Leigh Hunt, an English essayist, poet and critic who died in 1859, said, “If you ever have to support a flagging conversation, introduce the topic of eating.” Nowadays, it is the weather or, in appropriate company, bridge.

As I mentioned last week, when you are thinking about game, not slam, your goal should be to reach four hearts or four spades. If each of those contracts is deemed impossible, then you look toward three no-trump. Only if certain those three games are hopeless will you steer into five of a minor.

As an example, look at the North hand. You open one club, and partner responds one heart. What would you rebid?

After the preamble, the answer is easier than it might have been. Bid two hearts, not two clubs or one no-trump. Then South will presumably jump to four hearts. (If he rebids three no-trump, and West leads a spade, South will have to guess well.)

How should South plan the play after a spade start to East’s queen?

This contract requires careful handling. If declarer wins the first trick with his ace, draws trumps, and takes the club finesse, he ought to go down. East should return a spade, and South will lose two spades, one diamond and one club. Instead, the simplest line is to run the club 10 at trick two. Even if East ducks, and declarer repeats the finesse, he is still safe. Probably, though, East will take his club king immediately and shift to a diamond, but South plays his king (or queen) and cannot lose more than one trick in each side suit.