462 



♦ KNOWLEDGE • 



[March 24, 1882. 



<!Pur (Lib\\)i^t Column. 



BV " FlVK OF Cl.l'llS." 



I HAVE born for nomc tinio pn«t onilenvouring to syslomntinr' 

 the |ilny iipoond hniid, llko tlir Iciulfi, lint tlio tnak is ii'it iin rnny 

 one. To bo({in with, tlio lead is iilwnya guided by ono of two ran- 

 Bidvrntionn : it is citlior from ntrpiigtli, or, when from wcaknosB, it in 

 plnyi'd to bolp pnrtncr ns miicli na inny 1)C. In most cases it is from 

 stronRtb, nnd there cnn then bo no (|ueNtion as to the card to bo 

 plnyi'd, and verj' little as to the meaning of a card which has been 

 played. Hut the second player may have stronRth or weakness, or 

 neither strenffth nor weakness, in the suit led, and his play thus 

 depends on a greater possible variety of positions. Then, again, it 

 depends on the lead ; so that we cannot say, as we can in the case 

 of the load, such and sncli a card means such and such a suit, but 

 must take into account the card led in the suit. It thus becomes 

 impossible to present anything like such simple rules, either for 

 playing second hand, or for the interpretation of the play second 

 hand, as in the case of the lead. Half a column on p. 310 sufTiccs 

 for the statement of all that need bo known about tho leads or their 

 interpretation ; we cannot present tho rules for second play in any- 

 thing like this space. 



To proceed systematically, let us consider tho leads as presented 

 in p. 310, and the corresponding play of second hand. Fortunately 

 we can dismiss a number of cases very quickly. 



Play Second Hand whkx Ack, King, or Quekx is Lkd (Plain- 

 Suits). — When Ace is led, of course, second hand has only to plaj- 

 his lowest, unless ho wishes to signal, when he plays his lowest but 

 one. ^\Tien King is led, second player, if he holds Ace, puts it on 

 ("covers," is the technical expression*), otherwise plays his 

 lowest, unless to signal — a case wo shall not hereafter specially 

 refer to. When Queen is led, we know that the leader does not 

 hold Ace or Qneen, and unless tho lead is from a weak suit (a 

 forced lead), that he does hold both Knave and ten. If second 

 hand holds both Ace and King, ho would, of course, play the King. 

 If, of these two cards, ho holds Ace and others, whether long or 

 short in the suit, he plays the Ace. If he holds King and others, 

 his play will depend on his strength in the suit ; if .short in the 

 suit, it is better to -lOver ; it long, to pass the Queen, playing, 

 in fact, on the same principles which guide in leading from 

 weakness on the one hand and from strength on the other. 

 The play second hand when Queen is led depends on the considera- 

 tion that if Ace is held by third hand, it will not be played unless 

 King is played second hand, when, of course, it will be played by 

 fourth hand. Now, if third player holds Ace, and second player 

 haying King is short in the suit, he can gain nothing by failing to 

 cover. Leader will know Ace lies with third player, and will lead 

 again (the lowest of his head sequence) when the King, if again 

 kept back, will bo nnguarded, so that a third round will cause the 

 King to fall to partner's Ace. If, however, tho sxiit is long, this danger 

 does not exist, and there is a greater probability that Ace will fall or 

 the suit be ruffed early. On the other hand, if fourth player has 

 Ace, it is still second player's interest to keep back the King if he 

 is long in the suit. His partner will take the trick with the Ace, 

 and whether second round is led by original leader or his partner, 

 the King will capture another card of the head sequence, with good 

 chance that tho last will fall in the third round. If, however, second 

 player was short in tho suit, of course, he gains nothing by thus 

 clearing it : it is best for him, therefore, to cover with King second 

 round, even if his partner holds the .-Vce. 



