Chapter 16

wealth is the standard of worth--in the minds of friends, a notion equally degrading to both parties.

ii. Overdress; causing unnecessary expense and waste of time.

iii. Expensive entertainments, as regards refreshments.

iv. Late hours.

The following brief rules are suggested, in a hope to show the way to a more constant, easy, and friendly intercourse amongst friends, the writer feeling convinced that society is equally beneficial and requisite--in fact, that mankind in seclusion, like the sword in the scabbard, often loses polish, and gradually rusts.

RULE I. That meetings be held in rotation at each member's house, for the enjoyment of conversation; music, grave and gay; dancing, gay only; and card-playing at limited stakes.

RULE II. That such meetings commence at seven and end about or after twelve, and that members and guests be requested to remember that punctuality has been called the politeness of kings.

RULE III. That as gentlemen are allowed for the whole season to appear, like the raven, in one suit, ladies are to have the like privilege; and that no lady be allowed to quiz or notice the habits of another lady; and that demi-toilette in dress be considered the better taste in the family circle; not that the writer wishes to raise or lower the proper standard of ladies' dress, which ought to be neither too high nor too low, but at a happy medium.

RULE IV. That any lady infringing the last rule be liable to reproof by the oldest lady present at the meeting, if the oldest lady, like the oldest inhabitant, can be discovered.

RULE V. That every member or guest, be requested to bring with them their own vocal, instrumental, or dance music, and take it away with them, if possible, to avoid loss and confusion.

RULE VI. That no member or guest, able to sing, play, or dance, refuse, unless excused by medical certificate; and that no cold or sore throat be allowed to last more than a week.

RULE VII. That as every member or guest known to be able to sing, play, or dance, is bound to do so if requested, the performer (especially if timid) is to be kindly criticized and encouraged; it being a fact well known, that the greatest masters of an art are always the most lenient critics, from their deep knowledge of the feeling, intelligence, and perseverance required to at all approach perfection.

RULE VIII. That gentlemen present do pay every attention to ladies, especially visitors; but such attention is to be general, and not particular--for instance, no gentleman is to dance more than three times with one lady during the evening, except in the case of lovers, privileged to do odd things during their temporary lunacy, and also married couples, who are expected to dance together at least once during the evening, and oftener if they please.

RULE IX. That to avoid unnecessary expense, the refreshments be limited to cold meat, sandwiches, bread, cheese, butter, vegetables, fruits, tea, coffee, negus, punch, malt liquors, &c., &c.

RULE X. That all personal or face-to-face laudatory speeches (commonly called toasts, or, as may be, roasts) be for the future forbidden, without permission or inquiry, for reasons following:--That as the family circle includes bachelors and spinsters, and he, she, or they may be secretly engaged, it will be therefore cruel to excite hopes that may be disappointed; and that as some well-informed Benedick of long experience may after supper advise the bachelor to find the way to woman's heart--_vice versa_, some deep-feeling wife or widow, by "pity moven," may, perhaps, after supper advise the spinster the other way, which, in public, is an impropriety manifestly to be avoided.

RULE XI. (_suggested by a lady_). That any lady, after supper, may (if she please) ask any gentleman apparently diffident, or requiring encouragement, to dance with her, and that no gentleman can of course refuse so kind a request.

RULE XII. That no gentleman be expected to escort any lady home on foot beyond a distance of three miles, unless the gentleman be positive and the lady agreeable.

RULE THE LAST. That as the foregoing remarks and rules are intended, in perfect good faith and spirit, to be considered general and not personal, no umbrage is to be taken, and the reader is to bear in mind the common and homely saying,--

"Always at trifles scorn to take offence, It shows great pride and very little sense."

P.S.--To save trouble to both parties, this invitation be deemed accepted, without the necessity to reply, unless refused within twenty-four hours.

46. Evening Pastimes.

Among the innocent recreations of the fireside, there are few more commendable and practicable than those afforded by what are severally termed Anagrams, Arithmorems, Single and Double Acrostics, Buried Cities, &c., Charades, Conundrums, Cryptographs, Enigmas, Logogriphs, Puzzles, Rebuses, Riddles, Transpositions, &c. Of these there are such a variety, that they are suited to every capacity; and they present this additional attraction, that ingenuity may be exercised in the _invention_ of them, as well as in their solution. Many persons who have become noted for their literary compositions may date the origin of their success to the time when they attempted the composition of a trifling enigma or charade.

