evated to a tone of passion, called out--

'Hold! I am going to bet!'

The banker stopped; the cards still rested in his hands.

'I say, sir, I will do it,' said Burke, turning to De Vere, whose
cheek was now pale as death, and whose disordered and haggard air was
increased by his having torn off his cravat and opened the collar of his
shirt. '_I_ say I will; do _you_ gainsay me?' continued he, laying on
the words an accent of such contemptuous insolence that even De Vere's
eye fired at it. 'Vingt mille francs, noir,' said Burke, placing his
last billet on the table; and the words were scarce spoken when the
banker cried out--

'Noir perd et passe.'

A horrible curse broke from Burke as he fixed his staring eyeballs on
the outspread cards, and counted over the numbers to himself.

'You see, Burke,' said De Vere.

'Don't speak to me, now, damn you!' said the other, with clenched teeth.

De Vere pushed back his chair, and rising, moved through the crowd
towards an open window. Burke sat with his head buried between his hands
for some seconds, and then starting up at the banker s call, cried out--

'Dix mille, noir!'

A kind of half-suppressed laugh ran round the table at seeing that he
had no funds while he still offered to bet. He threw his eyes upon the
board, and then as quickly turned them on the players. One by one his
dark look was bent on them, as if to search out some victim for his
hate; but all were hushed. Many as reckless as himself were there, many
as utterly ruined, but not one so lost to hope.

'Who laughed?' said he in French, while the thick veins of his forehead
stood out like cordage; and then, as none answered to his challenge, he
rose slowly, still scowling with the malignity of a demon.

'May I have your seat, monsieur?' said a dapper little Frenchman, with a
smile and a bow, as Burke moved away.

'Yes, take it,' said he, as lifting the strong chair with one hand he
dashed it upon the floor, smashing it to pieces with a crash that shook
the room.

The crowd, which made way for him to pass out, as speedily closed again
around the table, where the work of ruin still went forward. Not a
passing glance was turned from the board to look after the beggared
gambler.

The horrible indifference the players had shown to the sufferings of
this wretched man so thoroughly disgusted me that I could no longer bear
even to look on the game. The passion of play had shown itself to me now
in all its