The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1901-05-18
Old Penn's EShibit
at Pan.hmeriCan

phi,,d,,nbio u,, 1,
TIN. UNIVERSITY of pcnns,lyonin is thc
i ,,Iv cIuc,ti,p,l institution in tho t-pi,,I
i st,tcs which has nm exhibit M tho pan.
American c>postion nj Bunolo TT,,
time and attention NJ Curator CuIi, nf tho mi.
ycrs;tv ,nusoum has becn nccuni,d for sop,o
month, ms, in tbc n,nnor,t;or ct th,s exbibit
II has inst hcen installed un,cr bis droction in
the Archaeological building and promises TO bc
ono of In. most uniuur and cri,,iuol features of
the cthnoorico, ,l,pprtnent uf thc cyposit,onL
This exhibit Is of two.sold character. ,ous;stiu,
of spccimcns illustrating cannes n,,yoJ hy t,,
American Indians and tn, rnii,cs Of the rhiliu.
pine Islands rcprcscnting the material which
Mr.. Culin has collected during the course o,
PENNSYLVANIA exhibit is thc largest in tbc An
Chronological building. and one of the largest
single cvliihits at tLr exposition II WAS ar.
ranged at the invitation of tine cypostion man.
ayers and at their expressed wish the specimens
of Indian II; mes form the most importnnt mart
Of the display
q
The collection of Indian games at thc Irni.
ycrsitv museum from which .hc snccimcns u,
the cyposi,ion were taken is bv far tho bcsr
in America The sncc;mcns at Buffalo are in
tented TO illustrate the most popular games OF
the Indians Primarily all these games appcar
to have been sacred and diyinatorv and to have
had "A common source in the arid region of the
Southwestern United States The impIemcnt,
employed appear to he universally derived from
few simple weapons such as arrows, spcars
and shells The Indian games in the exhibit
dexterity Dice are usually used in the games
of chance, and the games of deytcrity are az.
cornpanied by signs and ncantations. The dice
games had their oriyin in an ancient custom
of fortune telling of which they were an essen.
tial part OF these, some sixty EXAMPLES are
shown from over thirty tribes and fifteen lin
gristic stocks Thcv arc of great variety and
OF all sorts of material: Split reeds wood homes
beaver teeth, woodchick teeth walnut shells
sea shells, ETC.
%
These games are usually plaven in silence and
in the present day have lost all their former
religious character 1t is curious to notice in
this connection that in general all Indian games
appcar to have been playcd originally by men
and then given over in time to the women
Some of them are quite intricate. but when ar.
ranged in a series as in the exhibit these curious
tclgibc. one of the games most commonly in
use among the Indian tribe, is known TO tb,
whites AS "IIund' II il ploycd with two homes
one plain and the other marked in the middle
with black band one PLAYER holds a bone in
each hand and the other PLAYER guescs which
hand contains the plain one The Indians uscd
10 stake everything they poSscsscd ON thcsc
games hut they have been discouraged bv thc
Indian agents and are now supplnntcd by the
pIaviur cards of civilizations
o
Foremost among ,he games Of deytcritv was
the bali game. This was frequently an inter.
tribal contest and WAS played by the men with
n racket having a n,ttcJ hoop Mt The end NJ
which the lacrosse, bat is an cyorrcrotcd exam.
plc. The ball was covered with deer skin Each
tribe had IFS nccuiar racket. the object being
to throw thc ball across goal very much re-
scmbinr tlc one used in ordinary foot hail,
This ban game among the Indian tribes was con.
crs first invoking victory by magical rites II
was usuolly occonpancd by songs and dances
The Indian women had their own hall oo,ur
which ,yos crtircIv distinct from tbat nIovrd nv
the mon. and WAS practically the same as our
familiar romc of "shinuv.r A large number NJ
balls and hall rockets from different t,ibcs are
cxhihitcd nj RutroIo. AS well as the womcn's
shiny sticks and balls
%
Tho riIipno yomcs shown in tbc cybib;t throw
an interesting sidcight ON the character Of our
nav. co,,nists Tbcsr ,omos arc in m,ny ,o.
spccts nnulopops to our own and those Of the
Errono,n notions and many of thom arc dorht.
loss of Sronish or;c;n OtLors con hc tr,cod IN
C,h;,.so Malay and Hindu sources ma rI.
Manila and orc considered tiuc snccimcns Tho
most romm,n and populu is a .omhliny nam.
.,.,,., 49, A., ,o,;,.,s J,;,,r L.; A., ,,,.,,, 49,,
x;Il,ros and ia known bv tho cunborious mama
~ .."rt; mil ;tom +" Grams os both snvos many