The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1894-12-04
BUCKING THE GAM
ALWAYS READY TO RISK THEIR Al.
IN A GAME OF CHANCE.

sometimes Whole Villages Are Empower
ished by Streak of Bad Luck-They
Rely Upon Charms and Their Ability te
Cheat-They Are Good Losers
As eagerly as duck fops into the wa
ter does an Indian jump into a game OF
chance. Unbounded belief in luck and
perhaps the natural deviltry of the race
make Indians invetcrate gamblers. There
ls nothing in an Indians possession that
ae will not readily wager on a game CT
chance. Nearly every noble red man is
he possessor of an individual charm OF
fetch which enables him TO do things
that other Indians cannot do. This fetch
IS Of value exclusively to the owner, and
according to their belief would be OF nc
1se or advantage to any other Indian. Nc
person besides the posesssor knows what
me fetch is and were it to become known
1t would Immediately lose its power for
good. No Indian viii knowingly steal
another Indians fetch. Such theft VIII
ates the power Of the thief's fetch and
casts over him a hoodoo.
Having full faith in the ability Of his
charm TO bring luck to hiIf, the Indian
never fails to place all his possessions in
the balance when there is a bet on. If be
loses, he takes it philosophically and at
tributes his bad luck TO the greater power
OF his advcrsary's charm. If he wins, he
has added faith in the power Of his own
charm Indians have been known to
wager all their earthly possessions, even
to their sQuaws and children and tepees,
Oh the fall of a stick in one of their games
Indian villages have become pauperized
and dependent upon charity for months
because the inhabitants bet everything
they had on the result Of games with other
villages. Such occurrences were common
several years ago, and were it not for the
restrictions of government regulations
would be so still.
Gam bling is not secret vice among the
Indians. 1t is INDUCED in by all the mem
bers of the tribe, and the more expert the
gambler the higher he stands in the esti-
nation of his fellows. To have the fame
Of being a successful gambler causes IN
Indian to locked up to almost as much IA
II lie were a successful warrior. There is
no fear of shocking the morals Of even the
highest chief by proposing a game with
bim-in fact, the invitation pleases him.
One pvint OF advantage held By the red
man over his white brother is in the fact
that when lie loses everything he possesses
he Is not much poorer than he was before,
and he can readily recOUp himself by max
ing raid upon some unfortunate white
settler or upon a weaker tribe. The white
- man may commit suicide, but the Indian
simply looks Cor a victim and seldom fails
to find him.
Before the government frightened the
moral lines on the Indians professional
Indian gamblers were plentiful. OF late
years their number has decreased rap
IDLY. The most famous Indian gambler
Of today is Quelepah, a Comanche.
His game is monte. He is about 30
gears old, tall and straight, with a thin,
narrow face. His eyes are sunken like
those Of IA consumptive. He never smiles
and seldom speaks. Like all Indian gam
blers, his dress is rich in bright colors.
He usually rides white pony and is at.
tended by two Apache Indians, both ia
nous for deeds of TTowess. He travels
from village TO village and from tribe 20
tribe. Everywhere he is well known.
When his approach is made known, the
Indians wait for him TO appear, saving
their money TO play with him, for it is
an Indian maxim that in the game of
Quelepah the play is honest, and the
stakes are what you please"
Quelcpdh once appeared at the Cash
creek village. He rode into the village
shortly before SHUTDOWN. One of his COM
panions spread bright red blanket on
the ground. QuelCpah knelt before it. AS
be settled down on his launches and
brought forth a new deck Of Mexican
monte cards the blanket was surrounded
by Indians crouching three and four deep.
And behind them stood other Indians eager
Tor an opportunity TO play. The long,
lean fingers of Quelepah shuffled the cards
with marvellous rapidity. The interest in
the game waXed as the light waned. Can
iles were procured as night fell and were
fastened in sharp pointed green twig5
stuck in the ground.
BY their Pickering light Quelepah could
De seen paying his losses and pocketing
his gains. He was both dealer and
banker. Behind him on his right and
on his left crouchcd his two Apache fell
lows. As dawn was breaking Quelepah
looked about him. He had stripped all
save two Indians. one of them was a
heavy winner Laying down 500 for
zach of them to cover, Quelepah announc-
I'd that it was his last bet. The cards left
were the queen and the deuce. Both In
iians laid on the queen. The deuce won.
Quclepah pocketed his money. The viii
lago, save for the two Indians, was penni-
less.
Squaws also are inveterate gamblers.
II is a common sight To see dozen
s9uaws, young and old, their papooses
lying neglected on the ground, crowded
around an old shawl, busy over q 10 cent
game of monte. Their play is persistent,
and many of them are marvelously clever
gamblers But they seldom have money
IF their Own sufficient 10 play for high
stakes.
One popularity of Indian gambling
games is their intricacy. In several tribes
.he writer has seen Indians playing games
With sticks and stones for hours At a time. 4
Notwithstanding the closest attention he
has been unable TO discover the system (
used, nor has he ever met a white man /
who coufd explain the game. There are /
several games Of this kind, and among /
the Pacific coast tribes they are common. |
In addition 10 his faith in his charm I
che Indian places great dependence on his /
ability To cheat. To the best cheat are &C
corded the highest honors when gambling /
Is INDUCED in. There Is never q thought 4
of getting angry over def tricks CT unfair
methods 50 long as the perpetrator is not
taught IL the act. II he is caught, he re,
iuuGS his gains and is laughed At for clum-
sneSS.
Since playing cards have become com.
mon, games taught by the whites and
NeNicans are generally the fayorites
among the red men. Monte is played for
large amounts. Sometimes all Indian with
hundreds % dollars Will become irnpover-
tshoG il a single evening bv irving his