PIQUET 115 card he pleases ; the younger plays to it. The younger hand must follow suit if able ; otherwise he may play any card he thinks fit. The two cards thus played constitute a trick. The trick is won by the higher card of the suit led. It is not compulsory to win the trick if able to follow suit without. The winner of the trick leads to the next, and so on until the twelve cards in hand are played out. During the play of the hands the leader counts one for each card led, whether it wins the trick or not. If the leader wins the trick, his adversary reckons nothing that trick ; but if the second player wins the trick he also counts one ; and so on. The winner of the last trick counts two instead of one. The tricks are left face upwards on the table, in front of the player who wins them. They may be examined by either player at any time. If each player wins six tricks the cards are divided, and there is no further score. If one player wins more than six tricks he wins the cards, and adds ten to his score. If one player wins every trick, he wins a capot, and scores forty for the cards, instead of ten. During the play of the hand, a player is entitled to be informed as to any cards his adversary holds which he has reckoned as good, or has declared to be equal. A player may require his adversary to exhibit any such cards ; but the usual practice is to reply to all necessary questions with regard to them, such as "how many of your point?" meaning how many in hand, "how many of your tierce 1 " and so on. During the progress of the hand each player repeats aloud the amount of his score for the time being (see example). At the end of the hand the number scored is recorded on a ruled card. Each player has a card and writes down the scores of both himself and his opponent. At the end of the sixth hand, the totals are recorded, and the necessary subtraction or addition made. The scores are then compared. If there is any difference in the written scores, a player s score of his own hand is deemed to be the correct one. Example. A (elder hand) has dealt him ace, king, knave of spades ; ace, queen, knave, eight of hearts ; knave, eight, seven of clubs ; and nine, eight of diamonds. He discards king of spades ; eight, seven of clubs ; and nine, eight of diamonds. He takes in nine, eight of spades ; king of hearts ; nine of clubs ; and king of diamonds. B (younger hand) has ten, seven of spades ; ten, nine, seven of hearts ; king, queen, ten of clubs ; and ace, queen, knave, ten of diamonds. He discards seven of spades ; and nine, seven of hearts. He takes in queen of spades ; ace of clubs ; and seven of diamonds. The hand then proceeds thus. A (calls his point) " five cards. " B (says) " equal," or " what do they make ?" A "forty-nine," or " making nine." B "good." A (counting his point) " five " and (counting his sequence, which is good) "a quart major, nine. Three knaves ? " B " not good." A (leads ace of hearts and says) " ten." B " four tens, fourteen, and three queens, seventeen " (plays the ten of hearts). A (leads the remaining hearts and says) "eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen." B (plays seven, ten, knave, queen of diamonds, and repeating his score, says) "seventeen." A has now five tricks, and in order to win the cards should lead any card but a high spade. He leads king of diamonds, and says "fifteen." B (wins with ace and says) " eighteen," (and then leads the winning clubs, saying) "nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two." A (keeps ace, knave of clubs, and 1 epeating his score says) " fifteen." B (leads queen of spades and says) " twenty-three." A (wins with ace and says) "sixteen" (and leads knave, saying) " eighteen " (and adding ten for the cards) " twenty-eight." A then writes on his scoring card 28 ; 23. B writes on his 23 ; 28. The pack is collected, and the next hand commences. Three scores (omitted in order to simplify the description of the game) have yet to be mentioned. Carte Blanche. If either player has neither king, queen, nor knave in the hand dealt him, he holds carte blanche, for which he scores ten. As soon as a player discovers he has a carte blanche, he must tell his adversary ; this he usually does by saying " dis card for carte blanche." The adverse discard is then made (as explained under discarding), after which the carte blanche is shown by dealing the cards quickly one on top of the other, face upwards on the table. Pique. If the elder hand scores, in Jiand and -play, thirty or more, before the younger counts anything, he gains a pique, for which he adds thirty to his score. For example, A has a quint major, good for point and sequence, and three aces, also good. For these he counts twenty-three in hand. He next leads the quint major (twenty-eight), one of the aces and another card, making him thirty. He then adds thirty for the pique and calls his score "sixty." Repique. If a player scores, in hand alone, thirty or more, before his adversary reckons anything, he gains a repique, for which he adds sixty to his score. Thus, point, quint, and quatorze, all good, make thirty-four. A player holding these adds sixty for the repique, and calls his score " ninety-four." The order in which the scores accrue is of