=_ If the first card played by the pone should be a 6, and the dealer had a 6 also, the latter would probably play it, announcing: “Twelve, with a pair,” and pegging two holes. If the pone held a third six he would immediately play it, announcing: “Eighteen, with a pair royal,” and would peg six holes for the three pairs which can be formed with the three Sixes, although he did not hold all of them. If the dealer was fortunate enough to hold the fourth Six he might rejoin with: “Twenty-four, with a double-pair-royal.” This would entitle him to peg twelve more holes, although he had already pegged the single pair. _=Sequences.=_ Suppose the first card played by the pone was a 4. The dealer plays a 2, announcing: “Six.” The pone plays a 3, announcing: “Nine, with a run of three,” and pegging three holes for the sequence formed in play. The dealer plays an Ace; “Ten, with a run of four,” and pegs four holes for the sequence of four cards made in play, all of which are face upward on the table, although he held only two of them. _=Fifteens.
Calling for Trumps, the ask for trumps. Cannon, (Am. carrom,) a count made at billiards by causing the cue ball to touch two object balls. Capot, F., winning all the tricks. Cards, the number of tricks over six at Whist, such as “two by cards.” The majority of cards at Cassino. Carrer, (se) to straddle the blind. Contre-carrer, to over-straddle. Carrom, see cannon.
Both Forby in his _Vocabulary of East Anglia_ and Moor in his _Suffolk Words_ bear testimony to the general prevalence of barbers forfeits, and it must be borne in mind that barbers were also surgeons in early days. A curious custom is also recorded in another East Anglian word-list, which may throw light upon the origin of the game from popular custom. A forfeit is incurred by using the word water in a brew-house, where you must say liquor; or by using the word grease in a chandlery, where it is stuff or metal. The forfeit is to propitiate the offended _genius loci_ (Spurden s _East Anglian Vocabulary_). The element of divination in the custom is perhaps indicated by a curious note from Waldron, in his _Description of the Isle of Man_ (_Works_, p. 55), There is not a barn unoccupied the whole twelve days, every parish hiring fiddlers at the public charge. On Twelfth Day the fiddler lays his head on some of the wenches laps, and a third person asks who such a maid or such a maid shall marry, naming the girls then present one after another; to which he answers according to his own whim, or agreeable to the intimacies he has taken notice of during this time of merriment. But whatever he says is as absolutely depended on as an oracle; and if he happen to couple two people who have an aversion to each other, tears and vexation succeed the mirth. This they call cutting off the fiddler s head; for after this he is dead for the whole year. Redeeming the forfeits is called Crying the Weds, in Burne s _Shropshire Folk-lore_, p.
Take all the combinations in which the figure 6 appears, and add together the number of times they will probably occur. That will be your denominator, 166. The numerator will be the number of times that the combinations occur which contain a figure larger than 3, in addition to the 6. This will be found to be 74, and the probability will therefore be 74/166. DISTRIBUTIONS. TIMES IN 1000. 8 2 2 1 2 8 3 1 1 1½ 8 3 2 0 1 8 4 1 0 ½ 8 5 0 0 0 7 2 2 2 5 7 3 2 1 19 7 3 3 0 3 7 4 1 1 4 7 4 2 0 3 7 5 1 0 1 7 6 0 0 0 6 3 2 2 57 6 3 3 1 35 6 4 2 1 47 6 4 3 0 13 6 5 1 1 7 6 5 2 0 6 6 6 1 0 1 5 3 3 2 155 5 4 2 2 106 5 4 3 1 130 5 4 4 0 12 5 5 2 1 32 5 5 3 0 9 4 3 3 3 105 4 4 3 2 215 4 4 4 1 30 _=MARTINGALES.=_ Many gamblers believe that as the science of probabilities teaches us that events will equalise themselves in time, all that is necessary is to devise some system that will keep a person from guessing, so that he may catch the pendulum as it swings; and to add to it some system of betting, so that he will have the best of it in the long run. Some content themselves with playing a “system” against banking games, which is merely a guide to the placing of the bets, the simplest example of which would be to bet always on heads if a coin was tossed a thousand times, or to bet on nothing but red at Roulette. Others depend more on martingales, which are guides to the amount of the bets themselves, irrespective of what they are placed on.
For instance: You hold the Fives of diamonds and spades, and have asked for and received the Five of clubs. If you ask for the heart Five, and miss it, the player with that card may draw all yours; but if you ask for the spade Five, and he gets into the ask, he will at once betray the fact that he holds the fourth Five by asking you for the club Five; but he will never think of asking you for the spade Five, because you asked for it yourself. If you can get into the ask again you can immediately make a trick in Fives. SPECULATION. Any number of persons less than ten can play, each contributing an agreed number of counters to the pool, the dealer paying double. The full pack of fifty-two cards is used, and the cards rank from the A K Q down to the 2. In _=dealing=_, the cards are distributed from left to right, one at a time, until each player has received three. The next card on the top of the pack is turned up, and the suit to which it belongs is the trump, and forms the basis of speculation for that deal. If the turn-up card is an ace, the dealer takes the pool immediately, and the deal passes to the left. If the turn-up is a K Q or J, the dealer offers it for sale, before a card is looked at, and he may accept or refuse the amount offered.
