this book we are concerned more nearly with those that are arranged a
few minutes (the fewer the better) before they are performed. As a
rule a word of two or three syllables is chosen, the syllables are
first acted, then the whole word, and then the audience guess what it
was. Sometimes the word is brought in, both in its complete form and
in its syllables; and sometimes--and this is perhaps the better
way--it is acted. Thus, if the word were "Treason," one way would be
to make the acts themselves anything that occurred to you, merely
saying "Tree" with some distinctness in the first; "Son" or "Sun" in
the second; and "Treason" in the third. The other and more interesting
way would be to make the first act relate to tree-felling or tree
planting, or, say, a performance by Mr. Tree; the second to a son or
the sun; and the third to some treasonable situation, such as, for
example, the Gunpowder Plot. On account of the time which is occupied
in preparing and acting it is better to choose two-syllabled
words--which, with the whole word, make three scenes--than three- or
four-syllabled ones; although there are certain four-syllabled words
which split naturally into two halves of two syllables each.
"Parsimony," for example, could be performed: Parsee, money,
parsimony. As a general rule the charades that are arranged during the
evening are better performed in dumb show, with plenty of action, than
with any talking at all. Under the circumstances gestures are so much
easier than words and not any less amusing.
Dumb Performances
Very good fun can be had also from impromptu pantomimes, where the
performers enact some story which every one knows, such as "Aladdin"
or "Red Riding Hood" or "Cinderella"; or a scene from history proper,
or from village or family history. The contrast between the splendor
of Cinderella's carriage in the story and the old perambulator which
has to serve in the charade only adds to the fun. Every one, being
dumb, acts to the utmost. It is sometimes more amusing if all the
parts are turned upside down and a boy plays the heroine and a girl
the hero. Where the scene is too tremendous for any representation to
be given, it is best to meet the case frankly and use, as they did in
Shakespeare's day, written labels, such as "This is Aladdin's Palace."
Dressing Up
It is, of course, much more fun to dress up; but dressing up is not so
important that a charade is spoiled without it. If, on the day of your
party, you know that charades will play a part in it, it is wise to
put in a convenient room a number of things suitable to dress up in.
Then at the last minute there need be no furious running up-stairs to
pull things out of closets and boxes, and the unpleasantness will be
avoided which sometimes follows when you have taken somebody's best
clothes for a rather violent performance.
Almost the best garment there is for dressing-up purposes is a fur
coat. While priceless for Red Riding Hood's wolf it will make also
most of the other animals in the Zoo. A soldier's uniform is a great
possession, and a real policeman's helmet has made the success of many
charades. Most kinds of hat can, however, easily be made on the
morning of a party out of brown paper. Epaulettes and cockades are
also easily made of the same material. Powder or flour for white hair,
some corks for moustaches and beards (you hold them in the candle for
a minute and wait till they are cool enough to use), and a packet of
safety-pins should be in handy places. Cherry tooth-paste makes
serviceable rouge.
Tableaux Vivants
"Tableaux Vivants" are a change from acting, but they need, if done at
all well, a great deal of preparation and rehearsal, and are therefore
perhaps better left to older people. But quickly-arranged groups
representing (not too seriously) scenes in American history might be
good fun.
Remarks on Acting
The drawback to all charades and dressing up at a party is that they
make away with so much valuable time of the players who are out of the
room, and unsettle those who are left in. It should be the first duty
of every one taking part in acting at parties to decide quickly on the
subject or word, and to perform it quickly. Many and many a party has
been spoiled by the slowness of the actors outside. Historical or
family scenes with no dressing up and some action are perhaps better
than much dressing up and absolute stillness. In "Canute and the
Waves," for example, it is better that the incoming tide should be
represented by a boy rolling slowly over the carpet than that there
should be nothing but fixed eyes and stern faces.
RAINY-DAY GAMES
This is a chapter written to meet the needs of several children shut
up together in bad weather. The chapter on "Indoor Occupation and
Things to Make" gives suggestions for a single child, but here are a
few suggestions for several occupations for a group of children, which
do not mean the destruction of the furniture.
Any one of the games given in the chapter "In the Train" is suitable
for rainy days.
There are of course many games treated elsewhere in this book which
can be played on rainy days indoors. Many of the parlor and outdoor
games are equally suitable for indoors. All the card games and
back-gammon, checkers, etc., are invaluable resorts in case of a long
dreary day, but there are a few other recreations which, in some
families are saved for such occasions.
