THE OREGON 
sonorous and is readily heard a distance of halt 
amile. As the drum beats the Indiins begin 
their chants or wails, the men shouting ‘‘Hi- 
ah, hi-ah, hi-ah,” and the women mouning an 
accompaniment between the shouts of their 
braves, sounding someth ng like this: ‘‘Mm uh, 
mm-uh, mm-uh.” 
The players gather around the mats, seven 
being permitted on each side. One mat is for 
the Puyallups, the other for the Black Rivers. 
The dealer for each side sits at the head of his 
mat, fingering deftly ten wooden chips about 
two inches in diameter and a quarter ofan inch 
thick. 
but the tenth is different in color, though similar 
Nine of these are of the same color, 
in shape and dimensions. “The shuffler handles 
the chips rapidly, like an experienced faro-deal- 
er playing toa big board. He transfers them 
from one hand to another, hides them under a 
pile of shavings made from the cedar bark grow- 
ing close to the sap, resembling much the pro- 
duct called excelsior. He divides the chins 
into two piles of five each, and conceals each 
pile under the shavings. Mysteriously he waves 
his hands forward and backward, crosswise and 
like the 
manipulations of a three-card monte dealer. 
over and over, miking pass-s 
Toe drum keeps up its constant beat, the 
Indians at the mitsand those looking on with 
interest clap their hands and stamp and chant 
in time to the drum. 
Now is the time for ‘the Indian assigned to 
The 
game is entirely one of chance, there being no 
to 
guess to point to one of the two piles. 
possible means for the closest observer 
detect in which pile the dealer places the odd- 
colored chip. It is the custom of the game, 
however. for the guess-man to ponder for some 
This 
adds interest and excitement to the speculation. 
time before deciding which pile to select. 
Finally he decides and with his finger points to 
one of the piles. The dealer rol!s the chips 
across the mat to the furtherend. If the guess 
is right the side for which the guesser is acting 
scores one point. If the guess is wrong the tribe 
to which the dealer belongs scores a point, and 
the otherside takes the innings; that is to say, 
the deal. 
NATURALIST. 
79 
When the Puyallups have the deal the 
Puyallup orchestra performs upon the Puyallup 
drum, When the Black . River the deal 
the Black River band operates oa the Black 
has 
River drum. <A guesser holds his place until he 
has missed three times, when another takes his 
place. A dealer handles the chips until the 
other side has guessed out the pile containing 
the odd chip three times; then, as a penalty for 
his bad luck or want of dexterity, another one 
of the tribe is called to take his place. 
The game is sixty points and the score is 
kept by sixty sticks, each about five iuches long 
and three-quarters of an inch in diameter, They 
As 
one side wins a point the stick is moved to one 
are laid upon a board about five feet long. 
end of the boar i. When it loses a point the 
stick goes back to the other end. When all the 
sixty sticks have been moved up to one end of 
the board the gime is over and one tribe is rich 
and the other is insolvent. S. A Avamdner. 
A CLATSOP INDIAN LEGEND. 
. 
WHY NIGHT HAWKS DO NOT BUILD NESTS. 
Almost every collector who has had the 
pleasure of finding a Night Hawk’s nest in the 
open field has wondered why they do not build 
more of a nest. Almost every one has two or 
three sticks and a piece of moss in it. 
A long time ago, said an old Clatsop Indian 
‘o me, birds could talk, and the Night Hawk 
went to the Crow to find out how to build a 
nest. The Crow kindly consented. to show 
him as he was then building a nest for himself. 
He first got a couple of sticks and laid them 
out fora foundation, the Night Hawk watching 
said; ‘‘Why I know how to do that.” The 
Crow said nothing but got a piece of moss and 
laying it on the sticks said ‘‘lace some moss in 
the nest to make it soft.” The Night Hawk 
said *‘I also know that. The Crow said, ‘‘if 
you knew why did you come to me” and would 
show him no more. Ever since then the Night 
Hawk has contented himself with two or three 
sticks and a piece of moss. 
Guy STRYKER, 
