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