Bean-Bags
One of these is the old fashioned game of bean-bag. One rainy morning
can be spent in making the outfit. The girls can be occupied in making
the cloth bags, from six to ten inches square, partly filled with
beans: and the boys in making the board which is shown in the
illustration.
It should be about three feet square of any sort of boards and propped
up at one side so that it forms an inclined plane. Five holes are cut
in it, about seven inches square, all but the centre one which is only
five inches square. The players stand off from six to twelve feet
according as their skill increases with practice and try to throw the
bags through the holes. There are various rules for playing the game
which you can arrange to suit yourself, or to make a change. One way
is have the bags in sets of six, each six being of one color,
different from the others. The players stand in a line and all throw
at once, trying to get their six bags in the holes as soon as
possible. When they have thrown their bags they rush up to the board,
gather up those which have gone wild and run back to the firing line.
The one who gets his six bags in first wins the game. A bag thrown
through the small centre hole counts as two.
[Illustration: BEAN-BAG BOARD]
Another way to play it is to throw in turn, each throwing all his six
bags one after another. The one who gets most in is the winner.
Ring-Toss
Ring-toss is another game in which skill can be acquired only through
practice and it is very good for rainy-days. It is really indoor
quoits, and is a favorite game for shipboard. Any one with a little
patience and care can make the rings which are of rope fastened
together with slanting seam, wound with string so that there is no
bulging, overlapping hump at one side.
[Illustration: ROPE RING]
A stake is nailed upright to a board (the stake can be a section of an
old broom handle, or a smooth, small, straight peeled branch of a
tree) and the outfit for the game is complete. It is played with the
same rules as quoits (see "Outdoor Games for Boys"), and a very
considerable degree of skill can be obtained by practice. As in
pitching quoits, the rings should be thrown with a little level twist
to make them whirl about.
Ring-the-Nail
A variation of this can be played with common large nails and brass
curtain rings. Eight nails are driven into a board in a circle,
leaving about an inch sticking up. In the centre, one is driven,
standing about three inches tall. Small rings, curtain rings, for
instance, are thrown toward this. Each time they encircle one of the
lower nails is counted five, and the centre nail ten.
Soap-Bubbles
A soap-bubble race is easy to arrange and very good fun. An old shawl
or blanket is laid on a table or the floor, goals are made at each end
of it with piles of books, leaving an opening between, and each person
is provided with a pipe for blowing bubbles. One bowl of soap-bubbles
is enough for the company (see page 279 on the best way to make
lasting soap-bubbles). The game is to see who can most quickly blow a
bubble, deposit it on the woolen cloth at one end and blow it through
the goal at the other. Of course you try to direct your puffs so that
you will not only blow your own bubble along but will force your
opponent's back.
Another way is to stretch a cord across the room and divide into two
sides, standing three feet from the cord. At a given signal dip your
pipes in the bowl of soap-suds, blow a bubble, and try to blow it over
the cord. The side which succeeds in landing most bubbles in the
enemy's territory wins.
Jack-Stones
A game which is good, quiet fun for a rainy day is Jack-stones.
Although not played much nowadays it is very interesting and is to
indoors what "mumble-the-peg" is to outdoors. It is played usually
with small pieces of iron with six little feet: but it can also be
played with small pebbles all of a size. All kinds of exercises can be
used, many of which you can invent yourself but a few of the commonest
are given below. 1. The five stones are thrown up and caught on the
back of the hand. 2. Four of the stones are held in the hand while one
is thrown up. They must then be laid on the table, or floor, in time
to catch the stone before it comes down. It is then thrown up again,
and the four stones are picked up either one at a time or all
together, and the stone caught again.
Nearly all the exercises are variations of this. One stone is thrown
up and different things must be done quickly with the others before it
falls again.
Tying Knots
Another occupation for rainy days that will interest several children
(as well as one) is puzzling out the construction of some of the
simplest sailor's knots. This is a useful and a very desirable
accomplishment. Often several together can solve a difficult knot
better than one, and after some proficiency is acquired it is
interesting to have a competition to see who can tie them most quickly
and perfectly. Every one is supplied with a piece of clothes-line (the
best rope for this purpose) and some one calls out "Running Noose," or
"Figure of Eight." Every one must then make this as quickly as
possible.
It is impossible to give directions in words about tying knots. The
best way is to get clear illustrations and then work over them until
you have mastered the intricacies. A few simple knots are shown here,
but there are many books which give an almost endless variety.
