clergy in Italy, and it is one of the very few good games of cards for
three players. If the game were better known, the author is sure it
would become a great favourite, especially with those who are fond of
the whist family, because Calabrasella is an excellent training school
for the use of cards of re-entry, long suits, and tenace positions in
the end game. In the combination of two players against the third its
tactics very closely resemble Skat, and many interesting and difficult
positions occur in every game.
_=Cards.=_ Calabrasella is played with the Spanish pack, forty cards,
the 10 9 and 8 of each suit being discarded. The cards rank: 3 2 A K
Q J 7 6 5 4, the 3 being the highest, and the 4 the lowest, both in
cutting and in play. There are no trumps.
_=Markers.=_ The game may be scored by paying and taking in counters,
each player being provided with about fifty at the beginning of the
game, which are purchased from a banker; but the better way is to keep
account of the gains and losses of the single player in each deal, in
the manner already described in connection with Skat, balancing the
account at the end in the same way.
_=Players.=_ Calabrasella is played by three persons, two of whom are
partners against the third in each hand. If four play, the dealer takes
no cards, but shares the fortunes of those who are opposed to the
single player, just as in Skat. The players on the right and left of
the dealer are known as the pone and the eldest hand respectively.
_=Cutting.=_ The players cut for seats and deal, the lowest card having
the first choice and dealing the first hand. A player exposing more
than one card must cut again.
_=Stakes.=_ The game is played for so much a point. The largest winning
or loss for the single player is 140, but such an amount is almost
impossible, and the average payments are 10 or 20.
_=Dealing.=_ The cards are presented to the pone to be cut, and at
least four must be left in each packet. The dealer then distributes
them to the players four at a time, until each has twelve, four
remaining in the stock or talon, which is left upon the table face
down. No trump is turned. The deal passes to the left.
There are no misdeals. If the cards are not properly distributed, or
four cards are not left in the talon, the same dealer must deal again,
without penalty.
_=Objects of the Game.=_ The chief objects of the game are to win the
last trick, and to secure counting cards in the other tricks in the
course of play. There are 35 points to be played for in every deal. The
six highest cards in each suit, 3 2 A K Q J, have a counting value, the
Ace being worth 3, and the others 1 each. The last trick counts 3.
_=Declaring.=_ The eldest hand examines his cards and determines
whether or not he will _=stand=_; that is, play single handed against
the two others. If not, he says “_=pass=_,” and the next player
decides. If all three pass, the deal is void, and passes to the next
player on the left. If any player stands, he asks for the 3 of any suit
he pleases, and if either adversary holds it, he must give it up. If it
is in the stock, the player cannot ask for any other card. If he has
all four 3’s in his hand he may ask for a 2, but for no lower card. The
adversary giving the card asked for must receive a card in exchange
from the hand of the single player, but this card must not be shown to
the other adversary.
_=Discarding.=_ Having given a card in exchange for the 3 asked for,
the single player must discard at least one more card, face downward on
the table, and he may discard as many as four. The four cards remaining
in the stock are then turned face up, and the single player may select
from them as many cards as he has discarded; but he is not allowed to
amend his discard in any way. The cards he does not take, if any, are
turned down again, and are placed with his discards, forming a stock
of four cards, which must not be seen or touched until the last card
is played, when it becomes the property of the side that wins the last
trick, and any counting cards it may contain are reckoned for that side.
_=Playing.=_ The discards settled, the eldest hand leads any card he
pleases, and the others must follow suit if they can, but no one is
obliged to win a trick if he has a smaller card of the suit led, and
does not want the lead. The two adversaries of the single player do
their best to get him between them, and combine their forces to prevent
him from winning tricks that contain counting cards, especially Aces.
Whatever tricks they win are placed together, and the counting cards
contained in them reckon for their joint account. The tricks have no
value as such, except the last.
_=Showing.=_ The winner of the last trick takes the stock, and each
side then turns over its cards and counts the total value of the points
won. The lower score is deducted from the higher, and the difference is
the value of the game. If all 35 points are won by either side, they
count double, 70.