When Queen is led and .spcond player holds King, ten, and one 

 other, the question may arise whether it is not bettor to hold 

 up tho King, on the chance that partner taking trick with Ace, 

 the return of tho suit, when the leader's partner gets the lead, 

 may find second player with tho tenaco. It is, however, better 

 on the whole to cover in this case. The lead is in all probability 

 from Qneen, Knave, and one other ; it is certainly a forced lead ; 

 and it is an even chance that partner holds the Ace, and also an 

 even chance that he has numerical strength as against third hand. 

 It is three to one that one of these conditions holds, and in either 

 ca«e, playing King second hand is good. If your partnin* holds 

 the Ace, yon and he still have the command ; and if he has length, 

 you help to clear his suit by playing the King. The state of the 

 score may occasionally justify departure from this rule, however. 



It is scarcely likely that when Queen is led, second player should 

 hold King ancl Knave, with or without others, for this can only 

 happen when Queen has been led from Queen and a small one, a 



• I desire to call attenticn to the circumstance that these papers 

 on Whiet play are intended f< r learners, not for those who already 

 nnderstand Whist Btrategy. 



load only jnstiflcd by the nbsolntc impropriety (shown by previous 

 play) of leading from long suit, 'ond clear evidence that partner 

 is strong in the suit so led. Of conme, if this ihould happen, the 

 King 'is played. In fact, almost invariably when second player 

 hohls— with other card— a fonrchette for a high cartl led (that if. 

 King, Knave for a Queen; Queen, ton for a Knave; Knave, nine 

 for a ten ; and so on) he shonld cover. 



Solntions of Problem 2 by Volnol, A. C. W., II. Barclay, Peter 

 Parley, M. Morrison, correct. 



0. Thompson. — Sorry we misled yon with Problem 2 ; wo leave 

 it open another week. 



W. F. — Yon are right on ono point j in lines 13, 15, and 16 for 

 Z read B (hardly worth correcting, being so obrious). But yoB 

 say: II ow can (moaning, perhaps, tchy should) B now ruff? T 

 has no means of knowing that A holds the winning Heart B.ttet 

 Ace, vi/.., tho ten, and we are con.tidering the second and third 

 round from y's standpoint. Of course, B would not have trumped 

 his partner's winning canl. Again, you say. How should B win 

 the second round with a trump ? How or why should he not, had 

 T put on a small trump, as he ought to have done ? 



T. F. gives tho following question : — ■ . 



" How many different hands may a person hold at a game ot 

 Whist?" His answer is G35,013,559,GOO ; but this is open to 

 question. Is it the same hand, for instance, when same cards an 

 held, but trump suit is different ? or whether holder of hand it 

 dealer or not ? or leader or not ? or if, being dealer, anii card of 

 the thirteen be supposed the trump card ? Whist jdayers woald 

 answer No to all these questions. Five or CLrss. ' 



Dear Five, — I was shown the subjoined Double-Dummy Problem 

 by a fellow-passenger from Wellington to Napier (New Zealand), 

 last year. N'o doubt it has been published, and yon or one of your 

 Whist correspondents can tell me where and when. Bet it seems t« 

 me (I speak under correction) a good problem. — Yours, Ac., 



Editor. 



Problem 3. — Double Dummv. 



A. 



Y. 



Hearts— A, Q. 10, 9, -l, 3 

 Clubs— 10, 6. 

 Diamonds — 3. 

 Spades— 10, 0, 8, 7. 



Henrfi—Xu, G. 

 Clubs— 5, 3, 2. 

 Diamonds — A, Q, Ku, 



G, 5. 

 Spades — A, Q, Kn. 



Hearts— K, 8, 7. 

 Clubs— 9, 8, 7, 4. 

 Diamonds — 2. 

 Spades— 6, 3, 4, 3, 2, 



Z. 

 Hearts— 5, 2. 

 Clubs— A, K, Q, Kn. 

 Diamonds — K, 10, 9, 



8, 7, 4. 

 Spades— K. 



.4 leads and makes everv trick. 



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