People's Pilot, Volume 5, Number 35, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 5 March 1896 — The Game of Whist. [ARTICLE]

The Game of Whist.

The thorough-paced whist player has no thought for anything beyond his game. Well played, whist Is an educational pastime. It requires concentration, an exercise of memory, patience, good temper and polite acquiescence in all the required forms of the game. Then it Is a delightful amusement which is prevented from becoming tame by its vigorous adherence to rules. Napolean I. whiled away many a dreary hour of captivity by playing whist. The counters used were always of gold and are kept by descendants of his jailers to this day. A nine of hearts on which he had written some speculative sentences, is also preserved. He was fond of shuffling the cards before entering upon any enterprise and foretelling the result according to the card eut Queen Elizabeth was a card-player and usually lost her temper over the game, which is against the etiquette of cards. Anne of Austria “played like a queen, without passion of greed or gain.” We are told In historic lore that Columbus and his crew on their volage of discovery spent so much time in playing cards that they finally became superstitious over long delays and contrary winds, and believing the cards to be Jonahs, threw them overboard. When they reached land, however, they regretted the sacrifice, and provided themselves with a new pack, made from leaves of trees. The cards thrown Into the sea were said to be made of leather.—Exchange.