A Good Story.

Manawatu Herald, 17 January 1893, Page 2

A Good Story.

Joseph Haddpn. in The People tells the following :—" Well, not exactly ; I can't tell it as he told it; he dramatised it, and you saw the players. But the fun lies in the point of it ; the sting is in the tail, where it should be. There were a party of poker players, met every night, sometimes with one table, sometimes with two, a lot of friends in an important little commercial city. One evening a stranger walked in and took his seat, simply saying, " Good evening, gentlemen." Every man present thought he was the friend of some other gentleman present, and so he was received into the company and welcomed every night, tie was a singular-looking man, with, one real eye and a very prominent glass one — a strong blue artificial member. After a time thtre were several bankruptcies in the town, and financial difficulties became common. The gentleman with the bine glass eye had won nearly all the money of the poker party. The rule was that they played from 9 at night until 1 in the morning. This rale was modified on the motion of one of the players, a man of few words but of great resolution. ' Gentlemen,' he said, I propose that on this occasion we play until 4 ; I wish to add that while I have all- the : time lost my money I don't men nter say there has been any cheating, don't wish to declare that everything has not been fair and honest ; but I want, to let it be understood gentlemen in this room engaged in anything that ain't square I'll shoot his other blamed eye out 1"