“A Trip To Paris.”
There is another game on the same principle, known by the somewhat ambitious title of “The most Laughable Thing on Earth; or A Trip to Paris.” The tickets for this game are nearly 150 in number, each containing name and grotesque sketch of some article or articles, as “a hod of mortar,” “a guinea-pig,” “a basin of gruel,” “a wheelbarrow,” “a jar of pickles,” “a tub of soft soap,” “two dozen eggs,” “Jemima’s new bonnet,” “some castor-oil,” “a penny whistle,” “a peck of peas,” etc., etc. The game is full of innocent nonsense and played precisely as in the last case (save that there is no reference to any particular trades). The story to be read by the leader commences as follows:
“Brown, Jones, and Robinson were walking together in the streets of Boston, when Brown suddenly exclaimed, ‘I will go to Paris, and return the personification of ——’
“‘I, too,’ said Jones, ‘should like to see Paris, but I have not got ——’
“‘And I should like to accompany you,’ said Robinson, ‘if I knew ——’
“‘Go with us then,” said Brown, ‘and we’ll have ——’
“‘There’s an excursion train to New York in the morning; we can see the “lions” there on our way, and then take ——’
“It was now ‘Pack and off!’ Brown went to bid his friends good-bye, giving to each a parting gift. To an old schoolfellow he gave ——
“To Matilda Jane, a young lady who laid claim to his heart, he gave, with a kiss, ——
“Now, Matilda Jane would not be outdone, so she kissed him twice, and begged him to accept of ——
“Brown was perplexed, but he took the gift, and going home was saluted by the children, who shouted, ‘There goes a man with ——’
“That night he had wonderful dreams; he thought he was chased by ——
“And that he was trying to crowd into his carpetbag ——
“When a man came along and charged him with stealing ——
“He was enraged at this, and was about to pitch into the man, when he awoke, and found it all a dream, caused by his having eaten for supper ——
“He was early at the station, and on asking for a ticket, the clerk gave him ——”
And so on, in like manner. These last games, as a change from graver recreations, make a good deal of fun, particularly with young players.