Compare the rhyme in the game Fool, fool, come to School, Little Dog, I call you. All the Boys in our Town I. All the boys in our town Shall lead a happy life, Except tis ----, and he wants a wife. A wife he shall have, and a-courting he shall go, Along with ----, because he loves her so. He huddles her, he cuddles her, He sits her on his knee; He says, My dear, do you love me? I love you, and you love me, And we shall be as happy As a bird upon a tree. The wife makes the pudding, And she makes it nice and soft-- In comes the husband and cuts a slice off. Tas-el-um, Tos-el-um, don t say Nay, For next Monday morning shall be our wedding day; The wife in the carriage, The husband in the cart. --Hampshire (from friend of Miss Mendham). II. All the boys in our town Leads a happy life, Excepting [Charley Allen], And he wants a wife; And a-courting he shall go Along with [girl s name], Because he loves her so.
Suppose the bidder has three honours and two Aces. He scores five honours if he wins the odd trick; otherwise he scores one only, the Aces being a tie and he having only one more honour than his adversaries. In no-trump hands, the honours are worth 25 times the value of the tricks. If Aces are easy, neither side scores. If one has three Aces, they are all scored. Suppose the bid to have been “two at no-trumps,” then the Aces are worth 25 times 20, and three of them are worth 1,500 points. _=Coronets.=_ A sequence of three or more cards in any suit, trumps or plain, held by an individual player, is a coronet. Three or four Aces in one hand is also a coronet. When there is a trump suit, three Aces, or three of a plain suit in sequence, are worth 500 in the honour column.
May. Southampton Mrs. W. R. Carse. ISLE OF MAN Mr. A. W. Moore. ISLE OF WIGHT-- Cowes Miss E.
If two suits are equal in number, play for the one in which you have the greatest number of cards massed in one hand. That is, if you have two suits of eight cards each, select the one that has six of those cards in one hand, in preference to the suit with four in each hand. 4. Everything else being equal, play for the suit which is shown in the Dummy, so as to conceal from the adversaries as long as possible the strength in your own hand. A suit is said to be _=established=_ when you can win every remaining trick in it, no matter who leads it. As it is very important that the hand which is longer in the suit should be able to lead it without interruption when it is established, good players make it a rule always to _=play the high cards from the shorter hand=_ first, so as to get out of the way. With Q 10 and three others in one hand, K J and one other in the other hand, the play is the K and J from the short hand, keeping the Q 10 in the long hand. If there is any choice, that suit should be selected which contains the longest sequence, or the sequence with the fewest breaks. It should be noticed that the sequence need not be in one hand; for it is almost as valuable if divided, and it is especially advantageous to have the higher cards concealed in the declarer’s hand. Its continuity is the chief point.
With moderate strength the effect of the stroke is to cause the ball to roll naturally along the cloth until it reaches the object ball, after which it will be deflected from its original course according to the angle at which the object ball is struck. If the cue ball is struck very hard, however, and very slightly below the centre, it will slide for a certain distance before beginning to roll, and if it reaches the object ball before this sliding motion ceases it will simply come to a stop, or go off at a right angle if the object ball is not struck exactly in the centre. This method of forcing a ball to go off at a right angle is called “screwing” in England. [Illustration] _=The Follow Shot.=_ If the cue ball is struck above the centre, the rolling motion is set up at once, no matter how hard the ball is struck, and the effect of contact with the object ball is simply to check the motion for a moment, after which the cue ball rolls forward again, deflected only by the angle at which the object ball was struck. The great art in making follow shots is to let the cue follow the ball, the tip passing at least three inches beyond where the ball stood, as shown by the dotted lines in the diagram. When the balls are very close together the cue must be lifted, and the ball struck very much on one side, the cue being behind the centre, as shown in the third position in the diagram of pinch shots. [Illustration] _=The Draw Shot.=_ This is exactly the reverse of the follow shot, the ball being struck below the centre, and the cue passing at least three inches beyond where the ball stood, as shown in the diagram. This gives the cue ball a retrograde motion, similar to that imparted to a child’s hoop by spinning it backward while throwing it forward, so as to make it return.
