Card-Playing

transcribed at

Card-Playing  [duchas:4344674]

About one hundred years ago card playing was the principal pastime during the long winter nights. The old men from fifty onwards were all passionately fond of gambling and they travelled long distances at night to a game. Men well over seventy would fare

Card-Playing  [duchas:4344675]

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forth for a nights play. Thirty five was the game played and if a man turned up an ace he got ten and the ace. A man could rob the deck head with the ace or king and if a man robbed with the king and a man after him to have the ace the man with the king would have to leave the ace down. The games were from 1d, 6d, 1s a man winner take all. Sometimes a woman from Newport would come out with a basket of delph to the house in which the game was to be played and she'd sell the delph piece by piece to the gamblers who would then play for it. Often a man who would have luck wouldn't be able to carry all his delph home . 
Black Oak
Black Oak and Bog Yew are also found in the bog. Black Oak is not of much use as fire wood as it glows but does not blaze. The best time for using it is when it comes up wet from the bog. Beautiful black walking sticks can be made from it and also ornaments. Bog yew is a very hard wood as is a very bad burner. It was never much used either as fire wood or as timber