Part 15

A friend of mine lately told me of a newspaper of this description, edited by a nephew only eleven years of age. She said that its perfect regularity and neatness were beautiful to see. He printed the whole with a pen, and it was arranged in proper newspaper form. The leading editorials first, followed by a letter from abroad, anecdotes, terrible accidents, telegraph news, marriages, deaths, advertisements, etc., etc. He was one of a family of nine. Every member of the family wrote for it, even a little girl of six wrote an anecdote about her pet lamb.

Games of Memory.

FRENCH and English exercises of the memory, such as the following, may serve to amuse some leisure hour. The first is entitled the “Grand Panjandrum:”—“She went into the garden to cut a cabbage leaf to make an apple pie; and at the same time a great she-bear coming up the street pops its head into the shop. ‘What! no soap?’ So he died, and she very imprudently married the barber; and there were present the Picininnies, and the Joblillies, and the Gurgulies, and the great Panjandrum himself, with the little round button at top; and they all fell to playing the game of ‘catch as catch can,’ till the gunpowder ran out at the heels of their boots.”

“Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked; If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, Where is the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?”

“When a twister twisting would twist him a twist, For twisting his twist three twists he will twist; But if one of his twists untwists from the twist, The twist untwisting untwists the twist.”

“Didon dina, dit on, du dos d’un dodu dindon.”

“Robert Rowley rolled a round roll round; A round roll Robert Rowley rolled round; Where rolled the round roll Robert Rowley rolled round?”

A FRENCHMAN having taken herb tea for a cough, his neighbor asked him, “Ton Thè, t’a t’il otè ta toux?”

“LE JARDIN DE MA TANTE.”

LE vient du jardin de ma tante. O, qu’il est beau le jardin de ma tante! Dans le jardin de ma tante, il y a un arbre. O, qu’il est beau l’arbre du jardin de ma tante! Dans l’arbre du jardin de ma tante, il y a un trou. O, qu’il est beau le trou, de l’arbre du jardin de ma tante! Dans le trou, de l’arbre, du jardin, de ma tante, il y a un nid. O, qu’il est beau le nid, du trou, de l’arbre, du jardin de ma tante! Dans la nid, du trou, de l’arbre, du jardin, de ma tante, il y a un oiseau. O, qu’il est beau l’oiseau du nid, du trou, de l’arbre, du jardin, de ma tante!

L’oiseau du nid, du trou, de l’arbre, du jardin, de ma tante, porte dans son bec un billet, ou ces mots sont écrits:—“Je vous aime,” O, qu’ils sont doux ces mots, “Je vous aime,” qui sont écrits sur le billet porté dans le bec, de l’oiseau, du nid, du trou, de l’arbre, du jardin, de ma tante.

A GOOD FAT HEN.

1. A GOOD fat hen.

2. Two ducks and one good fat hen.

3. Three squalling wild geese, two ducks, and one good fat hen.

4. Four plump partridges, three squalling wild geese, two ducks, and one good fat hen.

5. Five hundred Limerick oysters, four plump partridges, three squalling wild geese, two ducks, and one good fat hen.

6. Six pairs of Don Alphonso’s tweezers, five hundred Limerick oysters, four plump partridges, three squalling wild geese, two ducks, and one good fat hen.

7. Seven hundred Macedonian horsemen drawn up in line of battle, six pairs of Don Alphonso’s tweezers, five hundred Limerick oysters, four plump partridges, three squalling wild geese, two ducks, and one good fat hen.

8. Eight cages of Heliogabulus sparrowkites, seven hundred Macedonian horsemen drawn up in line of battle, six pairs of Don Alphonso’s tweezers, five hundred Limerick oysters, four plump partridges, three squalling wild geese, two ducks, and one good fat hen.

