The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-01-05

Sabobas, Temescals and Pachangos are
also proficient gamblers. Every Decem-
| Der these little remnants of former great
/ tribes meet for a season OF gambling.
| Last year the four tribes camped at Sa-
boba and had a week Of gambling. The
Pachangos and Temescals were winners
| then. From that time the Temeculas
have been waiting for the opportunity to
win back their losings of last December
and more. too.
The Mission Indians seem to be born
| for gambling. No white gamblers will
| risk their all so complacently as the red
people do and no professional white
plungers ever stayed so persistently at
( gaming All bucks and squaws gamble.
The Indian agents and the whites who
| Dave lived among the redskins to teach
them habits Of sobriety and industry
have almost abandoned hope of reclaim
| ing Lo and his family from gambling
ways. They can curtal the drink habits,
| But the love of games of chance, never.
| There have been many times-as just at
| present among the Pachangos-when
tribe has parted with everything by
which it may live and provide some sort
| of livelihood to the winners of a long
/ gambling game But for the help of char
| table people and the Indian agents the
| losers at the gambling game would be al
| most starved. The one gambling game
| of the Indians of the Pacific coast Is
| known as sng-gamble. 1t is a simple
game of guessing but a red man will
wager all his household possessions. even
to his clothing, on the game.
Preparing for the Meeting.
Early in November the four tribes that
| join in the gambling fiesta began prepa-
rations for the meeting on the sun baked
mesa in the semi-tropical region of Tenn
| ecula canon. The Indians gathered up
| their blankets, firearms household uten-
| sils ponies. horses and fancy feathers
| and went afoot, in wagons and on horse
back over the mountains and through the
canons to Temecula. When Lo goes to
! gamble he takes every one and every
| thing in his home circle. The Indians
| camp out, and they stay there until some
tribe is compelled to cease because it has
lost literally its all
When the recent gambling season among
| the Mission Indians began the stakes
| played for included horses wagons, jew
| elry rifles. bed quilts, shawls clothing
| and $50 in cash, the whole representing
total of 81 100 worth of property. There
was all that the allied tribes possessed,
| even to the clothes they wore and their
| winters supply of food wagered on the
| game. The game was conducted in huge
wickiup of chaparral, grasses, leaves and
| palm branches, that has stood on the
mesa several years and has been the
scene of several remarkable gambling
| games.
A smoky bonfire of twigs and dried sod
was made at one side of the rude struc-
ture and would have driven any white
men to the open air with its fumes; but
| it seemed to make no difference to the In
dams. The tribes camped in the open all
| about the gambling wickiup and attended
the gaming in squads of players, the mem
| bers of one tribe always being opponents
of the members of any other tribe Every
Indian had his blanket and many bucks
slept over at one side of the wickiup. and
the furious noise of the gaming never
| seemed to disturb their slumbers. The
| most earnest gaming opened early each
evening, when lighted candles were stuck
| in the ground round about the wickiup,
and every person in the assembled tribes
was present to join in the excitement of
| the gambling, even if not to participate
in the game.
1 Guessing Contest. .
An hour after shutdown, when the active
| game of sing-gamble begins in the wick
iup. two wrinkled, very dark visaged and
| hobgobling old bucks, with as profound
! ceremony as the Indians know, enter with
| the LAYOUT" consisting of wooden chips
| about the shape and twice the size OF
/ silver dollarl and f12d ta}ley sticks, all
| wrapped I'M egaily decorated straw mats
| Two bags of thin bark shavings complete
the outfit stray pats are spread before
| the fire. and two men from each side seat
themselves facing each other and are
ready for business. The tribal adherents
of the rival players arrange themselves
in the rear and watch the game with in
tense interest and bet recklessly. pale
| face cannot imagine the excitement that
they suppress as their black eyes follow
| the game. aa< 4l.
/ one of the players takes ten chips, one
| of them distinguished from the other by a
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 1t is
called If the guess is right one of the
| talley sticks is taken from the players
| pile and given to the guesser, but if
wrong the guesser's pile suffers. The
guessing is done with deep study, and af-
ter the most earnest possible watching OF
| the passes of the chips and the shavngs
from one hand to another. Each side
starts with sixty sticks and when one
side has won them all the game comes to
an end The Indians trenble with excite
among themselves concerning the conduct
of the gaming operations and the respect
i've winnings and losings Bets are con-
stantly being made, not on the separate
plays. but on the outcome of the game.
and all are settled at the same time.
These bets consist of money, Blankets
horses, guns, cows, harness and every
thing the bettors possess, even to the
clothing on their backs.
Occasionally the gaming becomes very
noisy and the tribes endeavor to cheer
their respective tribal players and help
| their own bets toward winning by shouts
and yels and deep. cultural songs. Fancy
what a noise would be made by lot ut
excited Indians yelling such a stanza as
this:
Hey-yo, ho-hoi
Hey-yo, hobo, ho-ho!
Ayee, ho-ho. ayee, ayee!
Mingi, mingi, Pachango
All, oh, a-a-a.