HALF-A-BOY, WHO OVERCAME THE GAMBLER. 197 
then go to where he had agreed to stay. He was told, in the beginning 
of their playing, when using his opponent’s sticks, to pass the stick 
through from the left hand four times, and when he hurled the stick, to 
hit the other man’s stick and break it, so that he would not have any 
to use; that after so doing, his opponent would call for his stick, just 
as a joke, knowing that he had already won his sticks; and when he 
should say: this the boy should tell the chief quietly to go after his 
stick, not failing to tell him to let the black stick remain in the ring, 
and telling him also to carry the black stick with the ring on his right 
and the red one on the left, and also telling him to offer the red one 
to his opponent; that when bringing in his sticks to the grounds his 
opponent would try hard to get to use his stick, but that he should not 
let him use it. He was also told that every time he won, he should 
double this bets, and finally should bet his body against the body of 
the man; that when he had won part of the man’s body he should not 
listen to his promises, but should keep on playing for the last part of 
his body; that then he should step out of the way and let them (the 
Buffalo) take his life. This was the instruction given by these two 
Buffalo. 
The boy immediately turned back to the village. He soon ar- 
rived, and went straight to the chief’s place, and placed his sticks as 
he had been requested to do. Then he went to bed for a while, until 
nearly daylight. Then he went straight to the place where he had 
agreed to stay all that night. Early that morning there came his 
opponent, ready to win the part of the boy’s body. At that time, crowds 
from both sides of the village began to gather around the scene of 
the play ground. The chief whom this boy was visiting came around 
to see the last of the visiting boy. The boy then asked his opponent 
to let him see his stick that he was using, but this man refused to let 
him lay his hands on his stick. The boy kept begging to be allowed 
to see his stick, so that finally the stick was handed to him, and he was 
told if that would do him any good to go ahead and look at it. So 
the boy took the stick in his right hand and passed it through his left 
hand four times and then gave it back. Then they commenced to play 
the game. On the first trial, when pitching the sticks, the boy hit the 
man’s stick and broke it in two. The man was angry, and was about 
to kill him. Finally he asked the boy in jest to go after his own sticks, 
if he had any, so that they might finish the game. The boy called the 
chief and asked him to go after his sticks. He told the chief to let the 
black stick remain in the wheel and leave it on the right hand, and 
the other on the left, and to be sure in handling the sticks to hand 
