Great stress is laid by scientific Ecarte-players on what are termed _Jeux
de regle_, that is, hands which ought to be played without "proposing" or
"accepting." When the cards held by a player are so {64} good that he
cannot fail to win three tricks unless his adversary hold two trumps, it is
the rule to play without proposing. It is easy, by an examination of the
five cards, to at once perceive how the trick must be won, unless the
adversary hold two trumps. Here are a few examples:
King, queen, knave of spades, eight of hearts (trumps), eight of diamonds.
Lead king of spades; if not trumped, follow with queen, etc.
With three trumps, play without proposing. Likewise with two trumps, if the
other cards belong to one suit, or with two cards of one suit, one of which
is the king or queen.
Play if holding only one trump, provided the other cards are four of one
suit, one being a king, or three cards of one suit, one being a king or
queen, and the fifth card being a king or queen.
Play with no trump if three queens are held, or four court cards.
When playing these hands (and they apply mainly to the leader) it is
important to remember the disadvantage that follows leading from a suit of
two when one is a high, the other a much lower card, and the advantage of
leading from a suit of two when these are in sequence.
Take the following hands as examples:
A holds queen of clubs, queen of diamonds, queen and eight of hearts, and
eight of spades, the ten of spades being turned up as trump.
Y holds king and nine of hearts, nine and seven of diamonds, and nine of
spades.
If A lead the queen of hearts, he must lose the point, no matter how Y
plays. If, however, he lead either of his single queens, he _may_ win the
point, if {65} Y, after winning the queen of clubs, lead the king of
hearts.
Again, A holds queen, ten, of spades; knave, ten, of hearts; ten of
diamonds; diamonds being trumps.
Y holds knave, seven, of spades; seven of hearts; and knave, eight, of
diamonds.
If A lead the queen of spades, he loses the trick. If he lead knave and
then ten of hearts, he wins the trick.
From these examples it will be evident that cards in sequence, or single
cards, are better as leads than one high card, and then a small one of a
two-card suit. Also it is desirable that the adversary should be the leader
when the third lead occurs.
What is called being "put to a card," is, if possible, to be avoided. The
following will serve as an example:
A holds king, knave, ten, of hearts; queen of diamonds, and knave of spades
(nine of clubs turned up). A proposes, and is refused. He may now conclude
that Y has two trumps at least.
A leads king of hearts, which wins; then knave, which wins. If Y holds ace
of hearts, A must lose the point. If, however, Y hold either a diamond
lower than the queen, or a spade lower than the knave, A may win, if he
keep the right card; if, however, A play a third heart, and this is
trumped, and Y play, say, queen of trumps, A must discard either his queen
of diamonds or his knave of spades, and he has no guide as to which to
discard. Instead, therefore, of playing the third heart he should lead
either the diamond or the spade, and thus avoid being "put to a card."
The dealer has the option of refusing or accepting; {66} before doing
either, he should not only consider well the cards in his hand, but the
state of the score.
It is not unusual for a player who may hold the trick for certainty to
propose in the hopes of being refused, in order that he may, by winning the
trick, score two. If this occurred at the score of three, the results would
be fatal.
As a general rule, refuse if only two cards can be discarded. A king or a
trump should not be discarded in the first instance.
With three trumps, refuse, unless the king of trumps is one of the three,
when there is a great chance that the cards taken in may enable the vole to
be won.
With only one trump and one king, no matter what the other suits may be, if
not having a card higher than a ten, accept. But with one trump, two queens
guarded, or a king and queen guarded, refuse. Although in many cases, where
it is the rule to play, it is two to one in favour of the player winning
the point, it must not be imagined that he will always win. He may win
twice out of three times, but it is possible for the adversary to hold
exceptionally good cards, and to win the point against the _jeu de regle_.
For example, A holds queen, ace, and seven of hearts (trumps), king of
spades, king of diamonds, and, of course, plays without proposing. Y holds
king, knave, nine, and eight of hearts, and nine of clubs, and must win the
point; but for A to propose would have been wrong, his hand being strong
enough to win four times out of five.
When a player proposes, and is refused, he may form an estimate of the suit
or suits out of trumps in which his adversary it likely to be strong.
Suppose {67} A, the non-dealer, hold queen, knave of spades, ace of hearts,
seven of clubs, and knave of diamonds (trumps). The probabilities are that
Y is strong in hearts and clubs, or holds two trumps. The queen of spades
in this case should, of course, be led; and, if it win, should be followed
by the knave.
The condition of the score ought to be considered before proposing or
playing without proposing. If the adversary be at the score of three, it is
dangerous to play without proposing, unless the hand be very strong. If the
adversary be at four, it is better not to propose if the non-dealer's hand
be fairly strong, unless the king be held, as there is a chance of the
dealer drawing the king, and at once scoring game.
The high cards which have been discarded should be remembered, because
lower cards are then of greater value; thus, if the knave and ace of hearts
have been discarded, and the king and ten are drawn, there can be only one
card, viz., the queen of hearts, which is better than the ten, and in this
suit the ten is equivalent to the knave held originally.
Inexperienced players, as a rule, are too apt to propose, and to continue
proposing till the pack is exhausted. As there are eight trumps in the
pack, a player gains no advantage if he hold four of these, when his
adversary also holds four. His hand _looks_ better than if he held only
two, but whilst he has furnished himself with trumps, his adversary has
done likewise.
In order to play Ecarte well, take a pack of cards, and deal out the hands
against an imaginary or dummy adversary; remember those hands under the
heading _Jeux de regle_, and then note how the hand can be best played to
secure the point.
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