In many of the gambling-houses smaller mats are used, and there are then several modifications of the game, according to the position of the money laid down. But the principle of the game is the same as that already described. The proprietors of these gambling-houses issue the porcelain money that we see in the market, which, when they are unable to redeem it, becomes absolutely worthless.
The Brass-cup Game.—In this game the proprietor has a square brass cup, in which he places a cube of wood. One-half of one face of the cube is white and the other half red. The cube is put into the cup, which is then inverted on the mat or table, and gamblers place their money opposite any one of the four sides they choose. The cup is then removed, the cube remaining with the painted face uppermost. The money opposite the white wins, three for one, and the other three sides lose.
The Fish, Shrimp, and Crab Game.—While passing along the street one often sees an old man with a crowd of boys about him. He has a board before him, in size about 18 by 20 inches, and divided by lines into six equal oblong squares. In one of these squares is the picture of a fish, in another of a shrimp, in another of a crab, &c. The man has a cocoa-nut shell, in which are three large wooden dice, on the faces of which are pictures corresponding to those on the board. The boys place their pieces of money on any picture they choose. The proprietor rattles his dice in the shell, and then inverts it on the board. All who have money on the pictures corresponding to the upper faces of the dice, win; all the rest lose.
Card Games.—The cards used in gambling are about one inch by three. These are marked to represent kings, governors, officers, soldiers, &c. A full pack contains 116 cards, and the principle of the game seems to be similar to that of games of cards in more enlightened countries.
The alphabet of gambling is learned by Siamese children nearly as soon as they can run alone. They are seen pitching their coppers in the street, according to rules they seem to understand, and their parents are often among the most interested spectators. The appetite for gambling is likewise fostered by the universal custom of fighting crickets, fish, and cocks, and the Government allows all classes to gamble without a licence during the three days the festivities of the New Year last.
Siamese children have few pets, and those they have are used for fighting. Just at sunset the boys may be seen searching for crickets. These little creatures are put into small clay cages, closed at the top by bars of little sticks, which let in the light and air. When they have collected a good number, the boys gather together in the evening and put all their crickets into a large box. Then commences a general scrimmage. Cricket meets cricket, as Greek met Greek, and the excited boys bet every copper in their possession on the one they think likely to win.
Small fish, called needle-fish, are also used for this sport. Two fish are put into separate bottles. The moment the bottles are brought together, the fish begin snapping, but of course cannot reach each other. Sometimes a looking glass is held before one, and it is amusing to see how angry it will become. This passion for mimic fights grows in the boys; and when they become young men, they spend most of their time at cock-pits, where nearly all their betting is done. The cocks in Indo-China resemble small game-cocks, and crow four times in the twenty-four hours—at midnight, dawn, noon, and sundown,—and thus serve to note the time.
In Siam, not including the Ping and Lao Shan States upwards of £100,000 is paid by the Chinese gambling monopolists for their licences. Five-ninths of this amount comes from the lottery-holders, and four-ninths from the gambling-houses. Nine-tenths of the monopolists sublet their farms, making from 15 to 20 per cent profit: 2 per cent of the money paid by the monopolists is said to be a private perquisite of the King of Siam.
In his proclamation, “concerning the limitation of the ages of the children of slaves and of free people,” issued in 1874, the King of Siam declared: “With reference to gambling and all games of chance, where money is lost and won, it is a prolific source of slavery. These subjects have his Majesty’s best thoughts as to their eventual termination. They now yield a revenue of 11,000 catties (528,000 dollars), which is regularly expended in defraying the expenses of the Government. If gambling were completely abolished, there would not be enough at the command for Government and military purposes to meet the deficit that would be occasioned by such abolition. This subject, however, his Majesty has presented for the deliberation of the council, and when definite conclusions have been arrived at they will be made known to the public.” Fourteen years have elapsed since this proclamation was issued, during which time no further action has been taken in the matter. The king still draws revenue from the monopolists. The monopolists can still force the Prai-luangs, who form the majority of the inhabitants of Siam, to sell themselves, together with their wives and families; can still force freemen to sell their children, without the children’s consent up to the age of fifteen, and with the children’s consent up to the time that they reach their twenty-first year.
To explain this clearly, and to show the present state of slavery in Siam, I will here quote Articles 6, 7, 8, and 11 of the law passed by the king in 1874, which has not been rescinded:—