Light Come, Light Go: Gambling—Gamesters—Wagers—The Turf

Part 1

Chapter 13,415 wordsPublic domain

LIGHT COME, LIGHT GO

MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED

LONDON · BOMBAY · CALCUTTA MELBOURNE

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY

NEW YORK · BOSTON · CHICAGO ATLANTA · SAN FRANCISCO

THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, LTD

TORONTO

LIGHT COME, LIGHT GO

GAMBLING--GAMESTERS--WAGERS

THE TURF

RALPH NEVILL

"D'un bout du monde A l'autre bout, Le Hasard seul fait tout."

MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED ST. MARTIN'S STREET, LONDON

1909

CONTENTS

PAGE

The gambling spirit inborn in mankind--Its various forms in reality identical--Resemblance of gamblers to the alchemists of old--Capriciousness of fortune--Importance of small advantages at play--An extraordinary run at hazard--Napoleon and Wellington little addicted to cards--Blücher's love of gaming--He wins his son's money--Avaricious gamesters--Anecdotes of the miser Elwes--Long sittings at the card-table--Modern instance in London--Two nights and a day at whist at the Roxburgh Club--Casanova's forty-two hour duel at piquet--Anecdotes of Fox, the Duke of Devonshire, Sir John Lade, Beau Nash, and others--Country houses lost at play--"Up now deuce and then a trey"--The Canterbury barber 1

The spirit of play in the eighteenth century--The Duke of Buckingham's toast--Subscription-Houses, Slaughter-Houses, and Hells--The staff of a gaming-house--Joseph Atkinson and Bellasis--Raids on King's Place and Grafton Mews--Methods employed by Bow Street officers--Speculative insurance--Increase of gaming in London owing to arrival of _émigrés_--Gambling amongst the prisoners of war--The Duc de Nivernois and the clergyman--Faro and E.O.--Crusade against West-End gamblers--The Duchess of Devonshire and "Old Nick"--Mr. Lookup--Tiger Roche--Dick England--Sad death of Mr. Damer--Plucking a pigeon 38

III

Former popularity of dice--The race game in Paris--Description of hazard--Jack Mytton's success at it--Anecdotes--French hazard--Major Baggs, a celebrated gamester of the past--Anecdotes of his career--London gaming-houses--Ways and methods of their proprietors--Ephraim Bond and his henchman Burge--"The Athenæum"--West-End Hells--Crockford's--Opinion of Mr. Crockford regarding play--The Act of 1845--Betting-houses--Nefarious tactics of their owners--Suppression in 1853 74

Craze for eccentric wagers at end of eighteenth century--Lord Cobham's insulting freak and its results--Betting and gaming at White's--The Arms of the Club--The old betting-book and its quaint wagers--Tragedies of play--White's to-day--£180,000 lost at hazard at the Cocoa Tree--Brummell as a gambler--Gaming at Brooks's--Anecdotes--General Scott--Whist--Mr. Pratt--Wattier's Club--Scandal at Graham's--Modern gambling clubs--The Park Club case in 1884--Dangers of private play 103

Talleyrand whilst at cards announces the death of the Duc d'Enghien--"The curse of Scotland"--Wilberforce at faro--Successful gamblers--The Rev. Caleb Colton--Colonel Panton--Dennis O'Kelly--Richard Rigby--Anecdotes--Strange incidents at play--Aged gamesters--A duel with death--General Wade and the poor officer--Anecdote of a caprice of Fortune--Stock Exchange speculation--A man who profited by tips 137

Colonel Mellish--His early life and accomplishments--His equipage--A great gambler--£40,000 at a throw!--Posting--Mellish's racing career--His duel--In the Peninsula--Rural retirement and death--Colonel John Mordaunt--His youthful freaks--An ardent card-player--Becomes aide-de-camp to the Nawab of Oude--Anecdotes--Death from a duel--Zoffany in India and his picture of Mordaunt's cock-fight--Anecdotes of cock-fighting 167

VII

Prevalence of wagering in the eighteenth century--Riding a horse backwards--Lord Orford's eccentric bet--Travelling piquet--The building of Bagatelle--Matches against time--"Old Q." and his chaise match--Buck Whalley's journey to Jerusalem--Buck English--Irish sportsmen--Jumping the wall of Hyde Park in 1792--Undressing in the water--Colonel Thornton--A cruel wager--Walking on stilts--A wonderful leap--Eccentric wagers--Lloyd's walking match--Squire Osbaldiston's ride--Captain Barclay--Jim Selby's drive--Mr. Bulpett's remarkable feats 204

