NELSON] DART-THROWING—FOOTBALL 335 
THROWING STICKS (ki-bu/-tuk)—(St Michael). A rectangular ivory 
pin, from five to seven inches in length, is planted upright in the floor 
of the kashim. Each player puts up an object for a prize, and stand- 
ing at a certain distance from the pin tosses in succession two small, 
flat, ivory rods toward it. The man whose rod lies closest to the pin 
when all have thrown is entitled to his choice of the articles staked by 
the players, and the game proceeds until all of the articles are won. 
The ivory rods used in this game are from about 24 to 4 or 5 inches in 
length, rather flattened, and quadrangular in cross section, the corners 
rounded, and on one side of each end is a rounded bead, the two beads 
facing in different directions. The name of these two small rods is the 
same as that of the game. They are sometimes grooved along one or 
both faces, and usually are pierced near one end so that they may be 
strung on a cord with from two to four larger ivory pins like that stuck 
in the floor. These latter are brought down to a flat, rounded point at 
one end, while the other is larger and rounded or squared, often with 
the head of an animal carved upon it. 
This collection of rods serves primarily for preparing and twisting 
the sinew for sinew-backed bows, as has been explained by Mr John 
Murdoch. These objects, including both classes of rods, were obtained 
from the Alaskan coast between Kuskokwim river and the vicinity of 
Point Barrow, as well as from the islands in Bering strait and on St 
Lawrence island. 
A handsome set obtained on Sledge island consists of four of the 
large pins with the upper ends carved to represent reindeer heads, and 
two of the ordinary, small, flat rods. These, like most implements of 
this kind, are made of walrus ivory; occasionally bone is used, but 
this is uncommon in the region where ivory is found. One set of the 
flat rods from Hotham inlet, Kotzebue sound, are marked with the 
raven totem; others have a series of circle-and-dot ornamentation, but 
many of them are plain. One specimen of the pin from Point Hope has 
the larger end carved to represent one of the joints in the leg-bone of 
a mammal, and another set from the same place has carved on them 
the head of some small animal, probably a fox. Another set of these 
implements in the National Museum was obtained by Mr Macfarlane at 
Fort Anderson, in Hudson Bay territory. 
FOOTBALL (i-tig’-i-mi-w'-hlu-tin)—(St Michael). The ball (wi’/kak) 
used in this game is made of leather, stuffed with deer hair or moss, 
and varies in size, but rarely exceeds five or six inches in diameter. 
The game is played by young men and children. The usual season for 
itis at the end of winter orin spring. I saw it played in various places 
from Bering strait to the mouth of the Kuskokwim; at Cape Darby 
it was played by children on the hard, drifted snow; it is also a popular 
game on the lower Yukon. Two of the participants act as leaders, 
one on each side choosing a player alternately from among those gath- 
ered until they are equally divided. At a given distance apart two 
