"'Admirable,' do you say—Yes, yes, Monsieur Olivier, that's the word. I wish you joy. Go on; give me some cards!"
"It is useless to go on. Trump, and then trump. I cut, and it is the king of diamonds, which stands good—this gives me the five points."
"Ah! ill-luck has certainly fastened on me this evening," said the Count, "that makes eighty thousand francs I have lost; I see I shall soon make up the hundred thousand.
"I think it right to tell you, that I never go beyond that sum, and that if I am to lose it, I shall propose having some supper before I lose my last twenty thousand. Perhaps, that may change my luck; you certainly owe me this much."
The proposition to sup, met with general approbation.
Olivier, almost out of his wits with joy, at becoming the possessor of eighty thousand francs, could not resist the impulse he felt to testify his feelings of gratitude to Chauvignac. He drew him aside, and shook him warmly by the hand.
The wretched man had no idea of the cruel deception which had been practised on him, and which had all been pre-arranged by his two comrades.
The rich Belgian capitalist, the respectable count, was no other than a clever Parisian sharper, whom Chauvignac had persuaded to come, for the express purpose of ruining the unfortunate young man, who never perceived, whilst his back was turned, that the count changed the two packs of clipped cards which they had hitherto used, for two packs biseautées in the contrary way.
During supper they drank but little, wishing to keep their heads clear. The meal, nevertheless, was very merry; and as soon as it was over, they recommenced playing.
"Now," said the Parisian sharper, seating himself at the table, "I wish to end this affair one way or other, quickly. Let us make the stake twenty thousand francs (800l.)."
Olivier, after having won so largely, could not but accept the proposition. It was only just towards his adversary. But, oh! cruel deception! the stake of twenty thousand francs, on which Olivier had so surely counted, passed into the hands of his opponent.
A stake of forty thousand francs shared the fate of its predecessor. Breathless, bewildered, and discouraged, Olivier knew not what to do. In vain he manipulated the cards; he got none but the lowest, whilst his adversary had all the trumps in his hand; and as it was Olivier who dealt them to him, he could not complain.
In his despair, he looked enquiringly at Chauvignac, who made signs to him to go on.
Distracted, and quite beside himself, the poor victim continued to stake enormous sums; and, in his turn, shortly owed his adversary a hundred thousand francs.
The pretended count then gave up playing, folded his arms, and thus addressed Olivier:
"M. Olivier de X——," said he, in a stern tone of voice, "you must be very well off, to stake such sums; but be careful, for, rich as you are, you must be aware, that if people lose a hundred thousand francs, they must also pay them, as I did.
"So now, just pay me the sum you have lost, and then we'll go on playing."
"That's only fair, sir," muttered young Olivier; "I am willing to satisfy your demands, but you know that gambling debts ... my word...."
"Devil take it, sir," exclaimed the count, giving the table a violent blow with his fist. "What's that you say about your word? It well becomes you to talk of debts of honour. We'll play, if you please, another kind of game, and let us put things as they really are. M. Olivier de X——, you are a knave! Yes; a knave! The cards you have been using are clipped; and it is you who have brought them here."
"Sir, you insult me."
"You don't say so, sir," said the count, ironically.
"Sir, this is too much—I demand satisfaction for this—and that immediately. Do you hear, sir? let us go, and settle it at once."
"No, no, let us remain here, and settle this affair of honour. Stay, your two friends will be your witnesses, and I will send to some of my friends, to come and be mine."
Scarcely had the sharper uttered these words, than he got up, and rang violently.
His servant answered the bell.
"Go to the Procureur du Roi, and ask him to come here at once, on an affair of great importance; make haste, do you understand?"
"Pardon! sir, pardon! Do not ruin me," said the unhappy Olivier, in a tone of supplication. "I throw myself on your mercy."
"Étienne, mind you wait outside that door, and if, in ten minutes, you do not receive orders to the contrary you will do as I told you."