VIII

Gambling in Paris--Henry IV. and Sully--Cardinal Mazarin's love of play--Louis XIV. attempts to suppress gaming--John Law--Anecdotes--Institution of public tables in 1775--Biribi--Gambling during the Revolution--Fouché--The tables of the Palais Royal--The Galeries de Bois--Account of gaming-rooms--Passe-dix and Craps--Frascati's and the Salon des Étrangers--Anecdotes--Public gaming ended in Paris--Last evenings of play--Decadence of the Palais Royal--Its restaurants--Gaming in Paris at the present day 235

Public gaming in Germany--Aix-la-Chapelle--An Italian gambler--The King of Prussia's generosity--Baden-Baden--M. de la Charme--A dishonest croupier--Wiesbaden--An eccentric Countess--Closing of the tables in 1873--Last scenes--Arrival of M. Blanc at Homburg--His attempt to defeat his own tables--Anecdotes of Garcia--His miserable end--A Spanish gambler at Ems--Roulette at Geneva and in Heligoland--Gambling at Ostend--Baccarat at French watering-places--"La Faucheuse" forbidden in France 282

The Principality of Monaco--Its vicissitudes--Early days of the Casino--The old Prince and his scruples--Monte Carlo in 1858 and 1864--Its development--Fashionable in the 'eighties--Mr. Sam Lewis and Captain Carlton Blythe--Anecdotes--Increase of visitors and present democratic policy of administration--The _Cercle Privé_ and its short life--The gaming-rooms and ways of their frequenters--Anecdotes--Trente-et-quarante and roulette--Why the cards have plain white backs--Jaggers' successful spoliation of the bank--The croupiers and their training--The staff of the Casino--The _viatique_--Systems--The best of all 319

Difficulty of making money on the Turf--Big wins--Sporting tipsters and their methods--Jack Dickinson--"Black Ascots"--Billy Pierse--Anecdotes--Lord Glasgow--Lord George Bentinck--Lord Hastings--Heavy betting of the past--Charles II. founder of the English Turf--History of the latter--Anecdotes--Eclipse--Highflyer--The founder of Tattersall's--Old time racing--Fox--Lord Foley--Major Leeson--Councillor Lade--"Louse Pigott"--Hambletonian and Diamond--Mrs. Thornton's match--Beginnings of the French Turf--Lord Henry Seymour--Longchamps--Mr. Mackenzie Grieves--Plaisanterie--Establishment of the Pari Mutuel in 1891--How the large profits are allocated--Conclusion 374

INDEX 437

ILLUSTRATIONS

IN COLOUR

FACE PAGE

The Trente-et-Quarante of the Past. From a scarce Print by Darcis _Frontispiece_

The Beautiful Duchess throwing a Main. By Rowlandson 60

La Bouillotte. From a scarce Print after Bosio 138

The Chaise Match 214

The Palmy Days of the Palais Royal. From a contemporary Print 258

A Gaming-Table in the Palais Royal 262

Véry's in 1825 276

Plan of Roulette Table, as used at Monte Carlo 348

Betting. By Rowlandson 382

IN BLACK AND WHITE

The Spendthrift. From an Eighteenth-Century Print 26

A Raid on a London Gaming-House 44

Sharpers and Bucks in a Billiard Room 68

Light Come, Light Go 80

A Row in a Fashionable Hell 86

Count d'Orsay calling a Main at Crockford's 98

The Arms of White's _p._ 107

The Gambling-Room at Brooks's. From a Water-colour Drawing in the possession of the Club 116

The Cock-Fight at Lucknow, with Key. Engraved by R. Earlom, after Zoffany 194

Roulette in the Eighteenth Century 284

Facsimile Title-Page of "Guide du Spéculateur au Trente-Quarante et à la Roulette" 298

Gambling at Homburg. Drawn by the late G.A. Sala 308

E.O. on a Country Race-course. By Rowlandson 398

Mrs. Thornton 416

The passion for speculation which, throughout all ages, has captivated the great bulk of humanity, would seem to be an innate characteristic of mankind. It assumes various forms and guises which often deceive those over whom it exercises its sway, and becomes in numberless cases a veritable obsession, causing its victims to devote the whole of their time, thoughts, and money--sometimes even their lives--to its service. Devotees of the simpler forms of gambling, such as are to be procured at the card-table and on the race-course, are often looked down upon by people who are themselves under the sway of other insidious, if more reputable, modes of tempting fortune. For all speculation, whether it be in pigs or wheat, stocks and shares, race-horses or cards, is in essence the same--its main feature being merely the desire to obtain "something for nothing," or in other words to acquire wealth without work. Gambling, of no matter what kind, is thus a conscious and deliberate departure from the general aim of civilised society, which is to obtain proper value for its money. The gambler, on the other hand, receives either a great deal more than he gives or nothing at all.

