Rollo on the Atlantic

CHAPTER X. THE END OF THE LOTTERY.

In almost all cases of betting and lotteries, the operation of the system is, that certain persons, called the knowing ones, contrive to manage the business in such a way, by secret manoeuvres and intrigues, as to make the result turn out to their advantage, at the expense of those parties concerned who are ignorant and inexperienced, or, as they term it, "green." Very deep plans were laid for accomplishing this object in respect to the lottery described in the last chapter; though, as it happened in this case, they were fortunately frustrated.

The principal of these manoeuvres were the work of the man whom they called the Colonel. He had formed the plan, with another man, of secretly watching the operation of heaving the log every time it was performed, and making a note of the result. By doing this, he thought he could calculate very nearly how many miles the ship would make, while all the other passengers would have nothing to guide them but such general estimates as they could make from recollection. He accordingly arranged it with his confederates that one or the other of them should be on deck whenever the men were called to heave the log, and, without appearing to pay any particular attention to the operation, carefully to obtain the result, and make a memorandum of it. This plan was sufficient for the daytime. For the night-inasmuch as it might excite suspicion for them to be up at unseasonable hours to watch the operation-they resorted to another method. They bribed one of the seamen of each watch to find out the result of each trial during his watch, and to give them the answers in the morning. When the last time for heaving the log, previous to making up the accounts for the day, came, which was at ten o'clock, they took that result, and then, shutting themselves up in their state room, they made a calculation, and ascertained pretty certainly, as they thought, that the distance would be about 267 miles. It might possibly be 266, or 268; but they thought that they were sure that it would be one of those three numbers. The next thing was to circulate statements, and to express opinions in private conversation here and there among the passengers, in a careless sort of way, to produce a general impression that the rate of the ship would be not less than 270 miles. This was to lead the owners of the tickets, and the betters generally, not to attach a high value to the numbers below 270. By doing this, they expected to depress the value of these tickets in the general estimation, so that they could buy then easily. They calculated that, if their plans succeeded, they could buy 266, 267, and 268 for about a sovereign apiece-the holders of them being made to suppose, by their manoeuvres that those numbers would have very little chance of obtaining the prize.

The plan was very deeply laid, and very skilfully executed; and the men were so far successful in their efforts that they did produce a general impression that the ship's run could not be below 270. They also bought ticket 268, though they had to give two sovereigns for it. It has already been shown how their attempts to get possession of 267 failed, by Hilbert's refusal to sell it. They of course also failed to get 266, for that ticket was not to be found. They could not make any very open and public inquiries for it, as it was necessary that every thing which they did should be performed in a very unconcerned and careless manner. They, however, made repeated inquiries privately for this ticket but could not get any tidings of it. A certain sailor told some of the betters that an Irishwoman on the forward deck had a ticket which she offered to sell for two shillings; but when, on being asked what the number was, he answered 99, they laughed at him, supposing that somebody had been putting a hoax upon the poor Irishwoman, as there was no such number as that in the lottery.

Besides the manoeuvres of these two confederates, there was another man who was devising a cunning scheme for obtaining the prize. This was the mate of a merchant ship that had put into the port of New York in a damaged condition, and had there been sold. The mate, being thus left without a vessel, was now returning as a passenger in the steamer, to Scotland, where he belonged.

This man was accustomed to navigation; and he had the necessary books for making the computations in his trunk. He conceived the idea of being present on deck at twelve o'clock, when the captain made his observation, and of learning from him, as it were accidentally, what the sun's altitude was observed to be. This he could very easily do, for it was customary to have the observation made not only by the captain, but by one or two of the chief officers of the ship also, at the same time, who are all always provided with sextants for the purpose. The results, when obtained, are compared together, to see if they agree-each observer telling the others what altitude he obtains. Thus they are more sure of getting the result correctly. Besides, it is important that these officers should have practice, so that they may be able to take the observation when the captain is sick, or when they come to command ships themselves.

