Blacklegs, card sharps, and confidence men : nineteenth-century Mississippi River gambling stories / edited by Thomas Ruys Smith.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Smith, Thomas Ruys, 1979-

Series:

Southern literary studies.

Southern literary studies

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Gamblers--Mississippi River--Literary collections.

Gamblers.

Gambling on river boats--Mississippi River--History--19th century--Literary collections.

Gambling on river boats.

River life--Mississippi River--History--19th century--Literary collections.

River life.

American literature--19th century.

American literature.

American literature--Mississippi.

Mississippi River Valley--Social life and customs--19th century--Literary collections.

Mississippi River Valley.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (286 p.)

Place of Publication:

Baton Rouge : Louisiana State University Press, c2010.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

In Blacklegs, Card Sharps, and Confidence Men, Thomas Ruys Smith collects nineteenth-century stories, sketches, and book excerpts by a gallery of authors to create a comprehensive collection of writings about the riverboat gambler. The voices of canonized writers such as William Dean Howells, Herman Melville, and, inevitably, Mark Twain hold prominent positions. But they mingle seamlessly with lesser-known pieces such as an excerpt from Edward Willett's sensationalistic dime novel Flush Fred's Full Hand, raucous sketches by anonymous Old Southwestern humorists from The Spirit of the Times, and

Contents:

Contents; Introduction: The Many Lives of the Mississippi Gambler; Prologue; Early Days; Antebellum (Mis)Adventures; Turning the Tables; Gamblers and Slaves; Gilded Age Memories; Epilogue; Works Cited

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Description based on print version record.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN:

0-8071-3736-7

OCLC:

659500488