in a circle and one begins by repeating a line of poetry. The next
caps it by repeating whatever line comes next to it in the poem from
which it is taken. The poem may either be continued or the game may
deal only in couplets or four-lined stanzas. In another quotation game
the first player repeats a line of poetry and the next follows it with
another line of poetry which begins with the last letter of the
previous quotation. Thus, if the first player says--
It was the schooner _Hesperus_
That sailed the wintry sea,
the next might cap it with--
A man's a man for a' that,
and the next with--
The quality of mercy is not strained.
Two Rhyming Games
Rhyming games require more taxing of brains than most
players care for. The ordinary rhyming game, without using
paper, is for one player to make a remark in an easy metre,
and for the next to add a line completing the couplet. Thus
in one game that was played one player said--
It is a sin to steal a pin,
Much more to steal an apple.
And the next finished it by adding--
And people who are tempted to,
With Satan ought to grapple.
But this was showing more skill than there is real need for.
An easier rhyming game is that in which the rhyme has to come at the
beginning of the line. The players are seated in a circle and one
begins by asking the next a question of any nature whatever, or by
making any casual remark, the first word of the answer to which must
rhyme with the last word of the question. The game is then started,
each player in turn adding a remark to that made by the one before
him, always observing the rhyming rule. Thus, the original question
may be, "Do you like mince _pies_?" The next player may reply, "_Wise_
people always _do_." The next, "_You_, I suppose, agree with _that_?"
The next, "_Flat_ you may knock me if I _don't_." The next, "_Won't_
you change the subject, _please_?" And the next: "_Eas_-ily; let's
talk of books."
Telling Stories
This is another of those fireside games that need more readiness of
mind than many persons think a game should ask for. The first player
begins an original story, stopping immediately (even in the middle of
a sentence) when the player who is appointed time-keeper says "Next."
The next player takes it up; and so forth until the end comes, either
at the end of the first round or whatever round seems best.
Another way is for each player to contribute only a single word; but
this is rarely successful, because every one is not at the same pitch
of attention. Except on the part of the person who is narrating there
ought to be absolute silence.
Clumps
The company, according to the number of persons, divides up into two
or three or even four groups, or clumps, in different parts of the
room, seated closely in circles. As many players as there are clumps
then go out and decide on some extremely out-of-the-way thing which
the clumps have to guess. In one game, for example, the mine was
thought of from which the iron was taken to lay the first railroad
rails in America. That is the kind of far-fetched and ingenious thing.
When it is decided upon, the players return to the room and take their
places, one in the midst of each clump. Questions are then put to them
the answers to which must be either "Yes" or "No," and the clump that
discovers the thing first is the winner.
Other Yes and No Games
The same game can be played without such keen rivalry, one player
sitting in the midst of a great circle and answering questions in
turn. There is also a game called "Man and Object," in which two
players go out and decide upon a man (or woman) and something
inanimate or not human with which he is associated or which he is
known to have used, such as "Washington and his hatchet," "Whittington
and his cat," "A druid and his mistletoe-knife." They then return and
each player asks them each a question in turn until the problem is
solved.
The same game is sometimes turned inside out, the players that remain
in the room deciding upon some one whom the player that has gone out
has to personate and discover. In this case it is he who puts the
questions. As he is supposed for the time being actually to be the
thing thought of, he ought to frame his questions accordingly: "Am I
living?" "Have I been dead long?" "Am I a man?" and so forth.
My Right-Hand Neighbor
This is a catch game and useless except when one of the company knows
nothing about it. That player is sent out of the room, and after a due
interval is called in again and told to guess what the other players
have thought of. He may ask any questions he pleases that can be
answered by "Yes" or "No." The thing thought of is each player's
right-hand neighbor, who is of course so different in every case as
to lead in time to the total bewilderment of the guesser.
How, When, and Where
One player leaves the room, while the others decide on some word, the
name of a thing for choice (such as tale, tail), which has one
pronunciation but two or three different meanings and perhaps
spellings. They then sit in a circle or line and the other player is
called in, his object being, by means of questions put in turn to each
player, to discover what the word is. His questions must take the
form, "How do you like it?" "When do you like it?" and "Where do you
like it?" Let us suppose that "tale" is the word thought of. "How do
you like it?" he will ask the first of the circle. The answer may be,
"I like it amusing" (tale). "How do you like it?" he may ask the next.
"I like it active" (tail). To the next, "When do you like it?" "I like
it at night" (tale). To the next, "Where do you like it?" "At the end"
(tail). To the next, "Where do you like it?" "In an armchair" (tale).
And so on until he guesses the word.
