This game is played with dice upon a table by two persons, upon which there are twenty-four black and white spaces, called points. Each adversary has fifteen men, black and white, to distinguish them, and they are disposed of in the following manner. Supposing the game to be played into the right hand table, two are placed upon the ace point in the adversary’s table, five upon the six point in the opposite table, three upon the cinque point in the hithermost table, and five on the sixth point in the right hand table. The grand object in this game is for each player to bring the men round into his right hand table, by throwing with a pair of dice those throws that contribute towards it, and at the same time prevent the adversary doing the like. The first best throw upon the dice is esteemed aces, because it stops the six point in the outer table, and secures the cinque in the thrower’s table, whereby the adversary’s two men upon the thrower’s ace point cannot get out with either quatre, cinque, or six. This throw is an advantage often given to the antagonist by the superior player. When he carries his men home in order to lose no point, he is to carry the most distant man to his adversary’s bar point, that being the first stage he is to place it on; the next stage is six points farther, viz. in the place where the adversary’s five men are first placed out of his tables. He must go on this method till all his men are brought home, except two, when, by losing a point, he may often save the gammon, by throwing two fours or two fives. When a hit is only played for, he should endeavour to gain either his own or adversary’s cinque point, and if that fails by his being hit by the adversary, and he finds him forwarder than himself, in that case he must throw more men into the adversary’s tables, which is done in this manner: he must put a man upon his cinque or bar point, and if the adversary fails to hit it, he may then gain a forward game instead of a back game; but if the adversary hit him, he should play for a back game, and then the greater number of men which are taken up makes his game the better, because by these means he will preserve his game at home, and then he should endeavour to gain both his adversary’s ace and trois points, and take care to keep three men upon the adversary’s ace point, that, in case he hits him from thence, that point may remain still secure to himself. A back game should not be played for at the beginning of a set, because it would be a great disadvantage, the player running the risk of a gammon to win a single hit.