Now, the mate above referred to thought that, by standing near the captain and his officers when they made the observations, he could overhear them in comparing their results, and then that he could go down into his state room immediately; and that there, by working very diligently, he could ascertain the run of the ship before it should be reported on the captain's bulletin, and so know beforehand what ticket would gain the prize. Or, if he could not determine absolutely what the precise ticket would be,-since his computation might not agree precisely with that made by the captain,-he could determine within two or three of the right one, and then buy three tickets-that is, the one which agreed with his calculation, and also the one above and below it-for perhaps a sovereign or so apiece: he would thus get the ten sovereigns by an expenditure of three or four. His plan, in fact, was similar to that of the Colonel; only his estimate was to be based on the observation, while that of the Colonel was based on the dead reckoning. They both performed their computations in a very skilful manner, and they came to nearly the same result. The mate came to the conclusion that the run of the ship would be 266 miles; while the Colonel, as has already been stated, made it 267. While, therefore, the Colonel, to make sure of the prize, wished to buy tickets 266, 267, and 268, the mate wished to secure 265, 266, and 267. The mate, after making some inquiry, found who had 265; and, after some bargaining, succeeded in buying it for two sovereigns and a half. But he could not hear any thing of 266. As for 267, he discovered that Hilbert had it, just as the bell rang for luncheon. He told Hilbert that if he wished to sell his ticket he would give him thirty shillings for it, which is a sovereign and a half. But Hilbert said no.

It is, however, time that this story of the lottery should draw to a close; were it not so, a great deal more detail might have been given of the manoeuvres and contrivances which both the Colonel and the mate resorted to, to induce Hilbert to sell his ticket. These efforts attracted no special attention, for all the others were buying and selling tickets continually, and making offers for those which they could not buy. Some were put up at auction, and sold to the highest bidder, amid jokes, and gibes, and continual shouts of laughter.

At length, when the time drew nigh for the captain's bulletin to appear, the mate offered Hilbert three pounds for his ticket, and Hilbert went and asked his father's advice about accepting this offer. His father hesitated for some time, but finally advised him not to sell his ticket at all. Hilbert was satisfied with this advice, for he now began to be quite sure that he should get the prize.

At length, about fifteen minutes after the party had come up from luncheon, and were all assembled around the paddle-box settee, a gentleman came up one of stairways with a slip of paper in his hands, and, advancing to the group, he attempted to still the noise they were making, by saying,-

"Order, gentlemen, order! I've got the bulletin."

Every body's attention was arrested by these words, and all began to call out "Order!" and "Silence!" until at length something like quiet was restored. The persons assembled were all very much interested in learning the result; for, in addition to the prize of the lottery, there were a great many bets, some of them quite large, pending, all of which were to be decided by the bulletin.

When, at length, the gentleman found that he could be heard, he began to read in a very deliberate voice,-

"Latitude forty-eight, thirty-one."

"Never mind the latitude," exclaimed the company. "The distance. Let's have the distance."

"Longitude," continued the reader, "ten, fourteen."

"Nonsense!" said the company. "What's the distance?"

"Distance," continued the reader, in the same tone, "two hundred and sixty-six."

"Sixty-six!" they all exclaimed together; and great inquiries were immediately made for the missing ticket. But nobody knew any thing about it. At last, Mr. Chauncy's companion, Charles, who happened to be there, said,-

"Why, Chauncy had 66, I believe." Then calling out aloud to Mr. Chauncy, who had come up on the deck after luncheon, and was now sitting on one of the settees that stood around the skylight, he added,-

"Chauncy! here! come here! Where is your ticket? You have got the prize."

"No," said Mr. Chauncy, in a careless tone, without, however, moving from his seat. "I have not any ticket."

Two or three of the gentlemen, then, headed by Charles, went to the place where Mr. Chauncy was sitting, to question him more particularly.

"Where's your ticket?" said Charles.

"I gave it to one of the deck passengers," said Mr. Chauncy.

"You did!" said Charles. "Well, it has drawn the prize. What was the number of it?"

"Ninety-nine, I believe," said Mr. Chauncy.

"Ninety-nine!" repeated Charles, contemptuously. "Nonsense! There was no ninety-nine. It was sixty-six."

