From explaining the chances of the dice, Madame D’Hernilly turned to that of the osselets, or knuckle bones, which the ancients used nearly in the same manner as we do dice. They placed two or three in the dice box, and they reckoned a certain number of points according to what was turned up. The game was, however, looked upon only as a childish amusement. Phrates, king of the Parthians, wishing to reproach Demetrius, king of Syria, for his habitual levity, sent him some golden osselets.
Our children employed the little bone which is found in the leg of mutton, and which we call cramp-bone, or else small pieces of ivory cut to resemble it. The convex side is called the back, the opposite side which is concave, is called the hollow, and the two other sides are called the flat sides. The osselet is thrown up
into the air, and before it falls, the player is obliged to place those which remain upon the tube one after another upon the back, upon the hollow, and upon the concave side; another osselet is then thrown up, and before it returns into his hand, he must successively snatch up all those which are on the table, or else he must make them pass under the thumb and forefinger of his left hand, which is extended; these different combinations are called making the back, the hollow, the wells, the fricassee, the raffle, &c.
The Misses D’Hernilly, and their young friends amused themselves very little with the osselets which Victor had sent them; they declared that such a fatiguing game was fitter for boys than girls. But though they thought little of the osselets, they prized very highly a superb set of dominos, which were made of mother-of-pearl, and had the spots marked with golden nails. Madame D’Hernilly thought that this elegant token of Victor’s affection for his sisters, would not be very long safe in the hands of those little rattle-pates and their giddy associates; she therefore took charge of them herself, and presented the children with a common set in their stead.
Each Domino is divided into two parts, and each part presents seven combinations; namely, the six points of the dice, and the white space: it is for this reason, that the dominos are 28 in number. Each player takes at random a certain number of dominos,
which he places before him in such a manner, that his adversary cannot distinguish how many there are. The person who has a double six, or for want of that, a double five, or any other number doubled, begins the game: the others, for three or four may play at it, place by turns, a corresponding domino to one of the extremities of the domino which is put upon the table. If any one has not a domino to correspond with the others, he is passed by, and loses his turn; this is called sulking. When there are only two, it is called fishing. You take at first very few dominos, for example, three, or at most five. When you sulk, instead of letting your adversary play, you draw from the dominos which remain, until you have drawn the required number; in consequence of this, it sometimes happens, that the player draws more than half the set. The game is won by the player who has first used all his dominos. If the game is closed, and that no one can place their remaining numbers either to the right or the left, he who has the smallest number of points, or if the points are equal, who retains the least number of dominos, wins the game. The winner reckons in his favour the number of points which his adversary has not been able to place, and they begin again until one of the players has gained the number 100 as at picquet.
The young neighbours were obliged to absent themselves for a few days from the
castle, they soon however returned; and they passed whole evenings in playing at dominos. Each of the players marked by means of a card the numbers they had gained. Madame D’Hernilly informed them, that their manner of reckoning up their numbers, by cutting a card in different places, had a great resemblance to the abacus, which the ancient Romans made use of in counting; and the souan-pan, which the Chinese employ for the same purpose.
On one side is a large hollow, with four slits to mark the units; on the other side is a mark reckoned equal to fifty, and four others, which are each equal to ten. You might by this means, count beyond ninety-nine, but in multiplying the slits, you might go to several millions, or even millions of millions.
This kind of arithmetic is much more expeditious than that of writing down and adding up columns of figures, but it is attended with one very great inconvenience, that of leaving no trace of detached calculations; so that you cannot ascertain afterwards whether you have not committed some error.