[Illustration: FIG. 1. OVERHAND KNOT]
[Illustration: FIG. 2. HALF-HITCH]
[Illustration: FIG. 3. FIGURE OF EIGHT]
[Illustration: FIG. 4. COMMON BEND]
[Illustration: FIG. 5. SAILOR'S KNOT]
[Illustration: FIG. 6. RUNNING NOOSE]
[Illustration: FIG. 7. CROSSED RUNNING NOOSE]
[Illustration: FIG. 8. BOWLINE KNOT]
[Illustration: FIG. 9. DOGSHANK]
Illustrating
A competitive game which is easy to manage is hit-or-miss
illustrating. Any old magazine (the more the better) will furnish the
material. Figures, furniture, landscape, machines--anything and
everything--is cut out from the advertisement or illustrations, and
put in a box or basket in the middle of the table. Every one is given
a piece of paper and a proverb is selected for illustrating. Twenty
minutes is allowed to choose suitable pictures, to paste them on to
sheets of paper and to add, with pencil, accessories that are
necessary: and then results are compared. The variety and excellence
of these patchwork pictures are surprising. This can be played during
convalescence. It is not necessary to select a proverb for
illustrating. Any suggestive title will do. A few that have been found
fruitful of varied and spirited pictures are given here.
A trying moment.
Companions in misery.
This is my busy day.
"I didn't know it was loaded."
His proudest moment.
The unhappy experimenter.
The best of friends.
A great scare.
Fine weather for ducks.
"Won't you have some?"
"Don't we make a pretty picture?"
Too busy to stop.
No harm done.
"I didn't mean to do it."
Stage-struck.
A great success.
"See you later."
A temporary quarrel.
A narrow escape.
A happy family.
The peace-maker.
A happy mother.
Shuffle-Board
A game which is often played on shipboard can be modified for an
indoor, rainy day game very easily. This is shuffle-board, all the
outfit for which you can easily make yourself. If you can have a long
table that scratching will not injure your board is all ready, but you
can easily procure a common, smooth-finished piece of plank, two feet
wide, if possible, and four feet long. On one end mark a diagram like
the preceding, about ten inches by eight inches. Mark a line at the
other end of the board about four inches from the edge, put your
counters on the line and you are ready to play. The counters may be
checkers (or any round pieces of wood) or twenty-five cent pieces, or
large flat buttons, although discs of lead are the best because the
heaviest. Your pusher should be a little tool made especially, like
the illustration, about a foot long, and anybody with a jack-knife can
whittle a satisfactory "shovel" as it is called.
[Illustration]
But if an impromptu game is desired, your counters may be pushed off
with a common ruler, with a long lead-pencil, or even snapped with the
finger nail, though this is apt to hurt. Each player has six counters
which he plays by three's, thus one person begins by shoving off three
of his counters toward the board on the end, trying to make them fall
on the places that count the highest. The next player then shoots
three of his counters, trying not only to place his own men well but
to dislodge his adversary's men if they are in good places. After all
have played in turn, the first player shoots his other three counters
and so on till all have played again. At the close of each round the
board is inspected and each person is credited with the sum of the
numbers on which his men rest. The game is continued thus, until some
one has reached the limit set, which may be a hundred, or fifty, or
any other number according to the skill of the players.
The counters of each player may be distinguished from the others by
any distinctive sign marked on them. They must not be pushed along but
struck a sharp blow with your shovel. The head of your shovel must not
pass the line marked for the counters. Counters which rest on, or
touch a line do not count. A very considerable degree of skill can be
attained in this game and it is a never failing resource on dull days.
A rainy day is a good time to practice various tricks and puzzles so
as to perfect yourself in performing them.
Balancing Tricks
There are a number of balancing tricks which are easy and ingenious.
The secret of most such tricks is in keeping the centre of gravity
low, and when this idea is once mastered you can invent tricks to suit
yourself. For instance a tea-cup can be balanced on the point of a
pencil thus: put a cork through the handle of the cup (it should be
just large enough to be pushed in firmly) and stick a fork into it,
with two prongs on each side of the handle, and with the handle under
the bottom of the cup. (Fig. 1.) The centre of gravity is thus made
low, and if you experiment a little and have a little skill, and a
steady hand you can balance the whole on a pencil's point.