47. Acrostics.

The acrostic is a short poem in which the first letters of each line, read collectively, form a name, word, or sentence. The word comes from the Greek _akros_, extreme, and _stichos_, order or line. The acrostic was formerly in vogue for valentine and love verses. When employed as a riddle it is called a _Rebus_, which see.

[AS A MAN LIVES, SO SHALL HE DIE.]

48. Acrostics (Double).

This very fashionable riddle is a double Rebus, the initial and final letters of a word or words selected making two names or two words. The usual plan is to first suggest the foundation words, and then to describe the separate words, whose initials and finals furnish the answer to the question. Thus:

A Party to charm the young and erratic-- But likely to frighten the old and rheumatic.

1 The carriage in which the fair visitants came:

2 A very old tribe with a very old name;

3 A brave Prince of Wales free from scandal or shame.

The answer is Picnic.

1 P Phaeton N 2 I Iceni I 3 C Caradoc C

Sometimes the Double Acrostic is in prose, as in this brief example:

A Briton supports his wig, his grand-mother, his comfort, and his country-women.

The answer is, Beef--Beer:

_Bob, Eve, Ease, Fair_.

49. Acrostics (Triple)

are formed on the same plan, three names being indicated by the initial, central, and final letters of the selected words.

50. Anagrams

are formed by the transposition of the letters of words or sentences, or names of persons, so as to produce a word, sentence, or verse, of pertinent or of widely different meaning. They are very difficult to discover, but are exceedingly striking when good. The following are some of the most remarkable:

Words Transpositions

Astronomers............ No more stars. Catalogues..............Got as a clue. Elegant ................Neat leg. Impatient...............Tim in a pet. Immediately.............I met my Delia. Masquerade .............Queer as mad. Matrimony...............Into my arm. Melodrama...............Made moral. Midshipman..............Mind his map. Old England.............Golden land. Parishioners............I hire parsons. Parliament..............Partial men. Penitentiary............Nay I repeat it. Presbyterian............Best in prayer. Radical Reform..........Rare mad frolic. Revolution..............To love ruin. Sir Robert Peel.........Terrible poser. Sweetheart..............There we sat. Telegraphs..............Great helps.

51. Arithmorems.

This class of riddle is of recent introduction. The Arithmorem is made by substituting figures in a part of the word indicated, for Roman numerals. The nature of the riddle--from the Greek _arithmos_, number, and the Latin _remanere_, back again--will be easily seen from the following example, which is a double Arithmorem:

H 51 and _a tub_--a fine large fish. A 100 and _gore_--a sprightly movement in music. R 5 and _be_--a part of speech. U 551 and _as and_--a Spanish province. To 201 and _ran_--a stupefying drug. R 102 and _nt_--an acid. OU 250 and _pap_--a Mexican town.

The answer is Havanna--Tobacco. _H_alibu_t_, _A_llegr_o_, _V_er_b_, _A_ndalusi_a_, _N_arcoti_c_, _N_itri_c_, _A_capulc_o_.

52. Charades

are compositions, poetical or otherwise, founded upon words, each syllable of which constitutes a _noun_, the whole of each word constituting another noun of a somewhat different meaning from those supplied by its separate syllables. Words which fully answer these conditions are the best for the purposes of charades; though many other words are employed. In writing, the first syllable is termed "_My first_," the second syllable "_My second_," and the complete word "_My whole_." The following is an example of a Poetical Charade:

The breath of the morning is sweet; The earth is bespangled with flowers, And buds in a countless array Have ope'd at the touch of the showers. The birds, whose glad voices are ever A music delightful to hear, Seem to welcome the joy of the morning, As the hour of the bridal draws near. What is that which now steals on _my first_, Like a sound from the dreamland of love, And seems wand'ring the valleys among, That they may the nuptials approve? 'Tis a sound which _my second_ explains, And it comes from a sacred abode, And it merrily trills as the villagers throng To greet the fair bride on her road. How meek is her dress, how befitting a bride So beautiful, spotless, and pure! When she weareth _my second_, oh, long may it be Ere her heart shall a sorrow endure. See the glittering gem that shines forth from her hair-- 'Tis _my whole_, which a good father gave; Twas worn by her mother with honour before-- But _she_ sleeps in peace in her grave. Twas her earnest request, as she bade them adieu, That when her dear daughter the altar drew near, She should wear the same gem that her mother had worn When she as a bride full of promise stood there.

