PART II.
HANDS.
The following hands are given in illustration of the general principles discussed in Part I. The plan adopted in the arrangement of the hands is to imitate closely the circumstances of actual play. Thus, at starting, one player's hand is known, together with the score and the turn-up card. Each player is then caused to play a card in his turn, and at the end of the trick, the one player whose hand is known makes observations, and draws inferences from the play, as though he were at the whist table.
A, Y, B, and Z, are the four players throughout. They are placed at the table in the above order, A and B being partners against Y and Z. A is the first leader, and Z the dealer. In "the play" the cards of each trick are placed in the order in which the players sit round the table, the card played by the person whose hand is under consideration being the one nearest to the reader. The capital letter by each card shows to which player it belongs.
All the players are supposed to follow the ordinary rules of play, as laid down in Part I. Thus, each player is credited with leading originally from his strongest suit, and with leading the card of it indicated in the Analysis of Leads (pp. [64]-71); with playing the lowest of a sequence when not leading; with returning the highest of a numerically weak suit, the lowest of a strong suit, and so on.
It has been remarked by critics, that the players are often made to play badly. Most of the hands are taken from actual play; but, independently of this, illustrations of indifferent play, with comments, are obviously of value, as showing the kind of errors that are likely to be made, and how and why to avoid them.
HAND I.
Trump lead from four trumps on establishment of suit.