186 TALES OF READY-TO-GIVE. 
been rumored that a gambler lived in that village and that all the men 
who had disappeared had played with him and had lost their lives by 
gambling them away after they had lost everything else; that this man’s 
wife was Spider-Woman, and that she liked to eat people. 
One day the older brother went off; he traveled east for many days. 
At last he came to a hill, and on one side of the hill there was a steep 
bank. Here the young man sat, looking at the strange village. A 
young man, errand man for the gambler, saw him. This errand man 
made it his business to watch and if any strangers came to the village 
reported to the gambler, who invited the stranger to eat with him. The 
errand man went and told the gambler that he had seen a strange young 
man and that he was fine-looking. The gambler sent the boy out to see 
where the stranger would stop. The young man on the hill arose and 
went to the village, and was invited to one of the lodges. The people 
told this young man that the gambler would be good to him and would 
invite him to eat with him, but they told him not to go. 
While he was eating the errand man came and said: “‘I invite you 
to go to the tipi of the gambler, who wants to talk with you.” The 
boy arose and went, thinking he had power to destroy the gambler and 
win from him. The gambler was glad to see the boy and gave him a 
seat near him, saying: ‘‘You must have traveled far. I shall give you 
the best I have for your dinner.”” The old woman whispered to the sky 
and said: ‘‘I shall have his head in the center, and I shall move other 
heads down.’’ A wooden bowl was placed in front of the boy, filled 
with what looked like black corn. The boy ate, and as he ate, his power 
went from him, for he was eating human eyes. After eating, the man 
said: ‘‘ Well, my son, may we play a little with the sticks?”” The boy 
said: ‘“‘I am tired; I will play with you to-morrow.” 
The next day preparations were made for the game. They went to 
the place and there they played. The gambler had many people on his 
side and the boy had many on his side. The boy lost everything he had. 
Then the gambler said; ‘“‘I want you to put up yourself, and if I beat 
you I shall kill you; if you beat me you will kill me.”” The boy consented 
and they played. The boy lost. The old witch kept dancing around, 
while the game was going on, and yelling: ‘‘What a fine head he has! 
He shall be mine!’”’ As the boy lost, the people ran away. The young 
man was taken to a place where the people were killed, and his head 
was chopped off. The head was taken into the lodge and the body left 
outside. 7 
After a long while the people began to wonder why the boy did not 
appear at his home, and they asked for him through the village, but 
