Take the Stock Market into your own hands with "Pit"

This year I've stumbled across several enthusiasts of "Pit," a card game based on the commodities market.

I discovered the lightning-paced Parker Brothers game a decade ago at a friend's party. There was something highly amusing about ringing a bell and yelling "Trade three! Three! Three!" and swapping commodities in an effort to corner a particular market.

Commodities, like corn or wheat, are the suits in this deck of cards. When you collect all nine cards of that commodity, then you've cornered the market, you've won the round, and you get to ring the bell. It's a blast because it's fast, loud, chaotic and easy to learn.

Pit came out in 1904, the year of the St. Louis World's Fair. But the game feels especially relevant now.

Equipment needed: Vintage sets can be purchased on eBay (www.ebay.com) for about $10. Or you can get a new Pit game for $17 at www.target.com.

The game is for three to eight players ages 7 and older.

Setup: Place the trading bell in the center of a table and prepare a score sheet. The dealer arranges the deck for playing, using one complete nine-card suit per player. The remaining suits are left out of play for the entire game.

The dealer shuffles the cards and deals nine, face down to each player. Some players will get 10 cards because the deck also includes a Bull and a Bear card.

Play: The dealer strikes the bell and says, "The exchange is open." Begin trade by offering up to four cards of the same suit, but don't tell anyone what you're trying to trade. Call, "Trade one! One! One!" or "Trade two!" or however many you want to swap. Cards are exchanged chaotically across the table.

Continue trading until one player gets nine cards of the same suit. If you get there first, hit the bell and call out "Corner on Corn! (or other suit)!"

Score the points: Only the winner earns points. Each commodity has a different point value.

Winning: The first player with at least 500 points wins.

The Bull and Bear factor: A player holding the Bear card cannot win. If you're not the winner, the Bull and Bear cards result in 20-point penalties if one is left in your hands.

You'll want to trade the Bear card as soon as you get it because it's always points off. The Bull card acts like a wild card if you have eight cards of the same suit. Call "Bull Corner" and you win. And if you hold nine cards plus the Bull, call "Double Corner" and you can double the points.