After the lead, the card to play second in hand is the most important item
in Whist. The card played second hand may be to protect your partner, or to
inform him of the remaining cards of the suit in your hand. The play second
hand in trumps is different from what is adopted with other suits, for the
obvious reason that other suits may be trumped. The following Table shows
the cards to be played second hand:-- {197}
+-------------------------+------------+--------------------+
| Holding-- | Card led. | Play, second hand. |
+-------------------------+------------+--------------------+
| Ace, king, queen | small | queen |
| Ace, king, knave | small | king |
| Ace, king, and others | small | king |
| Ace, queen, ten, &c. | small | queen |
| Ace, queen, ten, &c. | knave | ace |
| In trumps | small | ten |
| Ace, queen, and small | small | small |
| Ace, knave, ten, &c. | small | small |
| In trumps | small | ten |
| Ace and small | small | small |
| King, queen, knave, &c. | small | knave |
| King, queen, &c. | small | queen |
| Queen, knave, ten, &c. | small | ten |
| Queen, knave, and small | small | knave |
| Ace and small | queen | ace |
| King and others small | queen | small |
| King and one other | small | small |
| Queen and one other | small | small |
| Queen and one other |knave or ten| queen |
+-------------------------+------------+--------------------+
When a card is led by the original leader, the second player ought at once
to draw conclusions as to the other cards in the leader's hand. For
example, original leader plays the two of clubs, spades being trumps. The
first conclusion is, that the two is the lowest of a four suit. If it were
a five suit, the lowest card would not have been led. It may be a three
suit; if so, the leader probably holds four trumps, but considers he is not
strong enough to lead these. If he held a four suit, not trumps, he would
have commenced with the lowest of this four suit.
Judging from the lead, as to the value of the suit from which the original
lead has been made, is the result first of observation, then of reason.
{198}
In order to be able to derive all the advantages from observing the first
card led, a player should practise sorting his cards rapidly, so as to have
these ready before a card is led. Some players sort each suit separately,
and thus "go over" their cards four times, and take more than twice as long
to arrange their cards as would be required if the four suits were sorted
simultaneously. In consequence of this delay, they are looking at the cards
in their hand when they ought to be looking at those on the table; they are
so much occupied with the sorting of their cards whilst the game is being
played, that they cannot observe and draw conclusions from the cards which
fall from each player's hand.