"Now then, sir," continued the count, turning to Olivier, "I will talk to you. These cards have been substituted by you in the place of those which I had provided. I insist upon your making these cards up in a packet, and sealing them with the ring on your finger, which bears your crest and coat of arms."
In vain Olivier looked from one to the other; neither Chauvignac nor Chaffard gave him any encouragement, but looked at him as much as to say, there was nothing for it but to do as he was desired.
Olivier obeyed.
As soon as the demand had been complied with, the pretended Belgian again attacked him. "Besides, this is not all, sir; I have fairly won my money, and you will give me a guarantee that it will be paid to me. You will give me bills at sight for the sum of one hundred thousand francs which you owe me."
The unhappy Olivier hesitating to comply with this demand, his implacable creditor rose and seized the bell.
"Oh! do not ring, sir—do not ring," said the young man, "I will sign the paper."
The villainous plot was consummated.
Olivier returned to his family, and humbly confessed all that he had done.
His old father, rather than bring disgrace on his child, paid the money, esteeming his son's honour beyond all price.
The Society of Philosophers had shared in this roguery, in the persons of Chaffard and the Belgian capitalist.
To Chaffard was delegated the arrangement of the money department; and so well did he manage the business, that, in a very short space of time, he had the satisfaction of receiving a hundred thousand francs, in exchange for the bills which he held.
Chauvignac, ever watchful for his own interest, immediately claimed his portion of the booty. Half the sum (as had been agreed on) was handed over to him, for having arranged the scheme and prepared the victim. The remaining fifty thousand francs were left in the hands of Chaffard, to be divided between the three philosophers.
But the cunning rascal finding himself in possession of funds sufficient to give him a year's enjoyment and luxury, and living, as he did, in fear from day to day of being arrested for his numerous misdeeds, instead of going to Paris, directed his steps to Brussels, to play in his turn (but in good earnest) the rôle of a French capitalist.
In a moment of weakness, Chaffard had confided his project to Chauvignac, who immediately wrote, and told the two other philosophers of it.
Raymond, who was a philosopher in the true acceptation of the word, received the news with great coolness; he had learned to his cost that one must never depend on the honour of a rogue.
This fresh escapade of Chaffard did not surprise him; he had rather expected it.
With Andréas it was otherwise: furious at seeing himself the puppet of a man whom he regarded as his inferior, if not in bodily strength, at least in intelligence and sagacity, he swore that he would overtake the thief, and make him disgorge his ill-gotten gains.
Full of artifices and schemes, he started for Belgium; but, by way of precaution, he took with him, as a fellow-traveller and companion, a celebrated pugilist—a sort of herculean bull-dog, whom he intended to let loose at his antagonist, if occasion required.
Once separated from the man, whom he had every reason to regard as his bad angel, Raymond felt no longer sufficient strength to follow the dangerous profession, into which he had been so fatally enticed.
The constant dangers by which he was surrounded, a last spark of conscience, and a return of better feelings, made him determine to quit for ever the discreditable career which he was following.
Possessed of twenty thousand francs, he had sufficient funds to keep him for awhile, and give him time to find some employment, which would enable him to live honourably. But after some months, led on by his old love of gambling in general and roulette in particular, he visited the various spas and watering-places, where those engines of ruin, gambling tables, are to be found, and where he undertook his famous crusade against the banks and their "croupiers."
We know the result of the calculations and computations of Voisin Raymond,—the inevitable fate of all gamesters who count on benefiting by the favours of fortune.
It took Raymond some days to narrate to me the above story, as, when the clock struck the hour for beginning to play, he immediately quitted me, and thought of nothing but his hypothetical combinations.
He was trying a new system, about which, by-the-bye, he would never tell me a word, but I had little doubt that it would prove as fallacious as the former one, and leave him nothing but his own bright dreams as his reward.
When I quitted Baden, he was penniless, and I had to add to the loan I had already made him.
