Part 5

The object of the players is to secure from their cards--the pips on which count as already mentioned--twenty-one points, or as near that number as possible; hence the title. During the progress of the game the dealer pays those players who secure better hands than his own, and receives from all who over-draw, or whose points are lower or equal to his, the only exception being in the case of a tie with a natural Vingt-un, when neither the holder nor the dealer pays anything to the other, the tie in such a case [62] simply nullifying matters between the two. If the dealer over-draws, he only pays to those who are standing in, and does not return anything to those players who have paid him on their over-drawing; and herein lies the main advantage of the deal, for, as will be found in practice, the majority of hands are decided by over-drawing, which must necessarily be to the benefit of the dealer.

The dealer having been decided upon, takes the pack of cards and shuffles them, after which he has the pack cut by the player on his right-hand side, and then proceeds to distribute one card, face downwards and unexposed, to each player, dealing in regular order from left to right.

Each player, in turn, looks at his card, and stakes on it whatever amount he chooses--which he usually does by placing coins or counters in front of him. In deciding on the amount of his stake, a player is guided by the chance he considers the card gives him of ultimately making twenty-one, or a near approach thereto. When it comes round to the dealer's turn, he also looks at his card, but does not stake anything upon it; he may, however, if he considers his card a good one, double the stakes of the other players, which he does by calling "double." In that case the individual players add the "double" to their stake, and the amounts being thus settled all round, the dealer gives a second card to each player, in the same order as the first, and also unexposed. The dealer then looks at his own two cards, and if he should have received a natural Vingt-un, he at once declares it; throws the two cards, face upwards, on the table, and collects the stakes from the other players, the amount in this case being double from each, as the result of the Vingt-un; so that, if the dealer had previously doubled, as he probably would have done when he found his first card was an ace or a 10 (or court card), [63] he would collect four times the amount staked by each o the players on their original card. The only exception to this is in the case of a player who, like the dealer, has received a natural Vingt-un--in that case neither pays to the other, as previously mentioned.

If either of the players other than the dealer should receive a natural Vingt-un, he should at once declare it, and claim double the amount of his stake, or of the double, if that was called, from the dealer, who is thereupon deprived of his privilege of dealing, the right of continuing the deal passing to the player on his left-hand side.--It is often agreed that a natural shall not throw out the dealer, and in some cases the holder of a natural receives a stake from each of the other players. (_See_ Variations in regard to the two points.)

If the dealer has not secured a natural Vingt-un, he turns to the player on his left, and, if that player desires it, he gives him--face upwards, and from off the top of the remainder of the pack--a third, fourth, or fifth card; in fact, as many more as may be required by the player, until he considers it safe to stand, or has over-drawn, _i.e._, got beyond the 21 points. For instance, suppose a player receives at first a 4, and then a 9, making 13; he asks for a third card, and may receive a 7, making his total 20, on which he would stand. Had his third card been a 9, it would have been an over-draw, and the player would have had to pay the dealer the amount he staked, or the double, if the dealer had doubled. At the same time he would throw up his cards, or hand them to the player on the dealer's right, who is termed the pone, and whose duty it is to collect the cards as they are played and keep them in readiness for the dealer when he requires a further supply. A player when throwing up his cards must not expose the two first dealt [64] to him, neither may the pone or either of the other players look at them.

Having settled with the player on his left, the dealer goes to the next in order, and treats him in a similar manner, and so on, until he has gone the round of the table. He then turns up his own two cards in front of him, and in view of the company, and decides, as the others have done, as to whether he will stand on the two he has, or take a further card or cards. If he decides to stand on the two he already has, he calls on those players who have not over-drawn to declare their hands, and each in turn does so, the dealer receiving the stakes when his points are higher or are equal to those of the other players, and paying when his points are lower than theirs. If he elects to take a third card, he deals it from the top of the pack; and if the third card does not satisfy him, he may take more; when satisfied, he challenges the others, as just explained. If, however, he over-draws, he pays to all who are standing, but not to those who have previously over-drawn and thrown up.

If the dealer should succeed in securing such cards (other than an ace and 10) as to make exactly 21 points--a "drawn" Vingt-un--he receives double stakes from each of the players, excepting those who have also drawn a Vingt-un, who only pay the amount staked; and those who have previously over-drawn and thrown up, who do not have to pay anything further. If a player has a drawn Vingt-un and the dealer has not, or the dealer has over-drawn, then the dealer has to pay the holder of the Vingt-un double the amount of his stake, or of the double if that has been called.

