The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1899-11-23
RECKLESS GAMBLING.
OUR MISSION INDIANS ARE The
FlERCEST OF PLuNGERS.
They Will Play Sing Gamble, =
Guessing Game, TIL They Have
Lost Everything They Own, Ewes
the Clothing on Their backs,

INC SiOtnIn& on Ihe1r Hacks,
| Temecula is one of the IL mission In
dian pueblos in southern California. Il
is situated among the Sierra Madr,
mountains. All the mission Indians il
California are famous gamblers, but thu
Temeculas are the most reckless plungers
among any redskins in the west. The
Sabobas, Tcmescals and PachangOs art
also proficient gamblers. Every April Of
May these little remnants Of forme,
great tribes meet for season of gam.
bling.
The mission Indians seem to have been
born for gambling. No white gamblers
will risk their all SO cOmplacently as the
red people do, and no professional white
plunger ever staid so persistcntly at gam.
ing. All bucks and squaws gamble. The
Indian agents and the whites who havo
lived among the redskins to teach them
habits Of sobriety and industry have 81
most abandoned hope of reclaiIning 10
and his family from gambling ways.
| They can curtail the drink habit, but tho
| love OF games of chance never. TherN
| have been many times when tribe has
parted with everything by which it mag
| live and provide some sort Of a livelihood
to the winners Of long gambling game.
But for the help of charitable people and
the Indian agents the losers would be al.
most starved.
The one gambling game of the Indians
of the Pacific coast is known as sing
! gamble 1t is a simple game of guess
ing, but red man will wager ali his
household possessions, even to his cloth
in0 tl,n al, L..
four tribes that join in the gambling
festiyity beseat themselves, facing each
other. and are ready for business ! The
tribal adherents of the rival players
range themselves in the rear and watch
the game with intense interest and bet
recklessly. A paleface cannot imagins
the excitement they suppress as their
| black eyes follow the game. One of th4
| players takes ten chips. one of them dis
I tinguished from the others by white
ring, and divides them into two equal
piles and carefully mixes them with the
bark shavings. He then grabs one pile.
shavings and all, in each hand and
moves his hands in circle rapidly from
right to left, while one of the opposite
side guesses in which hand he holds the
white ringed chip, or queen" as it is
called. If the guess is right, one of the
tally sticks is taken from the players
pile and given TO the guesser, but i1
wrong the guesser's pile suffers.
The guessing is done with deep study
and after the most earnest possible
watching Of the passes of the chips and
the shavings from one hand to the other.
Each side starts with 60 sticks and
when one side has won them all the game
will come to an end. The Indians trem-
ble with excitement, and the squaws
chatter excitedly among themselves con
cerning the conduct Of the gaming opera.
tions and the respective winnings and
losings. Bets are constantly being made,
not on the separate plays, but on tho
outcome OF the game, and all will be set
tied at the same time. The bets consist
Of money, blankets, horses, guns, cows,
harness and everything the bettors pos-
sess, even to the clothing on their backs
Occa sionally the gaming will become
very noisy, and the tribes will endeayoA
to cheer 'leir respective tribal players
and therefore help their own bets to-
ward winning by shouts and yells and A
deep cultural songs. Fancy what noise
would be made by "a lot Of excited Ia:
dians yelling the following:
Hey-yo, hoho,
Iiey-yo, ho.ho, hoho! 7fg
Ayee. ho-ho. ayee, ayce. :. ,a
Mingi, Minsi, Pachangol
All, OH a-a.a ...s s
Ho.yah.wah-who .
Pa.chango!
The whole assemblage Of redskins take
up this yell and continue 1t over and
over, keeping time with their clappiug
hands aud swaying bodies. The dealers.
who are meanwhile silently playing tho Z
game of sing gamble for their respective
tribal bettors, also keep time with theip
with the wooden chips a.
dealer will seize a double handful on
shavings and then ostentatiously count
out eight wooden chips and one black one,
nine In ALL Then he will click them sew.
eral times and magcally cover them with
shavings Then he will separate thu
chips and shavings and show two piles OF
white chips. In twinkling he viii!
make passes with his hands, holding the
two piles of chips about his head under
his blouse and about his anatomy so fast
that a three card monte sharp WOULD
wonder It his dexterity.
Tho chatting suddenly ceases, and ev"
cry eye is turned to some one of the deal.
ars who are performing all manner Of
rapid passes to deceive the eyes of the
Dettors of the opposite tribe. When tho
)ets have been made, the dealers sudden
y cease their passes and gyrations, ami
,y dexterOus movement throw the chips
and shavings from one hand upon the
nat. IL the black chip Is there, ons