ROULETTE (Fr. " a little wheel "), a game of chance which, from the end of last tury till the beginning of 1838, reigned supreme over all others in Paris. It continued to be played at German watering-places till 1872, when it ceased in terms of an act passed four years before. Roulette is still played at Monaco, in Italy. As much as £8,000 a year used to be spent in the papers of Paris alone advertising this game, which is purely one of chance, and is played on fi table of an oblong form, covered with green cloth, which has in its center a cavy, of a little more than two feet in diameter, in the shape of a punch-bowl. This cavity, which has several copper bands round 'its sides at equal distances from each other, has its sides fixed, but the bottom is mova ble round an axis placed in the center of the cavity; the handle by which motion is communicated being a species of cross or capstan of copper fixed on the 'upper extremity of the axis. Round the circumference of this movable bottom are 38 holes, painted in black and red alternately, with the first 36 numbers, and a single and double zero; and these 38 symbols are also figured at each end of the table in order that the players may place their stakes on the chance they select. Along the margin of the table and at each end of it are painted six words, pair, passe, noir, impair, manque, rouge, which will be afterward explained. Those who manage the table and keep the bank are called tailleurs. The game is played as follows: one of the tailleurs puts the movable bottom in motion by turning the cross with his forefinger, and at the same instant throws into the cavity an ivory ball iu a direction opposite to the motion of the bottom; the ball makes several revolutions. and at last falls into one of the 38 holes above mentioned, the hole into which it falls determining the gain or loss of the players. A player may stake his money on 1, 2, or any of the 38 numbers (including the zeros), and shows what num ber or numbers he selects by placing his stake upon them; if he has selected a number or zero corresponding to the one into which the ball falls, he receives from one of the taillenrs 36 times his stake—viz., his stake and 35 times more—if lie selected only 1
number, 18 times if 2 numbers, 12 times it' 3 numbers, etc. The blank rectangles at the bottom of each of the is columns of numbers figured on the table are for the reception of the stake of that player who selects a column (12 numbers) as his chance, and if the ball enters a hole the number of which is found in his column, he is paid 3 times his stake. Those who prefer staking their money on any of the chances marked on the edge of the table, if they win, receive double their stake (their stake and as much more), and 'under the following circumstances: the "pair" wins when the ball falls into a hole marked by an MIL number; the "impair," if the hole is marked odd; the " masque," if the bole is numbered from 1 to 18 inclusive; the if it is numhered from 19 to 36 inclusive; the rouge," if it is colored red; and the " noir," if it is colored black. If the ball should fall into either of the holes marked with the single or the double zero, the stakes of those players who venture upon the 6 chances last described are either equally divided between the bank and the players. or, as is more commonly the case, they are "put in prison," as it is called, and the succeeding trial determines whether they are to be restored to the players or gained by the bank. Should it so happen that at this trial the ball again falls into one of the two holes (the chance against its occurring is 360 to 1) marked with zeros, then half of the stakes in prison are taken by the bank, and the remainder are "put into the second prison," and so on. The milkers thus hare an advantage over the players in the proportion of 19 to 18. The player who bets upon the numbers labors under a similar disadvantage, for although the two zero-points do riot affect him iu the same way as the player who stakes upon one of the other 6 chances, still (supposing him to bet upon a single number) as the chances are 37 to 1 against him, lie ought to receive 37 times his stake firesides the 'stake) when he does win, whereas he only receives 35 times that amount, a manifest advantage in favor of the bank in the proportion of 37 to 85.