Then, shouting with laughter, he said, "O, dear me! that's so exactly like Chauncy. He gives half a sovereign for a ticket, then reads it upside down, and gives it away to an Irishwoman. O Gemini!"

So saying, Charles, and those with him, went away, laughing vociferously at Chauncy's expense.

The remainder of the adventurers in the lottery had in the mean time dispersed, having slunk away, as is usual in such cases, to conceal their mortification and chagrin. It was not merely that they had each lost a half sovereign; but they had all calculated, with greater or less certainty, on getting the prize; and the vexation which they experienced at the disappointment was extreme. Some of them had bought up several tickets, in order to make sure of the prize. These were, of course, doubly and trebly chagrined. Some had been offered good prices for their tickets, but had refused to accept them, hoping, by keeping the tickets, to get the prize. These persons were now vexed and angry with themselves for not accepting these offers. Then there was a feeling of guilt and condemnation which mingled with their disappointment, and made it very bitter and hard to bear.

The Colonel and the mate, when they learned that the Irishwoman held the winning ticket, both immediately began to saunter slowly along toward the stairways that led down to the forward deck, each having formed the plan of going and buying the ticket of the woman before she should hear that it had gained the prize. They moved along with a careless and unconcerned air, in order not to awaken any suspicion of their designs. They were suspected, however, both of them, by Mr. Chauncy. He accordingly walked forward, too; and he reached a part of the promenade deck that was near the smoke pipe, where he could look down upon the place where the woman was sitting. He reached the spot just as the two men came before her, one having descended by one staircase, and the other by the other. When they met each other, close before where the woman was sitting, they each understood in an instant for what purpose the other had come. They knew, too, that it would defeat the object altogether if they both attempted to buy the ticket; and yet there was no time or opportunity to make any formal stipulation on the subject between them. Such men, however, are always very quick and cunning, and ready for all emergencies. The mate, without speaking to the woman, gave a wink to the Colonel, and said in an undertone, as he sauntered slowly along by him,-

"Colonel! half!"

"Done!" said the Colonel.

So the mate passed carelessly on, leaving the Colonel to manage the negotiation, with the understanding that they were to share the profits of the transaction between them.

Just at this moment, Mr. Chauncy, who was looking down upon this scene from above, called out to the woman,-

"My good woman, your ticket has drawn the prize. The Colonel has come to pay you the money."

The Colonel was overwhelmed with astonishment and vexation at this interruption. He looked up, with a countenance full of rage, to see from whom the sound proceeded. There were one or two other gentlemen standing with Chauncy as witnesses of the scene; and the Colonel saw at once that his scheme was defeated. So he made a virtue of necessity, and, taking out the purse, he poured the ten sovereigns into the poor woman's lap. She was overwhelmed and bewildered with astonishment at finding herself suddenly in possession of so much money.

As for Hilbert, there were no bounds to the vexation and anger which he experienced in the failure of all his hopes and expectations.

"What a miserable fool I was!" said he. "I might have had that very ticket. He as good as offered to exchange with me. Such a stupid dolt as I was, not to know when it was upside down! Then, besides, I was offered two pounds for my ticket, sure-and I believe I should have taken it, if my father had not advised me not to do it. That would have come to almost fifteen dollars, and that I should have been sure of. So much for taking my father's advice. I hope they'll get up another lottery to-morrow, and then I'll buy a ticket and do just as I please with it, and not take any body's advice. I shall be sure to make fifteen dollars, at least, if I don't do any better than I might have done to-day."

The rest of the company felt very much as Hilbert did about their losses and disappointments, though the etiquette of gambling, which they understood better than he, forbade their expressing their feelings so freely. In fact, one source of the illusion which surrounds this vice is, that the interest which it excites, and the hilarity and mirth which attend it during its progress, are all open to view, while the disappointment, the mortification, the chagrin, and the remorse are all studiously concealed. The remorse is the worst ingredient in the bitter cup. It not only stings and torments those who have lost, but it also spoils the pleasure of those who win. That is, in fact, always the nature and tendency of remorse. It aggravates all the pain and suffering that it mingles with and poisons all the pleasure.