Fools of Fortune; or, Gambling and Gamblers

About this book

Fools of Fortune, or Gambling and Gamblers, is a self‑styled exposé by former professional cheat John Philip Quinn, first published in Chicago in 1890. The work opens with a formal preface that declares gambling the most enslaving vice, then launches into a personal confession: after twenty‑five years of travelling from the Atlantic coast to the Mississippi delta, Quinn claims to have practiced every known form of gaming and to have witnessed the full range of tricks employed by “professional” gamblers. From that admission the book promises a two‑part treatment, first a sweeping historical survey of gambling across cultures, and second a detailed catalogue of the fraudulent devices used by cheat‑artists, intended, he says, to arm readers with knowledge that will deter future wagers.

The text reads like a Victorian moral tract, its language dense with earnest admonition and occasional flourish, punctuated by long, clause‑heavy sentences and a catalogue of legal and religious authorities. Interspersed with scholarly footnotes, illustrations, and contributions from clergymen, it offers a blend of autobiographical confession, moral polemic, and encyclopedic research. Readers who relish period‑specific social reform literature, historic examinations of vice, or the gritty insider view of 19th‑century gambling halls will find this volume a compelling, if uncompromising, window onto a world of deception and its alleged social costs.