mooxey] THE DICE GAME 1005 



The requisites are, a small wicker liowl or basket (hat&hi'na), five 

 dice made of hone or of plum stones, and a pile of tally sticks such as 

 arc used in the awl game. The howl is or S inches in diameter and 

 about 2 inches deep, and is woven in basket fashion of the tough fibers 

 of the yucca (figure 98). The dice may be round, elliptical, or diamond- 

 shape and are variously marked on one side with lines and figures, the 

 turtle being a favorite design among the Arapaho (figure 99). Two of 

 the live must be alike in shape and marking. The other three are 

 marked with another design and may also be of another shape. Any num- 

 ber of women or girls may play, each 

 throwing in turn, and sometimes one set 

 of partners playing against another. The 

 players toss up the dice from the basket, ./ i v JP* 



letting them drop again into it. and score 

 points according to the way the dice turn 

 up in the basket. The first throw by each 

 player is made from the hand instead of 

 from the basket. One hundred points 

 usually count a game, and stakes are 

 wagered on the result as in almost every 

 other Indian contest of skill or chance. 

 For the purpose of explanation, we shall .'/ J \\ 

 designate two of the five as "rounds" and .' / u 

 the other three as "diamonds," it being p_* «J, 

 understood that only the marked side \ \> /-' 

 counts in the game, excepting when the \ ■[ Jf 

 throw happens to turn up the three dia- ^>^/ 

 monds blank while the other two show the 

 marked side, or. as sometimes happens. 



,, ' . _ , _ Flu. 99— Dice use*! in dice g;wne. 



when all hve dice turn up blank. In 



every case all of one kind at least must turn up to score a point. A 

 successful throw entitles the player to another throw, while a failure 

 obliges her to pass the basket to some one else. The formula is: 



1 only of either kind 



2 rounds 3 



3 diamonds ( both rounds with blank side up) 3 



3 diamonds blank (both rounds with marked side up) 3 



i marked sides up 1 



5 (all) blank sides up 1 



5 (all I marked sides up 8 



A game similar in principle, but played with six dice instead of five, 

 is also played by the Arapaho women, as well as by those of the 

 Comanche and probably also of other tribes. 



65. N.i n WAN] -\ 



Nanisa'na, niinisa'na, 



Na tu wani'sa, na'tu'wani'sa — 



Hii'nata'hi nati , 



Hii'nata hi niiti'. 



