three times in succession, the box passes to the next person on
his left, who at once takes up the play. He may, however, "throw
in" without interruption, and if he can do so some half-dozen
times and back his luck, the gains will be enormous.

'The choice of a main is quite optional: many prefer 7 because
they may make a coup at once by throwing that number or by
throwing 11, which is a "nick" to 7, but to 7 only. Shrewd
players, however, prefer some other main, with the view of having
a more favourable chance to depend upon of winning both stake and
odds. For example, let us reverse what was mentioned above, and
suppose the caster to call 5 and throw 7; he then will have 7 as
his chance to win with odds of 3 to 2 IN HIS FAVOUR.

'Such is the game of English Hazard, at which large fortunes have
been won and lost. It is exceedingly simple, and at times can
become painfully interesting. Cheating is impossible, unless
with loaded dice, which have been used and detected by their
splitting in two, but never, perhaps, unless at some disreputable
silver hell. The mode of remunerating the owner of the rooms was
a popular one. The loser never paid, and the winner only when he
succeeded in throwing three mains in succession; and even then
the "box fee," as it was called, was limited to 5s.--a mere
trifle from what he must have gained. In French Hazard a bank is
constituted at a board of green cloth, and the proceedings are
carried on in a more subdued and regular mode than is the case in
the rough-and-ready English game. Every stake that is "set" is
covered by the bank, so that the player runs no risk of losing a
large amount, when, if successful, he may win but a trifling one;
but en revanche, the scale of odds is so altered as to put the