_=Scoring.=_ If the single player loses, he loses to both adversaries,
and if he wins he wins from both. His score is the only one put down,
and the amount is preceded with a minus or plus sign according to the
result. If he secures 23 points, he wins 11; if he takes in 16 only, he
loses 3. If the amount is less than 18 it must be a loss; if it is 18
or more it must be a gain. The method of balancing the scores at the
end will be found fully explained in connection with Skat.
_=Irregularities.=_ The penalty for a revoke is the loss of 9 points,
which are taken from the score of the side in error at the end of the
hand, and added to the side not in fault. If the final score is 24
to 11, for instance, in favour of the single player, and one of the
partners has revoked, the score is 33 to 2, and the player wins 31
points. If any player turns over the stock before he has announced to
stand and has discarded at least one card, he loses 35 points to each
adversary, and the deal is void. If an adversary of the single player
turns over the stock before the player has discarded, there is no
penalty, and the player may discard as he pleases. If an adversary of
the single player leads or plays out of turn, the player may abandon
the hand at that point, and claim the stock and last trick, the
adversaries being entitled to count only the points they have won up to
the time the error occurred.
_=Suggestions for Good Play.=_ The general tactics of the game are
extremely like those employed in Whist and Skat. The player establishes
his long suit as rapidly as possible, and preserves his tenaces and
cards of re-entry. The adversaries of the player should lead short
suits up to him, and long suits through him, and every opportunity
should be taken advantage of to discard counting cards on partner’s
tricks, Aces especially, which are not the best of the suit, but count
the most. Both sides scheme to get their hands in shape for winning the
last trick, which usually makes a difference of ten or twelve points in
the score, owing to the high cards held back, and those found in the
stock. Each side should keep mental count of its score, so as to know
whether or not it must win the last trick to get to 18. The exposure of
the stock, the number of cards discarded by the player, the suits which
are led and avoided, will all prove useful guides in determining where
the strength or weakness in each suit lies, and proper advantage should
be taken of all such inferences.
Some judgment is required in selecting the suit in which the 3 is to
be asked for, and the single player must plan in advance for all his
discards, one for the exchange, and those for the stock. The player’s
position at the table makes quite a difference. The leader has an
advantage with a good long suit; but with tenaces it is better to be
third player, and very bad to be second hand.
Some pretty positions arise in the end game through the refusal
of players to win tricks which would put them in the lead, and so
lose them the last trick and the stock. After the first few tricks,
everything must be arranged with a view to securing that last trick,
but the importance of getting home with Aces must never be overlooked.
These count 12 points in every hand, and the side that can get in three
out of the four has 6 points the best of it.
The only _=Text Book=_ on this game is the Pocket Guide, by
“Cavendish”; there are some good articles in Vol. III. of the
“_Westminster Papers_.”
VINT.
While this game is by some persons thought to be the forerunner of
bridge, and might be classed as one of the whist family, it is at
present so little known outside of Russia, where it is the national
game, that the author has thought it best to group it with other games
which are distinctly national in character.
Vint has been variously described as bridge without a Dummy and as
auction whist. It resembles bridge in the making of the trump, and
whist in the manner of the play.
_=Cards.=_ Vint is played with the full pack of fifty-two cards, which
rank from the A K Q down to the deuce. Two packs are generally used.
_=Players.=_ A table is complete with four players, and if there are
more than four candidates for play the selection must be made by
cutting. All the rules for formation of tables, cutting, ties, etc.,
are the same as at bridge. The lowest cut takes the deal. Partners sit
opposite each other.
_=Dealing.=_ The dealer presents the pack to be cut, and then gives
thirteen cards to each player, one at a time. No trump is turned. The
deal passes to the left. All irregularities are governed by the same
laws as bridge.
_=Making the trump.=_ Each player in turn, beginning with the dealer,
bids to make a certain number of tricks, from seven to thirteen, with
a suit of his own choosing, which he names when he makes his bid. The
suits outrank one another in the order of hearts, diamonds, clubs, and
spades, hearts being the best. No-trumps are higher than hearts. A bid
of seven tricks is usually called “one” in hearts, or whatever the suit
may be. A bid of “two” means to win eight tricks, or two over the book.