Coffee-Pot
A similar game is called "Coffee-Pot" or "Tea-Pot." In this case also
the company think of a word with more than one meaning, but instead of
answering questions about it they make a pretense of introducing it
into their answers by putting the word "coffee-pot" in its place. As
the player who is guessing is at liberty to put any kind of question
he likes it is well to choose a word that will go easily into ordinary
conversation. Let us suppose, for instance, that the word is rain,
reign, rein. The questions and answers may run something like
this:--"Are you feeling pretty well to-day?" "I always feel well when
there is no coffee-pot" (rain). "Have you been reading anything
interesting lately?" "Yes, a very interesting book on the present
coffee-pot" (reign). "I hope your toothache is better." "Thank you, I
hope its coffee-pot will soon be over" (reign). "Did you walk here
this evening?" "No; we came with the assistance of the coffee-pot"
(rein). The guesser is allowed to make three guesses aloud, but after
that he must meditate on the word in silence or put questions to test
his theories. If the word is a verb and a past tense or present tense
has to be used in an answer, the player says "coffee-potted" or
"coffee-potting."
Throwing Light
This is much like "How, When, and Where," except that instead of
asking questions the player, or players, that went out sit still and
listen to the others talking to each other concerning the selected
word's various meanings. Thus, if it is "Spring," the first may
remark, "It makes our drives so much more comfortable"; the next, "I
am always happier then than at any other time"; the next, "To drink
there is to know what drinking really is"; and so on.
Animal, Vegetable, and Mineral.
This is also a similar game to "How, When, and Where," except that the
player who goes out of the room has, on his return, to guess something
belonging to one of these three groups. His first question therefore
is, "Is it animal?" Perhaps it is not. "Is it vegetable?" "No." He
knows then that it is mineral, and after that to find out what it is
is only a matter of time.
Proverbs
One or two players go out. The others sit in line and choose a proverb
having as many words as there are players. Thus, if there were eight
players, "They love too much who die for love" would do; or if more
than eight, two short proverbs might be chosen. Each player having
made certain what his word is, the others are called in. It is their
duty to find out what proverb has been fixed upon, and the means of
doing so is to ask each player in turn a question on any subject
whatever, the answer to which must contain that player's word in the
proverb. If the first round of questions does not reveal the proverb,
they go round again and again.
Shouting Proverbs
In this game, instead of answering questions one by one, when the
guesser or guessers come in the players at a given signal shout the
words which belong to them at the top of their voice and all together.
The guessers have to separate the proverb from the din.
Acting Proverbs
This is a very simple acting game. The players should divide
themselves into actors and audience. The actors decide upon a proverb,
and in silence represent it to the audience as dramatically as
possible. Such proverbs as "Too many cooks spoil the broth," and "A
bad workman quarrels with his tools," would be very easy--almost too
easy if any stress is laid upon guessing. But, of course, although the
guessing is understood to be part of the fun, the acting is the thing.
Acting Initials
Two players go out. The others choose the name of a well-known person,
public or private, the letters of whose name are the same in number as
the players left in the room. Thus, supposing there are seven persons
in the room, the name might be Dickens. The letters are then
distributed; each player, as soon as he knows which letter is his,
selecting some well-known living or historical character beginning
with the same letter, whom he has to describe or personate. To
personate is more fun than to describe. The players seat themselves
in the right order to spell the name, and the other two are called in.
When they are ready the first player, D, is called on to describe or
impersonate his letter; and so on in the right order.
Acting Verbs, or Dumb Crambo
In this game the company divides into two. One half goes out, and the
one that remains decides upon a verb which the others shall act in
dumb show. A messenger is then despatched to tell the actors what the
chosen word rhymes to. Thus, if "weigh" were the verb fixed upon, the
messenger might announce that it rhymes to "day." It is then well for
the actors to go through the alphabet for verbs--bay, bray, lay,
neigh, pay, prey, pray, play, stay, say; and act them in order. When
the word is wrong the spectators hiss, but when right they clap. If
the word chosen has two syllables, as "obey," notice ought to be
given.
Guessing Employments
A very simple game. One player goes out. The others decide on some
workman to represent, each pretending to do some different task
belonging to his employment. Thus, if they choose a carpenter, one
will plane, one will saw, one will hammer, one will chisel, and so on.
Their occupation has then to be guessed. It is perhaps more
interesting if each player chooses a separate trade.
Stool of Repentance
One player goes out. The others then say in turn something personal
about him--such as, "He has a pleasant voice"; "His eye is piercing";
"He would look better if he wore a lower collar." Those remarks are
written down by one of the party, and the player is called in and
placed on a chair in the middle. The recorder then reads the remarks
that he has collected, and the player in the middle has to name the
persons who made them.
Eyes
A sheet, or a screen made of newspapers, is hung up, and two holes, a
little larger than eyes and the same distance apart, are made in it.
Half the players retire to one side of it, and half stay on the other.
They then look through the holes in turn, while those on the opposite
side try to name the owner of the eyes. The game sounds tame, but the
difficulty of recognition and the false guesses made soon lead to
laughter.
