$1,000." So he pulled out all his
money and laid it on the table, and said: "I will only call you,
but I know I have you beat." I showed down four big live aces,
and he was awake sure enough after that. He never went into any
more of those fits, and we played until they wanted the table for
breakfast. I used to make it a point to "cold deck" a sucker on
his own deal, as they then had great confidence in their hands.
My old paw is large enough to hold out a compressed bale of cotton
or a whole deck of cards, and it comes in very handy to do the
work. I could hold one deck in the palm of my hand and shuffle up
another, and then come the change on his deal. It requires a great
deal of cheek and gall, and I was always endowed with both--that
is, they used to say so down South.

TEN THOUSAND IN COUNTERFEIT MONEY.

We had a great "graft," before the war, on the Upper Mississippi,
between St. Louis and St. Charles. We would go up on a boat and
back by rail. One night going up we had done a good business in
our line, and were just putting up the shutters, when a man stepped
up and said "he could turn the right card." My partner, Posey
Jeffers, was doing the honors that night, and he said, "I will bet
from $1 to $10,000 that no man can pick out the winning ticket."
The man pulled out a roll nearly as large as a pillow, and put up
$5,000. Posey put up the same amount, and over the card went for
$5,000; but it was not the winner. "Mix them up again," said the
man, and he put up the same sum as before. He turned, and Posey
put the second $5,000 in his pocket. The man then went away as if
to lose $10,000 was an every-day thing with him. We then closed
up our "banking house," well pleased with ourselves. The next day
we were counting our cash, and we found we had on hand $10,000 in
nice new bills on the State Bank of Missouri, but it was counterfeit.
We deposited it in the (fire) bank, as we had no immediate use for
it.

BLOWING UP OF THE PRINCESS.

I was on board of the steamer _Princess_ on a down trip when she
was carrying a large number of passengers, and there were fourteen
preachers among them, on their way to New Orleans to attend a
conference. The boat was making the fastest time she had ever
made. I had a big game of "roulette" in the barber shop, which
ran all Saturday night; and on Sunday morning, just after leaving
Baton Rouge, I opened up again, and had thirty-five persons in the
shop, all pu