ELDEST, OR FIRST HAND.
When the right is not turned, order with three medium trumps or better, and some strength in suit, provided you have nothing to go to; for example, ace, queen, ten of the turn-up, and two cards of another suit.
Do not order (unless with great strength) if you can make it next; for example, queen of clubs turned up, you hold right, ten, and nine of clubs, and king and ten of spades; or left, ace and seven of clubs, seven of spades, and seven of diamonds. In both of these cases pass, and make it next.
Make it next when you can, and do not cross the suit, unless very strong, especially when a bower is turned down; for example, the dealer has turned down the king of spades, with ace, king, and seven of hearts, knave of spades, and ten of clubs: make it next, and lead the left.
When making the trump with ace and two others (without the king), lead ace in next, and small one when crossing the suit.
If the right is not turned, lead trumps through the assisting hand. The exceptions to this are,—With left and small one; ace and small one; with score four to three in your favor, and you play with certain reasons to stop a march; and occasionally when short of a suit.
With a large tenace in trumps as right, ace, or right, king, and no outside cards of any special value, play an off-suit, whether dealer takes up with or without assistance.
With one or two trumps and two aces, lead trumps, whether through assistance or not.
If the dealer adopts the trump, avoid, if you can, leading from suits of king, seven; queen, seven, etc. If possible, lead an ace, or from a short suit of king or queen, or from a suit of equals, as king, queen, or queen, knave, or knave, ten.
In general do not lead trumps up to the dealer's adoption; but with three trumps, and the score two points in your favor, lead a trump, if the turn-up is not above the king. If you hold the two bowers and an outside ace, always lead them in the order named.