Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 90.djvu/312

 296

��Popular Science Monthly

���rounded and are preferably of ironwood, hickory, birch, or other rather heavy wood. The larger end or head of the snake is often slightly curved. Each player is provided with five sticks and each stick or snake is marked — the first with one notch, the second with two notches, and so on.

To play the game, a line for the take-off is drawn across the snow. Each play- er stands on the line and takes turns in shooting the sticks. When all have shot the first shaft, the one which has traveled the greatest distance scores for the thrower one point.

After all the one-notch snakes are shot they are gathered and placed at one side, and the snakes having two notches are thrown in the same way as the first round. The winner of the first round is entitled to the first throw in the second, which is scored in the same manner, except that the win- ner scores two points, cor- responding with the number of notches on his stick. When the stick with three notches is thrown, the win- ner scores three, and so on. While a certain number of points may determine the duration of the game, the Indian game ends when all of the five sticks have been thrown.

Double- Rim Fox Trail

This is a particularly good chasing game for three or more persons to play over the snow. As shown in the illus- tration two circles are marked off — the outer

����ft.

��Snow dart runs down in- cline by its own momentum

��circle being about 40 in diameter and the inner circle 10 ft. smaller than the outer one. The circles are then bisected with straight lines, similar to the spokes of a wheel, the number of spokes depending on the number of players. At the points where the outer spokes cross the outer circle, the goals or dens for the foxes are marked ofif, allowing one less den than the number of foxes.

Choose a player for the hunter, who stands in the center, at the hub of the wheel. The other players, who are the foxes, take their places in the dens around the outer circle, except one, who is the odd fox; he stands out- side the den anywhere on the outer circle. This odd fox endeavors to steal a den wherever he can.

The object of the game is for the foxes to exchange dens without being caught by the alert hunter and with- out allowing the odd fox to get a den.

All players must keep to the trails and run only on the lines of the diagram, but they may run in every direc- tion on either of the circles or on the spokes of the wheel. It is not allowable for a fox to turn back on his trail, and once started he must continue to the next den. When the hunter tags a fox, the two change places. When played in deep snow, paths marking out the circles and spokes should be trodden down and well packed for the game.

�� �