Since his conversion, I had had good proof, that he preferred suffering the most severe privations, rather than have recourse to his skill in sharping; and this it was which made me advance him a larger sum.
When we parted, I left Raymond overjoyed with the hopes of being able to repay me all he owed, in a very short space of time, and even of being able to break the bank with the money I had lent him.
These golden visions, alas! were never destined to be realised. Soon afterwards, I went to Paris to resume my "séances," and whilst there, I received a letter from Raymond, making a last appeal to my generosity, to enable him to live until he got a situation he was trying for.
Wishing to prevent a recurrence of similar appeals, I did not answer his letter, but wrote to one of my friends at Strasbourg, to send the wretched man fifty francs, without telling him the name of his benefactor.
A whole year passed without my hearing any more of Raymond. I thought it very probable he had died of want, when one day, on returning home in a cab, I could not drive up to my own door, as an elegant brougham, which had just driven up, was standing opposite to it.
I therefore got out, and what was my astonishment, at recognising in my visitor, Voisin Raymond, extremely well dressed, and sporting all his beard, as in the former happy roulette days, except that it was not quite so long.
I almost hesitated to address him, so great was my surprise; I thought I must be the victim of an illusion.
"Ah!" exclaimed Raymond (making use of precisely the same words he did at our first meeting at Baden), "how a beard changes a man! especially when that man is transformed into a demi-millionnaire!"
"Come in quickly," said I to Raymond, "I am curious to know, to what lucky chance you owe your present prosperity."
My visitor followed me without uttering a word, and even after our entrance into the drawing-room, still remained silent.
I was the first to speak.
"How is it, my friend, that your great good luck has never been mentioned in the newspapers? You know, that when the bank loses, they make a point of giving the fact publicity through the press, in hopes of alluring fresh players?"
Still no reply from Raymond; but, after a protracted silence of several moments, he said:
"I am doing my best to find some means of prolonging your error; not finding any, I decide to tell you the truth.
"You doubtless remember, that when I commenced the history of my life, out of respect for one of the members of my family, I concealed my name. It was out of regard to my brother, who held a high appointment in the magistracy.
"This brother, who, thank God! knew nothing of my doings, except that I had run through my fortune, died three months since, without leaving a will. I am his sole heir, and have come into twenty-five thousand francs a year.
"This is how I have managed to become a rich man.
"I have entirely renounced gambling," continued Raymond. "I am rich enough for all I require, and have no ambition to become more wealthy.
"I could now, however," added he, with an air of triumph, "break every one of the banks, if I liked; and what a glorious vengeance I could take for all my former ill-luck! Fortunately, my heart is too full of happiness to leave any room for vengeance."
Raymond took up his abode in the Marais, where he lived respected. I lost sight of him, when I went to reside in the country; but three years afterwards, I had occasion to come to Paris, and learned that my friend had died, and left all his fortune to various charitable institutions in the capital.
THE TECHNICAL PART.
We are now come to the most important part of this work. I intend, in it, to explain to the reader, the manœuvres of the different sorts of Greeks I have just sketched. To make this more intelligible, it will be necessary for me to enter into certain details, which will, I trust, prove interesting.
I must preface this, however, by mentioning, that nothing is further from my intention, than to give a lecture on sleight-of-hand. I care more about putting the public on their guard, than about teaching them how the tricks are performed. I shall merely mention what is absolutely necessary, to make those who play, SHARP, and warn them against SHARPERS.
GENERAL RULES.
THE DIFFERENT TRICKS PRACTISED AT GAMES OF CARDS.
- 1. The saut de coupe.
- 2. The passe-coupe, or cut beneath.
- 3. The enjambage, or cut above.
- 4. The carte large, or large card.
- 5. The pont, or bridge.
- 6. The carte tuilée, or bent card.
- 7. The filage, or card changed.
- 8. The enlevage, or card abstracted.
- 9. The posage, or card replaced.
- 10. The carte à l'œil, or glance.