The answer is _Ear-ring_. The bells _ring_, the sound steals upon the _ear_, and the bride wears an _ear ring_. Charades may be sentimental or humorous, in poetry or prose; they may also be _acted_, in which manner they afford considerable amusement.

53. Charades (Acted).

A drawing room with folded doors is the best for the purpose. Various household appliances are employed to fit up something like a stage, and to supply the fitting scenes. Characters dressed in costumes made up of handkerchiefs, coats, shawls, table-covers, &c., come on and perform an extempore play, founded upon the parts of a word, and its _whole_, as indicated already. For instance, the events explained in the poem given might be _acted_--glasses might be rung for bells--something might be said in the course of the dialogues about the sound of the bells being delightful to the _ear_; there might be a dance of the villagers, in which a _ring_ might be formed; a wedding might be performed, and so on: but for _acting charades_ there are many better words, because _Ear-ring_ could with difficulty be _represented_ without at once betraying the meaning. There is a little work entitled "Philosophy and Mirth united by Pen and Pencil," and another work, "Our Charades; and How we Played Them," [1] by Jean Francis, which supply a large number of these Charades. But the following is the most extensive list of words ever published upon which Charades may be founded:

[Note: hyphen added to Art less, Bar rack]

[Footnote 1: "Philosophy and Mirth, united by Pen and Pencil," One Shilling.

"Our Charades; and How we played Them," by Jean Francis, One Shilling.

Both published by Houlston and Sons, Paternoster Square, London, EC.]

[A FOOL'S BOLT IS SOON SHOT.]

54. Words which may be converted into Acting or Written Charades:

Aid-less Air-pump Ale-house Ann-ounce Arch-angel Arm-let Art-less Ass-ail

Ba-boon Back-bite Back-slide Bag-gage Bag-pipe Bag-dad Bail-able Bale-ful Band-age Band-box Bane-ful Bar-bed Bar-gain Bar-rack Bar-row Bat-ten Beard-less Bid-den Bird-lime Birth-right Black-guard Blame-less Block-head Boat-man Boot-jack Book-worm Bound-less Bow-ling Brace-let Brain-less Break-fast Breath-less Brick-bat Brick-dust Bride-cake Bride-groom Broad-cloth Broad-side Broad-sword

Brow-beat Brown-stone Bug-bear Bull-dog Bump-kin Buoy-ant But-ton

Cab-in Can-did Can-ton Care-ful Car-pet Car-rot Cart-ridge Chair-man Chamber-maid Cheer-ful Cheer-less Christ-mas Church-yard Clans-men Clerk-ship Cob-web Cock-pit Cod-ling Coin-age Con-fined Con-firm Con-form Con-tent Con-test Con-tract Con-verse Cork-screw Count-less Court-ship Crab-bed Cross-bow Cur-tail Cut-throat

Dark-some Day-break Death-watch Dog-ma Don-key Drink-able Drug-get Duck-ling

Ear-ring Earth-quake Ear-wig

False-hood Fan-atic Fare-well Far-thing Fear-less Fee-ling Field-farm Fire-lock Fire-man Fire-pan Fire-ship Fire-work Fir-kin Fish-hook Flag-rant Flip-pant Flood-gate Fond-ling Foot-ball Foot-man Foot-pad Foot-step Foot-stool For-age For-bear For-bid Found-ling Fox-glove Free-hold Free-stone Fret-work Fri-day Friend-ship Frost-bite Fur-long

Gain-say Gang-way Glow-worm Glut-ton God-child God-daughter God-father God-like God-mother God-son Gold-finch Gold-smith Goose-berry Grand-father Grate-ful Grave-stone Green-finch Grey-hound Grim-ace Grind-stone Ground-plot Ground-sell Guard-ship Gun-powder

