Pung Chow

It is a geographical book. Out of China has come this stately game with the lure of Oriental mysticism to whet jaded appetites and with possibilities for study that challenge the keenest intelligence. There is a mysticism about the Oriental and his mode of life that challenges the imagination and induces a curiosity hard to decipher. The dress of the Chinese, their strange customs, their difficult language, and their apparently impenetrable mask-like faces appeal to the fancy and throw a veil of mystery around even the commonplace. The origin of this game is lost in the mist of centuries past. There is, though, an oral tradition to the effect that it was originated in the Court of the King of Wu, now known as Ning-Po, during the year of 472 B.C. to entertain his consort and her court ladies and to help them while away the time which lay heavily on their hands. This was about the time of Confucius. It is, however, known to have been the Royal game, restricted to the use of Emperors and their friends of the Mandarin class for two thousand years. Pung Chow is made to withstand the climatic conditions which soon destroy the article imported under the name of Mah-Jongg and the other corruptions of Mah-Diao, and it is the true and original Chinese game translated by the addition of numerals just enough to be readily understood and not enough to spoil the artistry of the tiles. The addition of numerals has been overdone in the marking of many of the cheaper imported sets, and give the appearance of having had numerals sprinkled on them regardless of where they may land and permitted to stay. The fundamentals of this game are simple and require only practice to master. The science of Pung Chow must in the greater part be studied out by the individual player and one may spend the rest of his life in attaining to past mastery in its thousand-fold intricacies.