People's Pilot, Volume 2, Number 34, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 February 1893 — Maro and the Chinamen. [ARTICLE]

Maro and the Chinamen.

During their stay in this city Edward Maro and Edwin L. Barker made the Pilot office a pleasant call, during which time the latter, who is an expert at story telling, related an amusing incident that occurred during the company’s visit to San Francisco last summer. “Of course I you know it is the proper thing for all people going to Frisco to visit Chinatown,” began Mr. j Barker, “and let me say if you j want to see the sight of a lifetime you should not fail to visit | the Chinese quarter. Well, Mr. Maro and I and the entire company. together with a guide, went down among these thirtyfive thousand “pig tails,” and the many things -we saw would fill a book. But the incident I want to relate is this:- We went into a Chinese gaming house—one of those dark underground holes—where representatives of the wash house were enjoying a game of poker. Mr. Maro watched them a few minutes, and then inquired of one of the players why he didn’t play a square game. “Me play as square as Melican man,” replied the Chinaman. “Oh, no, John, you have your clothes stuffed full of cards, broke in Mr. Maro. Apd here the fun began. Mr. Maro pulled some two or three decks of cards from without the Chinaman's clothes. His brother players pushed back from the table and: looked bewildered. Mr. Maro then told the Celestial t«> sftake himself. Ho did so, and ashower of cards fluttered to fbe grouud. “By this time things were growing warm among the players. There was a hasty consultation among the other three gamblers, and as equally a hasty division of the money on the table. Then the grand climax came. Poor John, who was just finishing shaking himself, looked up at Mr. Maro in a pitying, bewildered way, and then glanced at his companion players. By this time the other three had finished their 'council of war,’ and made a lunge for the supposed cheat, but John ran through the door, and his companions after him. Aw r ay they went down the street, until finally the poor Chinaman found his own room and locked himself in, but not without the loss of that valuable member—the ‘pig tail’—for in the pursuit a knife had accidentally played too close to John’s head, and thus another Chinaman is forever barred from the ‘Celestial Kingdom.’ ” In conversation with Mr. Maro it was learned that, although he is an artist at handling cards, yet he never plays a game. He considers his ability a science—an art —and never attempts to disgrade this art by using it in gambling or selling it to gamblers and sharks.