Fig. 98—Baskets used in dice game.
Only the flat sides count except when all the sticks turn round side up. This is the best throw of all, as it counts ten points and another throw. On completing one round of forty points the player takes one of the small green tally sticks from the pile and she who first gets the number of tally sticks previously agreed on wins the game. Two, four, or any even number of persons may play the game, half on each side. When two or more play on a side, all the partners move up the same number of points at each throw, but only the lucky thrower gets a second trial in case of a trump throw.
The other woman’s game mentioned, the dice game, is called ta-u′sĕta′tina (literally, “striking,” or “throwing against” something) by the Arapaho, and mo′nshimûnh by the Cheyenne, the same name being now given to the modern card games. It was practically universal among all the tribes east and west, and under the name of “hub-bub” is described by a New England writer as far back as 1634, almost precisely as it exists today among the prairie tribes. The only difference seems to have been that in the east it was played also by the men, and to the accompaniment of a song such as is used in the hand games of the western tribes.
Fig. 99—Dice used in dice game.
The requisites are a small wicker bowl or basket (hatĕchi′na), five dice made of bone or of plum stones, and a pile of tally sticks such as are used in the awl game. The bowl is 6 or 8 inches in diameter and about 2 inches deep, and is woven in basket fashion of the tough fibers of the yucca ([figure 98]). The dice may be round, elliptical, or diamond-shape and are variously marked on one side with lines and figures, the turtle being a favorite design among the Arapaho ([figure 99]). Two of the five must be alike in shape and marking. The other three are marked with another design and may also be of another shape. Any number of women or girls may play, each throwing in turn, and sometimes one set of partners playing against another. The players toss up the dice from the basket, letting them drop again into it, and score points according to the way the dice turn up in the basket. The first throw by each player is made from the hand instead of from the basket. One hundred points usually count a game, and stakes are wagered on the result as in almost every other Indian contest of skill or chance. For the purpose of explanation, we shall designate two of the five as “rounds” and the other three as “diamonds,” it being understood that only the marked side counts in the game, excepting when the throw happens to turn up the three diamonds blank while the other two show the marked side, or, as sometimes happens, when all five dice turn up blank. In every case all of one kind at least must turn up to score a point. A successful throw entitles the player to another throw, while a failure obliges her to pass the basket to some one else. The formula is:
| 1 only of either kind | 1 |
| 2 rounds | 3 |
| 3 diamonds (both rounds with blank side up) | 3 |
| 3 diamonds blank (both rounds with marked side up) | 3 |
| 4 marked sides up | 1 |
| 5 (all) blank sides up | 1 |
| 5 (all) marked sides up | 8 |
A game similar in principle, but played with six dice instead of five, is also played by the Arapaho women, as well as by those of the Comanche and probably also of other tribes.
65. Na′tu′wani′sa
Nänisa′na, nänisa′na,