BRIDGE 



924 



BRIDGE 



dealer may declare any suit to be trump, or 

 he may prefer to play without trumps. If he 

 feels that his own hand does not permit a 

 satisfactory declaration he may ask his partner 

 to declare the tnimp. This is called the 

 "bridge," or "bridging the declaration," and 

 the dealer usually signifies his intention by 

 saying, "I bridge it." In any case the dealer 

 plays the hand without assistance from his 

 partner; the latter, after the player to the 

 dealer's left has led the first card, lays his 

 cards, arranged by suits, face up on the table. 

 The dealer makes all plays from his own and 

 his partner's hand, the latter being known as 

 the dummy. Partners always sit opposite each 

 other, and the order of play is from left to 

 right, the player to the left of the dealer hav- 

 ing the first lead. Thereafter the winner of 

 each trick leads. 



Scoring. The method of scoring is some- 

 what complicated. The score is kept in two 

 parts, the game score and the honor score. 

 The game score is determined entirely by 

 the number of tricks taken by the dealer; the 

 honor score includes special amounts for high 

 cards held at the beginning of play, and cer- 

 tain special penalties and special rewards. 

 These two scores, though kept separately, are 

 added together at the conclusion of play. 



The game consists of thirty points. Points 

 for game are credited only to the side making 

 the declaration. This side wins a certain num- 

 ber of points for each trick over six, as fol- 

 lows: if "no trumps" is the declaration, each 

 trick over six counts twelve points; if hearts, 

 eight points; if diamonds, six points; if clubs, 

 four points ; if spades, two points. Every hand 

 must be played out, and if the declarant makes 

 more than thirty points the total is credited 

 to his score. The winner of two games out of 

 three wins a rubber. If one side wins two 

 games in succession, the third game is not 

 played. 



The honor score is more complicated than 

 in whist. If the declaration is "no trumps" 

 the four aces are the honors, and for each ace 

 held at the beginning of play the side holding 

 it counts ten, provided that it holds at least 

 three of the aces. If each side has two aces, 

 the honors are divided, or easy, and are not 

 counted. If one of the players holds the four 

 aces in his hand, his side is credited 100 points 

 in the honor score. If a trump has been de- 

 clared, the honor cards are the ace, king, queen, 

 jack or knave, and ten, the value of the hon- 

 ors being determined by the value of a trick. 



Three honors, either divided or in one hand; 

 twice the value of a trick. 



Four honors, divided ; four times the value of 

 a trick. 



Four honors, in one hand; eight times the 

 value of a trick. 



Five honors, three in one hand and two in the 

 other ; five times the value of a trick. 



Five honors, four in one hand and one in the 

 other ; nine times the value of a trick. 



Five honors, in one hand ; ten times the value 

 of a trick. 



For example, if a player holds the ace, king 

 and ten of diamonds, when diamonds are 

 trumps, he adds twice six, or twelve, to his 

 honor score. If hearts are trumps and he has 

 three honors, he adds twice eight, or sixteen, 

 to the honor score. 



Slam. When one side takes all thirteen 

 tricks it counts as a grand slam, for which 

 forty points should be added to the honor 

 score. If one side takes twelve tricks it counts 

 as a little slam, for which twenty points should 

 be added. 



Rubber. The side winning the rubber adds 

 100 to its honor score. 



Doubling. Either opponent of the dealer 

 and his partner may double, which means that 

 each trick shall have double its usual value. 

 It signifies, of course, that he believes that he 

 can prevent the dealer from taking more than 

 six tricks. The dealer or his partner may 

 redouble, in which case each trick counts four 

 times its usual value. It is customary to limit 

 the value of a trick to 100. Doubling does not 

 affect the value of honors, grand slam or little 

 slam. 



Auction Bridge. In auction bridge, which is 

 played almost to the total exclusion of the 

 earlier form, the method of play is the same. 

 The dealer, however, instead of making a dec- 

 laration, is allowed to bid for that privilege, 

 and each of the other players in turn may 

 make a higher bid. The bidding continues 

 until three of the players in succession have 

 refused to bid further. The player who con- 

 tracts to take the largest number of tricks of 

 the highest value is given the privilege of 

 playing the hand; provided, however, that as 

 between partners who have bid on the same 

 suit, the player who first made such a declara- 

 tion shall play the hand. His partner becomes 

 the dummy, as in ordinary bridge. 



The value of a bid depends on the value of 

 a trick "in trumps" or in the suit. Under the 

 present rules the tricks count as follows: if 

 clubs are trumps, each trick over six counts 

 six; if diamonds, seven; if hearts, eight; if 