_=Bidding.=_ If a player wishes to go over the first offer made, he
must either bid the same number of tricks in a better suit, or he must
increase the number of tricks. No player can increase his own bid
unless he is overbid in the interval, but there is no limit to the
number of times that players may outbid one another. Observe that the
dealer may bid or pass, and each player after him in turn may bid or
pass. The highest bidder must abide by his announcement both as to the
number of tricks and the suit.
_=The Play.=_ No matter who dealt the cards, the player to the left of
the highest bidder always leads for the first trick. Each player in
turn must follow suit if he can, and the highest card played, if of the
suit led, wins the trick, trumps winning all other suits. The winner of
one trick leads for the next, and so on. There is no Dummy hand as in
bridge.
_=Scoring.=_ Although the bidding is for so many “odd” tricks, or
tricks over the book, every trick taken is counted when it comes to the
scoring; but it is the number of tricks bid, and not the rank of the
suit, that determines the value. Every trick won by the same partners--
In a bid of “one” is worth 10
In a bid of “two” is worth 20
In a bid of “three” is worth 30
In a bid of “four” is worth 40
In a bid of “five” is worth 50
In a bid of “six” is worth 60
In a bid of “seven” is worth 70
Both sides score. If the highest bid was “two in diamonds,” and the
bidder’s side won nine tricks, they would score 9 times 20, or 180;
while their adversaries would score 4 times 20, or 80.
As soon as either side reaches 500, they win the game, even if it is
in the middle of a hand; but the hand must be played out in order to
see how many points are won by each side. It should be observed that
although the bidder’s side may make nine or ten tricks the adversaries
can win the game if they get enough to count out before the bidder, by
reaching 500 first.
_=Tricks and Honours.=_ The score for tricks and for honours must be
kept separate, usually above and below the line, as at bridge. All
trick points, which are the only ones that count toward game, are
placed below the line; the honour points above.
For winning a game, 1,000 points are added in the honour column. The
side that first wins two games of 500 points each adds 2,000 rubber
points in the honour column.
_=Slams.=_ If a little slam, 12 tricks, is made, but has not been bid,
it is worth 1,000 points in honours. If a little slam, “six tricks,”
has been bid and is made, it is worth 5,000 more for bidding it, or
6,000 altogether. If a grand slam, 13 tricks, is made but not bid, it
is worth 2,000 honour points. If a little slam is bid and a grand slam
made, it is worth 7,000 altogether. If a grand slam is bid and made, it
is worth 12,000 altogether.
_=Lost Games.=_ If the bidder fails to make good, his adversaries score
100 times the value of the tricks as penalty, in the honour column;
the scores for the tricks actually won standing at their regular value
below the line. Suppose the bid to be three in diamonds, making the
tricks worth 30 each, and that the bidder’s side get the odd trick
only. Although the bidder has failed to make good, he scores below the
line for the seven tricks he took, at 30 each, and the adversaries
score for the six they took, also at 30 each. Then, as the bidder fell
short by two tricks of making good, his adversaries score these two
tricks at 3,000 points each, penalty, in the honour column.
_=Honours.=_ The honours are the A K Q J 10 of trumps and the four
Aces, the Aces being always honours; but when there is a no-trump
declaration they are the only honours. This makes the Ace of trumps
count double, when there is a trump suit; once as one of the five
honours in trumps, and once as an Ace.
Each honour is worth ten times as much as a trick. If the bid was three
in clubs, the tricks would be worth 30 each and the honours 300 each.
The side that has the majority of Aces and of honours scores for all
they hold; not for the majority or difference. Suppose the bidder’s
side has three honours in clubs and three Aces; the other side must
have only two honours and one Ace; therefore the bidder scores for six
honours, at 300 each.
If the Aces and honours in trumps are so divided that each side has a
majority of one or the other, they offset. Suppose the bidder to hold
four Aces and two honours. The adversaries must have the majority of
trump honours. Then the number of their trump honours, which is three,
is deducted from the number of the bidder’s Aces, four, leaving the
bidder’s side only one honour to the good. Three honours on one side
and three Aces on the other would be a tie, and no honours to score.
