Indian Games | Page 2

III, p. 52.]
Parkman [Footnote: The Conspiracy of Pontiac, by Francis Parkman,
Boston, 1870, Vol. 1, p. 339.] concludes a vivid description of the
surprise and massacre of the garrison at Michilimackinac, based upon
authentic facts, as follows: "Bushing and striking, tripping their
adversaries, or hurling them to the ground, they pursued the animating
contest amid the laughter and applause of the spectators. Suddenly,
from the midst of the multitude, the ball soared into the air and,
descending in a wide curve, fell near the pickets of the fort. This was
no chance stroke. It was part of a preconcerted scheme to insure the
surprise and destruction of the garrison. As if in pursuit of the ball, the
players turned and came rushing, a maddened and tumultuous throng,
towards the gate. In a moment they had reached it. The amazed English
had no time to think or act. The shrill cries of the ball-players were
changed to the ferocious war-whoop. The warriors snatched from the
squaws the hatchets which the latter, with this design, had concealed
beneath their blankets. Some of the Indians assailed the spectators
without, while others rushed into the fort, and all was carnage and
confusion."
Thus we see that the favorite game of ball of the North American
Indians, known to-day, as it was in 1636, by the name of "lacrosse,"
was potent among them as a remedial exercise or superstitious rite to
cure diseases and avert disaster; that it formed part of stately
ceremonials which were intended to entertain and amuse distinguished
guests; and that it was made use of as a stratagem of war, by means of
which to lull the suspicions of the enemy and to gain access to their
forts.
The descriptions of lacrosse which have been transmitted to us, would
often prove unintelligible to one who had never seen the game played.
The writers of the accounts which have come down to us from the early
part of the seventeenth century were men whose lives were spent
among the scenes which they described and they had but little time, and
few opportunities for careful writing. The individual records though
somewhat confused enable us easily to identify the game, and a

comparison of the different accounts shows how thoroughly the main
features of the game have been preserved.
Lacrosse is played to-day as follows: The number of players on the
opposing sides should be equal. Regular stations are assigned in the
rules for playing the game, for twelve on each side. Goals, each
consisting of two upright posts or staffs, generally about six feet apart
and of equal height, are planted at each end of the field. The length of
the field and its bounds are determined by the character of the ground
and the skill of the players. The effort of each side is to prevent the ball
from passing through the goal assigned to its protection, and equally to
try to drive it through the opposite goal. Under no circumstances can
the ball be touched during the game, while within the bounds, by the
hands of the players. Each player has a racket, the length of which,
though optional, is ordinarily from four to five feet. One end of this
racket or bat is curved like a shepherd's crook, and from the curved end
a thong is carried across to a point on the handle about midway its
length. In the space thus enclosed between the thong and the handle,
which at its broadest part should not exceed a foot in width, a flat
network is interposed. This forms the bat. It is with this that the player
picks up and throws the ball used in the game, which should be about
eight or nine inches in circumference. The ball is placed in the centre of
the field by the umpire, and when the game is called, the opposing
players strive to get possession of it with their rackets. The play
consists in running with it and throwing it, with the design of driving it
between the adversary's goal posts; and in defensive action, the purpose
of which is to prevent the opponents from accomplishing similar
designs on their part. As the wind or the sunlight may favor one side or
the other on any field, provision is generally made for a change of goals
during the match. The stations of the players and the minor rules of the
game are unimportant in this connection.
The oldest attempt at a detailed description of the game is given by
Nicolas Perrot who from 1662 to 1699 spent the greater part of his time
as coureur de bois, trader, or government agent, among the Indians of
the far West. It is of him that Abbe Ferland says, "Courageous man,
honest writer and good