9. Nine sympathetic, epithetic, didactic propositions, eight cages of Heliogabulus sparrowkites, seven hundred Macedonian horsemen drawn up in line of battle, six pairs of Don Alphonso’s tweezers, five hundred Limerick oysters, four plump partridges, three squalling wild geese, two ducks, and one good fat hen.

10. Ten helioscopic, peroscopic, pharmaceutical tubes, nine sympathetic, epithetic, didactic propositions, eight cages of Heliogabulus sparrowkites, seven hundred Macedonian horsemen drawn up in line of battle, six pairs of Don Alphonso’s tweezers, five hundred Limerick oysters, four plump partridges, three squalling wild geese, two ducks, and one good fat hen

11. Eleven flat bottomed fly boats floating from Madagascar to Mount Prunello, ten helioscopic, peroscopic, pharmaceutical tubes, nine sympathetic, epithetic, didactic propositions, eight cages of Heliogabulus sparrowkites, seven hundred Macedonian horsemen drawn up in line of battle, six pairs of Don Alphonso’s tweezers, five hundred Limerick oysters, four plump partridges, three squalling wild geese, two ducks, and one good fat hen.

12. Twelve European dancing masters sent to Egypt to teach the Egyptian mummies to dance and sing, eleven flat bottomed fly boats floating from Madagascar to Mount Prunello, ten helioscopic, peroscopic, pharmaceutical tubes, nine sympathetic, epithetic, didactic propositions, eight cages of Heliogabulus sparrowkites, seven hundred Macedonian horsemen drawn up in line of battle, six pairs of Don Alphonso’s tweezers, five hundred Limerick oysters, four plump partridges, three squalling wild geese, two ducks, and one good fat hen.

Parlor Games.

SQUAILS is a modern English game. The incompleteness of the original rules, and the ridiculous terms employed in the game have prejudiced many sensible people against it. Relieved of these absurdities, the game is an interesting one.

Materials.

The materials for this game consist of sixteen squails, a target, and a gauge. The squails are small discs of wood, about two inches in diameter, eight of light and eight of dark colored wood. The squails are designated by four distinct colors—two light and two dark of each color. The target is of ivory, about one inch in diameter, and loaded so as not to be easily moved or overturned. The gauge is a measure three inches long, made with a convenient handle.

The method of the game is as follows: The company being seated around a dining table, the squails are distributed to them, and the target placed in the center of the table. Now the object of each player is to drive his squails as near the target as possible, by allowing the squail to project over the side of the table about one-fourth its size, and striking it with the palm of the hand.

Vocabulary of Terms.

TARGET.—The movable hub at which the squails are played.

GAUGE.—The measure.

LINE OF DEMARCATION.—An imaginary line round the table, at the distance of the length of the gauge from the edge.

OUT.—A squail struck over the line of demarcation on the opposite side from the player striking it, is “out.”

TO ROUT.—To strike a collection of enemy’s squails so as to scatter them about.

TO BLOCKADE.—To leave one’s squails in such a position as to block up a passage in which the next hostile player could play to advantage.

TO CUT OUT.—To leave one’s squails between the target, a hostile squail lying near it.

Rules.

The game of squails may be played by any number of persons not exceeding eight. If the number of players is even, half will play on one side and half on the other—one side taking the light squails and the other the dark ones. The players of the opposing sides must be seated alternately round the table. If there is an uneven number of players, there are no sides, and all are antagonistic to each other.

A captain is chosen on each side, to whom the players may look for advice, and who shall decide the amount to be scored at each round.

The first play, if there are sides, is determined by the two captains playing one squail each at the target, the one who drives his squail nearest to the target having the first play. If an odd number play, each one plays in a like manner for the lead. The lead being determined, the commencing player places one of his squails about one quarter off the edge of the table, and strikes it with the palm of his hand, aiming at the target which is in the center of the table. The squails slide on the surface of the table.