All conditions of life being more or less disquieted either with the cares of gaining or of keeping money, it is but natural that mankind should be allured by the idea of discovering and utilising an easy and quick road to riches. Alas, the prospect of speedy wealth, which exercises such an irresistible fascination over certain natures, is in the vast majority of cases nothing but a delusive mirage, as tempting to covetous folly as the "philosopher's stone." Indeed, the votaries of chance in a great measure resemble the alchemists of old, who were ever seeking, but never found, a method of producing untold gold.

So convinced were these searchers of the possibility of eventually discovering the secret of manufacturing riches, that they laughed even at successful gamblers, deeming them to be mere drudges and sluggards on the golden road. There was a time, indeed, when students of what Gibbon termed "the vain science of alchemy," were actually called "multipliers," and their unbounded confidence naturally made a deep impression upon the credulous ignorance of their age. So much so that our Henry IV. appears to have become seriously alarmed at the prospect of the country being flooded with precious metals manufactured by the "multipliers," for a statute passed during his reign decrees that "none from henceforth shall use to multiply gold or silver or use the craft of multiplication, and if any the same do he shall incur the pain of felony." His Majesty might just as well have issued an edict against gamblers making use of a sure method of winning!

One of the most remarkable things about gambling is that no one ever seems to win--certainly the vast majority of those addicted to play, even the most lucky, generally declare that on the whole they have lost. A number of these, however, probably leave out of their calculations the large amounts which they have spent whilst fortune was in a generous mood; for gamblers when in luck are apt to fling their money about very freely, and even when they are losing they do not as a rule practise a rigid economy. This is not the case, of course, with followers of methods and systems who take their gambling seriously; these are often frugal men who, though quite callous about losing large sums in the pursuit of their hobby, regard money spent on enjoyment or luxuries as wasted. This is the type of gambler who racks his brains with calculations, and takes immense trouble to obtain really sound information about the chances of some race-horse, or of the rise or fall of some stock.

But even to such sober gamblers the result is usually disappointing. All methods, systems, and combinations do little to assist gamblers to win--the most they can effect is to put a limitation on their losses; and as regards special information, those who are addicted to racing know only too well how expensive it is to be acquainted with any one in a position to give really good "tips." More than that, information which emanates from owners, trainers, and jockeys would soon break the Bank of England were that institution to decide to risk its capital on such advice. Not that in many cases these men are not really anxious to give their friends winners; but somehow or other the good thing hardly ever comes off. It is indeed not at all unlikely that the race-goer who knows no one connected with the Turf has a distinct advantage; for when regular racing men possess reliable information as to a horse which has been reserved for some coup, they are obviously not at liberty to divulge its name, and consequently the "tips" they give are little more than hints of vague possibilities.

Although as a matter of fact the goddess of chance--not erroneously called "fickle"!--is in the long run pitilessly severe upon her votaries, one and all, there are times and occasions on which she seems not indisposed to smile. To propitiate her is, therefore, the first ambition of all gamblers, and in their efforts to attain this end many of them exhibit an almost childish superstition. Yet we must remember that the wisest of the Roman emperors kept a golden image of Fortune in their private apartments, or carried it about them. They never sent it to their successor till they were near expiring; and then it was accompanied with this declaration--that in the whole course of their achievements, they were more indebted to fortune than to any skill or dexterity of their own.

Always feminine, Fortune is to all appearances essentially wayward and capricious. She requires to be constantly tended, silently expected, and approached with due caution and prudence. Rough and refractory behaviour scares her away; irritation at her eccentricities banishes her altogether; whilst levity and ingratitude, when she is in a beneficent mood, soon causes her to escape. Moderation is the only chance of securing her constant presence. In short, fortune, or luck, is a phenomenon, the ground and essence whereof is to a great degree inexplicable. For the most part we know it only from its effects, and can give no certain account either of its nature or of its mode of action, and of the always increasing or diminishing greatness of it. To the gambler fortune appears to be an occult power, the aid of which is not infrequently invoked by means of various fanciful fetishes, which for the moment acquire a real virtue, as being likely to propitiate the invisible influence which presides over speculation.

The movements of fortune have been well compared to those of the sea, which for the most part seems to affect a serene and smiling aspect, broken only by tranquil ripples. From time to time, however, furious tempests and storms disturb its surface, calm being often re-established as quickly and suddenly as it was originally broken. Like the sea, Fortune would at heart appear to be inclined towards tranquillity, though her fury, when roused, is inclined to conceal this tendency.

