AD: card game terms from 1734 (finesse, remise)

[Joel S. Berson]

"Matadore" is convincing to me!  On applying a magnifying glass to
the text, I could even argue that what looked like a lower case R to
me is actually a lower case T.

At 11/6/2007 12:06 PM, Bill Mullins wrote:

> > "Stanislaus. I have not lost Podille, 'tis at worst but
> > Remise; I have a Maradore still to play.
> > "Duke of Lorain. I hold nothing but a Queen."
> >
> > ["Remise" here has a double meaning:  "remise" n.1 sense 1.
> > is "a transfer of property".  Podille is a district in
> > Poland; I have not found "Maradore" geographically anywhere.
>
>I betcha that "maradore" is in fact "matadore" (see OED):
>
>
>Forms: 16-18 matadore, 16- matador, 17 mattador, mattadore.
>
>     A. n.    I. Senses relating to games.
>
>     1. Cards. In ombre, skat, and other card games: the card designated
>as the highest trump, and any of several cards descending in sequence
>from it (the actual number varying according to the game).
>   In some games, such as ombre (in which matadors originated) but not in
>skat, the matadors carry powers and privileges superior to those of
>ordinary trumps.
>
>1674 C. COTTON Compl. Gamester (1680) 70 The Matadors (or killing Cards)
>[in Ombre] which are the Spadillo, Mallillio, and Basto are the chief
>Cards.
>
>
> > At the end of the War of the Polish Succession in 1735
> > Stanislaus, whose daughter was the Queen of France, agreed to
> > give up Poland in exchange for Lorraine.]

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