The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1897-06-12
SOME PENOBSCOT GAMES.
big Thunder" Tells Folk Lore So
Ciety How They Played.

Ciety How They Ilayed.
At the regular meeting of the Folk
Lore Society last evening Prof. +. W.
Putnam presided. and the members
listened to an interesting and Informal
ak by Big Thunder" the leading
man of the renobscot tribe. Big
Thunder" who is well advanced in
years. although Of athletic frame, lives
near Olit"wn, and came To Boston NJ
the invitation Of the Folk Lore SOCic-
ty. The subject was Games and Ger
cmonialS of the AbnakiS." and he had
brought With hin many curious OBJ
jectS to illustrate his talk.
Among the games which he deScrib-
ed were the dish game. in which count
erS tossed about in Il wooden bowl are.
used for gambling. much as dice are
used, the slide game and the blind
traders" game. IA kind Of swapping per-
Torrance. big Thunder" of course
gave the Indian terms for these games
but their English equivalents We're hct-
ter understood by his auditors.
one of the most amusing of all was
the lovers game" IN this case, whcr,
an Indian youth wishes to pay coUril
to IA girl he hands her a slender pointed
stick. to which q hard tuft 81 moose
hair. like brush. is attached by a
cord The girl filings the tuft into the
air. ana as il falls tries to catch 1t on
the end Of the stick. Ii she succeeds
she counts on" point. if she fails the
youth begins TO toss his tuft, ana so
they play in turn. and the one vino
first makes 100 points wins the game.
If sutton is dispensing to a girl after
Il few losses she hands her tuft and
stick to him with an intimation that
She does not care 10 play. and in cour-
tcSy he is then obliged to leave her to
own devices.
big Thunder" when very Young (
was made Il counselor of his tribe. and
nj Il he took an oath 10 commit td
memory til" traditions of his tribe and
TO tell everything just as it had hap
pencd Formerly when q rcnobscotl
youth was in love, he would go to thI
''peacamaker' Of his tribe, asking the
latter to speak for him to the parents
of the girl. If rich or deeply in love,
he would take with him Il piece of
wampum Of 5000 or 1000 beads. worth
$50 or SO. This was given by him td
the parents or guardian of the girl as
Il pledge of his affection and the
''peacrmakcT' at the same time would
make vari"u> promises in behalf of the
Young man. Big Thunder is n
''pca"cmaber in his own tribe. and he
described wildly tn" wedding cpremoi !
Mes of former years in which lie used
to take part. II" feels, as many feel.
that the morals of his tribe We're bet
ter and their religion purer before they
camr in contact with civilization.
Among the curious objects which hi
shaved were a huge var club scalp4
ing knife (Which removed the last s,.alli
taken off 10y Il P"nubScOtl. and little
wooden frame OF cradle in which
SGuawS formerly carried their pa
pnoSrs This particular cradle is at
least SEQ years old. ana the wood.
though brown With age. was dclicately
carved and traced. Big Thunder,
sang one or two Indian songs and re-
cited among other legends the pictur,
csquc one relating I" the origin of In .
dian corn. Before ana after BIZ,
Thundcr's' talk Miss Fannie NaSSi,l
sang two or three songs. one of them
Transcript.