[Illustration: FIG. 1]
[Illustration: FIG. 2]
[Illustration: FIG. 3]
[Illustration: FIG. 4]
Or you can balance a coin edgeway on a needle's point. The needle is
stuck firmly into the cork of a bottle, and the coin is fixed in a
slit cut in a cork, in which two forks are stuck. (Fig. 2.)
The simplest of these tricks is to balance a pencil on the tip of your
finger by sticking two pen-knives in it, one on each side. (Fig. 3.)
A cork with two forks stuck in it can be made to balance almost
anywhere--on the neck of a bottle from which the contents are being
poured for instance. (See fig. 4.)
Amusing toys can be constructed on this principle. Tumbling dolls are
made of light wood or cork, glued to the flat side of a half bullet.
No matter how often they are knocked flat, they rise again at once.
The Dancing Egg
Another good trick that needs a little practice is to make an egg
dance. Boil an egg hard, keeping it in an upright position (between
cups set in the water or in some other way). Then turn a plate bottom
side up and put the egg on it. Turn the plate around, more and more
quickly, always holding it flat and level, and the egg will rise on
its end and stand quite straight while it spins about.
The Dancing Pea
A pea can be made to dance on a column of air as you sometimes see a
rubber ball rising and falling in a fountain of water. Take a piece of
a clay pipe about three inches long, and make one end into a little
rounded cup, by cutting the clay carefully with a knife or file. Then
run two small pins cross-wise through a big, round pea, put the end of
one pin in the pipe and hold the pipe in an upright position over your
mouth. Blow gently through the pipe and the pea will dance up and
down.
The Glass-Maker
Another trick to play with pins is the glass-making pin. Cut an
ordinary rubber band in two, and stick a bent pin through the middle
of this. Now hold an end of the elastic in each hand and whirl it
rapidly around, stretching it a little. The revolving pin will at once
assume the appearance of a tiny glass vase, or tumbler, and the shape
can be varied at will. It is best to have a strong ray of light on the
pin and the rest of the room darkened.
[Illustration: THE GLASS-MAKER]
Electricity
Various tricks can be played by means of the electricity in paper.
Ordinary sealing wax, rubbed briskly on a coat-sleeve until it is warm
will attract bits of tissue paper, or any other soft paper. A
variation on jack-straws can be played by means of this trick. Tiny
scraps of tissue paper, each numbered, are piled in the centre of the
table and each player by means of a piece of sealing wax tries to draw
out the greatest number in the shortest time. This is a fascinating
game and arranged impromptu in a very short time. The pieces of paper
need not be of tissue paper, as any very thin paper will do. They
should be about a quarter of an inch wide by an inch long and numbered
up to twenty. They must be removed from the centre pile and put in
piles before the players without touching with the fingers. It will be
found that shaking them off the sealing wax is often harder than
making them stick to it. Of course an effort should be made to secure
those pieces of paper which have the largest numbers on them, as a few
of these count more than many of the others.
Electric dancers are easy to make. Cut little figures out of tissue
paper and lay them on the table. Put on each side of them two books
and lay a sheet of glass over them about an inch and a half above
them. Rub the glass briskly with a flannel cloth and they will jump up
and down.
[Illustration: ELECTRIC DANCERS]
A rubber comb rubbed with a silk handkerchief will attract small bits
of paper, feathers or wool. Various games and tricks can be devised by
this means, such as "bringing the dead to life," _i. e._, raising
paper figures to an upright position from a grave made of books, or a
box.
OUTDOOR GAMES FOR GIRLS
Outdoor games for girls and outdoor games for boys are very often the
same, although they are separated here for the sake of convenience.
Battledore and Shuttlecock
"Battledore and Shuttlecock" is equally good for one player or for
two. The only game to be played is to see how long the shuttlecock can
be kept in the air. If you are alone the best way is to set yourself a
number, say a hundred, and persevere until you reach it. This can be
varied by striving to reach, say, thirty, by first hitting the ball
each time as hard as possible, and then hitting it very gently so that
it hardly rises at all.
Jumping Rope
Ordinary skipping is good enough fun for most of us, but for those who
are not satisfied with it there is skipping extraordinary, one feat of
which is now and then to send the rope round twice before you touch
the ground again. To do this, as it cannot be done with a mere rope,
you must make a new rope of whipcord, in the middle of which you place
a small chain about a foot long. This chain gives the weight necessary
for whirling the rope very swiftly through the air.
