Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1894-11-30
INDIAN GAMBLERS.
ALWAYS READY TO RISK THEIR ALL
IN A CANE OF CHANCE.

Sometimes Whole Villages Are Inpover-
ished by Streak OF BAD Luclf-They
Rely Upon Charms and Their Ability to
Cheat-They Are Good Losers.
AS eagerly as duck nops into the wa
ter docs an Indian jump into a game OF
chance. Unboundcd belief i'll luck and
perhaps the natural deviItry OF the race
make Indians inyetcrato gamblers. There
is nothing in an Indians possession that
he will not readily wager on a game OF
chance. Nearly every noble red man is
the possessor OF an individual charm or
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 no
use or advantage to any other Indian. No
person besides the posesssor knows what
the fetch is and were it to become known
it would Immediately lose its power for
good. No Indian will knowingly steal
another Indians Fetch. Such theft viii
ates tho power of the thief's fetch and
casts over him q hoodoo.
Having full faith in the ability of his
charm to bring luck to him. the Indian
never fails to place all his possessions in
loses, he takes it philosophically and at j..
tributes his bad luck to the greater power
of his adversary's charm. Ii he wins, he
has added faith in the power of his own
charm. Indians have been known to
wager ali their earthly possessions, even
to their squaws and children and tepees,
ON 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.
Gambling is not a 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 an
Indian to looked up to almost as much as
if he We're successful warrior. There is
no fear of shocking the morals Of even the
highest chief by proposing d game with
HMM fact, the invitation pleases him.
One point Of advantage held by the red
man over his white brother is in the fact
that when he loses everything he possesses
he is not much poorer than he was before,
and he can readily recoup himself by max
ing a raid upon some unfortunate white
settler or upon Il weaker tribe The white
man may commit suicide, but the Indian
simply looks for a victim and seldom fails
to find him.
Before tho 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, Comanche.
His game is monte He is about 80
years old, tall and straight, with thin,
narrow face. His eyes are sunken like
those of q consumprive. 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 proves. He travels
from village to village and from tribe to
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. :"
QueIepah 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. Quelepah knelt before it. AS
he settled down on his launches and
brought forth new deck of Mexican
monte cards the blanket was surrounded
by Indians crouching three and four deep
And behind them stood other Indians eager
for an opportunity to play. The long,
lean fingers of Quelepah shutflcd the cards
with marvellous rapidity. The interest in
the game waXed as the light waned. Cam
dies were procured as night fell and were
fastened in sharp pointed green twigs
stuck in the ground.
BY their Pickering light Quelepah could
be seen paying his losses and pocketing
his gains. He was both dealer and
banker. Behind him on his right and
on his left crouched his two Apache fell
lows AS dawn was breaking Quclepah
looked about him He had stripped all
save two Indians. One of them was a
heavy winner Laying down 500 for
each of them to cover, Quelepah announc.
ed that it was his last bet. The cards left
were tho queen and the deuce. Both In
dams laid on the queen. The deuce won.
Quelepah pocketed his money. The vii
lage. save for tho two Indians, was penni-
less.
Suuaws also are inveterate gamblers
1t is a common sight to see a dozen
squaws, young and old, their papooses
lying neglected on the ground, crowded
around an old shawl, busy over 10 cent
game Of monte. Their play is persistent
and many of them are lnarvelously clever
gamblers. But they seldom have money
of their own sufficient to play for high
stakes.
One popularity Of Indian gambling
games is their intricacy. In several tribes
the writer has seen Indians playing games
with sticks and stones for hours at time.
Notwithstanding the closest attention he
has been unable to discover the system
used, nor has he ever met ii white man
who could explain the game. There are
several games Of this kind, and among
the Pacific coast tribes they are common.
In addition to his faith in his charm
the Indian places great dependence on his
ability to cheat. 70 the best cheat are &C.
corded the highest honors when gambling
is INDUCED in. There is never a thought
of getting angry over delft tricks or unfair
methods so long as the perpetrator is not
caught in the act. Il he is caught, he 70
funds his gains and is laughed at for clum.
siness
Since playing cards have become com
mon, games taught by the whites and
Mexicans are generally the favorites
among the red men. Monte is played for
large amounts. Sometimes an Indian with
hundreds of dollars will become impover-
ished i'll a single evening by trying his
luck against a skillful player An espe-
cially deft monte dealer, more skillfnl
even than Quelepah, has been known to
go from tribe to tribe in the mountains of
New Mexico and return home loaded down
with his winnings. Many Mexican gam
blers devote almost their entire time to
travelling among tho various tribes in the
Sierras They win large sums, but lose
them again in Mexican cities.-Fort Sill
70. To Cor. New York Sun.
In the West.
Easterner-How long have you lived in
theNyest?
Westerner-Twenty years.
1 - +lz,~,N9