Had-dock Hail-stone Hail-storm Half-penny Ham-let Ham-mock Hand-cuff Hang-man Hap-pen Hard-ship Hard-ware Harts-horn Head-land Head-less Head-long Head-stone Head-strong Hear-say Heart-less Heart-sick Heart-string Hedge-hog Heir-less Heir-loom Hell-hound Hell-kite Hence-forth Hen-roost Herb-age Herds-man Her-self Hid-den High-land High-way Hind-most Hoar-frost Hob-goblin Hogs-head Home-bred Honey-bag Honey-comb Honey-moon Honey-suckle Hood-wink Horse-back Horse-shoe Host-age Hot-bed Hot-house Hot-spur Hounds-ditch Hour-glass House-hold House-maid House-wife Hum-drum Hump-back Hurri-cane

Ill-nature Ill-usage In-action In-born In-crease In-justice Ink-ling In-land In-mate In-no-cent In-sane In-spirit In-tent Inter-meddle Inter-sect Inter-view In-valid In-vent In-vest In-ward Ire-ful Iron-mould I-sing-lass

Jac(k)o-bite Joy-ful Joy-less Justice-ship

Key-stone Kid-nap King-craft King-fisher Kins-man Kit-ten Knight-hood Know-ledge

Lace-man Lady-bird Lady-ship Lamp-black Land-lady Land-lord Land-mark Land-scape Land-tax Lap-dog Lap-pet Laud-able Law-giver Law-suit Lay-man Leap-frog Leap-year Lee-ward Life-guard Like-wise Live-long Load-stone Log-book Log-wood Loop-hole Lord-ship Love-sick Low-land Luck-less Luke-warm

Ma-caw Mad-cap Mad-house Mad-man Mag-pie Main-mast Main-sail Main-spring Mam-moth Man-age Man-date Marks-man Mar-row Mass-acre Match-less May-game Meat-man Mis-chance Mis-chief Mis-count Mis-deed Mis-judge Mis-quote Monks-hood Moon-beam Moon-light Muf-fin

Name-sake Nan-keen Nap-kin Neck-cloth Neck-lace Nest-ling News-paper Nick-name Night-cap Night-gown Night-mare Night-watch Nine-fold Noon-tide North-star North-ward Not-able Not-ice No-where Nut-gall Nut-meg

Oak-apple Oat-cake Oat-meal Off-end Oil-man O-men On-set O-pen O-pinion Our-selves Out-act Out-bid Out-brave Out-brazen Out-cast Out-cry Out-do Out-grow Out-law Out-line Out-live Out-march Out-rage Out-ride Out-run Out-sail Out-sell Out-shine Out-side Out-sit Out-sleep Out-spread Out-stare Out-stretch Out-talk Out-vie Out-ward Out-weigh Out-wit Out-work Out-worn Over-act Over-awe Over-bear Over-board Over-boil Over-burden Over-cast Over-charge Over-cloud Over-come Over-court Over-do Over-due Over-eye Over-feed Over-flow Over-grown Over-head Over-hear Over-heard Over-joy Over-lade Over-lay Over-leap Over-load Over-look Over-mast Over-match Over-pass Over-pay Over-peer Over-plus Over-poise Over-power Over-press Over-rack Over-rate Over-reach Over-right Over-ripen Over-roast Over-rule Over-run Over-see Over-seer Over-set Over-shade Over-shadow Over-shoe Over-shoot Over-sight Over-size Over-sleep Over-spread Over-stock Over-strain Over-sway Over-swell Over-take Over-throw Over-took Over-value Over-work Ox-gall Ox-lip

Pack-age Pack-cloth Pad-dock Pad-lock Pain-ful Pain-less Pal-ace Pal-ate Pal-let Pan-cake Pan-tiler Pa-pa Pa-pal Par-able Pa-rent Pa-ring Par-snip Par-son Par-took Part-ridge Pass-able Pass-over Pas-time Patch-work Pa-tent Path-way Pat-ten Peace-able Pea-cock Pear-led Peer-age Peer-less Pen-knife Pen-man Pen-man-ship Penny-worth Per-jury Pert-in-a-city Pick-lock Pick-pocket Pie-bald Pike-staff Pill-age Pin-cushion Pine-apple Pip-kin Pitch-fork Pit-men Plain-tiff Play-fellow Play-house Play-mate Play-wright Plough-man Plough-share Pole-cat Pol-lute Pop-gun Pop-in-jay Port-age Port-hole Post-age Post-chaise Post-date Post-house Post-man Post-office Pot-ash Pot-hook Pound-age Prim-rose Prior-ship Prop-a-gate Punch-bowl

