318 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



mastered by a white man yet. The game of the bones may have 

 been less widespread, as played by the Iroquois, but the game of the 

 dish or bowl everywhere prevailed, essentially the same in every 

 nation, yet with frequent modifications. A good player of this had 

 as wide a reputation as any chess player of modern times. 



A full description of these is not necessary now, but a few words 

 on them may not be amiss. 



The Jesuits mention the game of straws among the Hurons in the 

 Relation of 1636. Charlevoix gives an account of it as he saw it 

 played in 1721 : 



These straws are small rushes of the thickness of a stalk of wheat 

 and two fingers in length. They take up a parcel of these in their 

 hand, which generally consists of 201, and always of an unequal 

 number. After they have well stirred them, making a thousand 

 contortions of body and invoking the genii, they divide them, 

 with a kind of awl or sharp bone, into parcels of 10 : each takes 

 one at a venture, and he to whom the parcel with 11 in it falls gains 

 a, certain number of points according to the agreement : 60 or four 

 score make a party. There are other ways of playing this game, 

 and they would have explained them to me, but I could understand 

 nothing of the matter, except that the number nine gained the whole 

 party. Charlevoix, 2 : 102 



In this we find a pleasurable use for the long and sharp points of 

 some bone awls. They were not merely useful, but were employed 

 in their games of chance. We have another account in New Eng- 

 ZanoV s prospect, describing the Indians there : 



They have two sorts of games, one called Puim, the other 

 Hiibbitb, not much unlike Cards and Dice, being no other than Lot- 

 terie. Puim is 50. or 60. small bents of a foote long which they 

 divide to the number of their gamesters, shuffling them first betweene 

 the palmes of their hands ; he that hath more than his fellow is so 

 much the forwarder in his game : many other strange whimseyes be 

 in this game ; which would be too long to commit to paper. Wood, 

 pt 2, ch. 14 



The Indians near New York city were also fond of this game, 

 which they called senneca in 1679. 



Of the two games resembling dice the writer has given a full 

 account in the Journal of American folk-lore, vol. 9. The game 

 of peach stones, or the dish, he has played with Indians, and the 

 Onondagas call it ta-yune-oo-wdh-es, throwing the bowl to each other, 



