VIII. No player may inform another | what cards he possesses, or give any intimation as to any card in hand or miss. IX. If a player throw up his cards after the leading card is played, he is looed. X. Each player must head the trick if he can, either by a superior card in the same suit or by a trump. XI. The penalty in each case of disobedience to the laws is the being looed in the sum agreed on at the beginning of the game. Vingt-et-a (twenty-one) may be played by two or more players; about six or eight is the best number. The cards bear the same respective values as in cribbage. The tens and court cards are each reckoned for ten; but the ace in each suit may be valued as one or eleven, at the option of the holder, according to the exigencies of his hand. less, he puts them, face downwards, on the table; and so with each player. The dealer then lays his own cards, face upwards, on the table. He, too, may take other cards from the pack, should the number be not near enough to twenty-one to allow him to stand. When he is satisfied with his hand he says, "I stand," and all the players face their cards on the table. To all those whose hands are twenty-one or nearer to twenty-one than his own, he pays a stake equal to that originally placed on the single card; and by the same rule he receives the stakes from all whose hands are less in number than his own, including ties. But to any player or players having an ace and a tenth card-which is termed a "natural vingt-un"-he pays double stakes. The "natural" must always consist of the two cards first dealt. Should, however, the dealer himself have a "natural," he receives double stakes from all the players, and single from the ties. In this way the deal goes on till one of the players turns up a "natural," when he becomes dealer, and proceeds as before. Rules of Vingt-et-un.-I. The first deal must be determined by chanceas by cutting the cards, obtaining the first knave, &c. II. Previous to the deal the youngest hand shuffles, and the eldest hand III. The stake must be placed on the first card previous to the second round, and allowed to remain till the round is completed and the dealer exposes his cards. Having determined the deal by giving each player a card-the first possessor of the knave having the dealcounters or other stakes having been determined on, the dealer holds the pack with their faces downwards, and proceeds to give a single card to each player, and one to himself, all face downwards. Each player then places a stake on his card, and the dealer distributes a second card all round, beginning in each case with his left-cuts. hand neighbour. The players then examine their hands, and the dealer looks at his own two cards. The dealer asks each one in succession if he wishes to have another card, or stand on the two he has. The usual phrase is, "Do you stand?" If the elder hand is content with his hand, he says "Content," and places his cards on the table, face downwards. If he want one or more cards he says so, and the dealer gives him from the top of the pack as many as he requires. If the cards exceed twenty-one in number when added together, the player is said to have "overdrawn," in which case he must throw up his cards and deliver his stake to the dealer. But if the pips and tens on all his cards make, when added up, twenty-one or IV. In case of a misdeal, the stakes must be withdrawn and the cards dealt over again. V. All ties pay to the dealer except in the case of a "natural" being declared previous to the dealer obtaining his second card. Then the holder of the "natural" is entitled to receive double stakes immediately, before another card is played. VI. The holder of a "natural," after the first round, is entitled to the deal. VII. The dealer is at any time allowed to sell, and any player to pur chase, the deal. The dealer may also pass the deal to any one desirous of | trump. No person looking at his card having it. out of turn can be allowed to take the pool, even if he hold the best trump. VIII. The "natural" must consist only of an ace and a tenth card dealt in the first two rounds. In the case of double or treble-hands, an ace and a tenth card form "acquired" and not "natural" vingt-uns, and receive or pay only single stakes. IX. The player who overdraws must immediately declare the fact, and pay his stake to the dealer. X. In taking brulet the dealer is compelled to retain those two cards, but he may add to them if he wishes after all the players are served. XI. No stake can be withdrawn, added to, or lessened, after it has been once laid on the card; but it must be allowed to remain till the dealer declares he stands. XII. No stake higher than that agreed to at the commencement of the game is allowed. Speculation is played with a perfect pack, the cards ranking as at whist. Three cards are dealt singly, face downwards, to each player, and the last card, after all have their three, is turned up for trumps, and is the property of the dealer. The highest trump clears the pool. Previous to the deal the dealer stakes six, and each player three pence or counters; and the holder of every knave and five of each suit except trumps pays one penny or counter to the pool. When the deal is completed, the eldest hand turns up his top card, and if it happen not to be a trump, the next player exposes his top card, and so on till a trump superior in value to the turn-up is shown. When a trump appears, its holder offers to sell, and the various players bid for it, and it then becomes the property of its purchaser, and the player next him to the left turns up, and so on till a better trump is shown, which its owner again offers and sells if he pleases; the holder of the