Life will always remain a gamble, with prizes sometimes for the imprudent, and blanks so often to the wise.

Jerome’s aphorism treats existence as a game of chance rather than a moral ledger in which prudence is reliably rewarded. “Prizes” going to the imprudent suggests the frequent mismatch between merit and outcome: boldness, luck, or sheer accident can bring success to those who do not “deserve” it by careful planning. Conversely, “blanks” (a losing lottery ticket) “so often” falling to the wise underscores how intelligence and restraint cannot eliminate contingency. The line is both comic and chastening: it punctures complacent faith in rational control, while also offering consolation to the thoughtful who find themselves unrewarded—misfortune is not always a verdict on their judgment.