body and against his soul, swearing that he would never play at
cards again. Nevertheless, a few days after, he began to play
again with those in his apartment, and on a dispute respecting
discarding, he repeated his execrable oaths. And when one of the
company told him he should fear the Divine justice, he only swore
the more, and made such confusion that there had to be another
deal. But as soon as three other cards were given him, he placed
them in his hat, which he held before him, and whilst looking at
them, with his elbows on the table and his face in the hat, he so
suddenly expired that one of the party said--"Come, now play,"
and pushed him with his elbow, thinking he was asleep, when he
fell down dead upon the floor.'

In some cases the effect of losses at play is simply
stupefaction. Some players, at the end of the sitting, neither
know what they do nor what they say. M. de Crequi, afterwards
Duc de Lesdiguieres, leaving a gambling party with Henry IV.,
after losing a large sum, met M. de Guise in the court-yard of
the castle. 'My friend,' said he to the latter, 'where are the
quarters of the Guards now-a-days?' M. de Guise stepped back,
saying, 'Excuse me, sir, I don't belong to this country,' and
immediately went to the king, whom he greatly amused with the
anecdote.

A dissipated buck, who had been sitting all night at Hazard, went
to a church, not far from St James's, just before the second
reading of the Lord's Prayer, on Sunday. He was scarcely seated
before he dozed, and the clerk in a short time bawled out AMEN,
which he pronounced A--main. The buck jumped up half asleep and
roared out, 'I'll bet the caster 20 guineas!' The congregation