Tommy (hopping about the room, waving a letter in his hand.)--Hurrah!
hurrah! Uncle Dick is coming. Hurrah! hurrah!
(Enter Tommy's brother and sister and papa and mamma.)
Papa.--What's the matter, Tommy?
Tommy.--Uncle Dick has written to say he is coming to spend Christmas
with us, and he is bringing me a Christmas box.
Mamma.--How kind of him! But be sure you are careful not to offend
him, Tommy. He is rather a touchy old gentleman.
Sister.--I wonder what it will be, Tommy.
Brother.--I hope it will be a set of cricket things, and then we can
play cricket in the summer.
Tommy.--Oh! yes, I hope it will be, but whatever it is, it is sure to
be something nice.
(Begins hopping about again. Enter Uncle Dick, a very old gentleman
with a gouty foot. Tommy does not see him and goes banging into him,
treading on his gouty foot.)
Uncle Dick.--Oh! oh! oh! oh, my toe!
Tommy.--Oh! Never mind your toe! Where's my Christmas box?
Uncle Dick.--Your Christmas box, you young scamp! Think of my toe.
Tommy.--Please, uncle, I'm very sorry, but I do so want to know what
you have brought me for a Christmas box.
Uncle Dick (roaring).--Here's your Christmas box, and may it teach you
to be more careful in future. (Boxes Tommy's ears.)
(Curtain falls.)
Here is a list of words which will divide easily into charade words:
Brides-maids. Sea-side. Car-pen-try.
Cur-tail. Nose-gay. In-do-lent.
Hand-i(I)-craft. Turn-key. Hand-some.
Key-hole. Rail-way. Sweet-heart.
Port-man-teau(toe). Mad-cap. A-bun-dance.
In-no-cent. Fox-glove. Pat-riot.
To make your charades a real success, you will, of course, require a
curtain. A very effective one can be made with a little trouble and at
a small cost; indeed, the materials may be already in the house.
First you must fix a couple of supports on each side of the room,
taking care that they are screwed firmly into the wall, and also
taking care not to damage the paper.
If you are a neat workman, you will find on taking out the screws that
the two small screw-holes on each side will scarcely be noticed, as of
course the supports must be fixed near the ceiling.
You must then put up your curtain-pole, which should be as thin as
possible, so that the rings may run easily. A cheap bamboo pole is the
best.
Two wide, deep curtains are required; very likely the nursery curtains
may be suitable.
On to these curtains you sew a number of small brass rings, which you
can buy for about 20 cents a dozen, or even less. The rings should be
sewn on the curtains, as you see in the illustration, right across
the top, and from the extreme top corner of the curtain, slantingwise
across to the middle.
The top rings are passed along the curtain-pole, a string (marked in
the illustration A1) is sewn on to the curtain, and threaded through
the rings until it reaches A2. It is then threaded through the rings
on the pole until it reaches A3, when it is allowed to fall loose.
The same arrangement is gone through with string B. The bottom of the
curtain must be weighted with shot, or any other weights that may be
convenient.
When the curtain is to be raised, the stage manager and his assistant
stand on each side of the stage with the strings ready in their hands,
and at a given signal--the ringing of a bell is the usual sign that
all is ready--they each pull a string, and the curtains glide to each
side, and may be fixed to hooks, put up on purpose.
When the curtain is to fall, the two in charge of it must simply
loosen the strings and let them go, and the weights cause the curtains
to fall to the center.
All sorts of useful and ornamental "properties" may be made at home
for a very small cost. Cardboard, and gold and silver paper, and glue
go a long way toward making a good show.
Swords, crowns, belts, gold-spangled and gold-bordered robes can be
made from these useful materials, and look first-rate at a distance.
An old black dress with little gold stars glued or gummed to the
material would make an excellent dress for a queen. The swords or
belts must first be cut out in cardboard, then covered with gold or
silver paper.
To make a good wig, you should shape a piece of calico to fit the
head; then sew fire shavings or tow all over it. If you wish for a
curly wig, it is a good plan to wind the shavings or tow tightly round
a ruler, and tack it along with a back stitch, which will hold the
curl in position after you have slipped it off the ruler. These few
hints will give you some idea of the very many different costumes
which can be made by children out of the simplest materials.
[Illustration: THE CURTAIN CLOSED]
[Illustration: THE CURTAIN OPENED]
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