- 11. The substitution des jeux, or pack of cards substituted.
- 12. The boîte à la manche, or box of cards in the sleeve.
- 13. The faux mélanges, or false shuffle.
- 14. The mélange classificateur, or arranged shuffle.
- 15. The mélange partiel, or partial shuffle.
- 16. The éventail, or fan.
- 17. The queue d'aronde, or dove-tail.
- 18. The cartes adhérentes ou glissantes, or adherent or sliding cards.
- 19. The cartes teintées, or tinted cards.
- 20. The cartes hors d'équerre, or slanting cards.
- 21. The cartes pointées, or pricked cards.
- 22. The cartes morfilées, or cards with indented edges.
- 23. The cartes ondulées, or wavy cards.
- 24. The cartes tarotées, or enamelled cards.
- 25. The cartes marquées, or marked cards.
- 26. The chapelet, or rosary.
- 27. The bague à marquer, or ring for marking.
- 28. The tabatière à réflexion, or reflecting snuff-box.
- 29. The télégraphie, or telegraph.
CHAPTER I.
THE FALSE CUT.
The saut de coupe—The passe-coupe—The cut above—The large card—The bridge—The bent card.
The art of making a false cut, is the most important artifice employed by sharpers: and the Greek always exerts his best energies to accomplish this feat.
In order to show what a false cut is, I must recall to the mind of my reader, the use and end of the regular cut.
In all games of cards, it is the custom for the dealer, when he has done shuffling, to present the pack of cards to his adversary to cut: it is a sort of guarantee of good faith, which is also performed even amongst perfectly honest players.
The following is the way in which it is generally done:—
The cards are placed by the dealer near his adversary.
The adversary cuts, that is to say, he takes away a portion of the pack of cards, and places them beside the dealer, thus making two packets, No. 1 and No. 2.
The dealer raises the packet No. 2 and places it on No. 1.
Thus the two packets are formed into one, and the natural or artificial arrangement of the cards is disordered.
It is of great importance to the Greek to prevent this, as it would defeat his plans, and prevent him availing himself of the arrangements he has made against his adversary. It is necessary, then, for his success, that the two packets, whilst in his hands, should regain their first position. For this purpose, he employs different methods, the principal of which are:—
- 1. The saut de coupe.
- 2. The cut beneath.
- 3. The cut above.
- 4. The bridge.
- 5. The large card.
PART I.
THE "SAUT DE COUPE."
The reader who is uninitiated in the mysteries of sleight of hand, will probably think it incredible, not to say impossible, that a Greek can thus transpose invisibly the arrangement of two packs of cards, before the very eyes of his adversaries. Nothing, however, is more true.
The treatises on sleight of hand give the method of executing this trick. As this work, however, has not for its object the same sort of instruction, I shall content myself with unveiling here, the preparations and arrangements necessary for the performance of the trick.
When the Greek, takes up the packet of cards No. 2, to place them on No. 1, as before mentioned, instead of placing them equally one upon the top of the other [which would prevent his being able to distinguish them], he places No. 2 a little further back than No. 1, so that the latter advances about a quarter of an inch beyond, as exemplified below, in figure 4.
By means of this projection of the cards, the Greek, as soon as he gets the pack between his hands, slips the little finger of his left hand between the two packets Nos. 1 and 2, and holds himself in readiness "Sauter la coupe,"I when the opportunity serves.
Clever swindlers have yet another, and more adroit, manner of keeping the two packets separate.
They will, with the right hand, take up packet No. 2 as if to place it on the other; but, instead of so doing, they manage to keep the two sufficiently apart, to enable them to slip the little finger of the left hand between, in the same way as before mentioned.
I have just said, that a Greek always waits his opportunity to execute the sliding cut.
It is only the new hands who are in a hurry. The experienced sharper always bides his time, and, whilst relating some amusing anecdote, accompanied by a variety of gestures and gesticulations with his other hand, completely draws off the attention of the company, and prevents their watching his performances.
