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To Play Musical Whist

In these days when it is the fashion to understand and study whist, it is interesting to know that as a novelty for a bazaar the game has been introduced as "musical whist with living cards." Four players are seated upon raised seats; a large, square cloth on the floor or on a platform or stage forms the card table. The cards are represented by persons in appropriate costumes, and the gowns for the court cards may be very original. The clubs usually wear gray and white, the emblems being in black velvet, and have crowns of silver gray and jet. Hearts wear a pretty shade of green, with white, and the emblems are in red. Spades are in pink with black velvet emblems; diamonds in yellow, with deep red. The parts of the smaller cards may be taken by children in gowns of cream white and mob-caps, the cards being indicated in large characters on the front of their dresses, or they may carry an immense card, two feet in length and hung over the shoulders, hanging in shield fashion in front, on which are the spots of the card, and a card should hang at the back also and display the ordinary kind of a card back.

The cards enter to the music of a march, and are preceded by two little pages clad in slashed satin suits, capes with ostrich tips, and carrying wands of silver. Shuffling, cutting and dealing are shown by a dance, and the cards then arrange themselves in front of their respective players. Each player indicates in turn the card to advance to the center, with musical accompaniment. The winning card of each trick leads the others to one corner of the square, where they form in file, and so on, closing up when six tricks are made on either side. At the conclusion of the game the tricks of the winning side lead off in triumph those of the losing side.