CARD SHARPERS AND THEIR WEAPONS.

Inangahua Times, Volume XI, Issue 1755, 10 September 1886, Page 2

CARD SHARPERS AND THEIR WEAPONS.

We have l»een shown by the Insp j SpeetOl General ofPoiiee, Mi. Fosb»ry, j a pack of cauls most ingeniously marked for the purpose of cheating. The cards wer«- mantifitctiuvd by the well-known maker Dclarue, Wilt after reaching Sydney weje Overly maiii* pulatud with tVaduient intent. They had oi finally dark rod hacks, which have since been ornamented profusely with gilded scroll woik and foliage, which is used as a whirl** for the fraud. Tukii g the four su.N — cub*, spades, ln-ai ta, and di.iino.iils .n success M i on — it is easy to explain how Mw cards are marked. It may be said that once the distinctive m.iks are pointed out, there is nothing required bui practice and a quick eye to enable a player to read his iipponeut's hand i»y watching the caids us they me j dealt, or by inspecting the kicks of theo» dliriug the game. There are two murks on each card, one showing the suit to which it Ixtlougs and the other its value. Beginni-.g according to the order named with the clnbs, and iT-inni'-ncii-' wi'h the first srt of inark.-s there i«. close to e;i«-h corner h i smi j l <iir*ed u'iU line ul'Ont ;m ei^htii of &-.< inch lonsr, suri-oiiiidt-t! i-y i^ilt ; SCI-olls, Hino-'g which it entirely t-8 ( capes notice. Every «'»rd l'*!iring this j single line in the corner is a club. In ! fhe case of the spade* there are two lines curved out wan Is und joined at i one end. The h<aits Intve a third lint) joined to the right hand upper line, and the diamonds a fourth joined to the left Imud upper line. If the reader will take a trefoil clover, and look at the outline of it he will see exactly h>w the Hues are arranged. Take tl»<» centre petal to c>mnionce with. The edge to the ri>»ht hand shows the dir-ctior, of »h<- enwrfor clubs, while 'he '♦•ft and right combined give tii,- .-lie t'..r »'" c <|)!id s. 1 look now t,<> •).• n_;iii trind .-etiil make 1 lip tllC thl'ee jI'HS f>> h» U' ts, iillil 111 rlu> same w;ty the out ii eof 'he left j hand petal joined with the other three make the fonr \in<* lvp-vsenting ; diamonds. j Having now shown the distinctive ! marks for the four suits, it nitty be explained how the \aln Bof the cards ■ are indicated. This is done )>y the second set of marks, which consist of leases of Viions shap* s turned in dififerent dileitioiis, >h>»li shape and direction helping to indicate the value of r.he wild. These marks me placed close to and below those indicating the suit, gi fchu l»«> r '» may b*' taken in (like the verdant p'ttyer) :tta glance. Each ace is distinguiHhe.il l«y the presence of a enriing tendril, ending in j a three* pronged leaf or trefoil, with i the petals pointing upwards. The I " deiice " or two, is noted by a twofoil : turned downwards, looking like a : slmmiock with one petal toru off. The three h-is a similar mark, hut the leaf is turned outward in a hoiisontal position. The four bus a two pronged leaf pointing upward, *he five .-itivfiil turned direcrly down\v--nd, fhe six a trefoi' turned d<-w ni.l sligVly outward. O'l tin sr-ven th •:•<■ is a huge trefoil, the p.t!iis/ however, li- in..» p'acr-d side l.y • lik • Mi- te.-th «>f a saw, a>d iiot |>»inting in varimis directions 'ike tliose «.f h cl«»ver oi shamrock The eight i« known by a trefoil pointing diagonally to the corner, and the nine hv a serrated leaf turned inward, with thenointsiipwaid*. The ten bears a separated leaf turned downward, and .Tick a trefoil noisiting OUtwiris to^virds the C-.rners, the Qiieen a trefoil with the stei»» at the *i.!e instead of the centre »f the le=if, and the Kiiv,»a serrated leaf with the points upward and out. Here is the exposure of a systematic fraud concocted and carried out in Sydney. The designs for the scrolls and tmiks were nlannerl, lithographed, and printed on th*- ends in this city, and the fraudulent packs, which are very termed "readers.'' hive I»een disposed of in Sydney They have, as a matter of ennrs**, found their way into the hands of sharpers and other vagabonds, who will ra»her starve than work, and who nndnn'»tedly have made some rich harvests on* of those very unsophisticated youths, who, as soon as they leave school, become imbued with the idea that they are more than a match for professional rogues. It need hnrdl" l»e pointed ont that they are jnst the easiest dnpes the sharpevs meet with Tll-y 'war ont 1 Gordon's lines ejrse*ly — "We knew too much. V>ut not quite , enough . And so we went to the wall." They are kindrt »' to those ve-y 'lever young men who talk frtm?'i'«rlv of liorS'S »hey h:^e never «een. of \v««ei*s they have i<ev.r 'nid. nf the wit-.rs they pi.ked — nfter the races — and whose incomes s»re oont'^nallv n'«der mortgagep to the sn»all fry hnnkmnkeiN. It is highly p'ohaWe that che»ting nt cards ie as old as ca v d=» them^-lves i Hoyle's ti-PHtise wasnuMis'iod i- 1843. hut he nllndrs to the fact hat 10 veal's | previously Richard Seynmnr, gentleman had published a "complete gambler," ! in which he any?:— "La«ge sums of rnoiv y were played away at this game (whist), which f»ct put sharpers upon . the invention to decive and cheat nn wary nhivers. They secomnMshed their ohject by means of ' breef cards,' • corner bend,' and the « middle hend of Kingston Bridge.' This is to B>»v. the shaiper identified p:irticnlar cards in ! ea -h suit by cer'ain marks or signs longer or hroader cards, bent corners, or raised centres. Then they had a method of 'piping,' which was another way of cheating by m'-ans of confederate lookers on, who, while pretending to smoke in quietness and pence, disclosed to their associates Mie cards in the hands 'hey overlooked, hv certflin ways ««f plflcin!.' their fingers on their r'P'^. o; '•}" i!*ie of «r»»-i«-n« ' prfcenCtrU'd uhta*t3 uud gi^i.als."

The a'»ove is written with the object of di>closin^ an infamous fraud, which tlieie is no doubt that this exposure will |>racti<-allv put an end to, but the tact that it has l>een carried on successfully for a considerable period should convince amaN-nr gamblers of two facts. The fit st is, that whenever card-playing for money is carried on in a place of husiness, professional gamblers and systematic cheating are iike'y to be f >u;id. The second is, that receiitly fin^iicipated schoolboys, no nutter what idea they inny have of their own cl-\erness, are no match for ni-:i w!io makt* their living at cards, oi wiili i.hf Mi'litrd ctie. or at peucillin=» the odds.- IS If. Herald).