For example, "What are the stakes?" he will ask, with an air of unconsciousness, stretching out his hand towards them; and with the same gesture towards the score, he will ascertain the number of points, as if he was not thinking what he was about.
But let the "sliding-cut" be performed ever so well, it is very difficult to practise it where the play is high. In such company, every dealer ought to be sober in his movements; for, the least gesture which deviates from the regular rules, in sorting, shuffling, or dealing the cards, is certain to awaken suspicion. But a Greek is, notwithstanding, seldom at fault; if he fail with one trickery, he has another at hand, his répertoire being as varied as it is numerous.
PART II.
THE PASSE-COUPE, OR CUT BENEATH.
All sharpers are cunning, clever, and tricky, but they do not all possess the same facility for tricks of sleight of hand. Many of them not being able to accomplish the sliding cut, so as not to be seen, are obliged to have recourse to other tricks less difficult. Of this number is the "passe-coupe."
This trick is of the same use as the preceding one, and, if well executed, stands as little chance of being discovered.
In order to explain this trick, it is necessary for me to revert to that paragraph where the cards have been divided into two packs by cutting.
The Greek, in taking up the two packets of cards, instead of putting No. 2 on No. 1, slides it in underneath, as in figure 7.
When he has raised packet No. 2, he places it between the first and second fingers, and whilst raising packet No. 1, artfully manages to slide it underneath.
To facilitate this manœuvre, the rogue takes care to bend the cards whilst he shuffles them.
Some Greeks, instead of placing the packet No. 2 between the two first fingers, merely take the cards into their hands, and slide them beneath one another, as above described. But in this latter case the transposition is easily discovered.
PART III.
THE ENJAMBAGE, OR CUT ABOVE.
The "cut above" is a very simple and clever trick, and it is astonishing, when one knows it, to think how easily people are deceived, and that it should not be discovered. However, I candidly confess, the first time I saw it done, I was taken in, as others are.
In this trick, the Greek, instead of placing packet No. 2 on packet No. 1, passes the former over without stopping into the left hand, which he holds a little in advance, and places packet No. 1 on the top.
This trick, as well as the preceding one, is more especially practised in public-houses and places of low resort.
PART IV.
THE CARTE LARGE, OR LARGE CARD.
The heading of this division sufficiently indicates the nature of the trick I am about to describe.
It is to have one card larger than all the rest. When introduced into a pack this card, by its projection, almost forces the pack to divide, wherever the person who places it wishes.
If the Greek has previously arranged the cards as he wishes them to be, their being cut, in no way disarranges his plans, as the card alluded to remains where it was placed at the commencement of the deal.
The large card is also used by the swindler as a sort of mark, to alter the cut to wherever he thinks it would be most beneficial to him.
PART V.
THE PONT, OR BRIDGE.
The bridge is one of the oldest tricks in use amongst sharpers, and it is almost impossible to be on one's guard against its use, when well done.
As in the preceding examples, it is used to make a false cut, and thus to retain the cards as they have been arranged by the sharper to enable him to win.
The pack of cards must be held in the right hand, and bent, by pressing them against the first finger of the left. The upper part of the pack must then be bent in an opposite direction, so as to form an arch, as in figure 8.
This being accomplished, the upper portion of the pack is laid on the top of the other, as if to mix the cards.
The two bent cards are thus brought in contact, and it is the gap produced by these two arcs, which forces the cut to be made oftener at that spot than at any other, as represented in figure 9.
The smallest space between any two cards is sufficient for this purpose. The "carte tuilée," or card bent lengthways, is also used for this purpose.
The two portions of the pack, being bent lengthways, and laid face to face, are sure to make the cut at that particular spot, by causing a division in the pack; but this trick is not so good as the last-mentioned, and is, consequently, seldom employed.
CHAPTER II.
TO CHANGE A CARD.
"Filer la carte" is to change one card for another.
