According to Rozaliev (1991), Melniki was a family game that was played by adults and children to while away their leisure time.
He believed that it died out during the 20th century and was no longer encountered today,[2] although Bernd Baron von Maydell has suggested that Müller Matz is still played by Baltic-German families.
[citation needed] According to Grimm (1768), the term "Matz" was used as the name of a lowly or foolish man and thus corresponds to the Russian word Durak ("fool").
A general strategy is to collect trumps and high cards in each suit as far as possible, ready for the second life, but not too many.
Each player is dealt three cards initially; the rest are placed face down as a stock in the middle of the table.
When the stock in the middle is exhausted, play continues until only one player has cards left in his hand, whereupon the first life is ended and the second one begins.
When Tipsy is asked to marry, she justifies her refusal by saying: "You are wasting your money in the most careless way...
You sit on the cliffs of Monte Carlo and play Müller Matz with the Prince of Monaco.