File:St. Nicholas (serial) (1873) (14597701950).jpg

Identifier: stnicholasserial31dodg (find matches)
Title: St. Nicholas (serial)
Year: 1873 (1870s)
Authors: Dodge, Mary Mapes, 1830-1905
Subjects: Children's literature
Publisher: (New York : Scribner & Co.)
Contributing Library: Information and Library Science Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Digitizing Sponsor: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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ains. The smoke-browned te-pees, crowned withprojecting pole-ends,and painted with fig-ures of animals andwith gaudy patterns,were set around in agreat circle, and thechildren were playingin the open, grassyspace in the center.Their fathers and mo-thers were as wild asany Indians, exceptone or two tribes,on the continent, butnothing of their sav-age natures showed inthese merry, lively,laughing, bright-facedlittle ragamuffins. Attheir play they laughedand screamed and hal-looed. Some were running foot races, somewere wrestling, some were on the backs ofscampering ponies; for they are sometimes puton horseback when they are no more than threeyears old. Such were their sports, for In-dian boys play games to make them sure ofaim, certain of foot, quick in motion, and supplein body, so that they can shoot and fight and ride and hunt and run well. To be able torun fast is a necessary accomplishment for anIndian. What they call runners are impor-tant men in every tribe. They are the messen-
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YOU SHOULD HAVE SEEN THE STAMPEDE THAT FOLLOWED THE SIGNAL, GO ger men, and many a one among them has runa hundred miles in a day. They cultivate run-ning by means of foot races. In war they agreewith the poet who sang : For he who fights and runs awayMay live to fight another day ; and afterward, if they were taken prisoners, theyhad a chance for life, in the old days, if they I9°4-) FUN AMONG THE RED BOYS. 723 could run fast enough to escape their captorsand the spears and bullets of their pursuers. A very popular game that attracted most ofthe Blackfeet boys was the throwing of darts,or little white hand-arrows, along the grass. Thegame was to see who could throw his arrowfarthest in a straight line. At times the air wasfull of the white missiles where the boys wereplaying, and they fell like rain upon the grass. In another part of the field were some largerboys with rude bows with which to shoot thesesame darts. These boys were playing a favoriteBlackfeet game. Each one had a dis

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