In the hands of an adroit sharper, this change is performed so instantaneously, that it is almost impossible for the quickest eye to detect it.
Let us suppose that, in dealing the cards, the Greek discovers, by means which I will hereafter explain, that the card he is going to give to his adversary would be advantageous to himself, he hides, or slips away, the card which ought to have been dealt to his adversary, and gives him, instead, the one which follows.
I will just explain how this manœuvre is managed.
When the Greek intends to perform this trick, he takes care, whilst dealing, to push two cards a little in advance of the rest of the pack, as shown in Nos. 1 and 2 in figure 10.
In a regular deal, No. 1 would be given before No. 2; but if the Greek thinks it to his interest to retain it, he substitutes the second for the first. Thus, by holding the two cards together, between his thumb and forefinger, he pushes them contrary ways, that is to say, he pushes No. 2 forward, and No. 1 backward, as represented in the figure below.
He then passes over the first card with his right hand, and gives the second.
This feat, which I have been obliged to explain thus lengthily, to make it clearly understood, ought to be done instantaneously, and with the rapidity of lightning.
Those who are expert, whilst advancing the right hand to give a card, at the same time draw back the left. This manœuvre completely deceives the eye, and may be practised as often as is necessary for the card in reserve to come into the hand of the Greek.
To give an idea how completely a person may be deceived by this trick, I will just relate what once happened to myself.
A certain Greek (of whom I have already spoken in my Memoirs) was anxious to show me this trick, and by way of illustrating his theory, selected the King of Spades, and placed it on the top of the pack. He then dealt the cards one after the other, and by thirty-one successive "filages," he so managed, that the King of Spades was the last card of the pack.
I acknowledge, and indeed I do so still, that so adroit was he, that though I knew the trick myself, I could not detect him.
CHAPTER III.
THE ABSTRACTED CARD.
When one has not been initiated into the mysteries of sleight-of-hand, it is difficult to believe that a sharper can abstract several cards, and put them back again, under the very eyes of his antagonist, without being detected. Such, however, is the fact.
The art of abstracting cards is one of the most useful tricks in sleight-of-hand, and it requires great skill and adroitness to perform the feat cleverly.
In order to do this trick, the Greek keeps the cards he wishes to abstract, placed diagonally in his left hand, at the top of the others, and a little advanced towards his right hand; as in figure 12.
He takes possession of the cards with his right hand, and holds them tightly between the top joints of the four fingers, and the first joint of the thumb, or the thenar, as it is termed in medical parlance.
The cards are consequently slightly bent, as in figure 13.
There is yet another manner of abstracting cards; but it is less practised by sharpers, than by conjurors, who often show off the trick in various ways, where it would be impossible for a sharper to make use of it.
It simply consists in holding the cards lightly, between the thumb and little finger of the hand which takes up the cards; a very slight pressure will do, and in this manner the cards do not require to be bent.
My readers will doubtless be surprised to hear, that as many as six cards can be thus hidden in the hand, at one time, without being seen; and it will astonish them even more, when I tell them, that a clever sharper will, with the same hand where the cards are concealed, cut and go on with the game, gesticulating in the most natural way, without any difficulty.
CHAPTER IV.
THE CARD REPLACED.
Once in possession of the cards which he has abstracted, the Greek, whether the game he is playing be Lansquenet, Baccarat, or Vingt-et-un, replaces them in the pack in such a way, that they will be sure when dealt to return to him.
This trick is the easiest to execute that I have yet described.
The Greek waits, until it is his turn to gather up, either the whole, or a portion of, the pack; then, whilst drawing them towards him, he quietly places the cards he had in reserve on the top, taking care to hide the action, by spreading out his hand over them.
CHAPTER V.
THE CARTE A L'ŒIL, OR GLANCE.
In playing, it is sometimes necessary for the Greek to obtain a sight of some particular card in the pack.
