Auction of To-day | Page 5

is herein advocated is believed to be the most sound
and informatory yet devised.
Before taking up the declaration by each hand, it is important for the
player to realize that with the introduction of the count of to-day, much

of the bidding previously in vogue has, of necessity, passed into disuse.
For example, under the old count, a player, knowing that the Club suit
would never be played and that there was no danger of that declaration
being continued by his partner, very properly called a Club to show the
Ace and King, even when these two cards were the only Clubs in his
hand.
In Auction of to-day, it being possible to score game with any
declaration, a suit cannot be safely called unless it be of such length
and strength that the partner may continue it as far as his hand warrants.
In discussing the subject of Bidding, under the subheads of DEALER,
SECOND HAND, etc., this will be considered more thoroughly, and it
is referred to at this time only for the purpose of pointing out that
informatory bids from short suits containing high cards are no longer
included in the vocabulary of the Declarer.
Another difference between the old and the present game is worthy of
notice. In the old game a marked distinction was drawn between the
color of the suits in the make-up of a No-trumper, it being more
important that the black suits should be guarded than the red. Using the
Bridge count, the adversaries, if strong in the red suits, were apt to bid,
but the black suits, by reason of their low valuation, frequently could
not be called. Black was, consequently, the natural lead against a
No-trump, and therefore, required more protection.
Now, as every suit can be named with practically equal effectiveness,
the color distinction has ceased to exist. The original leader, when
No-trump has been declared, no longer attempts to guess his partner's
strength by starting with a black suit, in preference to a red; and in
bidding one No-trump, strength in one color is just as valuable as in the
other.
When Auction was first played in England, it was believed that the deal
was a disadvantage, that the Declarer should disguise his hand as long
as possible and use every expedient to force his adversary to be the first
to show real strength. This doctrine has been found to be ridiculous.
The premium of 250 for winning the rubber is a bonus well worth
having, and the player who, when his cards justify a bid, unduly

postpones his declaration, belongs to an antiquated and almost extinct
school.
It is now conceded that the best results are obtained by that character of
bidding which gives the partner the most immediate and accurate
information regarding the strength of the Declarer.
There are still the "old fogies" who preach that, as there are two
opponents and only one partner, all information is doubly advantageous
to the adversary. This "moss-covered" idea was advanced concerning
the play in Whist and Bridge, but experience proved it fallacious. In
Auction, its folly is apparent, not only in the matter of the play, but
even more surely when applied to the bidding.
A moment's consideration causes the realization that the declaration
would become an easy task if the exact composition of the partner's
hand were known; it should, therefore, be the aim of the bidder to
simplify the next call of his partner by describing his own cards as
accurately as possible.
True it is that the deceptive bidder at times succeeds in duping some
confiding or inexperienced adversary and thereby achieves a temporary
triumph of which he loves to boast. For every such coup, however, he
loses many conventional opportunities, frequently gets into trouble, and
keeps his partner in a continual state of nervous unrest, entirely
inimical to the exercise of sound judgment. Nevertheless, the erratic
one rarely realizes this. He gives his deceptive play the credit for his
winning whenever he holds cards with which it is impossible for him to
lose, but characterizes as "hard luck" the hundreds that his adversaries
tally in their honor columns by reason of his antics, and is oblivious of
the opportunities to win games which he allows to slip from his grasp.
The difference between informative and deceptive bidding is shown in
the harmony of a partnership. When the former is practised, the pair
pull together; the latter results in misunderstandings and disputes.
It must not be understood, however, that the ability to give accurate
information comprises the entire skill of the bidder. It is most important

that he possess the judgment which enables him to force the adversary
into dangerous waters without getting beyond his own depth.
It is no excuse for a player who has led