In the bustling city of Las Vegas, there lies an old Delta Saloon in Virginia City, Nevada. Within its faded green-felt layout resides a relic of the past – a game known as faro, dubbed “the suicide table.” Legend has it that three 19th-century casino owners, their fortunes devastated by the game, tragically took their own lives. But here’s the twist: they were not players, but rather operators of the game.
Faro, once widely played across the United States, has vanished from the gambling scene. The last faro table was dealt at the Ramada Casino in Reno, Nevada, which closed its doors in 1985. With a history spanning 170 years, evidence suggests the game may have originated as early as the 15th century in Italy.
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So, why did faro fade into obscurity? The answer lies in its player-friendly odds. When casinos transitioned to corporate ownership, executives were no longer willing to risk their reputations on a game that occasionally tipped the scales in favor of the player. While games like baccarat and craps still pose a challenge to casinos, faro was on an entirely different level – a game that could drive one to the brink of despair.
Interestingly, my recent column on the decline of table games and the allure of blackjack tables sparked renewed interest in faro. It seems that the allure of card games, including faro, has waned due to a lack of availability in modern casinos.
If we were to journey back in time to the era of the Civil War, virtually every American gambling town would have been captivated by faro. In some establishments, it was the only game on offer. Originating from New Orleans in the early 1800s, faro spread up the Mississippi and Ohio rivers with the riverboats.
As with many games of that era, faro was often played dishonestly, a fact that was easier to overlook in the 19th century. Today, faro is mostly remembered for its colorful slang and unique terminology. The word “faro” itself was derived from Louis XIV’s court, where an Egyptian pharaoh adorned one of the honor cards in a standard deck. Other phrases such as “coppering the bet,” “whipsawed,” and “bucking the tiger” added to the game’s rich vocabulary.
Now, let’s envision an authentic faro session during its heyday. Picture the old Palace Club in Reno, one of the last bastions of the game. A buzzing table, larger than a standard blackjack setup, is surrounded by players vying for a spot. Three casino employees oversee the game: a dealer, a “casekeeper,” and a “lookout” to settle disputes.
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The game unfolds on a felt layout featuring 13 square boxes, each containing a picture of a standard playing card. A single deck of 52 cards is dealt from an inverted box, with a spring pushing the cards towards the top. Reveal cards one by one, the first card being a dead card known as the “soda.” Players place bets directly on the squares, either wagering on a number to win or lose.
The dealer draws two cards, placing the first beside the box as the losing card and leaving the second card exposed as the winner. Bets on the winning and losing cards are paid at even money, while other bets are cleared from the table. The casekeeper plays a crucial role, tracking the drawn cards on a scoreboard, indicating winners and losers. When a card is drawn three times, the casekeeper signals “the cases,” revealing that only one card remains in the deck.
As the game progresses, the fewer the options for betting, the larger the wagers become. The ultimate bet occurs when three cards remain in the deck, known as “calling the turn.” Players predict the order of these cards: the loser, the winner, and the unused “hock” card. This bet pays four to one, unless two of the last cards are identical, resulting in a two-to-one payout, colloquially called “the cat-hop.” In the unlikely event that all three remaining cards are the same value, players can bet on the colors of the cards to be drawn.
Interestingly, the final bet, despite favoring the banker, was the highlight of the game. The odds technically stand at five to one, but the payout only occurs at four to one, giving the casino a 16 2/3-percent advantage. The house also maintains a 2 percent advantage on a push when two identical cards are drawn.
The prime opportunity for betting arises when three cards of any value have already been played. At this point, the house has no advantage, allowing skilled players to go head-to-head with the casino when the table turns in their favor. Like many carnival-style games, faro gave the illusion that it could be beaten.
When thinking about the history of gambling in the Wild West era, legendary gamblers may be associated with poker, but they amassed their fortunes from faro. However, these gamblers didn’t play the game; they banked it. Notable figures such as Doc Holliday traveled as itinerant faro dealers, carrying their table apparatus wherever they went.
The game’s downfall, however, lay in its dealer’s box. Even without firsthand experience, one can imagine countless methods to rig the box. Observing the game and employing sleight of hand, deceitful dealers could ensure the wrong card was drawn. Gambling memorabilia collectors have uncovered common cheating techniques involved sanding and trimming the cards, allowing manipulation within the box via a hidden switch.
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Remarkably, faro remained popular long after its reputation as a cheater’s paradise was established. The communal atmosphere at the faro table, reminiscent of the excitement found at craps tables, generated a temporary collective madness among players. The game’s fast pace left little time for sulking over losses. Over time, casinos introduced proposition bets, further enhancing the lively and social nature of faro. In contrast, the blackjack table paled in comparison.
The far-reaching popularity of faro is evident in its various ethnic versions. On New York’s Lower East Side, players engaged in “Stuss” or Jewish Faro. In Italy, “ziginette” continues to be played. Slaves and their descendants enjoyed a game called “skin,” which could be set up on any sidewalk. Hispanics had Spanish Monte, while Asians played Chinese Fan-Tan.
Among these variations, Red Dog stands as the simplest and, unfortunately, the most deceptive. It was a sucker’s game played by World War II soldiers and, regrettably, even newspapermen.
The most complex iteration of faro I have witnessed is “Rouge et Noir,” also known as “Trente et Quarante,” played at the esteemed Casino Monte-Carlo in Monaco. This game requires a specialized table with intricate diagrams, a six-deck shuffle of 312 cards, and five croupiers to manage the gameplay. To this day, I remain perplexed by its mechanics after observing it for an hour.
Although faro is often recognized as the oldest banking game, its legacy is overshadowed by the men who ruined it rather than those who played it. Elijah Skaggs, an uneducated young man hailing from the Kentucky hills, reinvented himself as a skilled card player. He became an expert in various cheating methods, amassing a small fortune as a faro dealer on steamboats and in Mississippi river towns.
By 1830, Skaggs expanded his operation, recruiting young men of questionable morals and training them to cheat faro gamblers. Known as “Skaggs patent dealers,” they traveled in pairs, with each member earning 25 percent of the profit. Ultimately, Skaggs’ empire crumbled, and he retired as a millionaire in 1859. However, his investment in Confederate bonds led to his downfall during the Civil War.
In 1870, Elijah Skaggs met his tragic end as a drunkard in Texas. It seems he never learned of the suicide table.
And so, faro, once an illustrious game, has vanished from the modern gambling landscape. Its allure lies in the mystique of a bygone era – a time when casino owners risked everything, and players sought fortune and fame. Today, faro lives on only in the annals of history, an enigmatic reminder of a captivating chapter in the world of gambling.
Source: https://t-tees.com
Category: WHY
