This, with the three pound fourteen already in the
heel, made a total of seven pounds one shilling.
"I'll tell you," said Wicks. "Let Carthew and Tommy
and me take one pound apiece, and Hemstead and Amalu
split the other four, and toss up for the odd bob."
"O, rot!" said Carthew. "Tommy and I are bursting
already. We can take half a sov. each, and let the
other three have forty shillings."
"I'll tell you now, it's not worth splitting," broke in
Mac. "I've cards in my chest. Why don't you play for
the slump sum?"
In that idle place the proposal was accepted with
delight. Mac, as the owner of the cards, was given a
stake; the sum was played for in five games of
cribbage; and when Amalu, the last survivor in the
tournament, was beaten by Mac it was found the dinner-
hour was past. After a hasty meal they fell again
immediately to cards, this time (on Carthew's proposal)
to Van John. It was then probably two P.M. on the 9th
of February, and they played with varying chances for
twelve hours, slept heavily, and rose late on the
morrow to resume the game.
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