What to do when the Partner is doubled.

VIII. LEADING 158

How to lead against a No-trump.
Number-showing Leads.
The Lead against a Suit Declaration.
How to lead to a Double.
Table of Opening Leads against a Trump Declaration.

IX. THE PLAY 183

Difference between Play in Auction and Bridge.
Playing for Game.
Play for an Even Break.
General Play of the Declarer.
Declarer's Play of No-trump.
Declarer's Play of a Suit Declaration.
Play by Declarer's Adversaries.
The Signal.
The Discard.
Blocking the Dummy.
Avoid opening New Suits.
How to return Partner's Bid.
The Finesse.
Table showing when Third Hand should finesse.

X. SCORING AND SCORE-SHEETS 213

Samples of Score-Sheets.

XI. THE LAWS 225

1912 Code of The Whist Club of New York.
Decisions by the Card Committee of The Whist Club
of New York.

SUMMARIZED PENALTIES 277

APPENDIX: QUERIES AND ANSWERS 279

INTRODUCTION

With so many excellent textbooks now in circulation, it seems almost
audacious to add another treatise to current card literature. It
happens, however, that the game of Auction, or Auction Bridge, as it is
generally called ("Auction Whist" is perhaps a more appropriate title),
has been so completely and so suddenly revolutionized that books
written upon the subject a few months ago do not treat of Auction of
to-day, but of a game abandoned in the march of progress. Only a small
portion of the change has been due to the development of the game, the
alteration that has taken place in the count having been the main
factor in the transformation. Just as a nation, in the course of a
century, changes its habits, customs, and ideas, so Auction in a few
months has developed surprising innovations, and evolved theories that
only yesterday would have seemed to belong to the heretic or the
fanatic. The expert bidder of last Christmas would find himself a
veritable Rip Van Winkle, should he awake in the midst of a game of
to-day.

The prese