Page:Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje - The Achehnese Vol II. - tr. Arthur Warren Swete O'Sullivan (1906).djvu/218

 The two players put 4 aneuʾs in each of six small holes. Then they commence to play, each in his turn taking the pips from any one hole selected at hap-hazard and distributing them among the other holes, dropping one in each they pass.

The direction followed is from left to right for the six holes next the player, and from right to left in the opposite ones. The player takes the contents of the hole he reaches with his last pip, and goes on playing. Should he reach an empty hole with his last pip he is dead.

Should it happen that when the player reaches the last hole which his store of pips enables him to gain, he finds 3 pips therein, he has suëb as it is called, that is to say he may add these 3 to the one he has still remaining and put these 4 as winnings in his geudōng. He can then go on playing with the pips in the next hole (adòë suëb = the "younger brother" of the suëb); but if this next hole be empty he may retain the winnings but the turn passes to his opponent.

Thus they go on until there are too few pips left outside the two geudōngs to play round with. Then each of the players takes one turn with one of the pips which remains over on his own side of the board. If he is compelled to put his pip in one of the holes on the opposite side, he loses it and when all the pips are thus lost the game is finished.

Pachih is a favourite game among the men in Acheh. They are well aware that it has been introduced by Klings and other natives of Hindustan. It has been adopted with but slight modifications and even such as there are may also possibly be of foreign origin, for the description of pachisi (= pachih) to be found in G. A. Herklots Qanoon-e-islam, Appx. pp. LVIII–LIX and Plate VII, Fig. 2, differs from the system of play adopted by the Klings now in Acheh, so that it would appear that there are varieties of this game in India also.

Pachih is played with two, three or four persons. Each player sits at one extremity of the cross-shaped pachih-board (papeuën pachih) or pachih-cloth (ruja pachih). Ornamental cloths are sometimes made for this game, with the squares handsomely embroidered. The starting points for the players are the squares A, B, C and D; in these each places