is a suit of less than four cards; but the term is commonly used to denote a singleton or a two-card suit.

In order that your partner may understand that you are leading a short suit (and not the fourth best card of a long one) it is customary to lead the highest card. (If you are forced to open a suit with K J x, K x x or Q x x, the low card should be led.)

To detect a short suit apply the "Rule of Eleven." If there are (in your hand and the dummy) more higher cards than the rule allows, the lead cannot be the fourth-best card.

Under the following circumstances a short suit should not be led.

If you hold four trumps, including any one honour, don't lead a short suit. Your best play is to open your long suit and force the dealer to trump. In this way you weaken the dealer's hand and you may prevent his bringing in his long suit or you may even establish and make your own.

If the make has been passed, don't lead a short black suit. It is natural to suppose that the dealer is strong in black suits—if in any—and you would be leading up to declared strength.

If you can take the first trick, do so and then judge of the advisability of the short-suit lead.

THE DISCARD

There is considerable discussion and a wide diversity of opinion among Bridge Players as to the best suit to throw away. You should, therefore, before playing, ask your partner which method he adopts. Some advantage may be claimed for each theory of discard; but the main object of them all is the same—to indicate to partner the suit you wish led and at the same time protect any honours you may hold in other suits.

The three different discards used by Bridge Players are:

Strength, both with a trump and at "no-trump."

Strength, with a trump and weakness at "no-trump."

Weakness, both with a trump and at "no-trump."

The discard of strength with a trump and weakness at "no-trump" is the one most commonly used. This discard of weakness at "no-trump," while it has the advantage of saving all the cards of the long suit, which you may make, has also several disadvantages.

To show your suit absolutely you need two discards.

In order not to deceive your partner it may be necessary to unguard honours, such as J x x x, 10 x x x, Q x x, or even K x.

By discarding weakness you show the dealer against which hand to finesse.

The writer, after the analysis of many thousand hands, believes that at "no-trump" the first discard from strength, i.e., the long suit or the suit you wish partner to lead, is the safest and best, both for protecting the hand and for showing the suit beyond possibility of mistake.

The main advantages of the strength discard are:

It takes but one discard positively to show the suit wanted.

You can protect the high cards in your weaker suits without deceiving your partner.

It does not show the dealer so clearly on which side to take a finesse.

By showing your suit earlier in the hand, you enable your partner to discard to better advantage.

There are but few "no-trump" hands in which it is possible to make all the small cards of one's suit against the dealer—unless it be the suit first opened. Occasionally the suit in which the dealer is weak in both hands will be made; but more often this suit is never brought in, because the adversaries do not know the cards they hold in the two hands.