The players must play one at a time in rotation, with the course of the sun—i. e. from right to left. When all the squails have been played a round is finished, and the nearest squail to the target counts one if within the distance of the gauge. If more than one of the same side are nearer than any of the other color, they all count one each, provided they are within the distance of the length of the gauge—i. e. three inches. A player can strike his squail from any position around the table which he can reach without moving from his chair, or rising from his seat.

If the target is moved by a squail from its place, and does not cross the line of demarcation, it must remain where it stops, unless it is rolling and unsteady; in which case the next player can stand it firmly in the place where he finds it, and all must play at it in its new position till that round is finished. Before commencing a new round the target must be placed back to the center of the table.

At the end of a round, the captain of one side makes his claim for so many “in,” and if the claim is disputed, the gauge is used by the disputing captain to measure the distance from the target to the disputed squails. If the captain of the side who claims one or more squails “in” at the conclusion of the round touches them before they have been allowed by the captain of the opposition, the squail or squails so touched are null, and do not count towards the game. The winner of one round begins the next.

If the target is struck across the line of demarcation, i. e. “out,” it terminates that round; the person who sent it out commences the next round, and one is added to the score of the adversary.

The game can consist of any number agreed upon by the players. Five is a short game, and eleven is a long one.

A squail having been struck so far on the table as not to be touched by the gauge, measuring from the edge of the table, is considered as played, and cannot be taken back. It is then said to have passed the line of demarcation. If a squail passes the line of demarcation twice, i. e. goes across the table, one of the opposing side must cry, “That squail is out,” before the next squail in succession has been played, otherwise, the owner may claim it, and play it again at the conclusion of the round. If more than one squail is “out,” and not cried, they may all be claimed and played at the end of the round in the order in which they were “out.”

PARLOR OR CARPET BOWLS.

THE materials of this game are one white ball, and a number of other balls, designated by four distinct colors. It is played as follows: Place the white ball on the floor near one end of the room with perhaps a row of books behind it, to protect the finish.

Divide the remaining balls equally among the players, or give an equal number of balls to each player. If four play, it is more interesting to form sides, the two players on one side taking the dark balls, and the other two the light ones. Blue and black are considered dark—red and yellow, light. The players, retiring to some part of the room more or less distant from the white ball, now bowl the colored balls, which they hold, at the white one, by turns. Each player bowls one ball at a time, the play passing around the company as many times as there are colored balls for each player. The first bowl goes by turn, as the last bowl is the most valuable. The object of each player is to have the balls that he bowls rest as near as possible to the white one, and also to drive his enemy’s balls away from the white one, or the white one away from them. When all the balls have been bowled, the ball that lies nearest the white one counts 4; the one next nearest, 2; and the third nearest, 1—to the person or side to which they belong. Thus, we will suppose that of the three balls lying nearest to the white ball, the nearest one belongs to the dark side, and the two next nearest belong to the light side. Then the dark side scores 4, and the light side 2 and 1, making 3. But if the _three_ nearest balls had belonged to the dark side, they would have scored 7, and the light side nothing. The game may be 20, or any other number agreed upon by the players before commencing, and the player or side that gains that number first wins the game. Should the game be nearly equal, so that both sides gain 20 in the same hand, then the side that makes the greatest number wins. The white ball must remain wherever it is rolled by the playing of the balls during each hand and placed back on some designated spot at the _commencement_ of each hand. If two balls belonging to opposite parties are equally distant from the white ball, it is a tie, and the two players who bowled those balls must try again, and the one whose ball is nearest will count 4, the other 3.

THE UNION GAME, OR RED, WHITE AND BLUE.

THIS is an excellent parlor game. Any person possessing a croquet board, by taking out the hoops, can use it for the Union game, although a square or round board is better; if square, the board should measure from three and a half to four feet each way; if round, from three and a half to four feet in diameter. The board should be firmly made of well seasoned wood, and covered with cloth or green baize. It should have a rim or fence around the edge, just sufficient to prevent the balls from rolling off the board. It is necessary to have three cubes made of some light wood, about an inch and a half each way; one should be painted red, one white, and one blue, with a star on each face.