Making Obeisance
This is a trick. Those in the company who have never played the game
go out of the room. One of the inside players, who is to represent the
potentate, then mounts a chair and is covered with a sheet which
reaches to the ground. At the point where it touches a shoe is placed,
the toe of which is just visible. In the potentate's hand is a sponge
full of water. One of the players outside is then invited in; he is
told to kneel down and kiss the toe; the potentate on the chair leans
forward a little to bring his sponge immediately over the subject's
head; and a shower-bath follows. Then another subject is admitted, but
after a while there is enough water on the floor to make them
suspicious.
Mesmerism
Another trick. The players who are to be mesmerized--among them being
the one or two who do not know the game--stand in a row, each holding
a dinner-plate in the left hand. The mesmerizer, who also has a
dinner-plate, faces them, and impresses on them very seriously the
importance, if they really want to be mesmerized, of doing exactly
what he does and not moving their eyes from him in any direction. He
then holds the plate flat, rubs the first finger of his right hand on
the bottom of it, and makes an invisible cross on his forehead, on
each cheek, and on the tip of his nose. That is all. The trick lies in
the fact that the plates of the players who do not know the game have
been held in the flame of a candle until they are well blacked. This
means that when the mesmerism is over they each have black marks on
their faces, and know nothing about it until they are led to a
looking-glass.
Thought-Reading Tricks
In all thought-reading games it is best that only the two performers
should know the secret. Of these two, one goes out of the room and the
other stays in, after having first arranged on the particular trick
which will be used. Perhaps the company will then be asked to settle
on a trade. Let us say that they decide on a chemist. The other player
is then called in, and his companion puts questions to him in this
way:--"You have to name the trade which we have thought of. Is it a
grocer?" "No." "Is it a draper?" "No." "Is it a goldsmith?" "No." "Is
it a fruiterer?" "No." "Is it a lawyer?" "No." "Is it a chemist?"
"Yes." This will look rather mysterious to some of the company; but
the thing is really simple enough. The questioner merely arranged with
his companion that the trade thought of should follow a profession.
Perhaps on the next occasion the company will be asked to think of an
article in the room. Let us say that they fix on the clock. The
questions will then run something like this:--"You have to name the
article in this room which has been thought of. Is it the piano?"
"No." "Is it the curtain-rod?" "No." "Is it the carpet?" "No." "Is it
the fireplace?" "No." "Is it the sideboard?" "No." "Is it the
armchair?" "No." "Is it the clock?" "Yes." This again is bewildering;
but again the trick is very simple, the questioner having arranged
that the article shall follow something that has four legs.
A third way is for an article to be touched and for the thought-reader
to be asked to name it. "Is it this?" "Is it this?" "Is it this?" is
asked of one thing after another, the answer always being "No." "Is it
that?" "Yes." The secret is that the article touched is always
signified by "Is it that?" But in this case, and in that of the others
already described, the effect of mystification can be increased by
arranging beforehand that the article in question shall not follow the
key phrase immediately, but, say, two questions later.
A fourth way is for the questioner to begin each question in due order
with a letter of the French word for the article touched. Thus, if it
were the bell, he might say, "_C_ome now, was it the table?" "_L_ook,
was it the armchair?" "_O_r the piano?" "_C_ome now, was it this
book?" "_H_ow about this hearth-rug?" "_E_ndeavor to be quick, please.
Was it the clock?" By this time "Cloche" has been spelled, so that the
next question is, "Was it the bell?" "Yes."
In another form of "Thought-reading" the two players who know the
secret remain in the room long enough for the trick to be made sure.
One stands in a corner and the other calls loudly, "Ebenezer, do you
hear?" (Ebenezer is the usual name, but a more attractive one would
do.) Ebenezer says nothing, but listens attentively to hear who among
the company speaks first. The other player repeats the question and
still there is no answer. Soon after that some one will perhaps make a
remark, and then Ebenezer, having got what he was waiting for, says,
"Yes, I hear." "Then leave the room," says the other player, and
Ebenezer goes out. The other player then makes a great show of
choosing some one to touch, but ends by touching the person who spoke
first after the game began. This done, Ebenezer is called in to say
who was touched, and every one is puzzled by his knowledge.
To Guess Any Number Thought of
With these thought-reading tricks may be put one or two arithmetical
puzzles. Here is a way to find out the number that a person has
thought of. Tell him to think of any number, odd or even. (Let us
suppose that he thinks of 7.) Then tell him to double it (14), add 6
to it (20), halve it (10), and multiply it by 4 (40). Then ask him how
many that makes. He will say 40. You divide this in your mind by 2
(20), subtract 6 (14), divide by 2 again (7), and astonish him by
saying that the number of which he thought was 7.
