Many a lucky coup has become manque by some captious
player exercising this privilege, and many an angry rencontre has
ensued between the officious meddler and the disappointed caster,
who finds that he has nicked his main to no advantage. Sometimes
one die remains in the box after the other has been landed; then
the caster may either throw it quickly, or may tantalize those
interested in the event by gently coaxing it from the bow. If
one die lands on the top of another, it is removed by the
groom-porter and declared a throw.
'Some thirty years ago English Hazard was a favourite game in
Ireland, and Dublin could boast of three or four hells doing a
brisk trade. The most frequented and longest established was
called "The Coal Hole," being situated on the coal quay. Here,
at any hour after midnight, a motley company might be seen, each
individual, however, well known to the porter, who jealously
scanned his features before drawing back the noiseless bolts
which secured the door. The professional gambler trying to live
by his winnings, the fashionable swell finishing his round of
excitement, the struggling tradesman hoping to avert impending
bankruptcy, the prize-fighter, and, more conspicuous than any,
the keen-eyed usurer with his roll of notes and sheaf of bill
stamps, were to be found there.
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