Playful Poems

by Unknown

As at whist, a suit led must be followed, and a player who cannot follow suit is not obliged to play a trump unless he please.

If the first player who follows the Ombre’s lead with a better card, and has in his hand so good a game that he desires, by winning the trick, to obtain the lead, he declares that aloud by saying Gano, that is, “I win.” His partner then lets him win, if he can. Thus, Ombre has played a spade, which the next player wins with the Queen, saying Gano when he does so. If the third player has the King in his hand he refrains from playing it, unless he have no spade in his hand of smaller value, in which case he is obliged to follow suit and win the trick against his partner. Where the lead is urgently desired, not for a personal gain of more tricks than the Ombre, which is called Codille, but to defend the stake, and the third player is seen to hesitate, Gano may be pressed for, three times, “Gano, if possible.” When Ombre was played by gambling courtiers under Queen Anne and George I., all such words spoken in the game had to be given strictly in the Spanish form, which was, in this case, Yo Gano, si se puede.

Ombre, to win the stake, must make five tricks; but he can win with four if the other five are so divided between his antagonists that one has only three of them, the other only two. If one of the two defenders of the stakes, playing against Ombre, does not feel almost sure that he can win at least three tricks, with a chance of the fourth, he should win one, and try to avoid winning more, but help whatever chance his partner seems to have of winning four, because Ombre wins with four when each of the other players has won less than four.

If Ombre lose he is said to be Beasted. Whoever loses is said to be Beasted. Whoever is Beasted has to pay to the board counters of the value of what the Ombre takes up if he wins. When players were beasted for revokes and other oversights in play, the fines were heavy upon carelessness.

At the end of the game tricks are counted. When Ombre wins he takes the stakes; when he loses the two opponents will divide the stakes between them, unless one of them should have taken more tricks than the Ombre, in which case that one is said to have won Codille. Whoever wins Codille takes all the stake the Ombre played for. For this reason it was not thought creditable for any one to call Gano who had four tricks in his hand, as by so doing he would only be inducing the other player against Ombre to give up to him his half of the winnings. Each player against the Ombre aims at Codille when he thinks it within reach, but in that case it used to be held very bad manners to win by calling Gano. When one of the players against the Ombre must either give Codille to the other or let the Ombre win, he gives the Codille. For if the Ombre be beasted he has to replace the stakes. But if the Ombre wins, both of the players against him have to stake again. If any one wins all the nine tricks he is said to have won the Vole, and clears all stakes upon the table.

Belinda, in the Rape of the Lock, having looked at her hand, named trumps—

“‘Let spades be trumps,’ she said, and trumps they were.”

She chose that suit because she had not only the King but also the two of Spades, and two of trumps, called Manille, is the second best trump after Spadille. Her hand contained also the Ace of Spades, “unconquerable lord” Spadille, and the third trump, Basto, Ace of Clubs. By making spades trumps she secured the addition of Manille. The three best trumps secured her the three best tricks. Spadille and Manille fetched small trumps out of the hands of her antagonists. Basto brought a trump out of the Baron’s suit, that also held the Knave and Queen of trumps, and a small card from the other hand, which showed that it was out of trumps. Then came Belinda’s King of trumps, to win her fourth sure trick, and the Baron, who still had his best trumps in his hand, the Knave and Queen, lost the Knave to it.

After this the Baron’s Queen of trumps was the best card, and Belinda, with no more trumps in her hand, or possibly the other player, sacrificed the King of Clubs to it.

Trumps being exhausted, and the Baron having won a trick and the lead, it is his turn now to win three tricks in succession with the King, Queen, and Knave of Diamonds. At the third round of the Diamonds Belinda has left in her hand only the King and Queen of Hearts. She gives up the Queen.