Tom Tiddler's Ground
The player who is first going to be Tom Tiddler stands or sits inside
the part of the garden (or room) marked off for him, pretending to be
asleep. The others venture on his ground, crying, "Here we are on Tom
Tiddler's ground, picking up gold and silver." As Tom still sleeps
they grow bolder and bolder until he suddenly awakens and dashes for
them. The one that is caught becomes Tom Tiddler. Tom may not cross
the boundary-line.
Old Stone
Another "Tom Tiddler's Ground." One player crouches down pretending to
be a stone. The others run round about her, gradually, as she shows no
sign of life, getting nearer and more bold. The stone suddenly leaps
up and begins to chase them, and the one caught is the old stone.
Hen and Chickens
Even more exciting than "Tom Tiddler's Ground" is "Hen and Chickens."
In this game one player represents a fox and sits on the ground
looking sly and hungry. The others, who are the hen and chickens, form
a procession, holding each other's skirts or coats by both hands, and
march past the fox, saying in turn--
Chickany, chickany, crany crow,
I went to the well to wash my toe,
And when I came back a chicken was dead.
Then they leave go of each other and stand round the fox, and the
leader, the hen, says, "What are you doing, old fox?" The fox replies,
"Making a fire"; and the conversation goes on like this:--
The Hen: What for?
The Fox: To boil some water.
The Hen: What is the water for?
The Fox: To scald a chicken.
The Hen: Where will you get it?
The Fox: Out of your flock.
With these words the fox springs up and the hen and chickens run in
all directions. The chicken that is caught becomes the new fox, and
the old fox is the new hen, the leader of the procession.
The same game is played by Essex children with an old woman in place
of the fox, and with different words. In this case the hen and
chickens make a procession in front of a player who personates an old
weeping woman. As they march by, the hen sings--
Chickens, come clock, come clock, come clock,
Chickens, come clock, come clock, come clock,
The hawks are away and the crows are asleep,
It's time that my chickens had something to eat.
Then they leave go of each other and stand round the old weeping
woman, and between her and the hen the following conversation is held:
The Hen: What are you crying for, my poor old woman?
The Old Woman: Because I've lost my needle.
The Hen: What do you want a needle for?
The Old Woman: To sew a bag with.
The Hen: What do you want a bag for?
The Old Woman: To put salt in.
The Hen: What do you want salt for?
The Old Woman: To scour a saucepan.
The Hen: What do you want a saucepan for?
The Old Woman: To boil one of your chickens in.
The old woman then leaps up and tries to catch a chicken, and the hen
tries to stop her.
Other Garden Games
Many of the games described in other parts of this book are good also
for the garden; such as "Still Pond! No More Moving!" (p. 4), "Puss in
the Corner" (p. 7), "Honey-pots" (p. 11), "Nuts in May" (p. 12), "Here
I Bake" (p. 13), "Lady Queen Anne" (p. 20), "The Mulberry Bush" (p.
28), and "Looby, Looby" (p. 29).
Witches
"Witches" is a home-made game played thus, according to the
description of E. H.--"One player is made witch. A good spot is
chosen for home, and here the others wait until the witch has had time
to hide. The idea is that the country round is preyed upon by the
witch, home being the only place where she has no power. The rest of
the children have to explore the witch's country without being caught
by her. It must be a point of honor to leave no suspicious place
unexamined. The child chosen for witch need not be a particularly fast
runner, but she must be clever and a good dodger. Any one that the
witch succeeds in touching is at once turned to stone and may not stir
except as she is moved about by the witch, who chooses a spot to stand
her victim in as far removed from home as possible. The stone can be
released only by some other child finding her and dragging her safely
home, where the spell ceases to act. But until actually home the
victim remains stone, so that if the rescuer is surprised by the witch
and lets go her hold, the stone has to stand where she is left and is
so recovered by the witch. The witch must not, of course, guard her
prisoners too closely. She ought to try and intercept the rescuers on
their way home, rather than spring upon them in the act of finding the
stone. But each time the stone is recovered the witch may place her in
a more inaccessible spot, so that it becomes more and more dangerous
to release her. Sometimes at the end of the game all the children are
turned to stone in different parts of the garden, but sometimes, of
course, a swift runner will outstrip the witch and drag the victim
safely home. A clever witch acts the part too--appearing and
disappearing suddenly, prowling about in a crouching attitude, making
gestures of hate and rage, and so on."
The Ballad Game