The Laws of Bridge; With a Guide to the Game (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1899 edition. Excerpt: ...holds two by honours, with their adversaries' score at one. At Bridge there is a certain penalty for every error, and a player losing a trick or making a revoke loses the value of that trick, or the value of three tricks, whatever may be the issue of the game or rubber. At Whist a player with his score at love can revoke without incurring any penalty if his adversaries win the game independently of the revoke. In each of the next four or five hands he may contrive to miss one or two tricks by very bad play, and yet after all he may win two trebles and not be one penny the worse for five or six outrageous blunders. There is no penalty at Bridge for making the most of the cards, and a player can win every possible trick with the full assurance of not being punished for it; and two partners have never to indulge in a mournful duet over their bad luck in losing a rubber by a brilliant coup which "Cavendish" himself would be proud to father. When men spend years in learning how to make the greatest number of tricks out of the combined hands, it is ludicrous to impose the severest possible penalty on successful trick-making. This constantly happens at Whist when a side, by fine play, scores four instead of three, and, by being unable to score honours the next hand, eventually loses the rubber instead of winning it, and pays three points instead of receiving seven---a fine of ten shillings, or ten pounds, whatever the points may be, on successful play. One of the finest Whist players in the world, who clings to the old game and refuses to be converted, summarised his objections to Bridge as follows: --. (1) I hate Dummy Whist. (2) I dislike to sit down to shilling points, and to find I am playing five-pound points. (3) I don't like to...