high as a 7 or 8, and the partner can read, from
the general composition of his hand and the Dummy, that the discarder
must hold a lower card in that suit, he gets the information at once.

Regardless of showing his partner strength or weakness, the player has
ample opportunity to give evidence of skill in discarding. Too much
information should never be given to the Declarer when he is in the
lead and controls the situation. There are many hands in which it
becomes obvious that all the adversaries of the Declarer can hope to
accomplish is the saving of a slam, or the taking of one more trick.
The question is not what to tell the partner to lead when he gets in,
but how to win a single trick. In such a case, a bluff discard, _i.e._,
showing strength where it does not exist, is sometimes effective,
although a keen Declarer is not apt to be easily deceived by any ruse
so transparent. One thing to remember under such circumstances,
however, is not to help the Declarer by showing weakness, so that he
will know which way to finesse. In No-trumps or with the Trumps
exhausted, never discard a singleton, or too many cards of a weak suit.

When a suit has been declared, it is unnecessary, by informatory
discarding, to repeat the announcement of strength. This principle,
just as is the case with other systems of play, is predicated upon the
ability of the partner to remember the bids. If, however, he be unable
to do so, information by discard will obviously be sowing seed on
barren ground, and should be withheld, as the Declarer is the only one
who will reap any benefit.

BLOCKING THE DUMMY

When the Declarer is playing a No-trump and the Dummy holds a long suit
without reentry, an adversary of the Declarer may have the opportunity,
when he has a card stopping that suit, of blocking it and preventing
the long cards from making, by holding the winning card until the
Declarer has played what is necessarily his last card of the suit.

AVOID OPENING NEW SUITS

The adversaries of the Declarer should avoid opening new suits unless
the situation shows it to be necessary. They should remember that when
the honors of a suit are evenly divided, opening it is practically sure
to cost a trick, and that the starting of any suit, which is not headed
by Ace and King, or a three-card sequence, is almost invariably
disadvantageous. The lead by the partner has been made with some
object, and should, therefore, be returned, except when th