Indian Tribes of the Upper Missouri 55

Indian Tribes of the Upper Missouri 55

The bowl is held by the tips of the four fingers inside the rim and

the thumb underneath. The dice being put in, they are thrown up a few

inches by striking the bottom of the bowl on the ground, so that each

counter makes several revolutions. It is altogether a game of chance

and no advantage can be taken by anyone in making the throws. The

counters or dice never leave the bowl but are counted as the value

turns up. One person having shaken it and the amount of his throw

having been ascertained a requisite number of small sticks are placed

before him, each stick counting 1. In this way the game is kept, but

each keeps his adversary’s game, not his own; that is, he hands him a

number of sticks equal to the amount of his throw, which are laid so

that all can see them. Each throws in turn unless the big claw stands

on end, in which case the person is entitled to a successive throw. By

much practice they are able to count the number turned up at a glance

and the principles of the game being stated on the drawing, we will now

describe how it is carried on. It has been observed in these pages in

reference to their gambling that it is much fairer in its nature than

the same as carried on by the whites and this is worthy of attention,

inasmuch as it shows how the loser is propitiated so that the game may

not result in quarrel or bloodshed, as is often the case.

 

The game is mostly played by the soldiers and warriors, and each must

feel equal to the other in courage and resolution. It is often kept up

for two or three days and nights without any intermission, except to

eat, until one of the parties is ruined.

 

_Example._—A plays against B; each puts up a knife, and they throw

alternately until 100 is counted by the dice; say A wins. B now puts up

his shirt against the two knives, which is about equal in value; say

A wins again. B then stakes his powder horn and some arrows against

the whole of A’s winnings. Should B now win, the game commences again

at the beginning, as A would only have lost a knife; but supposing A

wins. B now puts up his bow and quiver of arrows against all A has

won—the stakes are never withdrawn but let lie in front of them. Say

A again wins. B then stakes his blanket and leggings, which are about

equal in value to all A has won, or if not, it is equalized by adding

or subtracting some article. Supposing A again to be winner, he would

then be in possession of 2 knives, 1 shirt, 1 blanket, 1 powder horn, 1

bow and quiver of arrows, and 1 pair leggings, the whole of which the

Indians would value at 8 robes. B now stakes his gun against all the

above of A’s winnings. Now if A again wins he only retains the gun, and

the whole of the rest of the property won by A returns to B, but he is

obliged to stake it all against his gun in possession of A, and play

again. If A wins the second time he retains the whole and B now puts up

his horse against all of A’s winnings, including the gun.

 

A wins, he retains only the horse, and the gun and everything else

reverts again to B, he being obliged to stake them again against the

horse in A’s possession. If A wins this time, he keeps the whole; but

if B wins, he only gets back the horse and gun, and all the rest of the

property goes to A. Supposing B again loses and continues losing until

all his personal property has passed into the hands of A, then B, as a

last resort, stakes his wife and lodge against all his property in the

hands of A. If A wins he only keeps the woman; the horse, gun, and all

other property returns again to B with the understanding, however, that

he stakes it all to get back his wife. Now if B loses he is ruined; but

if A loses he gives up only the woman and the horse, continuing the

play with the rest of the articles against the horse until one or the

other is broke.

 

At this stage of the game the excitement is very great, the

spectators crowd around and intense fierceness prevails, few words

are exchanged, and no remarks made by those looking on. If the loser

be completely ruined and a desperate man, it is more than likely he

will by quarrel endeavor to repossess himself of some of his property,

but they are generally well matched in this respect, though bloody

struggles are often the consequence. We have known Indians to lose

everything—horses, dogs, cooking utensils, lodge, wife, even to

his wearing apparel, and be obliged to beg an old skin from some

one to cover himself, and seek a shelter in the lodge of one of his

relations. It is, however, considered a mark of manliness to suffer

no discomposure to be perceptible on account of the loss, but in most

cases we imagine this is a restraint forced upon the loser by the

character of his adversary.

 

Suicide is never committed on these occasions. His vengeance seeks

some other outlet, in war expeditions, or some way to acquire property

that he may again play and retrieve his losses. There are some who

invariably lose and are poor all their lives. A man may with honor stop

playing with the loss of his gun; he has also a second opportunity

to retire on losing his horse, and when this is so understood at the

commencement they do, but when a regular set-to takes place between two

soldiers, it generally ends as above described.

