methods of playing misères and spreads have already been described in connection with Boston. When piccolissimo is played, the moment the single player takes more than one trick the hands are thrown up, and the stakes paid. _=REVOKES.=_ The rules governing these and cards played in error, are the same as at Boston. In piccolissimo, the penalties are the same as in misère. _=PAYMENTS.=_ If the caller succeeds in winning the proposed number of tricks, he is paid by each of his adversaries according to the value of his bid, as shown in Table No. 1. Over-tricks if any, and honours, if played, are always paid at the uniform rate of five white counters each.
Gomme). It seems probable that a survival of fire-worship is shown by this game. Fivestones This game was played by a newspaper boy at Richmond Station for me as follows:--He had five square pieces of tile or stone about the size of dice. He took all five pieces in the palm of the hand first, then threw them up and caught them on the back of the hand, and then from the back of the hand into the palm. Four of the stones were then thrown on the ground; the fifth was thrown up, one stone being picked up from the ground, and the descending fifth stone caught in the same hand; the other three pieces were next picked up in turn. Then two were picked up together in the same manner twice, then one, then three, then all four at once, the fifth stone being thrown up and caught with each movement. All five were then thrown up and caught on the back of the hand, and then thrown from the back and caught in the palm. When he dropped one, he picked it up between his outstretched fingers while the other stones remained on the back of the hand; then he tossed and caught it likewise. Then after throwing up the five stones and catching them on the back of the hand and the reverse, all five being kept in the palm, one was thrown up, and another deposited on the ground before the descending stone was caught. This was done to the three others in turn.
The _=Object of the Game=_ is for each player to move his men from point to point in order to get them all into his home table. It does not matter what part of the home table they reach, so that they get across the bar. The men are moved according to the throws of the dice, each player in turn having a throw and a move. After the men on either side are all home, they are taken off the board according to the throws of the dice, and the player who is the first to get all his men off the board in this manner wins the game. If each player has taken off some of his men, the player getting all his off first wins a _=hit=_, which counts as a single game. If one player gets off all his men before his adversary has thrown off a single man, it is a _=gammon=_, and counts as a double game. If the loser has not only taken off none of his men, but has one or more men left on the side of the board farther from him when his adversary throws off his last man, it is a _=backgammon=_, and counts as a triple game. In America, gammons and backgammons are seldom played, every game being simply a hit. This spoils some of the fine points of the game, and entirely alters the tactics of the players, as will be seen when we come to the suggestions for good play. _=The Dice.
Gomme). Bittle-battle The Sussex game of Stoolball. There is a tradition that this game was originally played by the milkmaids with their milking-stools, which they used for bats; but this word makes it more probable that the stool was the wicket, and that it was defended with the bittle, which would be called the bittle-bat.--Parish s _Sussex Dialect_. See Stoolball. Bitty-base Bishop Kennet (in _MS. Lansd._ 1033) gives this name as a term for Prisoner s Base. --Halliwell s _Dictionary_. Black Man s Tig A long rope is tied to a gate or pole, and one of the players holds the end of the rope, and tries to catch another player.
Unless a pack be imperfect, no player has the right to call for one new pack. When fresh cards are demanded, two packs must be furnished. When they are produced during a rubber, the adversaries of the player demanding them have the choice of the new cards. If it be the beginning of a new rubber, the dealer, whether he or one of his adversaries call for the new cards, has the choice. New cards cannot be substituted after the pack has been cut for a new deal. 96. A card or cards torn or marked must be replaced by agreement or new cards furnished. BYSTANDERS. 97. While a bystander, by agreement among the players, may decide any question, he should not say anything unless appealed to; and if he make any remark which calls attention to an oversight affecting the score, or to the exaction of a penalty, he is liable to be called upon by the players to pay the stakes (not extras) lost.
