proof of the practice of cheating among the Hindoos. It existed
also among the Romans, as proved by the `cogged' or loaded dice
dug up at Herculaneum. The fact is that cheating is a natural,
if not a necessary, incident of gambling. It may be inferred
from a passage in the old French poet before quoted, that cheats,
during the reign of Charles VI., were punished with
`bonnetting,'[43] but no instance of the kind is on record; on
the contrary, it is certain that many of the French kings
patronized and applauded well-known cheats at the gaming table.


[43] Se votre ami qui bien vous sert
En jouant vous changeoit les Dez,
Auroit-il pas _Chapeau de vert_.


LOUIS XI.--Brantome says that Louis XI., who seems not to have
had a special secretary, being one day desirous of getting
something written, perceived an ecclesiastic who had an inkstand
hanging at his side; and the latter having opened it at the
king's request, a set of dice fell out. `What kind of _SUGAR-
PLUMS_ are these?' asked his Majesty. `Sire,' replied the
priest, `they are a remedy for the Plague.' `Well said,'
exclaimed the king, `you are a fine _Paillard_ (a word he often
used); `_YOU ARE THE MAN FOR ME_,' and took him into his
service; for this king was fond of bon-mots and sharp wits, and
did not even object to thieves, provided they were original and
provocative of humour, as the following very funny anecdote will
show. `A certain French baron who had lost everything at play,
even to his clothes, happening to be in the king's chamber,