Each player should have three balls, painted red, white and blue, and a mallet. The balls and mallets may be the same used in parlor croquet. If this game is played on a board, it is necessary, in order to avoid any disputes, to have a square marked in the centre in which to place the cubes. A croquet board can be adapted to the game by removing the central hoop.

All persons, who prefer not to use a board, can play the game on the floor, by placing the cubes on some central figure of the carpet. By using larger blocks and the croquet balls and mallets, this game can be played on a level spot of ground, in the open air.

How the Game is to be Played.

Place the red cube in the centre of the board, the white diagonally on top of the red, and on top of the white place the blue cube, with its sides square with the red. The person to commence the game is chosen by lot. He places his red ball at the distance of a mallet’s head from the edge of the board, and tries to send his ball against the cubes in the centre; he can roll his three balls in succession, and at the end of his play take back his balls and replace the cubes, if their position has been changed by his play. The player on his left then plays his three balls, and each in turn, until all have played. The same thing is repeated until three rounds have been played.

Rules of the Game.

1. Each player must play from the place he first selects, and at the same distance from the cubes as the other players, or forfeit his play.

2. If a player with his red ball throws down the blue and white cubes and moves the red cube over the square marked, it counts him 20, and he need not play the white or blue ball, but whatever points he wins during the second round with the first two balls counts on the first roll.

3. If a player only throws down the blue and white cubes without moving the red from its square, he counts 15.

4. If a player only knocks off the blue cube, he counts 10.

5. If a player only moves the three cubes, he counts 5.

6. If a player with the first two balls throws down two cubes and moves the under red cube, his play is finished for that round, and when his next turn comes, he can add what he wins with the first ball to the count on his former play.

7. If a player knocks the three cubes down in the three rolls, he counts 20, and if he only knocks down two in three rolls without moving the red, he counts 15; if only the blue cube he counts 10; if he merely moves them all together he counts 5 for the three balls; if he hits them but does not move them he counts nothing.

8. If in rolling the three balls at the cubes he misses them every time, he loses 5 from his score.

One of the company should be provided with pencil and paper and keep an accurate account of each player’s score.

ZOETROPE, OR WHEEL OF LIFE.

THE Zoetrope is a newly invented toy. It presents a series of striking optical delusions, and is constructed in part on the principle of the Phenakestoscope, though altogether different in its arrangement and effect. It can be exhibited on a table in the middle of a room, and a dozen or more can be amused by it at the same time, one of the party keeping it in motion. The exhibitor can give such description of the pictures as they appear as he thinks best. A bright boy or girl can add very much to the interest of the exhibition by witty descriptions. The exhibitor can announce his performance to a family party in a high-flown handbill, charge an admission fee to the room, and carry out the exhibition in the most approved style. The toy is admirably adapted for the entertainment of children.

GRECIAN GAMES.

IN reading an account of the toys, sports and pastimes of the ancient Greeks, one is surprised at their resemblance to our own. They had many games now in common use, and supposed to be of modern invention. A Grecian philosopher named Archytas invented the child’s rattle.

Our children would like to revive the hoops of the ancient Greeks. They surely were more tasteful than ours. I will describe them, and perhaps some enterprising boy will try to imitate, if not surpass them. They were made of bronze, three feet in diameter, very light, and adorned with little spherical bells and movable rings, which jingled musically as the hoops rolled along; the hoop stick was crooked at the point, and called a “plectron.”

Boys! do not be outdone by the young Greeks. Try and invent a hoop with bells of different tones, that will play a melody as it rolls. Some iron hoops have bells, but they are not musical. The Egyptians, too, excelled in toys of all kinds.

JACK-STRAWS.