The author is not responsible for the peculiar grammar employed in both the American and English Laws. THE GAME. 1. A game consists of seven points, each trick above six counting one. The value of the game is determined by deducting the losers’ score from seven. In _=Boston=_, the game is finished in twelve deals. In _=Cayenne=_, a game consists of ten points, each trick above six counting towards game according to the table of values. Honours and Slams also count towards game. Every hand must be played out, and all points made in excess of the ten required to win the game are counted on the next game; so that it is possible to win two or three games in one hand. In Nullo, every trick over the book is counted by the adversaries.
A version of this game played at Eckington, Derbyshire, is played as follows:--A den is chalked out or marked out for the Fox. A larger den, opposite to this, is marked out for the Geese. A boy or a girl represents the Fox, and a number of others the Geese. Then the Fox shouts, Geese, Geese, gannio, and the Geese answer, Fox, Fox, fannio. Then the Fox says, How many Geese have you to-day? The Geese reply, More than you can catch and carry away. Then the Geese run out of the den, and the Fox tries to catch them. He puts as many as he catches into his den (S. O. Addy). (_b_) This game is a very general one at Christmas time.
A trump is turned by the dealer, and Matrimony is King and Queen of trumps, Intrigue Queen and Jack of trumps, Confederacy, King and Jack of trumps. The player holding these cards will of course be able to play both of them if he can play one in a sequence, and will take the pool for the combination. If he holds one card and another player holds the other, they divide the pool. If one of the cards is in the stock, the pool remains. In some places it is the custom to remove the Eight of diamonds, as at Commit, to form an extra and known stop. The player first getting rid of his cards takes the pool on Game, and the holder of Pope takes that pool if he can get rid of the card in the course of play, if not, he must double the pool, just as with the honours in trumps. NEWMARKET, OR STOPS. This game, which is sometimes called Boodle, is Pope Joan without the pope. The four cards forming the layout are the ♡A, ♣K, ♢Q, ♠J; but there is no ♢7. The dealer names any number of counters that he is willing to stake, which must be at least four, and each player at the table must stake a similar amount.
_=On ship board=_, the pieces are wooden disks, six inches in diameter, marked with oughts and crosses. These are pushed along the deck with long sticks that have enlarged and flattened ends to fit the pieces. The object is to get each piece to settle fairly and squarely within the borders of some one of a number of spaces which are chalked out on a diagram about 10 feet by 6, which is about 30 feet from the player. These spaces are numbered from 1 to 10, and some of them are marked “minus.” Each side has four shots with four separate pieces. Fifty points is game. BILLIARDS. _=THE TABLE.=_ The standard American billiard table for championship games is ten feet by five; but that in common use is nine by four and a half. The old tables for the four-ball game had only four pockets, but all modern pool tables have six.
Wash by the river-side. Suppose the clothes should float away? Get a boat and fetch them back. Suppose the boat should overthrow? Serve you right for going after them! --Berrington, Oswestry, Chirbury (Burne s _Shropshire Folk-lore_, p. 515). IV. Mother, will you buy me a milking-can, A milking-can, a milking-can? Mother, will you buy me a milking-can, To me, I, O, OM? Where s the money to buy it with, To buy it with, to buy it with, Where s the money to buy it with, To me, I, O, OM? [Then the following verses--] Sell my father s feather bed. Where will your father sleep? My father can sleep in the boys bed. Where will the boys sleep? The boys can sleep in the pig-sty. Where will the pigs sleep? The pigs can sleep in the wash-tub. Where shall I wash my clothes? You can wash them in a thimble.
Of the remaining four boys one stations himself at each leg and one at each arm of the Hammer, and he is thus lifted. He is swung backwards and forwards three times in this position by the four, who keep repeating Once, twice, thrice. When the word Thrice is repeated, the _a posteriori_ part of the Hammer is knocked against the same part of the Nail. Any number of knocks may be given, according to the humour of the players.--Keith (Rev. W. Gregor). A fellow lies on all fours--this is the Block; one steadies him before--this is the Study; a third is made a Hammer of, and swung by boys against the Block (Mactaggart s _Gallovidian Encyclopædia_). Patterson (_Antrim and Down Glossary_) mentions a game, Hammer, Block, and Bible, which is probably the same game. Blow-point Strutt considers this to have been a children s game, played by blowing an arrow through a trunk at certain numbers by way of lottery (_Sports_, p.
He was older, for one thing. Perhaps it was his nearly bald scalp, perhaps the thick, bookish glasses in heavy brown frames. What s that? he asked mildly, poking a finger at the dealer kneeling in the sawdust on the floor. My Blackout victim was reaching out, trying to find something he could use to raise himself to his feet. His face was frozen in a fierce, unseeing stare as he mentally screamed at his eyes to see, see, see! Blackout! one of the bouncers told the second stick-man in a muffled voice. Sharp eyes fired a quick, surprised look at me. Well, said the bald dealer. Good evening, Brother. I had a surge of relief. The strong-arm stuff was over.
