42 Life in the West. [JAN. 



Connected with these tables are persons nick-named " bonnets," who being 

 dressed out for the occasion as well as they can manage, with brass spurs at 

 the heels of their boots, and provided with money for the purpose, come into 

 the booths as perfect strangers, and exclaim, with the best town drawl they 

 can assume, and a swaggering air, all which is thought so very imposing to 

 country folk, " ten pounds ' blue' ' red' or ' black/ " then, turning to a 

 person standing by, whom they take to be a flat, "you shall go ^me halves, 

 Sir, if you like ; I'll pound it that we win ; I've won all this money," taking out 

 a handful of sovereigns and gilt farthing*, " this morning ; come, try your 

 luck with me." Mostly the bait takes. These persons also pick up flats at 

 places of refreshment, &c. and bring them under their arms to the tables to 

 which they are attached. 



Hazard English or French is a particularly favourable game to 

 fraud. Experienced sharpers can defy all detection at it. 



Sometimes false or loaded dice are produced, which bring up only certain 

 numbers ; at others, cramped boxes, which land the dice as they are put in, 

 because there is not room in the box for them to turn about. Then the centre 

 dot is taken out of the " five," which gives two "fours," to each die; but the 

 most effectual mode, and which sets at naught, at times, the scrutiny of the 

 well experienced leg, is with fair dice and box. One of the dice is secured 

 for a certain number, between the two middle fingers, the other dice is put 

 into the box and rattled, which gives the appearance of both dice being in 

 the box. 



At rouge et noir, as we have already observed, the thing is more 

 difficult, but it is to be managed. 



Young players generally stake against runs upon a colour, thinking it vastly 

 odd, that there should be a run beyond four or five upon either, (runs of 18 

 and 20 have been known,) so they are induced to back the losing colour, as 

 high as the limitation of stakes will let them, when a packed run, or a natural 

 one, sweeps away their money in a few moments. A transaction of this sort 

 at a hell in Bennet Street, robbed a young gentleman out of about 700 in 

 eight or nine (C coups." He played generally upon black, and a run upon red 

 was packed against him. 



The packing of cards against any particular game, and of "31 apres," can 

 only be done at the commencement of play, or at a renewal, after a cessation, 

 which at times occurs for want of players. 



Another style of cheating is resorted to with great impunity. The dealer 

 will pay to heavy stakes down which win, in many notes, to cover the appear- 

 ance of their being short of what they should be, which from the delirium or 

 intoxication of the players, to whom the money belongs, is rarely detected. 

 If it is, the dealer has only to apologize for the mistake ! 



And again. All stakes intended to be risked upon " a coup," must be down 

 upon the colours before the cards are dealt. The dealer sees which colour 

 has the heaviest stakes say black. The cards turn up 7, 10, 5, 9, 6 total 

 37 for black ; 2, 7, 5, 9, 7, 8 total 38 for the red : black then should win, as 

 being nearest 31. The dealer should say, " 7 8, red loses." The odd num- 

 ber of each line only is announced, therefore it is very easy, in their quick 

 calculation, to drop a pip or two of one line, or add a pip or two to the other, 

 and make it appear that red wins instead of black. If any player has counted 

 the cards as they fell upon the table, and so detects the cheat, it also passes 

 off as a simple error ; with " oh, dear ! I beg your pardon, gentlemen, it is 

 clearly a mistake, it is impossible to be always correct." The dealer then will 

 count the cards singly, and makes other apologies for the error. It is very 

 remarkable, though, that these " errors" are invariably in favour of the banks. 

 Those who have small stakes upon the opposite colour, though they may see 

 it, will never point it out, because they win by these " errors," and self, 

 interest causes them to wink at such proceedings, 



