lved a risk of two chances to one). The wheel revolved, and stopped
at twenty-four. Upon this I was paid out notes and gold until I had by
my side a total sum of two thousand gulden.

It was as in a fever that I moved the pile, en bloc, on to the red.
Then suddenly I came to myself (though that was the only time during
the evening's play when fear cast its cold spell over me, and showed
itself in a trembling of the hands and knees). For with horror I had
realised that I MUST win, and that upon that stake there depended all
my life.

"Rouge!" called the croupier. I drew a long breath, and hot shivers
went coursing over my body. I was paid out my winnings in
bank-notes--amounting, of course, to a total of four thousand florins,
eight hundred gulden (I could still calculate the amounts).

After that, I remember, I again staked two thousand florins upon twelve
middle numbers, and lost. Again I staked the whole of my gold, with
eight hundred gulden, in notes, and lost. Then madness seemed to come
upon me, and seizing my last two thousand florins, I staked them upon
twelve of the first numbers--wholly by chance, and at random, and
without any sort of reckoning. Upon my doing so there followed a moment
of suspense only comparable to that which Madame Blanchard must have
experienced when, in Paris, she was descending earthwards from a
balloon.

"Quatre!" called the croupier.

Once more, with the addition of my original stake, I was in possession
of six thousand florins! Once more I looked around me like a
conqueror--once more I feared nothing as I threw down four thousand of
these florins upon the black. The croupiers glanced around them, and
exchanged a few words; the bystanders murmured expectantly.

The black turned up. After that I do not exactly remember either my
calculations or the order of my stakings. I only remember that, as in a
dream, I won in one round sixteen thousand florins; that in the three
following rounds, I lost twelve thousand; that I moved the remainder
(four thousand) on to "Passe" (though quite unconscious of what I was
doing--I was merely waiting, as it were, mechanically, and without
reflection, for something) and won; and that, finally, four times in
succession I lost. Yes, I can remember raking in money by
thousands--but most frequently on the twelve, middle numbers, to which
I constantly adhered, and which kept appearing in a sort of regular
order--first, three or four times running, and the