In order to do this, he resorts to the following manœuvre:—
One of his little fingers is slipped into the pack, where the card he wishes to see, lies; quick as lightning he glances his eye across it, and with such rapidity is the action performed, that those playing with him cannot see it, particularly as the backs of the cards are turned towards them, and he is gesticulating with his other hand, to draw off their attention.
CHAPTER VI.
THE SUBSTITUTION DES JEUX, OR PACK OF CARDS CHANGED.
The substituted pack—The box in the sleeve.
The way this is done depends much on the class of Greek performing the trick.
The high-bred sharper, for instance, very seldom makes use of it; he has other far more subtle methods, unknown to his brother rogue of low life.
The following tricks, however, may be considered as common to Greeks of every shade:—
A sharper has always under his coat, at the back of his trowsers, one or more little pockets, termed finettes, in which are carried the packs of cards he intends substituting for those of the house where he plays. These cards are so placed, that they can be drawn out with great facility, as may be perceived by the sketch on the next page.
Before the play begins, the Greek wanders about the room, in the neighbourhood of the card-tables, with his right hand placed, as shown, on his hip, and seizes a favourable opportunity, when he thinks no one is observing him, to substitute his own pack for those on the table, slipping the latter into a deep pocket called a profonde, which he has under the flap of his coat.
Others, more bold in their manœuvres, do not fear to execute this trick before the very eyes of their adversaries.
To do this with ease, pockets are made in the waistcoat, and are called costières, or side pockets,J because they are made at the left side, a little above the region of the heart. They are entirely hidden by the coat.
1st. In seating himself at the table, the Greek artfully draws out of one of his pockets the prepared cards, and holds them in readiness in his right hand, as I have before described in the chapter on the "Abstraction of Cards."
2nd. He then, with his left hand, takes up the pack which is on the table, as if to withdraw it from its envelope, and places his own pack on the top, carefully hiding both packs with his right hand.
3rd. He manages, in cutting, to put the false pack at the top, and removes the other, in the manner already related in the chapter on "Abstraction."
4th. Finally, he disposes of the original pack in his large pocket, or profonde.
To accomplish this feat with greater facility, he pretends to draw his chair nearer to the table, which brings his hand in juxtaposition with his pocket.
All the operations above described, may be regarded as one, and are performed with infinite address and promptitude, whilst the Greek is entertaining his adversary with some animated and amusing discourse.
It is needless to say, that the two envelopes of the cards are identical, the Greek of course having seen to that beforehand.
When sharpers find, that they have to be continually changing the packs of cards, and dread detection, should they try the trick too often, they arrange with one of their associates, whom they bribe, by offering him half the profits, to go and take the place of a servant, in those houses or clubs where they intend to cheat.
With such an arrangement, the two Greeks quietly pocket considerable sums. Others, less wary, take no accomplice, but change the cards themselves.
The Greek first finds out the name and address of the tradesman who furnishes the playing cards to the house or club, which he is in the habit of frequenting. He then goes to the shop, and makes a few trifling purchases, just to pave his way. He does this more than once, and returns again and again.
At length, one fine day, he calls at the shop to select, for a friend (he says), a dozen, or half a dozen, packs of cards, according as the shop is a large or a small one.
The next morning, pretending that the cards are not of the colour required, he takes them back again.
The packets being unopened, the shopkeeper has no hesitation in receiving and changing them for others.
But the Greek has passed the night, in opening and re-sealing the packets by a peculiar process known to sharpers.
The cards have been marked by him, before returning them to the shopkeeper, who has them now in his shop. The cheat is accomplished, and the Greek is biding his time.
PART I.
THE BOX IN THE SLEEVE.
There is yet another way of changing the pack, under the very eyes of your adversary. It consists in having a tin box fastened to your arm, under the sleeve of your coat, and which is not perceptible.
In this box, the Greek carries the cards he has marked for his own purposes.
