The Hardin tribune-herald. [volume] (Hardin, Mont.) 1925-1973, 1937-08-06

side there was q general manager"
SO to speak, who usually was chosen
for his or her fame for luck as well
as ability.
These leaders had charge of the
pot" Of money put up for each round
and they also did the guessing: Each
member of a lineup Clipped in his con-
The writer has seen pots Of $3.50 and
SIPS to $64. Double his respective Chip
in" was taken from the winning pot. No
records were kept as honesty has proved
the best policy and each winner Is
careful to take only his share even
though there is no way Of checking
on how much he originally put IN.
Spectators are impressed with this
feature and disputes among the players
honor helps simplify the game which
seems to be reduced to the simplest Of
forms and therein lies, no doubt. one
reason for its charm and popularity.
But like every gambling game there
are plenty of chances to cheat which
is allowed as long as n can get by
with it but when caught, fierce argu-
ing can occur in the handling Of the
"Bones." Some Indians are very clever
and are proud Of their sleight of hand
performances. They are the card
sharks" as we know such manipulators
in card games. The Kootenat Indians
mailing from Flathead lake have
achieved the greatest fame In this re-
spect. The one who IS holding the
lonesome black, the other white
lions with his hands, keeping his body
mobile until the opposing "'guesser'
decides which hand contains the win
ming bone. And now is the magicians
chance to play his trick before opening
his hand on displaying the color Of
the bone in the hand designated. II
the guess has been found correct that
side loses a stick which is tossed to the
leader Of the winning round. This Is
a Slender stick about a foot long which
is stuck into the ground in front OF
the leader so the score is always In
evidence. When the sticks are all ex-
hauSted on one side the set Is over
and the winnings counted. Often there
r two guessing plays going on IN q
round.
Dixon Children Play
The childhood game Button" comes
nearest to the stick game version as
we would know it. It is amusing to note
that the children around Dixon have
own. Sides line up and guesses made
as to where the button Is and sticks
or beans are used for counters.
Just as we do not know how or when
many Of our childhood games started,
so it Is with the Indian stick game.
Duncan Macdonald, the 90-year-old In
dian authority, says that as far as
he knows this game has always been
played by the redman and no n will
know how far back into the past its
antiquity can be traced. In olden times,
he states, days on end were devoted to
the game but now 1t Is regulated as the
Indians are encouraged to live useful
lives and many are on PWA and must
report for work at the agency or other
Headquarters Monday mornings. .
One say no drinking or brawls at
were on hand. Duncan Macdonald says
he used to play the sticks quite a bit
and has always liked the game and was
rather q clever bone manipulation him
self. However, he thinks nc. one should
become a slave to the habit and gamble
what he cannot afford. He says in the
old days the stakes ran into hundreds
Of dollars. The largest he has en-
countered was around $1,000: The In
stake gamblers and the prince Of them
all to his notion wa Paul Pierre, who
is famed as the original Of the Una
tilla Indianhead used as a trade mark
by the Pendleton Woolen Mills. The
Flathead Indians would often find 1t
convenient to play with the Blackfeet
but that tribe too often proved q better
match and q game usually meant losing
to them.
Take Game Seriously
In watching q group around the
campfire engrossed In the game no one
would suspect the tenseness and sup
pressed drama taking place, from the
stole attitude Of the Indians. They
take the game seriously, almost with
religious fervor and decorum. Some are
very picturesque and provide all ones
imagination might wish for pure types
quiet smoking. Stern looking, dignified
old matrons sit In the background look
ing on by the hour. Often mere babies
take up q stick alongside q grownup
and initiate the chants and rhythmic
tapping. Young Indians who 60 to the
neighboctng schools r there too and
assist In the chants. These chants or
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