When Vandover came in they were all talking at the same time, disputing about a little earthquake that had occurred the night before.  Henrietta Vance declared that it had happened early in the morning.

“Wasn’t it just about midnight, Van?” cried Turner.

“I don’t know,” answered Vandover.  “It didn’t wake me up.  I didn’t even know there was one.”

“Well, I know I heard our clock strike two just about half an hour afterward,” protested young Haight.

“Oh, it was almost five o’clock when it came,” cried Henrietta Vance.

“Well, now, you’re all off,” said Charlie Geary.  “I know just when she quaked to the fraction of a minute, because it stopped our hall clock at just a little after three.”

They were silent.  It was an argument which was hard to contradict.  By and by, young Haight declared, “There must have been two of them then, because—­”

“How about whist or euchre or whatever it is to be?” said Charlie Geary, addressing Turner and interrupting in an annoying way that was peculiar to him.  “Can’t we start in now that Van has come?” They played euchre for a while, but Geary did not like the game, and by and by suggested poker.

“Well—­if it’s only just for love,” said Turner, “because, you know, mamma doesn’t like it any other way.”

At ten o’clock Geary said, “Let’s quit after this hand round—­what do you say?” The rest were willing and so they all took account of their chips after the next deal.  Geary was protesting against his poor luck.  Honestly he hadn’t held better than three tens more than twice during the evening.  It was Henrietta Vance who took in everything; did one ever see anything to beat her luck? “the funniest thing!”

They began to do tricks with the cards.  Young Haight showed them a very good trick by which he could make the pack break every time at the ace of clubs.  Vandover exclaimed:  “Lend me a silk hat and ninety dollars and I’ll show you the queerest trick you ever saw,” which sent Henrietta Vance off into shrieks of laughter.  Then Geary took the cards out of young Haight’s hands, asking them if they knew this trick.

Turner said yes, she knew it, but the others did not, and Geary showed it to them.  It was interminable.  Henrietta Vance chose a card and put it back into the deck.  Then the deck was shuffled and divided into three piles.  After this Geary made a mental calculation, selected one of these piles, shuffled it, and gave it back to her, asking her if she saw her card in it; then more shuffling and dividing until their interest and patience were quite exhausted.  When Geary finally produced a jack of hearts and demanded triumphantly if that was her card, Henrietta began to laugh and declared she had forgotten what card she chose.  Geary said he would do the trick all over for her.  At this, however, they all cried out, and he had to give it up, very irritated at Henrietta’s stupidity.