Quad-rant Quench-less Quick-lime Quick-sand Quick-set Quick-silver

Rain-bow Ram-part Ran-sack Rap-a-city Rasp-berry Rattle-snake Red-breast Red-den Rid-dance Ring-leader Ring-let Ring-tail Ring-worm Rolling-pin Rose-water Rot-ten Round-about Round-house Run-a-gate Rush-light

Safe-guard Sal-low Sand-stone Sat-in Sat-ire Sauce-box Sauce-pan Saw-dust Saw-pit Scare-crow Scarf-skin Scar-let School-fellow School-master School-mistress Scot-free Screech-owl Scul-lion Sea-born Sea-calf Sea-coal Sea-faring Sea-girt Sea-gull Sea-maid Sea-man Seam-less Seam-stress Sea-nymph Sea-piece Sea-port Sea-sick Sea-son Sea-ward Second-hand Seed-cake Seed-ling Seed-pearl Seed-time Seers-man Sex-tile Sex-ton Shame-less Sham-rock Shape-less Sharp-set Sheep-cot Sheep-shearing Sheep-walk Sheet-anchor Shell-fish Shift-less Ship-board Ship-wreck Shirt-less Shoe-string Shoe-waker Shop-board Shop-keeper Shop-man Shore-less Short-hand Short-lived Short-sighted Shot-free Shoulder-belt Shrove-tide Side-board Side-long Side-saddle Side-ways Sight-less Silk-weaver Silk-worm Silver-smith Sin-less Six-fold Skim-milk Skip-jack Sky-lark Sky-light Slap-dash Sleeve-less Slip-board Slip-shod Slip-slop Slope-wise Slow-worm Snip-pet Snip-snap Snow-ball Snow-drop Snuff-box Sod-den Sol-ace So-lo Sol-vent Some-body Some-how Some-time Some-what Some-where Song-stress Son-net Southern-wood Span-king Spare-rib Spar-row Speak-able Speech-less Spite-ful Sports-man Spot-less Spring-halt Spruce-beer Stair-case Star-board Star-gazer Star-less Star-light Star-like Star-ling States-man Stead-fast Steel-yard Steer-age Step-dame Step-daughter Step-father Step-mother Steward-ship Stiff-neck Still-born Stock-jobber Stone-fruit Store-fruit Store-house Stow-age Strata-gem Straw-berry Stream-let Strip-ling Sum-mary Summer-house Summer-set Sun-beam Sun-burnt Sun-day Sun-dry Sun-flower Sun-less Sup-plant Sup-pliant Sup-port Sup-port-able Sup-position Sup-press Swans-down Sweep-stake Sweet-bread Sweet-briar Sweet-heart Sweet-william Sweet-willow Swine-herd Swords-man

Tar-get Tar-tar Taw-dry Tax-able Tea-cup Teem-ful Teem-less Tell-tale Ten-able Ten-a-city Ten-ant Ten-dance Ten-don Ten-dril Ten-or Thank-ful Thank-less Them-selves Thence-forth There-after There-at There-by There-fore There-from There-in There-on There-to There-with Thick-set Thought-ful Thought-less Thread-bare Three-fold Three-score Thresh-old Through-out Thunder-bolt Thunder-struck Till-age Tip-pet Tip-staff Tire-some Title-page Toad-stool Toil-some Tom-boy Tooth-ache Top-knot Top-most Top-sail Touch-stone Touch-wood Towns-man Toy-shop Track-less Trap-door Tre-foil Trip-let Trip-thong Trod-den Turn-pike Turn-spit Turn-stile Tutor-age Twelfth-night Twelfth-tide Two-fold Two-pence

Up-braid Up-hill Up-hold Up-land Up-ride Up-right Up-roar Up-shot Up-start Up-ward Use-less