When it is his turn to cut, he stretches out his hand across the table towards the pack, so as to hide it entirely; then, resting his arm lightly on the tablecloth, he presses a spring which opens the box, out of which falls the marked pack,—at the same time that there comes out another spring, which seizes the cards on the table, and draws them into the box.
Before concluding this chapter, I ought to mention that, though all these various tricks are each clever in their way, they cannot be employed indiscriminately.
The operations in question must depend on circumstances, and the manner of employing them should vary, according to whether they be performed in a smoking-tavern, a gambling-house, a drawing-room, or a club.
The Greek knows well what will suit each party with whom he plays, and rarely ventures on the trick without he is sure of succeeding.
CHAPTER VII.
THE FALSE SHUFFLE.
False shuffles: The arranged shuffle—The partial shuffle—The fan—The dove-tail.
It may be said that a false shuffle is not cheating, since the cards are but retained in their original order. Such acts, however, are not far removed from cheating, and the persons who are guilty of them may be compared to the receivers of stolen goods, who, though not the actual robbers, are judged to be so by the law.
When the pack of cards has been arranged by the sharper, whether he prepares them beforehand, or only in the presence of his adversary, he must be very careful not to disturb them.
To avoid this, he has recourse to various methods of evading a proper shuffle.
Of these there are four kinds, which vary according to the circumstances required.
They are:
PART I.
THE ARRANGED SHUFFLE.
The arranged shuffle consists in pretending to shuffle, whilst all the time you are arranging the cards, in the order you require them for cheating. Let us suppose, for example, that a Greek, in playing Écarté, places in the pack four cards of the same suit, three of which are trumps, and the fourth is the turn-up card; this he manages to do by arranging the shuffle in the following manner. He divides the pack of cards into two parts, holding one in each hand, as it is usual to do in shuffling in the ordinary way. In mixing the two packs, he knows how to slip in successively, above the four cards, seven others, which will complete the series necessary for the deal.
He then hands them to be cut, makes a false cut, and when he has dealt out the eleven cards, the four remaining are three trumps and the turn-up card.
The arrangement of the game of Piquet, mentioned in another chapter, is a further instance of this trick.
PART II.
THE PARTIAL SHUFFLE.
The partial shuffle is employed for those games, where only a portion of the cards is distributed at a time, such as Écarté. In this instance, we will suppose the Greek to have arranged eleven cards, so as to enable him to win the game, and it is of consequence that these cards should not be disarranged.
He therefore puts these eleven cards at the bottom of the pack, and, at the same time, carefully keeps his little finger between the upper and lower packet, which he avoids mixing, until after dealing the twenty-first card. This done, he performs the saut de coupe a second time, to bring the arranged packet again on the top of the pack, unless, by making the bridge, he gains the same end by forcing his adversary's cut.
PART III.
THE FAN.
The following trick is termed the Fan, because the Greek, to do the false shuffle, spreads the cards out in the shape of a fan. He then divides the pack into two parts, holding, as before, one in each hand; then, by a certain manipulation with the fingers of his right hand, he passes the cards under those in the left, which, to the spectator, gives the effect of mixing the cards; but this is far from being the case. The cards retain the position they would have done if the pack had been cut, as the upper packet has passed beneath the lower one. The operation, consequently, requires to be gone through a second time, to bring the cards into their original position. This shuffle may remain in the above condition as long as the Greek finds it convenient.
PART IV.
THE DOVE-TAIL.
The ways of doing the false shuffle are numerous, each Greek having some special method of his own. All of them are more or less derived from the principles I have just described.
It would take too long, as well as be useless, to enter into the details of these proceedings, as they are nearly all the same.
The false shuffle, with which I am about to close this chapter, is a peculiar one, and is very often used by sharpers.
To prevent any suspicions which might be raised by the use of the preceding shuffle, the Greek sometimes employs the Dove-tail, which consists in separating the cards into two packs, and then shuffling them one with the other; but, instead of finishing the shuffle by equalising the pack, the Greek manages to leave them at an angle as they are represented in figure 16 below.