LEAP FROG.
159. This is a most excellent pastime. It should be played in a spacious place, out of doors, if possible, and the more there are engaged in it, provided they be of the same height and agility, the better is the sport. We will suppose a dozen at play:—Let eleven of them stand in a row, about six yards apart, with all their faces in one direction, arms folded, or their hands resting on their thighs, their elbows in, and their heads bent forward, so that the chin of each rests on his breast, the right foot advanced, the back a little bent, the shoulders rounded, and the body firm. The last begins the sport by taking a short run, placing his hands on the shoulders of the nearest player, and leaping with their assistance—of course, springing with his feet at the same time—over his head, as represented in the cut. Having cleared the first, he goes on to the second, third, fourth, fifth, etc., in succession, and as speedily as possible. When he has gone over the last, he goes to the proper distance, and places himself in position for all the players to leap over him in their turn. The first over whom he passed, follows him over the second, third, fourth, etc.; and when he has gone over, the one who begun the game places himself in like manner for the others to jump over him. The third follows the second, and so on until the parties are tired.
160.
His heart was sad, and his foot was sore,
When a stranger knocked at the cottager’s door;
With travel faint, as the night fell down,
He had missed his way to the nearest town,
And he prayed for water to quench his thirst,
And he showed his purse as he asked for my first.
The cotter was moved by the stranger’s tale,
He spread the board, and he poured the ale:
“The river,” he said, “flows darkly down
Betwixt your path and the lighted town,
And far from hence its stream is crossed
By the bridge on the road that you have lost;
Gold may not buy, till your weary feet
Have traversed the river and reached the street,
The thing you ask; but the wandering moon
Will be out in the sky with her lantern soon;
Then cross o’er the meadow, and look to the right,
And you’ll find my second by her light.”
My second shone like a silver floor,
When the traveler passed from the cotter’s door;
He saw the town on its distant ridge,
Yet he sighed no more for the far-off bridge;
And his wish of the night soon gained its goal,
For he found my first when he reached my whole.
161. What two letters of the alphabet make a prophet?
| 162. I 8 0 | M |
| day. |
163. Plant an orchard of twenty-one trees, so that there shall be nine straight rows, with five trees in each row, the outline a regular geometrical figure, and the trees all at unequal distances from each other.
| 164. B 0 yy | nor | for U c what a fool u b. |
| nice |
165. What part of the horse resembles you?
166. Why is a horse like the prophet Elijah?
167. Why is a new married man like a horse?
168. Why is it profitable to keep fowl?
169. My first is a collection of water; my second is used when speaking of myself; my third is a fruit; my whole is a town in Hindostan.
170. “Thomas,” said Charles, “you are good at figures, please give me a figurative answer to this question:—What ought one to do who arrives at a friend’s house too late for dinner?”
Thomas, after thinking a little, wrote the following—1028,40. What was his meaning?
171. A teacher, having fifteen young ladies under her care, wished them to take a walk each day of the week. They were to walk in five divisions of three ladies each but no two ladies were to be allowed to walk together twice during the week. How could they be arranged to suit the above conditions?
172.
My first is a letter, an insect, a word,
That means to exist; it moves like a bird.
My next is a letter, a small part of man,
’Tis found in all climes; search where you can.
My third is a something seen in all brawls.
My next you will find in elegant halls.
My last is the first of the last part of day,
Is ever in earnest, yet never in play.
My whole gives a light, by some men abhorred,
The blessings from which no pen can record.
173. What number is that, which, added separately to 100 and 164, shall make them perfect squares?
174. Why is the letter F like death?
175. Why are mortgages like burglars?
176.
I’m composed of letters four,
A turkey, cock, or hen;
Behead me, and I upward soar.
Put on my head again,
Transpose me, then a beast I am,
Both bloodthirsty and wild,
That preys on many a helpless lamb,
And oft devours a child.
177. I am a word of three letters, signifying to spoil or injure. Transposed, I am an animal. Transposed again, I am a part of the human frame.
