ANSWERS TO CHARADES, ANAGRAMS, ETC.

Charades.

Anagrams.

Cross-word Enigmas.

Numerical Enigmas.

Decapitations.

Drop Letter Riddles.

1. Why was Ruth rude to Boaz?
Because she trod on his corns, and pulled his ears.

2. She walked on earth,

She talked on earth,

She rebuked a man for sin;

She’s not on earth,

She’s not in heaven,

Nor likely to get in.

Balaam’s Ass.

3. Why did Adam bite the apple Eve gave him?
Because he had no knife.
4. What did Adam first set in the Garden of Eden?
His foot.
5. Why are Adam and Eve an anomaly in grammar?
Because they are two relatives without an antecedent.
6. How did Noah dress his hair in the Ark?
With the fox’s brush and the cock’s comb.

Drop Letter Puzzles.

The Opening Lines of Familiar Songs.

1. “Oh! don’t you remember sweet Alice, Ben Bolt,

Sweet Alice, with hair so brown;

She wept with delight when you gave her a smile,

And trembled with fear at your frown.”

2. “The elephant now goes round,

The band begins to play,

The boys are around the monkey

cage, You’d better keep away.”

3. “I dread the day you’ll forget me, Marguerite,

And still I know it soon will come.

The festive dance, the rich, the gay,

So different from our home, Marguerite.”

Forfeits.

The exacting of forfeits for tardiness or failure in the playing of games will usually lead to as much amusement as the games themselves.

Those who subject themselves to forfeiture may give a trivial article just as satisfactorily as an expensive one, or they may simply write their names on a slip of paper, and hand that to the person in charge. Each player is bound to redeem his name.

At the conclusion of the game the host, or any individual he may appoint (provided that person has no forfeits), collects all and puts them out of sight of the audience, and commencing with the one at his right, he takes the players in turn.

That party now sits down and the one in charge holding over his head one of the trinkets or whatever the object may be, says: “What a jolly thing! What a smart, pretty thing! What will the owner do?”

The party in the chair inquires, “Does it belong to a lady, or to a gentleman?” He is at once answered correctly and then responds by advising a difficult or ridiculous performance. The individual who owns the forfeit must now perform what has been advised. As soon as the party has redeemed his pledge, another forfeit is redeemed after the same method, and so on, one by one, until all articles are returned to their owners. Each forfeit is naturally redeemed amid peals of laughter.

The following may prove helpful to those who have to declare penalties.

1. Fold a piece of note-paper in the shape of a fish.

2. Say, Quizzical Quiz, sister Smith, five times running without drawing a breath.

3. Count twenty backwards without smiling.

4. Mention five synonyms for the word, Jabber.

(Chatter, gabble, mumble, prate, prattle.)

5. Repeat three times without a mistake:—

David Daldron dreamed he drove a dragon,

Did David Daldron dream he drove a dragon?

If David Daldron dreamed he drove a dragon,

Where’s the dragon David Daldron dreamed he drove?

6. Repeat the following lines twice,

Oliver Ogilvie ogled an olive and oyster,

Did Oliver Ogilvie ogle an olive and oyster?

If Oliver Ogilvie ogled an olive and oyster

Where is the olive and oyster Oliver Ogilvie ogled?

7. Touch the features while you solemnly recite,

Here sits the Lord Mayor,forehead.
Here sit his two men,eyes.
Here sits the cock,right cheek.
Here sits the hen,left cheek.
Here sits the little chickens,tip of nose.
Here they run in,the mouth.
Chinchopper, chinchopper, chinchopper, chin! Chuck the chin.

8. Repeat the alphabet similar to example.

A was an archer, and shot at a frog,

B was a butcher, and had a great dog.

C was a captain, all covered with lace,

D was a dunce with a very sad face.

E was an esquire, with pride on his brow,

F was a farmer and followed the plow.

G was a gamester who had but ill luck,

H was a hunter and hunted a buck.

I was an innkeeper, who lov’d to house,

J was a joiner, and built up a house.

K was a king, so mighty and grand,

L was a lady who had a white hand.

M was a miser who hoarded up gold,

N was a nobleman, gallant and bold.

O was an oysterman, and went about town,

P was a parson, and wore a black gown.

Q was a quack with a wonderful pill,

R was a robber, who wanted to kill.

S was a sailor, and spent all he got,

T was a tinker, and mended a pot.

