CUTTING ME UP 



I may mention that before having the evening meal 

 I had locked the first hundred up with the landlord. 

 It was the first one handed to me for backing the 

 double. Of course there was great mortification at 

 seeing that money dribble away. They were so 

 wonderful in their gentle treatment of a prize mug — 

 JE ! They flattered me all the while, saying what a 

 wonderful punter I was, for they had been staggered 

 a bit at the phenomenal luck that day over this horse, 

 Hesitation. Any young gentleman who could do 

 that could win the rest of their money. I dropped 

 into it all right. I had never expected to win any- 

 thing like the sum I had, so, confident that I had a 

 hundred tucked away, the other was given a chance 

 in the hope that I could add to it after all, yet all the 

 time there was the sure intuition that I was being 

 carved up like the biggest Michaelmas bird ever 

 plucked. There was another mug present, but he only 

 had small money. I punted a few pounds against him 

 and won. In a short time I went into the bank again 

 and they soon finished me off of all but one or two 

 notes (pounds). I got up to call for a drink. " You're 

 not going yet, young man," called out a hoary-headed 

 old sinner. " Your luck will change ; I've never seen 

 anyone like you to have such a bad run." " You have 

 got a lot more left," cried another. They had weighed 

 me up to the ounce, and knew that I had won over 

 three hundred and was keeping a bit back. " Now, 

 just look in your pockets," insinuated another. " We'll 

 give you a chance." I tell you it was difficult to 

 leave them, but somehow, to my lasting credit, I 

 managed to give them a miss for ten minutes and get 

 to the billiard-room. They wanted to do the " box " 

 on the green cloth table, but that didn't attract. At last 

 I was challenged to pyramids, and was wise enough to 



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