Should any of the players receive for the first cards two of the same denomination,--for instance, two aces, two twos, two kings, two queens, etc.,--he has the option of staking a [65] separate amount on each of them, but it is not compulsory that he should do so. If he decides to divide his pair, he puts on the second card a separate stake, the amount of which need not be similar to that of his original one, and then asks the dealer for two other cards with which to complete the two hands he then possesses. If either of these later cards should be of the same denomination as the first two, the player may also stand independently on that card, in which case he would, of course, have three hands, with a separate stake on each. The same opportunity would occur if he received all four of the kind --he could then play on four independent hands. This division of cards is equally available for the dealer, or all or any of the other players, so that two or more may have duplicate hands in the same round, provided they receive similar cards at the outset, for it is only when the original pairs occur in the first two cards that it is permissible to divide them; that is to say, if the third card received by any player matches either of those already in the hand, no division is allowable.

At this game the pack of cards is not re-united after each round; the dealer works with the one pack until he gets to the last card, and the pone collects the used cards as they are disposed of by the players. When the dealer comes to the last card of the pack, he does not deal it or otherwise use it as he has done with the others, but hands it, unexposed, to the pone, who adds it to those already in his care, shuffles them, and hands them to the dealer, who proceeds with the game as before.

The same procedure is repeated until one of the players secures a natural Vingt-un, which, unless the dealer also holds a natural that hand, puts the dealer out, and the deal passes, either to the next player, or to the holder of the natural, as may have been decided upon. It is, however, [66] best to adopt the former system, for the reason already given, and in that case it is often considered desirable to have a pool, which is secured by the player declaring the natural. (_See_ Variations.)

There is one exception to the power of a natural Vingt-un to put the dealer out--namely, when it occurs in the first hand of the deal; then the dealer disregards it, except that he has to pay to the holder as for a drawn Vingt-un, and proceeds with his deal until a second natural occurs.

We will now amplify, as far as is necessary, the points already touched upon, and introduce the Variations recognised in connection with the game.

_DEALING_.

The first dealer is settled by one of the company distributing the cards in the same manner as explained in connection with "Nap" (see page 9), except that in the case of Vingt-un the player to whom the first _ace_ is dealt becomes the dealer. He proceeds with the game as explained on page 61.

If, in preparing the pack for the dealer, any confusion occurs, or any card or cards are exposed, the whole pack must be re-shuffled and cut again. If two cards are dealt to one player, the error may be rectified if discovered before a third card is dealt; but if a third card has been dealt, then the player receiving the surplus card must look at his hand, and reject which of the two he chooses. If the dealer gives himself two cards at one time, and the mistake is not discovered until another card has been dealt, then the pone must take one of the cards, at random, and add it to the used portion of the pack.

A card exposed in dealing may be kept or rejected at the [67] option of the player; but if the dealer exposes one of his own cards, he must retain it.

_DRAWING_.

The whole of the hands having been dealt--that is, two cards given to each player, and also to cases of divided pairs, the drawing of further cards commences. The dealer begins with the player on his left-hand side, and he, if he does not require any more cards, says "content." If he does require more, he says "yes," or, "a card," when the dealer delivers one from the top of the undealt portion of the pack, placing it face upwards on the table in front of the player. If another card or cards is needed, it must be given in like manner, until the player is content or has over-drawn. The dealer must settle with one player before he attends to the next, and similarly, when a player is standing on divided pairs, he must settle with one hand before attending to the other.

If the dealer gives a player two cards while the process of drawing is going on, the player may keep either or both of them; but if he rejects one, he must be regarded as content, and cannot draw another card. The one rejected is added to the stock in the hands of the pone. If the dealer in drawing gives himself two cards, he must keep them both, and suffer the consequences of an over-draw if then his points exceed 21.

If the dealer distributes the draw cards out of order, the player or players missed may either be supplied at any time from the top of the pack, or they may throw up their cards.

If a player draws separately on his two cards, when they do not pair, he has to pay the dealer on each hand, and forfeits any amount he may have won.

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In any of these cases of irregularity, the offender pays a penalty to the pool, if there be one.

_POOL_.

A pool may be formed for any purpose that may be decided upon, and may be made up according to arrangement. For this purpose, it may be agreed (a) that each player contribute a coin or counter to the pool at the commencement of each deal; (b) that whenever the dealer over-draws, he pay a penalty to the pool; (c) that whenever the dealer receives on ties, he pay a proportion to the pool, say one-fourth or one-third of his receipts. Other methods of increasing the pool will present themselves in actual play, those here inserted being intended as specimens of what may be done, or to form a basis on which to work.

