AN ANCIENT GAME

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXVII, Issue 19803, 19 May 1934, Page 11

AN ANCIENT GAME

HISTORY OF CARDS. It may seem to be a far cry from the Chinese Emperor Suen-ho, who reigned in the year A.D. 1120, to Ely Culbertson, the card king, who reigns in the year 1934, but they are closely connected. The Emperor invented playing cards and the card king has carried them to the highest plane yet reached. Cards now claim more followers than all other games put together. Perhaps old man Depression has compelled people to stay at home and amuse themselves. Contract bridge is popular, but even more people play solo whist than contract. Millions of people play cribbage, piquet, rummy, spoil fives, bezique, royal bezique, nap, Slippery Sam, auction, ecarte, poker, euchre, 100, Boston, hearts, coon can, cassino, all fours, and many other games, including the old favourite, whist. The probable reason for the present popularity of cards is that the games are more interesting. Whatever the cause, the fact remains that the consumption of playing-cards has increased by leaps and bounds. Hundreds of thousands of packs of cards have been given away by the tobacco companies in exchange for coupons. The first mention of cards in Europe is in the accounts of Charles Ponpart, who was the treasurer of the household of Charles VI. of France in 1392. He mentions a payment to Jacquemin Gringonneur for painting three packs, The next milestone was an edict of the Pi'ovost of Paris in the year 1397, forbidding working people from playing cards on work days, which reminds one of the time of the Crusaders, when no one less than a knight was allowed to play that great game, Backgammon.

The manufacture of cards was an itablished business in Germany early

in the 15th century, and in Italy in 1425. King Edward IV. endeavoured to aid the English manufacturers by passing an Act of Parliament prohibiting the importation of cards. This Act thoroughly established the manufacturers, and their sales became so large that King James I. decided to increase the Government revenue by a tax. The earliest suits of the German cards were hearts, bells, leaves and acorns, which were followed later with swords, batons, cups and money. Strangely enough, in those days there were no queens in a pack of cards, and the order of ranking was king, chevalier and knave. This contradicts the statements of some historians who claim that cards were first mentioned in England in the year 1240 in the 38th Canon of the Council of Worcester. Mention was made of a game of kings and queens, but it probably referred to chess, or a mumming game which was then popular. The Italians were probably the first to substitute a queen for the chevalier.