Presently he returned with a roll of bills in his hand—a thousand-dollar one being placed conspicuously on the outside, as a kind of index, to show what was within. He handed a thousand-dollar bill to the banker, and said:
“Change that.”
The banker changed it.
He then laid down five hundred dollars on the ace and lost. He laid five hundred more on it and lost. He took another thousand-dollar bill from the roll, laid it down, and lost. He laid down another, and won.
“Good luck, at last,” said he. “I believe that ace will win again. It will be sure to: it has won so little of late.” So he put three thousand dollars on it. Others followed his example, and two thousand dollars more were laid on the ace. All who sat at the table now, or stood by, looked for the issue with much interest.
It lost.
This most unfortunate of the gamblers made a slight movement of the hand, as though to place his remaining cash in his pocket and quit; but he hesitated a moment, then placed the whole “pile” on the ace.
“There,” said he, “are seven thousand dollars.”
Yes, seven thousand.
The ace lost that time.