--Brockett s _North Country Words_. See Follow my Gable, Follow my Leader. Jockie Blind-man Scotch name for Blind Man s Buff. --Jamieson. See Blind Man s Buff. Joggle along I. Come all you young men In your youthful ways, And sow your wild oats In your youthful days. Then you ll be happy, Then you ll be happy, As you grow old. For the day s far spent, And the night s coming on, So give us your arm, and We ll joggle along. --Penzance, Cornwall (Mrs.
All raffles pay 180 for one; the same as 18 or 3. Bets on High and Low, Odd or Even, pay even money. High throws are all above 10, and low throws are all below 11. This would be perfectly even betting if the house did not take raffles. Some houses allow a player to bet on raffles generally; that is, to bet that a raffle of some kind will come. Such bets are paid 30 for 1. The percentage of the house, even in a square game, may be seen from the following table, which gives the odds against the event, and the odds which the house pays:-- The odds against 3 or 18 are 215 to 1; the house pays 180 ” 4 ” 17 ” 71 ” 1 ” 60 ” 5 ” 16 ” 35 ” 1 ” 29 ” 6 ” 15 ” 20½ ” 1 ” 18 ” 7 ” 14 ” 13¼ ” 1 ” 12 ” 8 ” 13 ” 9¼ ” 1 ” 8 ” 9 ” 12 ” 7¼ ” 1 ” 6 ” 10 ” 11 ” 7 ” 1 ” 6 _=Cheating.=_ There are endless ways of swindling at Chuck-luck, the most modern being to turn the dice over after they have reached the table through the funnel. This is done by an apparatus under the cloth, the dealer looking down the funnel to see how the dice lie, and then adjusting them to suit himself. Another method is to hold out one die, throwing only two down the funnel, and slipping the third down the outside, turning it so that when it is combined with the two already in the funnel it will beat the big bets on the layout.
Cross and Pile. Cross-bars. Cross-questions. Cross Tig. Cry Notchil. Cuck-ball. Cuckoo. Cuddy and the Powks. Cudgel. Curcuddie.
Then is there such a running, leaping, and flinging among them that a man might think all these dauncers had cast all shame behinde them, and were become starke mad, and out of their wits, and that they were sworne to the devil s daunce. Then must the bride keep foote with all dauncers, and refuse none, how scabbed, foule, drunken, rude, and shameless soever he be. . . . After supper must they begin to pipe and daunce again of anew. And though the young persons come once towards their rest, yet can they have no quietness. --1575 edit., fol. 59, rev.
=_ The trump suit named, each player discards and leaves _=face upward=_ on the table as many cards as he pleases. He must discard three, to reduce his hand to six cards. If he discards more than three he must draw from the remainder of the pack to restore the number of his cards to six; so that after the discard and draw each player at the table will have exactly six cards, although nine were originally dealt him. The dealer, beginning on his left, gives to each player in turn as many cards from the top of the pack as may be necessary to restore the number in his hand to six. When it comes to the dealer’s turn, instead of taking cards from the top of the pack, he may search the remainder of the pack, and take from it any cards that he pleases. This is called _=robbing the deck=_. Should he find in his own hand and the remainder of the pack more than six trumps, he must discard those he does not want, showing them face up on the table with the other discards. Should any player discard a trump, his partner has the right to call his attention to it, and if the player has not been helped to cards, or has not lifted the cards drawn, the trump erroneously discarded may be taken back; otherwise it must remain among the discards until the hand has been played, when, if it is of any counting value, it must be added to the score of the side making the trump. Although there is no law to that effect, it is considered imperative for each player except the dealer to discard everything but trumps. This is partly because no other cards are of the slightest use, and partly because one of the points of the game is that the number of trumps held by each player before the draw should be indicated by his discard.
g._, a declaration of “three clubs” is higher than “two royal spades” doubled or redoubled. 54. Any declaration may be doubled and redoubled once, but not more; a player may not double his partner’s declaration nor redouble his partner’s double, but he may redouble a declaration of his partner which has been doubled by an adversary. The penalty for redoubling more than once is 100 points in the adverse honour score or a new deal; for doubling a partner’s declaration, or redoubling a partner’s double it is 50 points in the adverse honour score. Either adversary may demand any penalty enforceable under this law. 55. Doubling or redoubling reopens the bidding. When a declaration has been doubled or redoubled, any one of the three succeeding players, including the player whose declaration has been doubled, may, in his proper turn, make a further declaration of higher value. 56.
