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Show 304 RTCHA RD 1-lUfiDJS. cards ns I had seen tl10m shufficd, by drawing them n1tcmatcly from top to bottom together, I found neither mine nor my I)rtrtller's ll1lnd any better than h<'forc j aud looking up, with some nffected chngrin in my countenance, I caught sigl1t of what seemed to be an understanding smile between the opponent in quest ion and the parson, who, sitting a little on one side of me, was able to 1ook, if l1c desired it, into my hand. This discovery - as I thought it - gayc me uo little pleasure. I was resolved to test it, nnd ascertain lww far I was correct in my suspicions. I flatte red myself thnt I wns in a fair way to fall upon the clue which might conduct me into the very midst of the gamblers, who a re all supposed to be coJmectccl more or less on the western waters, and yield me possession of their secrets. Accordingly, I displayed certain of my cards ostentatiously be· fore the eyes of t1JC preacher, and l1ad occasion to obsen·c, an instant after, that tl1e play of my opponent seemed to be regu. lated by a certain knowledge of my hand. lie finessed con. stnntly upon my lead, and with an adroitness wl1ich compelled the continual expression of wonder and dissatisfaction from the l ips of my partner. I was satisfied, so far, with tlw resu lt of my experiment, and began to th ink of j):tusing before I pro. ceeded further; when my Georgian dashed down his cards as t he game was ended against us, and cried out to me, with a countenance wh ich, though flushed, was yet fu ll of most excel· lent feeling :- "Look you, stranger, suppose we change. '\Ve don't seem to have luck together, and there's no fun in b~ing all th_e time on the losing side. '!'he bad luck may be w1th me, or 1t may be with you, I don't say, but it can do no harm to shift it to other shoulders, whoever lws it. I've been d iddled out of twenty-six hard doll a rs in mighty short order." "Diddled !" exclaimed my brother dandy, with an air of ineffable heroism, turning to my partner. Without discom· posure t lJC other replied :- "I don't mean any ha rm when I say diddled, stranger, so don't be uneasy. I call it d iddling when I lose my money, figh t as hard for it as I can. T hat is t he worst sort of diddling I know." 'rhe othe r looked fierce for a moment, but he probably soon 30[1 discovered that the Georgian h11d replied without l1eeding l1is air of valor, mal there wa.'; somctlling :1Lout l1is COillposc<l man. ner wliich rC'ndcred it at least a doubtful point wl1ctl1er nnything in the sh:lJW of <Ill insult would 110t set his bulky frame into onrpowcri ng· exercise. 'J'IIC di .;;position to bully, howen•r sligl1t ly it wns sufl'crcd to appcnr, uddcd nnotl1cr itf'm to my sn~picions of the chal'aCtC'r befOre tnC'. '.l'ho proposition of my pnrtncr to clwnge places with one of the otl1cr two, produced a difl'crent suggestion from 011e of tl1em, which seemed to please liS nl l. It was that we sl1ould piny riugt.un. "Every man fights on l1is own hook iu that, and his bad luck, if he has :my, hurts 11obody but himself." I had begun to reproach myself with a course whicl1, how. ever useful iu fo rwnrding my own oLjccts, had evitlcntly contributed to the loss Ly my partner of i1 is money. Jf free to throw away my own, I Jwd JlO right to try experiments on his 1mrse, and I readily gave my assent to the proposition. Our bets were more moderate t han before, Lnt I soon found the game a losing one still. The preacher ::.till Rat nt my elbow, and my brotl1cr dandy was t l1c Lanker; and in more than one instance when I have stood on "twenty" l1e has dra\\"n from the pack, tl10ngl1 l1m·ing "eighte0n" nncl "nineteen,"-npon which good players wi.ll nlways be content, un less nssured that better hands me in tl1e possession of their oppo11cnts, wJ1en, Ly "drawing," they can not lose. '!'h is kno\\"ledo-e cou1d 01ily be receiv_ed from our devoted lH'eacher, and when°l ceased to play - wl11ch, through sheer weariness I d id-I did so with the most thorough persunsion, that the two were in correspondence - they were birds of the s;~me Lrood. J\Io~dy and tlwughtful, for I was now pcrsunded that my own more unporlant game was beginning to open before mC', I went to the stern of the bont, and seated myself upon one of the bulk~, giving way to the bitter musings of which my mind was suffic iently fu JI. While I snt thus, I was startled on a sudden to find the prencher beside me. • u Ab, my young fr iend, I l1ave watclied you during your &Jufu i !Jiay, ngainst which I wnrned you, with n painfu l sort of curiosity. Did I not counsel you agninst tlwse devil ish instru. ments - yon scorned my counsel, and wllllt hns Leon your for- |