_LIMITING THE DEAL_.

In the game we have described we have adopted the principle that the declaration of a natural Vingt-un throws the dealer out; but another method is to limit the deal to a certain number of hands, or to allow the dealer to go through the pack twice, or to have two packs of cards shuffled together, and go through them once. In these cases the dealer is allowed to draw from the used pack as many cards as may be necessary to complete a round started upon with his limited supply, and the cards are prepared by the pone for the purpose, being all collected, shuffled, and cut before they are used by the dealer.

_SELLING THE DEAL_.

Should a player object to take his turn at dealing, or desire to part with it for other reason, he is at liberty to sell the right to any other player; and in view of the fact that [69] the deal is an advantage, a purchaser will generally be found. The buyer has to deal the cards, but does not change his seat. He has to commence each time with the player on the left-hand side of the proper dealer, and when the buyer loses his turn, the deal reverts to the player who would have had the next turn had there been no sale. The buyer takes his turn with the others in the ordinary course.

_ADDITIONAL PRIVILEGES FOR A NATURAL_.

It is sometimes agreed that the holder of a natural Vingt-un, providing the dealer has not also received a natural, shall be entitled to an amount equal to, or double that of his own stake from each of the other players, unless there be other Vingt-uns, the holders of which are exempted from payment. This is the old fashioned method of playing the game, and in many quarters the rule had been abolished, because, as the deal formerly passed to the holder of the natural Vingt-un, who threw the dealer out, that was considered sufficient reward for holding the two cards. Now, however, that the deal merely passes to the next in order, it is desirable that some further reward should follow from the best possible hand, and the payment of a stake or a double from each player appears to be the fairest method, especially as the declaration of a natural brings the deal nearer to all. The same result may be achieved by agreeing that the contents of a pool, for which provision has already been made, shall go to the player declaring the natural.

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COMMERCE.

_DESCRIPTION OF THE GAME_.

Ninety years ago the game of Commerce was recognised as being played in two distinct ways, the new and the old mode, so that it may justly be termed one of the oldest round games now practised. Although it is not so popular as some of the others treated of in this volume, it will be found to be a good game; exciting, entertaining, and well deserving of more extended popularity than it has lately enjoyed.

Commerce is usually played with the full pack of fifty-two cards, but if the number of players does not exceed seven the smaller pack of thirty-two may be used, the game being available for any number of players within the range of the pack, say seven with the thirty-two cards, and twelve with the fifty-two.

The cards count in the usual way, except that in reckoning the number of pips upon them, which is sometimes necessary in the course of play, the ace counts for eleven, and the court cards for ten each. There is no particular suit or trumps recognised in the game, the object of the players being to secure special combinations of the cards, technically termed (_a_) Tricon, (_b_) Sequence, (_c_) Flush, (_d_) Pair, (_e_) Point, which range in value in the order given. The holder of the best combination in each [71] round is the winner, and he takes the pool or whatever other stake may have been decided upon.

The five combinations just mentioned consist of the following:--

(_a_) _Tricon_.--Three cards of the same denominations as, for example, three aces, three fives, three knaves, etc.

(_b_) _Sequence_.--Three following cards of the same suit, as, for instance, ace, two, three; ten, knave, queen; queen, king, ace, etc. Although the ace may be used at either end to form a sequence, it must not be so used between a king and a two. King, ace, two, is not, therefore, permissible as a sequence.

(_c_) _Flush_.--Three cards of the same suit, irrespective of value.

(_d_) _Pair_.--Two cards of the same denomination, the third one being different.

(_e_) _Point_.--The total number of pips on the three cards, ace reckoning for eleven, and either of the court cards for ten.

In case of a tie between two or more of the players in any round, the following rules are observed:--

(_a_) With Tricons, the highest wins, aces being first in this respect; then kings, queens, etc., down to twos.

(_b_) With Sequences, the highest wins; the ace, king, queen sequence reckoning as the best, and the three, two, ace sequence as the lowest.

(_c_) With Flushes, the one making the best "point"--as already described --wins.

(_d_) With Pairs, the highest wins. If two players are alike, then the holder of the highest third card has the preference.

(_e_) With Point a tie is very rare; but if equality does [72] occur, then the holder of the first highest card different from the opponent's wins.

The deal is an advantage, and on that account it is best, when a finish is desired, to conclude the game just before the first dealer's turn comes round again, as then all the players will have had an equal number of deals. Should it be found necessary, however, to conclude before the original dealer's turn, play may be discontinued after the completion of any deal, although such a course is somewhat unfair to the intervening players.

