as either Duke sees one of his men pressed by an opponent, he sends out
a third, who is in his turn pursued by another from the opposing side;
each being allowed to touch any who have preceded, but none who have
left their fort after him. The war soon becomes exciting; prisoners are
made and released, the two Dukes watching the game, and rarely exposing
themselves, except in cases of emergency, but directing the whole
proceedings. The game is considered won, when one party has succeeded
in imprisoning the whole of the other side.
Much depends upon the Commanders, who sometimes, by a bold dash,
rescue the most important of their men, and thereby turn the fate of
the battle; or when the attention of the opposite side is occupied by
some hardly-contested struggle, send out a player who walks quietly
up to the prison, and without attracting the notice of the opposing
party, lets out a prisoner. No player is permitted to touch more than
one person until he has returned to his fort; when he can sally out
again, armed with fresh strength, like Antæus of old, who could not
be conquered at wrestling because whenever he touched the ground his
strength was renewed by his Mother Earth.
POST-OFFICE.
THIS family game is instructive as well as amusing. Each one present
writes a poem, anecdote, essay, or a letter to some person either
present or absent. The articles written should be concise and must in
all cases be original. Any one who chooses to do so can disguise his
handwriting. The papers, as they are completed, are carefully folded
and directed, and then deposited in a covered box placed on the table.
The post-master must be chosen by the company. He has the right to open
all the letters and papers, first announcing to whom each is directed,
and reads them aloud. After the reading, the papers are distributed
according to the directions written upon them.
Young people who write for the “family portfolio” soon become very much
interested in it, and find themselves acquiring a ready use of the pen.
HANDWRITING UPON THE WALL.
CUT the word or words to be shown, out of a thick card or pasteboard;
place it before a lighted lamp, and the writing will be distinctly seen
upon the wall of the room.
GRACES.
THIS also is an old game, but should be revived, as it is as beneficial
as many of the exercises in the gymnasium, and quite as _graceful_. It
is of German origin, and can be played in the open air, or in any hall
or long room.
[Illustration]
To play the game you need four smooth, round sticks nearly
three-quarters of a yard long. The stick at one end should be just
large enough to be grasped firmly by the hand, and should be tapered
gradually to the end. These sticks, or grace wands, may be prettily
painted and wound near the large end, where they are held, with fancy
ribbons. The hoops are from ten to twelve inches in diameter, made of
some light wood, as bamboo, covered with bright colored silks and wound
with silver cord or some tinsel chenille.
The game is usually played by only two players, each taking two wands
and one hoop, and standing at a distance from each other; the two
wands are held in the hands across each other like open scissors. The
object is to throw and catch the hoop upon these wands. When trying to
catch the hoop the sticks are held like scissors shut, and are opened
apart when the hoop is thrown from you. If you can crown your opponent
without her catching the hoop, a kiss is the old-established forfeit.
The object of the game, as in “Shuttlecock and Battledoor,” is to keep
both hoops flying without once touching the floor. Beginners had better
first play with only one hoop.
FAMILY NEWSPAPER.
THIS is an excellent pastime for a large family, or several families
can unite in it. Choose the most ready writer, and the person of the
best judgment among your number, for the editor. He must also be a good
penman. Your paper can be a weekly or a monthly journal as you please.
Every member of the family must contribute one or more articles for the
paper, either serious, laughable, instructive or absurd pieces, and
give to the editor in season for him to arrange his paper, and publish
it at the appointed time. Such as wish to conceal their authorship must
notify the editor, and he is bound in honor not to reveal the name of
any writer without his permission. Large sheets can be procured, or two
or more small ones can be used together. The paper can then be read
aloud to the family, or each can read it separately. The family paper
will be found to add another link to the home chain. All the papers
thus prepared should be carefully preserved, and in after years they
will prove a source of pleasure. Most vividly will they bring by-gone
days before you.
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.
[Illustration]
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.
[Illustration: “CAN’T REMEMBER.”]
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.
[Illustration]
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.
[Illustration]
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.
[Illustration]
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.
[Illustration: JACK-STRAWS.]
Games for Little Children.