Of such desperate stakes I have seen no examples, nor do I think the game itself in common use.

It is rather confined to certain persons, who hold the relative rank of gamblers in Indian society,--men who are not noted as hunters or warriors, or steady providers for their families.

Among these are persons who bear the term of Iena-dizze- wug, that is, wanderers about the country, braggadocios, or fops.
It can hardly be classed with the popular games of amusement, by which skill and dexterity are acquired.

I have generally found the chiefs and graver men of the tribes, who encouraged the young men to play ball, and are sure to be present at the customary sports, to witness, and sanction, and applaud them, speak lightly and disparagingly of this game of hazard.

Yet it cannot be denied that some of the chiefs, distinguished in war and the chase, at the West, can be referred to as lending their example to its fascinating power." See also his history, Condition, and Prospects of the Indian Tribes, Part II, p.