With a nig-nag, widdy- [_or_ worry-] bag, And an e endown trail, trail; Quoth he. --Jamieson. The game is also called Kittie-cat. See Cat and Dog, Cudgel, Tip-cat. Horns A Horns to the Lift, a game of young people. A circle is formed round a table, and all placing their forefingers on the table, one cries, A horns to the lift! Cat s horns upmost! If on this any one lift his finger, he owes a wad, as cats have no horns. In the same manner, the person who does not raise his fingers when a horned animal is named is subjected to a forfeit.--Jamieson. Hot Cockles At Sheffield a boy is chosen for a Stump, and stands with his back against a wall. Another boy bends his back as in Leapfrog, and puts his head against the Stump.
Newcomers can enter the table only after the conclusion of a round and with the consent of the other players. The new candidate for play must take his seat so that he shall have the deal. 9. If seats are drawn for, the lowest skat card shall have the first choice. The next lowest shall sit on his left, and so on. In cutting, the cards and suits rank as in play. The one drawing the lowest card shall deal the first hand, and the score shall be kept by the player on his right. 10. The game shall come to an end only at the conclusion of a round, and any player wishing to stop must give notice before the beginning of a round. CARDS.
| -- | -- | | 7.| -- |Says the little D. | -- | | 8.| -- | -- | -- | | 9.|My fair lady. |Fair lady. |My fair lady. | |10.| -- | -- | -- | |11.| -- | -- | -- | |12.
--Scilly (Courtney s West _Cornwall Glossary_). A rhyme at Lostwithiel is known as follows-- Jack s alive, and likely to live; If he die in my hand a pawn (forfeit) I ll give. --(J. W.) Jamieson (_Dictionary_) says, To do Dingle-dousie, a stick is ignited at one end and given as a plaything to a child. Elworthy (_West Somerset Words_) does not give this as a game, but says a burning stick was whirled round and round very quickly, so as to keep up the appearance of a ribbon of fire. Miss Burne (_Shropshire Folk-lore_, p. 530), says, Children wave a burning stick in the air, saying-- A girdle o gold, a saddle o silk, A horse for me as white as milk, an evident relic of divinations or incantations practised with bonfires. Halliwell (_Nursery Rhymes_, p. 213) gives the rhyme as-- Jack s alive, and in very good health, If he dies in your hand you must look to yourself; the game being played in the same way as the Sheffield version (see also Halliwell s _Dictionary_ and Moor s _Suffolk Words_).
As no card can be moved from its original position, as soon as there are cards enough in either direction, up and down, or from left to right, to make a row of five, no more cards can be laid beyond that point, as it would transgress the limits of the square. _=OBJECT OF THE GAME.=_ The aim of the player is to place each card as it comes from the top of the pack in the most advantageous position for combining with other cards, either already there or hoped for, so that each row of five cards, up and down, or right to left, shall be a poker hand of some value. _=VALUE OF THE HANDS.=_ The various hands possible in poker are given a counting value, supposed to be in proportion to the difficulty of getting them. There are three systems of counting in common use, the English differing slightly from the American, both in value and in rank. The various scoring values are here given: One pair 2 1 1 Two pairs 5 2 3 Triplets 10 7 6 Straights 15 9 12 Flushes 20 5 5 Full hands 25 12 10 Four of a kind 50 20 16 Straight flush 75 30 30 Royal flush 100 50 30 The first column given is the American system of counting by fives, after one pair, retaining the regular poker rank of the hands. The second column is the American system that puts the straight next to the full hand, and the flush between two pairs and a triplet. The third column is the English system, which ranks the straight above the full hand. As no person has as yet come forward with any figures to show which combination is easier to get in patience poker, nor the proportion of one hand to the other, these figures are all guess work; and players may adopt any values they please.