Three-card tricksters

Apr 19, 2019 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,

The origin of three-card tricksters probably goes back to the introduction of playing cards. What I know just goes back to the days of the inside field at D’Urban Park racecourse. Three-card was there. So was over and under and other board games.
It seems that it was generally known that all these were games of chance and the luck of the draw. Three-card had their folks set to win one, much as appears to be the case now around Stabroek.
All these games, as played, taught a vital life lesson – caveat emptor (buyer beware). As youngsters observing these goings-on, race days you’d giggle and sometimes break out in laughter whenever someone get ‘tek’. Victims often ‘suck their teeth’ and wander away embarrassed. At times losers would make a scene that was quickly resolved. Though it seemed that sometimes folks would win. These games became part of the culture of outdoor events, attracting folks who believed they could win one. Some walked away wiser and would never play again. Others became suckers who had believed they would beat the odds and sleight-of-hand of the dealers.
Now there’s at least one legal casino with lots more games of chance. Lots more money involved here. Nothing more sleight-of-hand than them slot machines. Some folks may win a little. Many folks lose a lot.
So let’s keep the three-card game, it’s part of the culture, and consider regulating where played, and consider licensing these ‘salt-of-the-earth’ dealer folks. Certainly, this game belongs to outdoor events. We all need to know which side we’re on – whether we’re suckers or folks who laugh at those who get ‘tek’!
Freedom to win. Freedom to lose. Freedom to walk-on-by.
Phil Edwards

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