202 AMERICAN ANTHROPOLOGIST [n. s. f I. 1899
being to furnish a concise account of the games of Hawaii for comparative purposes.
Many of the ancient games and amusements of the Hawaiians have practically disappeared since the discovery of the islands by Captain Cook in 1778, but the people retain their pleasure-loving characteristics and assemble on their numerous holidays ' to en- gage in wrestling, cock-fighting, and other sports. Live pigs, bread-fruit, bananas, and cocoanuts are wagered on these occa- sions. Alexander 1 states that the Hawaiians resorted to games chiefly for the purpose of betting, to which they were excessively addicted. Men and women of all ranks were eager to stake every article they possessed on their favorite players, and the games seldom ended without fierce brawls between the different parties. This custom of betting to the utmost extent in all games came in, according to Brigham, 1 in the half century preceding the reign of Kamehameha I, coincident with a general decline in the strict observance of religious rites. It was not common to all the islands. Ellis 4 says that the natives of Tahiti do not appear to have been gamblers, nor to have accompanied any of their sports with betting, but seem to have followed their games simply for amusement.
The writer has included in this survey all amusements ex- cept the dance. He will be greatly obliged for additions and corrections.*
1 The principal holidays at present, according to my informants, are : March 17, birthday of Kamehameha II; June 1 1 , birthday of Kamehameha I; November 16, birthday of Kalakaua ; and New Year's day.
- Op. cit., p. 88.
- Preliminary Catalogue, part II, p. 54.
4 Op. cit. , p. 204.
- I have refrained from expressing any conclusions based on the material here pre-
tented. In general the games described may be referred to the continent of Asia or to recent European or American influence. There are several, however, which are more directly analogous to games played by the American Indians. The resemblance of mai-ka to the game of chunkee has already been pointed out (Andrew MacFarland Davis, Indian Games, Bulletin of the Essex Institute, Salem, 1885, vol. xvii, p. 126). To this must be added the stone-dice game, or lu4u, which resembles the game played with bone disks by the Micmac and Cheyenne Indians (see Chess and Playing Cards,
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