If the Aces are a tie, the side that wins the most tricks scores
them. Suppose the bidder has three honours and two Aces. He scores
five honours if he wins the odd trick; otherwise he scores one only,
the Aces being a tie and he having only one more honour than his
adversaries.
In no-trump hands, the honours are worth 25 times the value of the
tricks. If Aces are easy, neither side scores. If one has three Aces,
they are all scored. Suppose the bid to have been “two at no-trumps,”
then the Aces are worth 25 times 20, and three of them are worth 1,500
points.
_=Coronets.=_ A sequence of three or more cards in any suit, trumps
or plain, held by an individual player, is a coronet. Three or four
Aces in one hand is also a coronet. When there is a trump suit, three
Aces, or three of a plain suit in sequence, are worth 500 in the honour
column. Each additional card is worth 500 points more. A sequence of K
Q J 10 9 would be worth 1,500. In the trump suit, and in all the suits
when there are no trumps, these coronets are worth double, and each
additional card is therefore worth 1,000 more.
_=Rubbers.=_ As soon as one side wins two games, that ends the first
rubber. The partners then change, without cutting, in such a manner
that at the end of three rubbers each player shall have had each of the
others for a partner. At the end of the third rubber, the losses and
gains are ascertained for each individual, and settled for.
_=Laws.=_ The laws that govern the game are almost identical with those
for Bridge.
PREFERENCE.
This is a simplified form of Vint, for three players, with a
thirty-two-card pack. The cards rank: A K Q J 10 9 8 7, and the
suits rank: Hearts, diamonds, clubs, and spades. Hearts are always
_=preference=_. There are no hands played without a trump suit.
If four persons play, the dealer takes no cards. The three active
players make up a pool, each putting in an equal amount at first, and
the bidder putting into it as many as he bids for the privilege of
naming the trump suit.
Any one may deal the first hand, after which the deal passes to the
left. Three cards are given to each player the first round, then two
are laid off for a widow, then four to each player, and then three to
each. Beginning on the dealer’s left, each player in turn may name the
trump if he thinks he can take at least six of the ten tricks to be
played for. Bids outrank one another in the order of the suits, hearts
being preference always. The number of tricks is not mentioned. In case
there are no bids, each in turn has a second chance to bid for the
widow. These bids are made in counters, to be put into the pool. The
highest bidder takes the widow, lays out two cards, and then names the
trump suit.
The players agree upon a value for the tricks won, and payments are
made from the pool accordingly. These payments may vary according to
the rank of the trump suit.
ODD GAMES.
There are quite a number of odd games of cards, which come and go as
favourites from time to time, and pass round the world from one country
to another under many different names. The origin of most of these
games is lost in the weedy undergrowth of variations, but the chief
family trait in some of them can be traced back to the alpha of cards.
Among the oldest of games was Ombre, immortalised by Pope, the only
survivor of which is a variation played by the older Germans, under
the name of Solo; a game which still faintly resists the exterminating
influence of Skat. The ancient and honourable games of Comète, Hoc,
and Nain Jaune survive to the present day in a large and prosperous
family, ranging from Commit to Fan Tan, the latter being to-day quite
a favourite among those who like simple and amusing games, free from
mental effort. Fan Tan is unfortunately named, as many persons confuse
it with the Chinese banking game, and it would be much better under its
older name, Play or Pay.
Among the many games of which everyone has heard, and which many
thousands have been advised to play, is one which, strange to say, is
not to be found described in any work on card games, and that is Old
Maid. There was a time when the result of this game was supposed to
be final and conclusive, and parties of young men have been known to
substitute a Jack or King for the discarded Queen, in order to learn
what the future had in store for them. Under such circumstances the
game became Old Bachelor, of course.
For those who believe in the verdict of the cards, there are other
sources of information. Fortune telling, whether for the purpose of
amusement or self-deception, has undoubtedly interested many persons
in all stations of life ever since Eittella first explained the art,
away back in the sixteenth century. The meanings attached to the cards
individually, and the manner of their arrangement, is all that can
be given in a work of this kind. The qualifications for success in
foretelling the future do not depend so much on the cards as on good
judgment of human nature, unlimited assurance, a glib tongue, and a
certain amount of ingenuity in making a connected story out of the
disjointed sentences formed by the chance arrangement of certain cards,
to which an arbitrary or fanciful meaning is attached.