Vain-glory Van-guard Vault-age

Wag-on Wag-tail Wain-scot Waist-coat Wake-ful Wal-nut Wan-ton Ward-mate Ward-robe Ward-ship Ware-house War-fare War-like War-rant Wash-ball Waste-ful Watch-ful Watch-man Watch-word Water-course Water-fall Water-fowl Water-man Water-mark Water-mill Water-work Way-lay Way-ward Weather-cock Weather-glass Weather-wise Web-bed Web-foot Wed-lock Week-day Wel-come Wel-fare Well-born Well-bred Wheel-wright Where-at Where-by Whet-stone Whip-cord Whip-hand Whirl-pool Whirl-wind White-wash Whit-low Whit-sun-tide Who-ever Whole-sale Whole-some Wild-fire Wil-low Wind-lass Wind-mill Wind-pipe Win-now Win-some Wise-acre Wit-less Wolf-dog Wood-cock Wood-land Wood-lark Wood-man Wood-note Wood-nymph Work-house Work-man Work-shop Worm-wood Wrath-ful Wrath-less Wrist-band Writ-ten

Year-ling Youth-ful

[A LIAR SHOULD HAVE A GOOD MEMORY.]

55. Chronograms or Chrono-graphs

are riddles in which the letters of the Roman notation in a sentence or series of words are so arranged as to make up a date. The following is a good example:

My Day Closed Is In Immortality.

The initials MDCIII. give 1603, the year of Queen Elizabeth's death. Sometimes the Chronogram is employed to express a date on coins or medals; but oftener it is simply used as a riddle:

A poet who in blindness wrote; another lived in Charles's reign; a third called the father of English verse; a Spanish dramatist; the scolding wife of Socrates; and the Prince of Latin poets,--their initials give the year of the Great Plague--MDCLXV.--1665: Milton, Dryden, Chaucer, Lope-de-Vega, Xantippe, Virgil.

The word comes from _Chronos_, time, and _gramma_, a letter.

[BEGIN WELL AND END BETTER.]

56. Conundrums.

These are simple catches, in which the sense is playfully cheated, and are generally founded upon words capable of double meaning. The following are examples:

Where did Charles the First's executioner dine, and what did he take? _He took a chop at the King's Head._

When is a plant to be dreaded more than a mad dog? _When it's madder._

What is majesty stripped of its externals? It is _a jest_. [The _m_ and the _y_, externals, are taken away.]

Why is hot bread like a caterpillar? _Because it's the grub that makes the butter fly._

Why did the accession of Victoria throw a greater damp over England than the death of King William? _Because the King was missed_ (mist) _while the Queen was reigning_ (raining).

Why should a gouty man make his will? _To have his legatees_ (leg at ease).

Why are bankrupts more to be pitied than idiots? _Because bankrupts are broken, while idiots are only cracked._

Why is the treadmill like a true convert? _Because it's turning is the result of conviction._

When may a nobleman's property be said to be all feathers? _When his estates are all entails_ (hen-tails).

[EVERY MAN KNOWS WHERE HIS OWN SHOE PINCHES.]

57. Cryptography, or secret writing

from the Greek _cryptos_, a secret, and _graphein_, to write--has been largely employed in state despatches, commercial correspondence, love epistles, and riddles. The telegraphic codes employed in the transmission of news by electric wire, partakes somewhat of the cryptographic character, the writer employing certain words or figures, the key to which is in the possession of his correspondent. The single-word despatch sent by Napier to the Government of India, was a sort of cryptographic conundrum--_Peccavi_, I have sinned (Scinde); and in the agony column of the 'Times' there commonly appear paragraphs which look puzzling enough until we discover the key-letter or figure. Various and singular have been the devices adopted--as, for instance, the writing in the perforations of a card especially prepared, so as only to allow the real words of the message to be separated from the mass of writing by means of a duplicate card with similar perforations; the old Greek mode of writing on the edges of a strip of paper wound round a stick in a certain direction, and the substitution of figures or signs for letters or words. Where one letter is always made to Stand for another, the secret of a cryptograph is soon discovered, but when, as in the following example, the same letter does not invariably correspond to the letter for which it is a substitute, the difficulty of deciphering the cryptograph is manifestly increased:

Ohs ya h sych, oayarsa rr loucys syms Osrh srore rrhmu h smsmsmah emshyr snms.

The translation of this can be made only by the possessor of the key.

