rs and fifty cents. Similarly a fourth of the money being
exhibited, represents four dollars and twenty-five cents.

'Al juego, caballeros!' cries the dealer, and everybody accordingly
stakes his money. Satisfied that the four cards are not equalised, the
dealer, by a dexterous turn of the wrist, reverses the pack, by which
means the bottom card is exposed. If this card does not pair with one of
those on the table, other cards are slowly revealed, till one of the
four on the table has been 'casado' or paired. The nine of spades being
drawn, pairs with the nine of clubs on the table. The banker
consequently pays on this card, and receives on that which lies by its
side. The other two cards are similarly disposed of, and this, with a
few variations, constitutes the game.

With the exception of 'el rey' (the king) and 'la zota' (the knave), a
Spanish pack of cards differs considerably from the French or English
pack. There are no tens, to begin with, consequently the total number of
cards is forty-eight. The queen is also absent. Her majesty is,
however, represented by 'el caballo,' a figure of a knight on horseback.
Clubs (called 'bastos') are veritable clubs of the Hercules pattern; and
a spade is not a spade in this instance, but it is an 'espada,' or sword
of the approved shape. Each player has a favourite card, upon which he
invariably stakes his money whenever it is turned up in the course of
the game. Tunicu's 'winning' colour is 'el caballo' (horse and rider).
Bimba swears by the king, while his neighbour, Don Vicente, has a
partiality for the royal fives of every suit. These gentlemen are fond
of apostrophising the cards of their selection, as if to encourage the
pasteboard to win. Thus, Tunicu not unfrequently addresses his caballo
as a 'noble animal' or a 'trusty steed,' while Bimba speaks of 'el rey'
as a 'right royal gentleman' and a 'just sovereign.' But when, as it too
often happens, 'el caballo' proves faithless, and 'el rey' unprofitable,
their praises are no longer sung, but certain disrespectful adjectives
are applied to them. The Spanish language is rich in oaths, the mildest
of which are some of those expressions which begin with the syllable
'Car,' such, for example, as 'Caramba!' 'Carambola!' (the billiard
cannon), 'Caracoles!' (shells), and 'Caracolito!' (a small shell).

One of the greatest gamblers at the Philharmonic is Don Vicente. Tunicu
tells me, _sotto voce_, that the old gentleman has had a