CULIN | DICE GAMES: DAKOTA 185 
then seared or burnt in the stone. The Indians used a wooden bowl, small and 
light, for shaking the dice, and never threw them out of the bowl. To play the 
game they sat on the ground in a circle, and a blanket or robe was doubled up 
and placed in the middle of the ring—the bowl, containing the six dice, being 
placed on the folded blanket. The stakes usually were two or four silver ear- 
rings, put up by those who engaged in the game, and the sport commenced by 
some one of the players seizing the edge of the bowl, with his thumb outside and 
the ends of his forefingers inside the rim, and, raising it an inch or so, bumped 
it down on the folded blanket three or four times, causing the light plum 
stones to jump around in the most lively manner. After the player had shaken 
the bowl thoroughly he sat down and allowed the stones to settle on the bottom, 
and then they were counted thus: If all the spotted and striped sides were 
uppermost, the player won, unless some one else tied him; if he threw four 
spotted ones, it was the same as four aces in cards in the game of bluff; but 
if he threw three spotted and two striped ones, it was equivalent to a full hand 
of bluff, and so on, the only difference being that when all the spotted and 
striped sides were turned up, it showed a higher hand than four aces, and when 
all the blank sides were turned up it showed a flush that ranked next to the 
highest hand and above the four aces. 
Daxora (YaANKTONAI). Devils lake, North Dakota. (Cat. no. 
23556, 23557, United States National Museum.) 
Six plum-stone dice, part of two sets of four each. The designs are 
burnt, and two—the fourth and fifth—have perforations on both 
sides (figure 239). Collected by Mr Paul Beckwith in 1876. 
The two dice to the left bear a buffalo’s head on one side and a 
pipe or calumet on the reverse. The die on the right has an eagle, 
or thunderbird, with lightning symbol, on the reverse. 
Fig. 239. Plum-stone dice (a, obverse; b, reverse); diameter, about } inch; Yanktonai Dakota 
Indians, North Dakota; cat. no. 23556, 23557, United States National Museum. 
— Devils Lake reservation, North Dakota. (Cat. no. 60369, 
60421, Field Columbian Museum.) 
Seven plum stones seared on one side (figure 240), and an oblong 
wooden bowl, with handle, about 14 inches in length. 
These were collected by Dr George A. Dorsey, who describes the 
game as follows: 
These are used in the Cut Head [Pabaksa] game of kansu. The dice are plum 
stones and are seared on one side with various devices, which occur in pairs with 
an odd stone. The odd stone, with central markings and eight radiating lines, 
is called echeana, alone; the pair with three parallel lines and seared ends are 
ealled okehe, next; the other two pairs are ikeheka, common. To play, the 
bowl! is grasped with two hands and brought down sharply on the ground, so as 
to cause the dice to jump about. The counts are determined by the character 
of the upper sides of the dice and are as follows: All marked sides up, 
