22 



INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL. 



The amount played for will give some idea of the 

 character of the game. Before commencing, the 

 boy called out that the stake should in no case ex- 

 ceed two reals. This, however, was considered too 

 high, and it was fixed by general consent at a me- 

 dio, or six and a quarter cents. The largest amount 

 proclaimed by the boy was twenty-seven dollars 

 and three reals, which, divided among four hundred 

 and thirty-eight players, did not make very heavy 

 gambling. In fact, an old gentleman near whom I 

 was standing told me it was a small affair, and not 

 worth learning; but he added that there was a place 

 in the neighbourhood where they played monte for 

 doubloons. The whole amount circulated during 

 the evening fell far short of what is often exchanged 

 at a small party in a private drawing-room at home, 

 and among those who would not relish the imputa- 

 tion of being accounted gamblers. In fact, it is per- 

 haps but just to say that this great concourse of peo- 

 ple was not brought together by the spirit of gam- 

 bling. The people of Merida are fond of amuse- 

 ments, and in the absence of theatres and other pub- 

 lic entertainments, the loteria is a great gathering- 

 place, where persons of all ages and classes go to 

 meet acquaintances. Rich and poor, great and 

 small, meet under the same roof on a footing of per- 

 fect equality ; good feeling is cultivated among all 

 without any forgetting their place. Whole families 

 go thither together ; young people procure seats 

 near each other, and play at more desperate games 