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z h u s h m o n e y b y c h a r l e s h r o s s e s q

"Hush Money, by Charles H. Ross, Esq."--twenty-six letters which, when applied to the cryptograph, will give a couplet from Parnell's "Hermit":

"Far in a wild, unknown to public view, From youth to age a reverend hermit grew."

The employment of figures and signs for letters is the most usual form of the cryptograph. From the following jumble we get a portion of Hamlet's address to the Ghost:

9 a 6 2 x # 9 a 1 | 3 a 3 # 2 \ # * 7 6 \ 9 5 2 1 2 7 2 a 1 ; # 4 2 8 * ; # ( 3 \ 3 , * 7 8 2 9 x , 1 * \ 6 * 4 x 3 a 1 9 | a 2 1

With the key

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z 9 4 5 1 2 7 6 8 3 + - x | a * ( ) \ # , ; : . o $ /

it is easy to write and not very hard to read the entire speech. The whole theory of the cryptogram is that each correspondent possesses the key to the secret. To confound an outside inquirer the key is often varied. A good plan is to take a line from any ordinary book and substitute the first twenty-six of its letters for those of the alphabet. In your next cryptogram you take the letters from another page or another book. It is not necessary to give an example. Enough will be seen from what we have written to instruct an intelligent inquirer.

58. Decapitations and Curtailments

are riddles somewhat of the nature of the Logogriph, which _see_. In the first, the omission of the successive initials produces new words, as--Prelate, Relate, Elate, Late, Ate. In the curtailment the last letter of the word is taken away with a similar result, as--Patent, Paten, Pate, Pat, Pa. Of like kind are the riddles known as variations, mutilations, reverses, and counterchanges. A good example of the last-named is this:

Charge, Chester, Charge: on, Stanley, on! Were the last words of Marmion. Had I but been in Stanley's place, When Marmion urged him to the chase, A tear might come on every face.

The answer is onion--On, I, on.

[MOCK NOT A COBBLER FOR HIS BLACK THUMB.]

59. Enigmas

are compositions of a different character, based upon _ideas_, rather than upon words, and frequently constructed so as to mislead, and to surprise when the solution is made known. Enigmas may be founded upon simple catches, like Conundrums, in which form they are usually called RIDDLES, such as:

"Though you set me on foot, I shall be on my head."

The answer is, _A nail in a shoe_. The celebrated Enigma on the letter H, by Miss Catherine Fanshawe, but usually attributed to Lord Byron, commencing:

"'Twas whispered in heaven, 'twas muttered in hell, And echo caught faintly the sound as it fell;"

and given elsewhere in this volume (See _par_. 215, page 77), is an admirable specimen of what may be rendered in the form of an Enigma.

60. Hidden Words.

A riddle in which names of towns, persons, rivers, &c., are hidden or arranged, without transposition, in the midst of sentences which convey no suggestion of their presence. In the following sentence, for instance, there are hidden six Christian names:--Here is hid a name the people of Pisa acknowledge: work at each word, for there are worse things than to give the last shilling for bottled wine.--The names are Ida, Isaac, Kate, Seth, Ethel, Edwin. Great varieties of riddles, known as Buried Cities, Hidden Towns, &c., are formed on this principle, the words being sometimes placed so as to read backwards, or from right to left. The example given will, however, sufficiently explain the mode of operation.

61. Lipogram

from _leipein_, to leave out, and _gramma_, a letter--is a riddle in which a name or sentence is written without its vowels, as:

Thprffthpddngsthtng, The proof of the pudding is in the eating.

Whnhnorslst ts--rlftd, Dths bt--sr rtrt fm nfmy.

"When honour's lost 'tis a relief to die, Death's but a sure retreat from infamy."

This riddle sometimes appears as a proverb.

"Fear's the white feather all cowards wear." ----s' th wht fthr ll cwrds----

62. Logogriph.

This is a riddle (_logos_, a word, and _griphos_, a riddle) in which a word is made to undergo several changes. These changes are brought about by the addition, subtraction, omission, or substitution of a letter or letters. The following, by the late Lord Macaulay, is an excellent example:

"Cut off my head, how singular I act: Cut off my tail, and plural I appear. Cut off my head and tail--most curious fact, Although my middle's left, there's nothing there! What is my head cut off?--a sounding sea! What is my tail cut off?--a flowing river! Amid their mingling deaths I fearless play Parent of softest sounds, though mute for ever!"