] The player to the left of the dealer is the original leader. _=DEALING.=_ The method of dealing varies with the number of players engaged. When only one pack is used, any player may shuffle, the dealer last. The pack must be presented to the pone to be cut, and the entire pack is then dealt out, one card at a time. When two play, the dealer gives each six cards, one at a time. These two hands are kept separate, and two more are dealt in the same manner, and then a third two, the last card being turned up for the trump. When the deal is complete, there will be six hands on the table, three belonging to each player. [Illustration: +-----+ +-----+ +-----+ | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | +-----+ +-----+ +-----+ 1ST HANDS. 2ND HANDS.
After, or in the absence of any such announcement, and before leading for the next trick, he draws a card from the top of the stock, and places it in his hand, without showing or naming it. His adversary then draws the next card, so that each player restores the number of cards in his hand to twelve. This method of playing, announcing, and drawing from the talon is continued until the stock is exhausted. The A 10 K Q J of each suit have certain counting values, which will be described further on. All combinations announced and scored must be laid face upward on the table; but the cards still form part of the player’s hand, and may be led or played at any time, although they must not again be taken in hand until the stock is exhausted. _=Irregularities in Play.=_ If either player leads out of turn, and his adversary plays to the lead, whether intentionally or otherwise, the trick stands good. If the adversary calls attention to the error, the card may be taken back without penalty. If at any time it is discovered that a player has too many cards, his adversary may either claim a fresh deal, or may compel him to play without drawing from the talon until the number of his cards is reduced to twelve. The player with too many cards is not allowed to make or score any announcements until he has his right number of cards.
The principle is that if 31 cannot be made by either player, the one playing the card that brought the count nearest to it shall count one for it, even if he has told himself to go. There is no count for “last card” if it makes 31. But the “last card” counts if it makes 15. If a player tells another to go when he can still play himself, he forfeits two points, and his adversary may, if he chooses, take back the cards to the point where the error occurred and have them played over again. The same penalty can be enforced against a player who pegs for a go when he can still play. Suppose the first card played is a Jack. The dealer, holding two Nines, an Eight, and a Five, plays the Five, and pegs 2 for the fifteen. The pone plays a Nine, announcing the total as twenty-four. The dealer cannot pair this Nine, because it would run the count past 31, neither can he play the Eight, so he says, “Go.” The pone pegs the go without playing, which shows that he is also unable to play, having nothing so small as a Seven.
Draw a Pail of Water. Drawing Dun out of the Mire. Drop Handkerchief. Dropping the Letter. Duck under the Water. Duck at the Table. Duck Dance. Duck Friar. Ducks and Drakes. Duckstone.
* * * * * Father Moontree was talking human words and was saying in a voice that moved like cold molasses out of a heavy jar, C-A-P-T-A-I-N. Underhill knew that the sentence was going to be Captain, move fast! The battle would be fought and finished before Father Moontree got through talking. Now, fractions of a millisecond later, the Lady May was directly in line. Here was where the skill and speed of the Partners came in. She could react faster than he. She could see the threat as an immense Rat coming direct at her. She could fire the light-bombs with a discrimination which he might miss. He was connected with her mind, but he could not follow it. His consciousness absorbed the tearing wound inflicted by the alien enemy. It was like no wound on Earth--raw, crazy pain which started like a burn at his navel.
Angel and Devil One child is called the Angel, another child the Devil, and a third child the Minder. The children are given the names of colours by the Minder. Then the Angel comes over and knocks, when the following dialogue takes place. Minder: Who s there? Answer: Angel. Minder: What do you want? Angel: Ribbons. Minder: What colour? Angel: Red. Minder retorts, if no child is so named, Go and learn your A B C. If the guess is right the child is led away. The Devil then knocks, and the dialogue and action are repeated.--Deptford, Kent (Miss Chase).
VII. The shepherd s dog lay on the hearth, And Bingo was his name O. B i n g o, Bi, n, g, o, Bi-n-g-o, And Bingo was his name O. --Eckington, Derbyshire (S. O. Addy). VIII. Pinto went to sleep one night, And Pinto was his name oh! P-i-n-t-o, P-i-n-t-o, And Pinto was his name oh. --Enbourne, Berks (Miss Kimber). (_b_) In the Lancashire version, one child represents the Miller.
A treble, or game of three points, when their adversaries have not scored. II. A double, or game of two points, when their adversaries have scored less than three. III. A single, or game of one point, when their adversaries have scored three or four. 9. The winners of the rubber gain two points (commonly called the rubber points), in addition to the value of their games. 10. Should the rubber have consisted of three games, the value of the losers’ game is deducted from the gross number of points gained by their opponents. 11.