highest trump in the round, whether held by purchase or in hand, winning the entire pool. The holder of the trump card has always the privilege of concealing his hand till a superior trump appears, or of selling either hand or Bezique. This newly-introduced game is played by two persons with two packs of cards, from which—as in ecarté-the twos, threes, fours, fives, and sixes are omitted. The mode of play is as follows:The cards are shuffled, both packs together, and the players cut for deal. The lowest card cut wins the deal. In play the cards are reckoned in the following order: :- Ace, ten, king, queen, nine, eight, seven. The deal being determined, eight cards are given alternately to each player, as in cribbage, and the seventeenth card is turned up for trumps. The non-dealer plays first by leading with any card in his hand, to which the other replies. If he win or trump it, he has to lead; in every case the winner of the trick having the next lead. Before playing, however, each player draws a card from the pack-the winner of the last trick drawing the top card, the other player taking the rest; by which means the cards in each hand are restored to their original number-eight. By this process of alternate drawing and playing a card the stock is at length exhausted. In playing, the highest card of the same suit wins the trick. In the case of ties, the leader wins. Trumps win other suits. The tricks are left face upward on the table till the end of the lead; they are of no value but for the aces and tens they contain. The objects of the play are to win aces and tens, and promote in the hand various combinations of cards which, when "declared," score a certain number of points. Declaring.-A declaration can be made only immediately after winning a trick, and before drawing a card from the pack. It is done by placing the declared cards face upward on the table. Players are not obliged to declare unless they like. A card cannot be played to a trick and declared at the same time. Only one combination can be declared to one trick. In de claring fresh combinations, one o more cards of the fresh combination must proceed from the part of the hand held up. The same card can be declared more than once, provided the combination in which it afterwards appears is of a different class. The player scoring the last trick can, at the same time, declare anything in his hand, after which all declarations cease. Variations in the Game.-It may be played by three or by four persons. If by three, they all play against each other, and three packs of cards are used. Number of Packs.-If four play, four packs are used, shuffled together; but this is considered as being very complicated. Diminished Scores. Some players consider the double bezique and sequence scores as too high, and therefore make the score for the former 300, and for the latter 200. The Last Trick.-This is sometimes understood to mean the thirty-second trick, or last of all. This, however, is supposed to be an error arising from incorrect nomenclature. Aces and Tens.-These are sometimes not scored till the end of the hand. Scoring. The score may be kept with a bezique-board and pegs, or by a numbered dial and hand, or by means of counters-which last method is the best. Hints to Learners.-The following hints may be of use in solving one of the chief difficulties-that of deciding what cards to retain and what to throw away-1. It is no advantage to get the lead unless you have something to declare. 2. The cards that can, without loss, be parted with, are sevens, eights, and nines. 3. After these the least injurious cards to part with are knaves. 4. In difficulties it is better to lead a ten or an ace as a rule, than a king or queen; but to the rule there are several exceptions. 5. It is seldom advisable to go for four aces unless you happen to hold three, and are in no difficulty. 6. If driven to lead an ace or a ten, and your adversary does not take the trick, it is often good play to lead another next time. 7. Do not part with small trumps if it can be helped. 8. Do not part with trump sequence cards. 9. Until near the end do not part with bezique cards, even after declaring bezique. 10. Having a choice be tween playing a possible scoring card or a small trump, or a card you have declared, play the declared card so as not to expose your hand. 11. Avoid showing your adversary by what you declare, so that he shall not be able to make the trump sequence or double bezique. 12. Whenever your adversary leads a card of a suit of which you hold the ten, take the trick with the ten. 13. Win the last trick if possible. 14. In playing the last eight tricks your object should be to save your aces or tens, and win those of your adversary. Rules for bezique are sold with the cards, but they differ somewhat. The main points of the game are, however, here given as described by Cavendish, the well-known writer on whist. Drole is played with two packs of cards, from which all up to the seven are discarded. It is played by two persons thus: After deciding the deal by cutting, the dealer gives five cards to each, and puts the rest of the pack aside. The value of the cards is:-King, queen, knave, ace, ten, nine, eight, seven, as in ecarté; but there are no trumps. The eldest hand plays a card on any division of the board, which is divided into sections. A card played in its own suit can be won only by a superior card of that suit. If played on a suit that is not its own, it can be won by a superior card of either of the other suits; but a card placed on the line dividing two suits, neither being its own, can be won by a superior card of its own suit, or of either of the two played upon; and a card played