importance. For the sake of convenience, the elder hand finishes his reckoning before the younger begins. The scores, however, whether made by the elder or younger hand are recordable in the following order :^(1) carte blanche ; (2) point ; (3) sequences ; (4) quatorzes and trios ; (5) points made in play ; (6) the cards. This will often affect a pique or repique. Thus, a pique can only be made by the elder hand, as the one he reckons in play when he leads his first card counts before points subsequently made in play by the younger hand. The younger, therefore, cannot make thirty in hand and flay before the elder scores one. But the one reckoned by the elder hand when he leads his first card does not prevent his being repiqued, because scores made in hand have precedence of points made in play. The elder leads his first card and counts for it before the younger reckons, simply as a convenient way of stating that he has nothing in hand which is good. Again, say A has a quint (good), a tierce, and a quatorze (good). He scores thirty-two in hand alone ; but, if his point is not good, he does not gain a repique, because the younger hand s point is recordable in order before the sequences and quatorze. And again, say A has a huitieme (good for twenty-six), and a tierce, and leads a card thus reaching thirty in hand and play. B has three tens. The trio reckoning in order before the point made in play by A saves a pique. Carte blanche, taking precedence of all other scores, saves piques and repiques. It also counts towards piques and repiques. Thus, a player showing carte blanche, and having point and quint, both good, would repique his adversary. A capot does not count towards a pique, as the capot is not made in play. It is added after the play of the hand is over. A player who reckons nothing that hand as a penalty (see " Laws") is not piqued or repiqued if he holds any cards which, but for the penalty, would have reckoned before his adversary reached thirty. Equalities do not prevent piques or repiques. A player who has an equSl point or sequence scores nothing for it. Therefore if, notwithstanding the equality, a player makes thirty, in hand and play, or in hand, by scores which reckon in order before anything his adversary can count, he gains a pique or a repique. Hints to Players. On taking up your hand look for carte blanche. Before discarding, ascertain what there is against you. Thus: if you have knave or ten of a suit, there is no quint against you in that suit. When discarding, elder hand, your main object is to plan an attack. Younger hand, on the contrary, should guard his weak places and then see if he has a chance of attacking anywhere. Thus, the elder hand may freely unguard kings and queens, or discard whole suits of which he has indifferent cards only. The younger should do just the reverse, keeping guards to kings and queens, and should not leave himself blank of a weak suit, as his small cards may guard high ones taken in. In most hands, and especially younger hand, it is essential to keep the whole of your best suit for point. Gaining the point makes an average difference of at least ten to the score ; and, what is of more consequence, it saves piques and repiques. The cards are next in importance to the point. In discarding you should, when in doubt, take the best chance of dividing or winning the cards. Winning the cards instead of losing them makes a difference of about twenty-three points. Hence, especially elder hand, you should not necessarily keep the longest suit for point, if that suit is composed of low cards, and keeping it involves the discard of high cards from other suits. As a rule, it is not advisable to leave any cards. The younger hand is at less disadvantage in leaving a card than the elder ; for a card left by the elder can be taken by the younger ; but a card left by the younger is only excluded from his hand. A card may generally be left when there is a chance of a great score if the cards in hand are not parted with, there being at the same time no pique or repique against you. It is generally right to keep unbroken suits. Having made up your mind to discard from a given suit, you should throw the whole of it, except (a) winning cards ; (b) guards to kings or queens, especially younger hand ; or (c) cards which make up a quaft>rze or trio. It is better to keep cards in sequence than cards not in sequence. Trios should be kept if they can be retained without injury to the hand in other respects ; but it is seldom advisable to put out a high card for the sake of keeping a trio of knaves or tens, especially if there is a quatorze against you. The discard is further affected in the last hand of a partic by the state of the score. Thus, if you are a long way behind, and your only chance is a desperate discard, in order to keep cards which may possibly give you a pique or a repique, you may run consider able risk with that object. On the other hand, if you are well ahead, make a safe discard, i.e., one which is likely to win the cards or to keep your adversary back. When taking in after discarding, count that you leave the full number of cards for the younger hand, the penalty for taking in
one of your adversary s cards being that you can reckon nothing