Whilst Fortune generally seems to distribute her favours in a somewhat haphazard way, there is no doubt that those who study the so-called laws of chance are the most likely to receive them. For although chance is generally considered to be effect without design, this is not strictly true. Throughout the universe of nature, indeed, all events appear in the end to be governed by immutable laws which have existed from the beginning of time, no matter what partial irregularities may arise at certain periods.

In any game, for instance, equality in play is likely to restore the players in a series of events to the same state in which they began; while inequality, however small, has a contrary effect, and the longer the game be continued, the greater is likely to be the loss of the one player and the gain of the other. As has been very soundly said, this "more or less," in play, runs through all the ratios between equality and infinite difference, or from an infinitely little difference till it comes to an infinitely great one. The slightest of advantages, whether arising from skill or chance, will as surely "materialise" in the course of play as does the carefully calculated profit of a commercial expert.

An event either will happen or will not happen; this constitutes a certainty. Some events are dependent, others independent. The difference is very important. Independent events have no connection, their happenings neither forwarding nor obstructing one another. Choosing a card from each of two distinct packs includes two independent events; for the taking of a card from the first pack does not in any way affect the taking of a card from the second--the chances of drawing, or of not drawing, any particular card from the second pack being neither lessened nor increased. On the other hand, the taking of a second card from a pack from which one has already been drawn is a dependent event, as the composition of the pack has been altered by the abstraction of one particular card.

The surprising way in which an apparently small advantage operates may be judged from the following example:--A and B agree to play for one guinea a game until one hundred guineas are lost or won. A possesses an advantage on each game amounting to 11 chances to 10 in his favour. Mathematical analysis of this advantage proves that B would do well to give A upwards of ninety-nine guineas to cancel the agreement.

Further, many speculative events, which at first sight seem to be advantageous to one side, are demonstrated by mathematical investigation to be of an exactly contrary nature. A bets B thirty-two guineas to one that an event does not happen, and also bets B thirty guineas even that it does happen in twenty-nine trials. Besides this A gives B one thousand guineas to play in this manner six hours a day for a month. Here B would appear to have some advantage. Mathematical investigation, however, proves that in reality the advantage of A is so great that B ought not only to return the thousand guineas to A, but give him, in addition, another ten thousand guineas to cancel the agreement.

Every game of chance presents two kinds of chances which are very distinct--namely, those relating to the person interested (the player) and those inherent in the combinations of the game. That is to say, there is either "good luck" or "bad luck," which at different times gives the player a "run" of good or bad fortune. But besides this, there is the chance of the combinations of the game, which are independent of the player and which are governed by the laws of probability. Theoretically, chance is able to bring into any given game all the possible combinations; but it is a curious fact that there are, nevertheless, certain limits at which it seems to stop. A proof of this is that a particular number at roulette does not turn up ten or a dozen times in succession. In reality there would be nothing astounding about such a run, but it is supposed never to have happened. On the other hand, the numbers in one column at roulette have been known not to turn up during seventeen successive coups.

All the same, extraordinary runs do occur at all games. In 1813, a well-known betting man of the name of Ogden laid one thousand guineas to one guinea, that calling seven as the main, a player would not throw that number ten times successively from the dice-box. Seven was thrown nine times in direct sequence! Mr. Ogden then offered four hundred and seventy guineas to be let off the bet, but the thrower refused. He took the box again but threw only twice more--nine--so that Mr. Ogden just saved his thousand guineas.

In a game of chance, the oftener the same combination has occurred in succession the nearer we are to the certainty that it will not recur at the next coup. It would almost appear, in fact, as if there existed an instant, prescribed by some unknown law, at which the chances become mature, and after which they begin to tend again towards equalisation. This is the secret of the pass and the counter-pass, and also of the strange persistence which certain numbers at roulette sometimes show in recurring--they are merely making up for lost time. At the end of a year all the numbers on a roulette board would be found to have come up about the same number of times--provided, of course, that the wheel is kept in proper working order, a state of affairs which is assured at Monaco by scrupulous daily inspection.

The considerations set forth above apply more especially to games like roulette and trente-et-quarante played at public tables, where all players have an equal chance against the bank, and where the personal element, which is so important in private play, is to a large extent eliminated. It is at public tables that the real gambler finds his best chance. There, whilst having a fair field and no favour, he may, if lucky, win very large sums with the certainty of being immediately paid; and he is not exposed to various unfavourable influences, which tell against men of his disposition when gambling amongst acquaintances and even friends. Wherever a number of careless, inattentive people possessed of money chance to be assembled, a few wary, cool, and shrewd men will be found, who know how to conceal real caution and design under apparent inattention and gaiety of manner; who push their luck when fortune smiles and refrain when she changes her disposition; and who have calculated the chances and are thoroughly master of every game where judgment is required.