The answer is _cod_. Cut off its head and it is _od_ (odd, singular); its tail, and it is Co., plural, for company; head and tail, and it is o, nothing. Its head is a sounding C (sea), its tail a flowing D (river Dee), and amid their depths the cod may fearless play, parent of softest _sounds_ yet mute for ever.

63. Metagram,

a riddle in which the change of the initial letter produces a series of words of different meanings; from _meta_, implying change, and _gramma_, a letter. Thus:

I cover your head; change my head, and I set you to sleep; change it again and again, and with every change comes a new idea.--Cap, Nap, Gap, Sap, Hap, Map, Lap, Pap, Rap, Tap. This kind of riddle is also known as word-capping.

[GUNPOWDER MADE BY A MONK AT COLOGNE A.D.1330.]

64. Palindrome,

from the Greek _palin-dromos_, running back again. This is a word, sentence, or verse that reads the same both forwards and backwards--as, madam, level, reviver; live on no evil; love your treasure and treasure your love; you provoked Harry before Harry provoked you; servants respect masters when masters respect servants. Numerous examples of Palindrome or reciprocal word-twisting exist in Latin and French; but in English it is difficult to get a sentence which will be exactly the same when read either way. The best example is the sentence which, referring to the first banishment of the Great Napoleon, makes him say, as to his power to conquer Europe:

"Able was I ere I saw Elba."

65. Puzzles

vary much. One of the simplest that we know is this:

Take away half of thirteen and let eight remain.

Write XIII on a slate, or on a piece of paper--rub out the lower half of the figures, and VIII will remain.

Upon the principle of the square-words, riddlers form Diagonals, Diamonds, Pyramids, Crosses, Stars, &c. These specimens will show their peculiarities:

66. Oblique Puzzle.

Malice, eight, a polemical meeting, a Scottish river, what I write with, a decided negative, the capital of Ireland. The initials downward name a celebrated musician.

(solution in p.67 below.)

67. Diagonal Puzzle.

A direction, a singer, a little bird, a lady's ring, a sharp shaver.

Read from left to right and right to left, the centrals show two famous novelists.

The following are answers to these two puzzles, and afford good examples of their construction to any one who wishes to try his hand at their manufacture.

OBLIQUE. DIAGONAL.

R E V E N G E L A B E L O C T A V E T E N O R S Y N O D D I V E R S P E Y J E W E L I N K R A Z O R N O I

68. Diamond Puzzle.

The head of a mouse, what the mouse lives in, the county of calves, the city of porcelain, a German town, a Transatlantic stream, a royal county, a Yorkshire borough, Eve's temptation, our poor relation, myself. Centrals down and across, show a wide, wide, long river.

The construction of the Diamond Puzzle is exhibited in the following diagram, which is, at the same time, the answer to it.

DIAMOND. M A I R E S S E X D R E S D E N G O T T I N G E N M I S S I S S I P P I B E R K S H I R E H A L I F A X A P P L E A P E I

69. Rebuses

are a class of Enigma generally formed by the first, sometimes the first and last, letters of words, or of transpositions of letters, or additions to words. Dr. Johnson, however, represents Rebus to be a word represented by a picture. And putting the Doctor's definition and our own explanation together, the reader may glean a good conception of the nature of the Rebus of which the following is an example:

The father of the Grecian Jove; A little boy who's blind; The foremost land in all the world; The mother of mankind; A poet whose love-sonnets are Still very much admired;-- The _initial_ letters will declare A blessing to the tired.

Answer--_S_aturn; _L_ove; _E_ngland; _E_ve; _P_lutarch. The initials form _sleep._

The excellent little work mentioned in para. 63, entitled "Philosophy and Mirth united by Pen and Pencil," has this novelty, that many of the Enigmas are accompanied by enigmatical pictures, so that the eye is puzzled as well as the ear.

[GLASS FIRST BROUGHT TO ENGLAND A.D. 668.]

70. Square Words.

A comparatively modern sort of riddle, in which the letters of each word selected reads both across and down. With four letters the making of the riddle is easy, but with five or six the difficulty increases. We give an example of each.

i. Inside, a thought, a liquid gem, a timid creature.

ii. To run out, odour, to boil, to loosen, unseen essence.