U was a usurer, a miserable elf,

V was a vintner, who drank all himself.

W was a watchman and guarded the door,

X was expensive, and so became poor.

Y was a youth, that did not love school,

Z was a Zan, a poor, harmless fool.

9. Sing to the tune of “Oats, Pease, Beans and Barley grows.”

Tom he was a piper’s son,

He learned to play when he was young;

But all the tune that he could play,

Was “Over the hills and far away.”

Now Tom with his pipe made such a noise,

That he pleased both the girls and the boys,

And they all stopped to hear him play

Over the hills and far away.

Tom with his pipe did play with such skill,

That those who heard him could never stand still;

Whenever they heard him they began to dance,

Even pigs on their hind legs would after him prance.

He met old Dame Trot with a basket of eggs,

He used his pipe and she used her legs;

She danced about till the eggs were all broke,

She began to fret, but he laughed at the joke.

He saw a cross fellow was beating an ass,

Heavy laden with pots, pans, dishes and glass;

He took out his pipe and played them a tune,

And the jackass’s load was lightened full soon.

10. Blow out a candle.

The candle is rapidly flashed before the person to blow it out. If passed to and fro quick enough, it will afford much laughter before it is blown out.

11. Stand on a chair and do just as you are bidden without laughing.

12. Put a cord on the floor where you cannot step over it.

(Put it against the wall.)

13. Put two chairs back to back and take off your shoes and jump over them.

This is only a trick, you take off your shoes and jump over them, not over the chairs.

14. Act the part of a dumb servant. If it is a lady who is redeeming the forfeit, she must apply to a gentleman for a place, and if a gentleman, he applies to a lady. Whoever is engaging the servant asks seven questions, all of which are answered by dumb motions. Example: How do you dust? How do you sew? How do you open the hall door? How do you blacken boots? etc.

15. Ask a question that cannot be answered in the negative.

(The question is “What does Y E S spell?”)

16. Give a conundrum unfamiliar to all.

17. Dot and carry one.

(Hold your ankle while you walk across the room.)

18. Imitate a banjo player.

19. Dance a blind lanciers.

(Try this when a number of forfeits have to be redeemed. Eight people are blindfolded and led to position. Another of the company plays the lanciers. As those who are blindfolded will surely make ridiculous errors, everybody will heartily laugh. This forfeit creates much merriment.)

20. Make a three-minute address, in which every word commences with the same letter.

21. Tell who wrote the Star Spangled Banner.

(Francis Scott Key.)

22. Tell who wrote Home Sweet Home.

(John Howard Payne.)

23. Tell who wrote the Battle Hymn of the Republic.

(Julia Ward Howe.)

24. Walk out of the room with two legs but walk back with six.

(When you return, bring a chair with you.)

25. Give numerical poetry.

Any verse that is familiar counting as example:

Shuffle-Shoon (one) and (two) Amber-Locks (three)

Sit (four) together (five) building (six) blocks (seven)

Shuffle-Shoon (eight) is (nine) old (ten) and (eleven) gray (twelve)

Amber-Locks (thirteen) a (fourteen) little (fifteen) child (sixteen)

But (seventeen) together (eighteen) at (nineteen) their (twenty) play (twenty-one)

Age (twenty-two) and (twenty-three) youth (twenty-four) are (twenty-five) reconciled (twenty-six)

And (twenty-seven) with (twenty-eight) sympathetic (twenty-nine) glee (thirty)

Build (thirty-one) their (thirty-two) castles (thirty-three) fair (thirty-four) to (thirty-five) see (thirty-six).

26. Spread out a newspaper and stand two persons on it, so that they cannot possibly touch each other.

(To accomplish this put the newspaper on the floor, half on one side of the door, and half on the other. A person stands on each piece, and the door is shut between them.)

27. Sing one of the topical songs.

28. Sing the scale backwards.

29. Draw a picture of a bicycle race.

30. Build a house with cards.

31. Sew a hem.

32. Repeat rapidly either of the following tongue twisters.

Susan shineth shoes and socks; socks and shoes shines Susan. She ceaseth shining shoes and socks, for shoes and socks shock Susan.

Strict, strong Stephen Stringer snared six sickly silky snakes.

Swan swam over the sea; swim, swan, swim; swan swam back again; well swum swan.

Six thick thistle sticks.

Flesh of freshly fried flying fish.

Give Grimes Jim’s great gilt gig whip.