begins the first study of the game--_TO KNOW WHAT TO THROW AWAY_

in order to get in others to make the hand better if possible.
Your hand may, of course, be so utterly bad as to make it

necessary to throw away the whole five and draw five new ones;
this is not very likely, as few players will put a stake in the

pool unless, on looking first at his cards, he has seen
something, say a pair, to start with. We will suppose he has

this, and, of course, he throws away three cards, and draws three
in place of them. To describe the proper way to fill up a hand

is impossible; we can but give an instance here and there to show
the varying interest which attaches to the game;--thus, you may

have threes in the original hand dealt; some players will throw
away the two odd cards and draw two more, to try and make the

hand fours, or, at least, a full; while a playerknowing that his
is not a very good hand, will endeavour to _DECEIVE_ the rest by

standing out, that is, not taking any fresh cards; of course
all round the table make remarks as to what he can possibly have.

It is usually taken to be a sequence, as this requires no
drawing, if originally dealt. The same remark applies to a

_flush;_ two pairs or four to a flush, of course, require one
card to make them into good hands, a player being only entitled

to draw once; and the hands being made good, the real and
exciting part of the game begins. Each one endeavours to keep

his real position a secret from his neighbours. Some put on a
look of calm indifference, and try to seem self-possessed; some

will grin and talk all sorts of nonsense; some will utter sly
bits of _badinage;_ while others will study intently their cards,

or gaze at the ceiling--all which is done merely to distract
attention, or to conceal the feelings, as the chance of success

or failure be for or against; and then begins the betting or
gambling part of the game. The player next the _blind_ is the

first to declare his bet; in which, of course, he is entirely
governed by circumstances. Some, being the first to bet, and

having a very good card indeed, will `bet small,' in hopes that
some one else will see it, and `go better,' that is, bet more, so

that when it comes round to his turn again he may see all
previous bets, and bet as much higher as he thinks proper; for it

must be borne in mind that a player's first bet does not preclude
him from coming in again if his first bet has been raised upon by

any player round the table in his turn; but if once the original
bet goes round and comes to the _blind_, or last player, without

any one going better, the game is closed, and it becomes a _show
of hands_, to see who takes the pool and all the bets. This does

not often happen, as there is usually some one round the table to
raise it; but my informant has seen it occur, and has been highly

amused at watching the countenance of the expectant _small
better_ at having to show a fine hand for a mere trifle. Some

players will, in order to conceal their method of play,
occasionally throw their cards among the waste ones and abandon

their stakes; this is not often done; but it sometimes happens
where the stakes have been small, or the player has been _trying

a bluff_, and has found some one whom he could not _bluff off_.
The foregoing is a conciseaccount of the game, as played in

America, where it is of universal interest, and exercises great
fascination. It is often played by parties of friends who

meet regularly for the purpose, and instances can be found where
fortunes have been lost in a night.

The game of Pokers differs from the one just described, in so far
that the players receive only the original five cards dealt

without drawing fresh ones, and must either play or refuse on
them. In this game, as there are more cards, as many as ten

persons can play.
LANSQUENET.[91]

Lansquenet is much played by the Americans, and is one of the
most exciting games in vogue.

The dealer or banker stakes a certain sum, and this must be met
by the nearest to the dealer first, and so on. When the stake is

met, the dealer turns up two cards, one to the right,--the latter
for himself, the former for the table or the players. He then

keeps on turning up the cards until either of the cards is
matched, which constitutes the winning,--as, for instance,

suppose the five of diamonds is his card, then should the five of
any other suit turn up, he wins. If he loses, then the next

player on the left becomes banker and proceeds in the same
way.

[91] This name is derived from the German `_landsknecht_'
(`valet of the fief'), applied to a mercenary soldier.

When the dealer's card turns up, he may take the stake and pass
the bank; or he may allow the stake to remain, whereat of course

it becomes doubled if met. He can continue thus as long as the
cards turn up in his favour--having the option at any moment of

giving up the bank and retiring for that time. If he does that,
the player to whom he passes the bank has the option of

continuing it at the same amount at which it was left. The pool
may be made up by contributions of all the players in certain

proportions. The terms used respecting the standing of the stake
are, `I'll see' (_a moi le tout)_ and _Je tiens_. When

_jumelle_ (twins), or the turning up of similar cards on both
sides, occurs, then the dealer takes half the stake.

Sometimes there is a run of several consecutive winnings; but on
one occasion, on board one of the Cunard steamers, a banker at

the game turned up in his own favour I think no less than
eighteen times. The original stake was only six-pence; but had

each stake been met as won, the final doubling would have
amounted to the immense sum of L3,236 16_s_.! This will

appear by the following scheme:--
L s. d. L s. d.

1st turn up 0 0 6 10th turn up 12 16 0
2nd ,, 0 1 0 11th ,, 25 12 0

3rd ,, 0 2 0 12th ,, 51 4 0
4th ,, 0 4 0 13th ,, 102 8 0

5th ,, 0 8 0 14th ,, 204 16 0
6th ,, 0 16 0 15th ,, 409 12 0

7th ,, 1 12 0 16th ,, 819 4 0
8th ,, 3 4 0 17th ,, 1,618 8 0

9th ,, 6 8 0 18th ,, 3,236 16 0
In fair play, as this is represented to have been, such a long

sequence of matches must be considered very remarkable, although
six or seven is not unfrequent.

Unfortunately, however, there is a very easy means by which card
sharpers manage the thing to perfection. They prepare beforehand

a series of a dozen cards arranged as follows:--
1st Queen 6th Nine

2nd Queen 7th Nine
3rd Ten 8th Ace

4th Seven 9th Eight
5th Ten 10th Ace

Series thus arranged are placed in side pockets outside the
waistcoat, just under the left breast. When the sharper becomes

banker he leans negligently over the table, and in this position
his fingers are as close as possible to the prepared cards,

termed _portees_. At the proper moment he seizes the cards
and places them on the pack. The trick is rendered very easy by