Anthony M. Rud

“ Five of the silent figures here were absorbed at cards. Through the whole of two hands, which I watched, not a single word was spoken! The attendant, who had followed, now touched my arm again. “The chips speak for themselves,” he whispered, motioning at one of the players, who just was equalling a stack of blues shoved forward by another. As I saw plainly, this was a call.
“How do I get chips?” I asked.
“Sit down, draw out the money you wish to invest, and place it in the center. The banker will give you chips When you want more, do the same. When you want to drop out, cash in with him.” ”

“ In all, four cards were turned face up for each player, and the seventh and last card dealt face down. Opportunity thus was given for five bets on each hand. All of this money went into the center of the table, and when the final call came, the best five-card poker hand that could be made out of any of the seven-card aggregations won the money.
“Chips at this table are worth five, ten, twenty-five,” assured my monitor. At the end table of this row they sell for twice this amount, while across there,” and he waved his black-draped arm, “is a cheaper game. ”

“ I could be beaten by the man with a pair of queens only if he had drawn the case queen and another pair or three of a kind in his blind, or a pair to match one of his off cards on the board. The man with the supposed straight was out of it, unless, of course, he had three of a kind in the blind to match one of his exposed cards. My full house looked like a winner.
The queens checked. The man with the straight bet one hundred dollars. I counted the chips I had left, finding just one hundred and twenty-five dollars. ”

“ It stopped suddenly. Before he had gone ten paces across the floor, one of the attendants calmly leveled an automatic. With the sharp report the intruder crumpled. A bullet had bored a clean hole in his forehead! ”