There is only one stake recognised in the game, so that it is simply necessary to decide what shall be regarded as the value of a counter, or what coin shall constitute the limit.

The amount of the stake having been settled, the dealer is decided upon in the same manner as described in connection with the game of "Nap" (see page 9). Each of the players then pays the amount of the stake into the pool, the dealer also contributing on account of his deal, so that he has to pay double.

The pack having been shuffled by the dealer, and cut by the player on his right-hand side, three cards are distributed to each player, face downwards and unexposed. The cards may be dealt either singly or all three at a time, at the option of the dealer. The players having looked at their cards, the dealer first addresses the one on his left-hand side, and asks if he will trade; and he must either do so or stand on the cards dealt him.

If he decides to stand on the cards he has received, he turns his hand face upwards on the table, and all the other players do the same, when the holder of the best hand takes the amount in the pool, and also receives the amount of a stake from the dealer, who is thus penalised for the [73] advantage that accrues to him from selling cards to those who wish to trade for ready money, the amount he receives on that account becoming his own property, subject to the payment mentioned. Should the player who declares to stand be beaten by any of the others, he has to pay an additional stake to the holders of the better hands.

If the player decides to trade, he may either do so for "ready money" or by "barter." If for ready money, he continues operations with the dealer; if by barter, with the next player in order round the table, who, in turn, must exchange a card, unless he has a hand sufficiently strong to stand upon, in which case he at once declares it.

If the player trades for ready money, he throws out a card from his hand, pays a stake to the dealer, and receives the top card from the pack; his rejected card being placed at the bottom of the pack without being exposed.

If the player decides to barter, he turns to the player on his left-hand side and offers a card, which must be exchanged for one of those in the next player's hand, unless that player considers his cards sufficiently strong to stand upon, in which case the winner is decided by the method just described.

If the player has traded, either for ready money or barter, and has secured a hand strong enough, he at once stands, and exposes his cards; if not, the dealer passes or to the next player, and acts in a similar manner, going round and round the table until one of the players decides to stand, when the hands are exposed and the round settled.

A player may only purchase or exchange one card at each turn; he must not do both, but he is compelled to do the one or the other, unless he decides to stand. When once a player agrees to stand, the commerce on that round ceases, and all the hands must be exposed.

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_THE OLD GAME_.

The older mode of playing the game of Commerce differs materially from the description given above, and as it does not present such chances, but is of a more limited character, it is not so interesting, nor does it afford so much scope for speculation and excitement.

The deal is decided and the cards are distributed in the same way as in the more modern game, but here an additional hand, of three cards, is dealt, and placed face upwards in the middle of the table. There is no trading with the dealer or any of the players, the operations of commerce being confined to the three cards exposed on the table. The player to the left of the dealer has the first turn, and he must either stand, pass, or exchange a card. In the latter case he takes one of those lying face upwards on the table, adds it to his hand, and places one of his own cards, face upwards, in place of the one removed. If the player passes, he says, "I pass," and is then debarred from afterwards exchanging any of his cards during that hand; while if he decides to stand, the next player decides what he will do, and so on round the table, until two of the players are satisfied with their hands, or all have declared to pass. If two of the players stand then each of the other players may make one more exchange (if they have not previously passed), and then the whole of the hands are exposed, just as described in connection with the modern game. There is no pool in this variation, the winner receiving instead the amount of the stake from each of the other players. In case of absolute equality between the two best hands, which may be regarded as an almost impossible event, then each of the winners receives a stake from all the other players.

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_POOL COMMERCE_.

This is a variation of the old method of conducting the game, and is played on somewhat similar lines, except that a pool is made up, by each player paying in an equal sum, for which he receives three counters. Play then proceeds in the manner just described as the old game. The winner of the hand, instead of receiving a stake from each of the players, takes a previously arranged sum from the pool, while the player who has the worst hand puts one counter into the pool. The game continues until all but one of the players have exhausted their three counters, when the player who remains with the last counter or counters takes the amount left in the pool. As soon as a player has exhausted his counters he has to stand out of the game, and no cards are dealt to him, so that the adoption of this variation makes the game very tedious for those who are first out, as they may have to wait a considerable time before the stock of the other players is exhausted.

The player who is first out has the option of buying one counter from the pool, which is termed "buying a horse." He has to pay for the same into the pool such sum as may be agreed upon--usually one-third or one-half the amount of the original stake.

_LIMITED COMMERCE_.