Speculation is considered by some persons an excellent training school
for the commercial instincts of the younger members of a family,
teaching them to form correct estimates as to the value of certain
articles offered for sale in a fluctuating market. Authors is a very
good game for the family circle, and does not require special cards,
the ordinary pack being easily adapted to the distinctions of the game.
Patience, or Solitaire, has probably claimed the attention of every
card-player at some time or other, and one cannot fail to be impressed
by the number and ingenuity of the patience games which have been
invented. One of the most expensive works on cards ever published is
devoted exclusively to Solitaire.
Among all these odd games one should be able to find something to amuse
all sorts and conditions of card-players. The only apparatus required
in any of them is a pack of cards and a few counters, and for the
latter corn or coffee-beans will form an excellent substitute.
SOLO.
Under the name of Solo, the Germans play a great many variations of
card games, of which the following is the best known.
_=Cards.=_ Solo is played with a pack of thirty-two cards, which rank
A K Q J 10 9 8 7. One suit is always first preference, or _=colour=_,
and the suit usually selected is clubs. Any suit may be made the
trump, but whatever the suit, the club Queen, _=Spadilla=_, is always
the best trump; the Seven of the trump suit, _=Manilla=_, is always
the second-best trump; and the spade Queen, _=Basta=_, is always the
third-best trump.
_=Players.=_ Solo is played by four persons, who throw round the cards
for the first club turned up to deal eight cards to each player; 3-2-3
at a time.
_=Objects.=_ The object of the game is to secure the privilege of
naming the trump suit, and of playing, either alone or with a partner,
to make five tricks, _=solo=_, or eight tricks, _=tout=_. If a partner
is required, he is selected by the player asking for a certain ace, but
the holder of the ace remains unknown until the ace falls, although
from the first he must assist the player who has asked for it. If a
player asks for an ace while holding it himself, he of course plays
without a partner, unknown to the others however, until he plays the
ace asked for.
_=Bidding.=_ The players bid against one another for the privilege of
naming the trump suit, eldest hand having the first say. When no one
will bid any higher, the player who has made the best offer names the
game he wishes to play, with or without a partner.
_=Games.=_ The rank of the various games, the amounts bid on them, and
the payments made for them, are as follows:--
Simple in suit, 2; in colour, 4.
Forcée or Solo in suit, 4; in colour, 8.
Tout in Suit, 16; in colour, 32.
_=Simple Game=_ is to play for five tricks with a partner holding a
designated ace. If the trump is clubs, (in colour,) it is worth double,
4 counters.
_=Solo=_ is five tricks without a partner. With clubs trumps it pays
double, 8 counters.
_=Tout=_ is eight tricks, with or without a partner. If alone, the
single player wins or loses all; if with a partner he must share his
gains or losses.
_=Forcée=_ is when no bid is made, and any player holds both Spadilla
and Basta. He must play a Solo, or call for an ace. If he calls, the
player holding the ace names the trump suit; but the suit so named must
not be the suit of the called ace. Forcée in clubs is worth double, 8
counters.
_=Playing.=_ The trump named, the eldest hand leads any card he
pleases, and the others must follow suit if they can. The highest card
played, if of the suit led, wins the trick, and trumps win all other
suits. The hands are abandoned as soon as the bidder takes five tricks,
if he is playing anything but a tout. If he goes on he must win all
eight tricks, or lose the value of a tout.
_=Payments.=_ A solo player wins from or loses to each of his
adversaries individually the amount of the game in counters. Two
partners pay or receive each from one adversary.
_=HEART SOLO=_ is a game for three players, in which the pack is
reduced to twenty-four cards by deleting the Eight of hearts, and all
the diamonds but the Seven. Diamonds are always colour, and there are
only three trumps in that suit; Spadilla, Manilla, and Basta. The only
play is for the Solo, and if no one will make a bid, the hands are
played in colour, and the winner of the last trick loses the value of a
Solo.
AUTHORS.
This game was originally played with cards bearing the names of various
authors, and other famous personages, arranged in groups, but the game
is much simpler when played with an ordinary pack of fifty-two cards.