64. If any player be found to have a foul hand at the end of the game,
he shall forfeit his stake; and if there be only one other player, that
player shall claim the pool; and if there be more than one other player,
the holder of the best hand shall claim the pool.
_The Hands_.
65. The following shall be the hands in order of value; the first
being the highest:--1, Sequence flush; 2, Fours; 3, Full; 4, Flush;
5, Sequence not a flush; 6, Threes; 7, Two pairs; 8, A pair.
66. If there be two or more flush sequences shown, the player whose
sequence contains the highest card (ace being the lowest) shall be held to
have the best hand.
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67. If there be two or more fours shown, fours being the best hand, the
player who has the four cards highest in value shall be held to have the
best hand.
68. If there be two or more full hands shown, a full hand being the best
hand, the player whose full hand contains threes highest in value shall
be held to have the best hand.
69. If there be two or more flush hands shown, a flush hand being
the best hand, a flush in hearts shall be held to be the best hand;
and if there be no flush hand in hearts, the flush hand which contains
the card highest in value, and which is not tied by a card of equal
value in another flush hand, shall be the best hand.
70. If there be two or more sequences shown, a sequence being the best
hand, the player whose sequence contains the highest card (ace being the
lowest) shall be held to be the best hand; and if there be two or more
sequences of cards of equal value, a sequence in hearts, _ceteris paribus_,
shall be the best hand.
71. The ace shall only begin a sequence; it shall not end a sequence after
a king, nor shall it be an intermediate card between a king and a two.¹
¹ This law, and the others which are involved in it, has
only the authority of custom in this country. Some American
writers permit of the ace being used at the beginning or
end of a sequence, making ten to ace the highest sequence.
72. If there be two or more threes shown, threes being the best hand, the
hand containing the threes highest in value shall be the best hand.
73. If there be two or more two-pairs shown, two-pairs being the best hand,
the hand containing the pair highest in value shall be the best hand; and
if two two-pair hands contain pairs equally high in value, such pairs being
the [57] highest, the value of the other pair shall decide which is the
better hand.
74. If there be two or more pairs, pairs being the best hand, the hand
containing the pair highest in value shall be the best hand; and if two
hands contain equally high pairs, the hand containing the highest card
which is not tied by an equally high card in the other hand shall be the
better hand.
75. If no pair hand nor any better hand be shown, the player whose hand
contains the card highest in value which is not tied by a card of similar
value in another competing hand, shall be held to have the best hand.
76. If, when the final call is made and the hands shown, two or more
players hold hands identical in value, such players shall share the pool
equally between them.
_Disputes_.
77. Any dispute shall be referred to the dealer, unless he be one of the
disputing persons; and if on a matter of fact his decision shall be final
and binding; and if on a matter of law, he shall interpret these laws
literally, and not by implication.
78. If the dealer be one of the disputing persons, the dispute shall
be referred to the person on the left of the dealer, and if he be one
of the disputing persons, it shall be referred to the person on the
tight of the dealer.
79. In a dispute, the dealer, or any player appointed to settle such
dispute, may appeal to any person at the table for evidence, and if such
person can give evidence, he shall do so.
80. If the players agree to waive a particular rule on a particular
occasion, a like concession cannot be claimed on another similar occasion.
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81. These rules shall be binding on all players, unless a departure from
them has been agreed upon unanimously before play begins, and if one or
more rules he abrogated by common consent, such abrogation shall hold
only for that sitting, and for that sitting only so long as there is
no change of players, and it shall not apply to any future sitting.
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