d hard. Two of
the billets are plain on one side, on the other side a diagonal line is
incised from the left-hand upper corner to a point about two inches below
the right-hand upper corner; another diagonal line is incised from the
right-hand lower corner to about two inches above the left-hand lower
corner. The third pa-tol stick has the same design on one side, and on the
other side the design is repeated and an additional diagonal line incised
from the right-hand upper corner to the left-hand lower corner. It would be
well to blacken all these incised lines in order that the designs can be
readily seen during the playing of the game.

[Illustration]

A circle, called the Pa-tol House, about three or four feet in diameter, is
made by setting forty stones "about the size of a fist" so as to form the
circumference. Between every tenth and eleventh stone there must be an
opening of four or five inches. These openings must face the north, east,
south and west; they are spoken of as "rivers." The flat stone is placed in
the middle of the circle.

Each player has a marker, a small stick or twig, which is called his
"horse." As many can take part in the game as conveniently can seat
themselves around the pa-tol house.

The following description of the game is given by Dr. Charles F. Lummis and
quoted by Dr. Culin (Ibid., pp. 191, 192): "When the players have seated
themselves, the first takes the pa-tol sticks tightly in his right hand,
lifts them about as high as his chin and, bringing them down with a smart
vertical thrust as if to harpoon the center stone, lets go of them when
they are within some six inches of it. The three sticks strike the stone as
one, hitting on their ends squarely, and, rebounding several inches, fall
back into the circle. The manner in which they fall decides the
denomination of the throw, and the different values are shown in the
diagram. Although at first flush this might seem to make it a game of
chance, nothing could be farther from the truth.... An expert pa-tol player
will throw the number he desires with almost unfailing certainty by his
arrangement of the sticks in his hand and the manner and force with which
he strikes them down. It is a dexterity which any one may acquire by
sufficient practice, and only thus. The five throw is deemed very much the
hardest of all, and I have certainly found it so. [See diagram.]

"According to the number of his throw the player moves his marker an equ