To Guess Any Even Number Thought of
In this case you insist on the number chosen being an even number. Let
us suppose it is 8. Tell him to multiply by 3 (24), halve it (12),
multiply by 3 again (36), and then to tell you how many times 9 will
go into the result. He will say 4. Double this in your mind and tell
him that he thought of 8.
To Guess the Result of a Sum
Another trick. Tell the person to think of a number, to double it, add
6 to it, halve it and take away the number first thought of. When this
has been done you tell him that 3 remains. If these directions are
followed 3 must always remain. Let us take 7 and 1 as examples. Thus 7
doubled is 14; add 6 and it is 20; halved, it is 10; and if the number
first thought of--7--is subtracted, 3 remains. Again, 1 doubled is 2;
6 added makes 8; 8 halved is 4, and 1 from 4 leaves 3.
A more bewildering puzzle is this. Tell as many persons as like to, to
think of some number less than 1,000, in which the last figure is
smaller than the first. Thus 998 might be thought of, but not 999, and
not 347. The amount being chosen and written down, you tell each
person to reverse the digits; so that the units come under the
hundreds, the tens under the tens, and the hundreds under the units.
Then tell them to subtract, to reverse again, and add; remarking to
each one that you know what the answer will be. It will always be
1089. Let us suppose that three players choose numbers, one being 998,
one 500, and one 321. Each sets them on paper, reverses the figures,
and subtracts. Thus:--
998 500 321
899 005 123
--- --- ---
099 495 198
The figures are then reversed and added. Thus:--
099 495 198
990 594 891
---- ---- ----
1089 1089 1089
Guessing Competitions
Guessing competitions, which are of American invention, can be an
interesting change from ordinary games. In some the company are all
asked to contribute, as in "Book Teas," where a punning symbolic title
of a book is worn by each guest, and a prize is given to the person
who guesses most, and to the person whose title is considered the
best. Thus, a person wearing a card having the letter R represented
_Middlemarch_, and a person with catkins in his buttonhole, _Hazell's
Annual_. But simpler devices are just as interesting.
In other guessing competitions the preparations are the affair of the
household which gives the party. It is with these that we are
concerned here. Giving prizes certainly adds to the interest of them.
Guessing Quantities
Several articles of number are placed on a table, say a box of
matches, a bag of beans, a reel of cotton or ball of string, a large
stone, a stick, a photograph, and various coins with the date side
turned down. Each of the company is provided with a card on which
these articles are written, and the object is to guess as nearly as
possible something about each; for instance, how many matches there
are in the box, how many beans in the bag, the length of the string,
the weight of the stone, the length of the stick, the age of the
person in the photograph, and the date of each coin. The right answers
are, of course, ascertained beforehand and written on a card in the
hostess's possession.
Observation
The real name of this game may be something else, but "Observation"
explains it. A small table is covered with a variety of articles, to
the extent of some twenty or thirty. It is then covered with a cloth
and placed in the middle of the room. The players stand round it and
the cloth is removed for a minute (or longer). During that time the
aim of each player is to note and remember as many of the things as
possible. The cloth is then put on again and the players have five
minutes in which to write the fullest list they can of the objects
seen.
Scents
A more puzzling competition is to place a row of large bottles on the
table, all numbered, at the bottom of each of which is a small amount
of liquid bearing a noticeable scent. Some may be toilet scents, and
others medicines or essences used in cooking. A card numbered
according to the bottles is given to each player, and the game is to
guess as many of the scents as possible.
The Topsy-Turvy Concert
The performers in this concert, who should be of nearly the same size,
take their places behind a sheet stretched across the room at the
height of their chins. They then put stockings on their arms and boots
on their hands (or this may be done before they come into the room),
and stand looking over the sheet at the company, with their hands and
arms carefully hidden. The concert begins by the singing of the first
verse of a song. Immediately the verse is finished, the singers,
stooping down so that their heads disappear from view, thrust up their
arms and wave them about, the effect being that of a row of people
standing on their heads. The chorus is thus sung. Then they pull down
their arms and put up their heads again and sing the next verse.
The Dancing Dwarf
This is a very amusing illusion and easy to arrange. All the players
but two are sent out of the room and these stand behind a table. One
stands close to the table, his arms in front of him so that the
fingers rest on the table. Boots, or stockings and shoes, are put on
their arms and a long dark cloak is thrown over the shoulders of the
first player covering the one behind him. The one behind furnishes the
arms by thrusting his out in front. The little feet resting on the
table show from the folds of the cloak and give the appearance of a
dwarf. The players are then called back and the dwarf, whose face
should be disguised, performs any feat that they ask for--he sings a
song, or makes a speech or prophesies the future of any one who
desires it, always ending with a wild dance performed by the arms and
hands of the other person. The light should be turned down somewhat
and the audience should be straight in front of the table to keep the
illusion at its best.
[Illustration: THE DANCING DWARF]
Charades