over the place where four suits join-that is, on all four suits-can be won by a supe rior card of any of them. The tricks count according to the number of suits played on. Each player plays to the card led, and must follow suit or win the trick. The king of hearts, led or played, | wins every other card in that suit, except the queen of hearts, queen of spades, knave of diamonds, and the four aces-severally known as Emperor, Empress, Beautiful Nell, Jack Drole, and the Four Beggars. When two persons play, twenty-three is game; if more than two, seventeen. Jack Drole has the power of robbing in any suit-i.e., sending back the player who wins the trick as many points as he would have scored. The player of drole cannot win the trick; he merely sends back the winner, but he takes the next lead. If Jack Drole is led to a trick he has only the same power as an ordinary knave, and may win or be won. The Four Beggars (the Aces). When a trick containing an ace scores more than two, the player of the ace bes-namely, gets part of the score from the winner. In a trick scoring three or four the ace gets one, and the winner the remainder. In a six or eight-trick the ace gets two, the winner the remainder. If a trick is robbed the ace goes back in the same proportion, and the winner goes back the re mainder. When two aces are in a trick the second ace gets nothing. There is no begging in a trick which is won by an ace; in a trick which wins the game; nor in a trick to which Nell is played. An ace may be played to any suit. Laws of Drole.-1. The lowest card deals. 2. The player to the dealer's right cuts. 3. If the dealer gives any player more or less than five cards, and the player declares it, there must be a fresh deal, and the dealer goes back four points. 4. If the dealer deals himself less than five cards, he may complete his hand from the stock before playing to the first trick, and is then not liable to any penalty. 5. If a player has more or less than five cards dealt him, and fails to declare it before the first trick, he goes back four points, and can score nothing that hand. 6. If a card is exposed in dealing, there must be a fresh deal. 7. If there is a card faced in the pack, there must be a fresh deal. 8. If a player deals out of his turn, the error may be rectified before the deal is complete. XI. DOMESTIC PETS. Dogs.-Their Management.-All dogs require clean, warm, but wellventilated beds, pure water, and plain, fresh food. If your dog does not have sufficient exercise, give him now and then a tea-spoonful of flower of sulphur mixed with his food. When his nose is cold and wet he is generally in good health, and vice versa. The more common diseases, and their mode of treatment, are given below. Fits. Often caused in young dogs by over-feeding; give a spare but nourishing diet, and plenty of exercise. Distemper.-Nearly every dog has this disease once, and usually between his fourth and tenth months. Mr. Johnson, a practical writer on the subject, says: "On the approach of this canine scourge the dog will be dull, his eyes will appear less bright than usual, a languidness will pervade his whole system, and his appetite will fail, or he may perhaps refuse his food altogether; he will be also troubled with a great degree of constipation-this is the first stage of the disease in question. The distemper makes its way by inflammation, accompanied by costiveness; and, therefore, reason clearly points out the necessity of checking the one and removing the other. Bleed the animal immediately, and give him a tablespoonful of syrup of buckthorn, which will most likely answer the purpose effectually; if, after the lapse of a few days, the dog does not appear perfectly recovered, repeat the bleeding and the physic; a third time if found necessary, which will not often happen -not once in five hundred cases. By the process above described the disease is checked and subdued in the first instance, and as it cannot, when thus opposed, acquire strength, is therefore easily vanquished or dissipated. Such a mode of treatment is incontestably supported by reason, since nothing can tend so effectually to check inflammation as lowering the system. The animal should be bled very freely-in fact, it is almost impossible to take too much blood from a dog under these circumstances. Supposing the subject to be a stout pointer whelp, seven or eight months old, about five ounces of blood should be taken from him. A table spoonful of syrup of buckthorn will be found a proper dose for such an animal, and the quantity may be varied according to the age and strength of the patient. The operation of bleeding a dog should be thus performed:-Place a cord round the animal's neck, and draw it sufficiently tight so as to throw up or elevate the jugular vein; puncture it longitudinally (not cross-wise) with common lancet, and, for the purpose of causing the blood to flow, the finger should be pressed on the vein a little below the orifice. When sufficient blood has been drawn, the puncture need not be pinned, nor in any way be closed, as the dog, by holding down his head, draws the lips of the wound together, and the blood forms a crust upon it immediately; hence the reason of puncturing the vein longitudinally, since, if cut cross-wise, the dog will pull the wound open every time he holds down his head, particularly in feeding." For small pet dogs a milder cure is Dr. James' powders, given in milk, water, or jam. Colds. Keep the dog warm and clean, and administer a purgative. To destroy Fleas.-Wash and rinse well in strong tobacco water, taking care to avoid the eyes. Mange. The common mange is brought on by damp, dirt, and bad or unwholesome food. It is very con |