JACK-STRAWS were played centuries ago, and like many other good old games, have come into fashion anew and with some improvements. The game may be played with straws or fine splinters of wood, four or five inches in length. The straws are gathered in a bunch, not tied, but held firmly together by one end of the bunch, in the hand, a few inches above the table. Held in this manner the bunch will be spread at the bottom, somewhat in the form of a haystack. The player suddenly drops the bunch, and the straws fall in an irregular heap on the table. Each player is provided with a straw or stick, on one end of which a small hook or crooked pin is made fast, and each in turn tries to draw with his hook a single straw from the heap without moving in the slightest degree, any straw except the one he seeks to remove. If he succeeds, he keeps the straw, and proceeds to draw out another or others, but whenever he disturbs any other than the one straw he gives up his turn to his opponent. The one who gains the largest number of straws wins the game.

The jack-straws sold in the toy shops are usually made of wood, and each bunch contains pieces roughly representing kings, queens, bishops, &c. Each of these pieces has a number marked on it, and when one of them is drawn from the heap, it counts for the player as many straws as its number indicates. If the players so agree, each can gather up the straws, as often as his turn comes, and drop them anew.

Games for Little Children.

DANCE, THUMBKIN, DANCE! is a game by which an older person can amuse a number of little children. It is played by holding up the hand and bending thumb and fingers in the following manner. First, put the thumb in motion, singing in a lively tune, “Dance, thumbkin, dance;” then keep the thumb still and move the four fingers, singing, “Dance, ye merry men, every one, for thumbkin he can dance alone.” Then move the forefinger and sing, “Dance, foreman, dance!” Then move all the fingers, singing, “Dance, ye merry men, every one, for foreman he can dance alone.” Then keep the second finger in motion, singing, “Dance, middleman, dance!” Then move all the fingers, singing, “Dance, ye merry men, every one, for middleman he can dance alone.” Then in the same manner repeat the process with the two other fingers, calling the third finger “ring-man,” and the fourth finger “little-man.” When these changes are done rapidly, it entertains even babies.

UNCLE JOHN.

ALL the children who join this game must stand in a circle holding each others’ hands, and as they walk or dance around they sing the following words:

“Uncle John is very sick. What shall we send him? A piece of pie, a piece of cake, a piece of apple dumpling. What shall we send it in? In a golden saucer. Who shall we send it by? By the king’s daughter. D-o-w-n, down.”

Then all must kneel down as quickly as possible, and rise up at once, the one who is the last to kneel must, when they all rise, whisper to some one a girl’s or boy’s name, and then all join in the circle, the one who knelt last facing outwards. Then they all repeat as follows, making use of the name whispered:

“J—— B—— so they say Goes a courting night and day, Sword and pistol by his side, M—— L—— shall be his bride, She has sparks, one, two, three, I can tell you who they be, Joel, Toel, half a day, Exel, Toel, turn away.”

All again commence to sing “Uncle John is very sick,” &c., this continues until each one faces outwards in turn or they are weary of it.

MOTHER GOOSE.

THIS is a new and amusing game for little children. One among their number must be chosen to take the part of “Mother Goose,” and she must arrange her forces in a line, and place a cricket in the centre of the room. She then leads off, clapping her hands and dancing slowly, saying, “Hi, diddle, diddle, the cat’s in the fiddle.” All must follow her, saying and acting exactly as she does, on penalty of a forfeit. She then imitates the mewing of a cat and all imitate her. She then repeats “the cow jumped over the moon,” and “Mother Goose” runs and jumps over the cricket, all the others following her. Again they pass round the room singing, “The little dog laughed to see the sport.” Suddenly she stops and laughs heartily, each one imitating her, and away they go again, singing, “The dish ran away with the spoon.” “Mother Goose” then claps her hands as a signal for all to run, and off they start, she after them; if she succeeds in catching one, she cries out, “Here is Mother Goose,” and all assemble round her, and the play commences again. If played in the open air, it is well to have some post or tree as a goal, and if “Mother Goose” does not catch some one before it is reached, she has to act her part again.

“CLAP OUT AND CLAP IN.”