 

Ordinary gambling for small articles, such as beads, vermilion, rings,

knives, arrows, kettles, etc., is carried on by playing the game of

hand, which consists in shuffling a pebble from one hand to the other

and guessing in which hand the pebble lies. They all sit in a ring on

the ground, each with whatever stake they choose to put up before them.

Both men and women join in the game and a song is kept up all the time

by the whole with motions of the hands of him who holds the pebble.

After singing about five minutes a guess is made by one of the parties

as to which hand the pebble is in, and both hands are opened. If the

guess has been correct, the one holding the pebble is obliged to pay

all the rest an equivalent to the stake before them; but if the hand

not containing the pebble be picked upon, all the ring forfeit their

stakes to him. Either one man can thus play against the whole or he has

it in his power to pass the pebble to the next, he betting like the

others.

 

This is a very common game, and a great deal of property by it daily

changes hands, though seldom such large articles as guns, horses, or

women.

 

The usual game which women play alone, that is, without the men, is

called _chun-kan-dee´_, and is performed with four sticks marked on

one side and blank on the other, as described in Plate 73. The women

all sit in a circle around the edge of some akin spread upon the

ground, each with her stake before her. One then gathers up the sticks

and throws them down forcibly on the end, which makes them rebound

and whirl around. When they fall, the number of the throw is counted

as herein stated. Each throws in turn against all others, and if the

whole of the marked sides, or all the fair sides of the sticks are

turned up, she is entitled to a successive throw. The game is 40, and

they count by small sticks as in the preceding. In fine weather many of

these gambling circles can be seen outside their lodges spending the

whole day at it instead of attending to their household affairs. Some

men prohibit their wives from gambling, but these take the advantage

of their husband’s absence to play. Most of the women will gamble off

everything they possess, even to the dresses of their children, and the

passion appears to be as deeply rooted in them as in the men. They are

frequently thrashed by their husbands for their losses and occasionally

have quarrels among themselves as to the results of the game.

 

Another game is played by the boys and young men which consists of

planting an arrow in the snow or ground and each throwing other arrows

at it until struck, and he who strikes the planted arrow is winner of

all the arrows then on the ground.

 

 

DEATH AND ITS CONSEQUENCES

 

When a warrior dies the body is straightened and dressed in full war

dress, as for battle, the face being painted red. It is then wrapped

up in a blanket, which is again enveloped in scarlet cloth, or his

flag, if he has one; then his bow, quiver, sword, gun, powder horn,

battle ax, war club, tomahawk, knife, and his medicine or charm are

laid alongside and the whole baled with the body in his buffalo robe,

being the one on which his coups on his enemies are painted. The last

covering is the raw hide of a buffalo, hair inside, which incloses

all, and is strapped up tightly by strong cords passed through holes

cut around the edge of the skin, the whole presenting the form of a

large oblong bale. All this is done by some old men, often some of the

divining men, though not those who attended him while sick; and the

persons who pay this attention to the corpse know they will be well

paid by the relatives of the deceased, as it is the greatest honor

one Indian can confer on another and is a claim on the patronage of

the relatives during their life. Before enshrouding the body some one

of the persons who officiate cuts off a lock of the dead man’s hair,

which he retains a year. At the end of that time the nearest relatives

of the deceased buy the hair from him at a very high price in horses,

blankets, etc. This is another long ceremony and should be described,

but our limits do not admit of it.

 

When the body is thus dressed and prepared for interment it is the wish

of the relatives to get it out of sight as soon as possible, or in a

few hours after dissolution, but it often happens that there is no

suitable place in the vicinity for burial and they are obliged to carry

it along for several days. Most of these tribes prefer scaffolding the

corpse on trees, which is the most ancient method of disposing of them,

arising from the want of tools to excavate, particularly in the winter

season, when the ground is frozen to the depth of 5 feet as solid as

a rock, and for the reason that they wish the dead to be placed where

they can at all times feast and speak to them. Of late years, however,

they prefer their being interred by the whites at the different

trading forts if possible, but as this can only happen to a few the

others either scaffold them or inter them, when the weather admits,

on the tops of hills, covered with large stones, which, being rolled

on the grave after it is filled prevent the ravages of the wolves and

foxes. In either case the clothing, arms, medal, or other trinkets

not bequeathed are deposited with the body, and as the sanctum of the

dead is never disturbed nor these articles renewed, they must present

a sure criterion whereby to judge of their state of arts and arms at

the time of the interment as far as it is possible to be determined by

the nature of the materials thus deposited. Supposing they are near the

timber, and the man has died in the night, the funeral takes place next

day, or if he has died during the day it is disposed of the following morning.