178. Why is a grist-mill like the court-martial which cashiered Fremont?
179.
I have wings, yet never fly—
I have sails, yet never go—
I can’t keep still, if I try,
Yet forever stand just so.
180. Why is a grist-mill like an orange-tree?
181. What Scripture character was a stupid sheep?
182. What animal that always has a cold chin is used to keep the ladies’ chins warm?
183. What two reasons why a young lady going to the altar is certainly going wrong?
184. Why is it dangerous for a teetotaler to have more than two reasons for the faith that is in him?
185. What is the most cheerful part of an arsenal?
186. When does the tongue assume the functions of the teeth?
187. My first is company, my second is without company, and my third calls company.
188.
An emblem of stupidity,
My first in forests found;
Up in air oft rises high,
Though fastened to the ground,
But by sharp means it is removed,
And managed various ways;
By art or skill may be improved,
Or, perhaps, it makes a blaze.
My second is of every kind,
Is good, or bad, or gay;
Is dull or bright, to suit all minds,
By night as well as day.
The patient seaman keeps with care my whole,
And well it knows his secrets night and day;
And though it has no tongue, nor heart, nor soul,
It tells the story of the ship’s long way.
189. There is a word of six letters. Take off three letters at either end, and add another letter, and it will make one of the most useful members of the body.
190.
Tell me why is it, if you lend
But forty dollars to a friend,
It does your kindness more commend
Than if five hundred you should send?
191. What is that which is less tired the longer it runs?
192. Why is a tailor finishing your pants like a polite host serving his guests with water-fowl?
193. What was a month old at Cain’s birth, that is not five weeks old now?
194. What looks worse on a lady’s foot than a darned stocking?
195. Which of the girls can answer questions best?
196. What is the shape of a kiss?
197.
My first is a busy industrious thing,
Without which no bundle your porter can bring;
My second is nothing to speak of, yet stands
For thousands and millions, in money or lands;
My third is a question we meet every day,
Relating to things we do, think, or say;
My whole is the questioner—once it was you,
If not, ’twas your brother, or cousin, or—whew!
It was somebody else whom your grandmother knew.
198. I am composed of four letters. We do not 4 2 3, 1 4 2 3, 2 3, 3 4 2.
199.
My first is a preposition.
“ second implies more than one.
“ third is a pronoun.
“ fourth some people do not pay.
“ whole is not consistent.
200.
I am a word of four letters often used in prayer.
Transposed, I become what every one professes.
Transposed again, I become an adjective, the qualities of which every one despises.
Transposed again, I am part of a horse.
201.
My first is poison, slow yet sure,
That preys on many frames;
Compounded oft of things impure,
And called by many names.
My first and second form my whole,
That’s one of Satan’s dens;
Many a man has lost his soul,
Through meeting there with friends.
202.
I am a word of four letters—the name of a Cape.
Transposed, I am a portion of the earth’s surface.
Transposed again, I am a kind of meat.
Transposed again, I become a verb signifying to wash.
203.
I prove 2 = 1, thus:—
x = a; then x2 = ax
x2 - a2 = ax - a2
(x + a)(x - a) = a(x - a)
x + a = a
2a = a
2 = 1
Who will detect the fallacy?
204. In what ship, and in what capacity, do young ladies like to engage?
205.
Ethereal thing, on unseen wing,
Through space my first is wandering;
It nothing sees, it nothing knows,
Yet all that’s known and seen it shows.
Brick, iron, mud, stone, reed, or wood,
My second in all climes has stood—
A lodge, a nest, where love may rest,
Or a prison, gloomy, dark, unblest.
Away on the bleak and desolate peak
Where the rude tempests howl and shriek,
Like a friendly eye, looking out from the sky.
My whole to the wanderer gleams on high.
206. What kind of a ship did Solomon object to?
207. There are two numbers whose product added to the sum of their squares is 109, and the difference of whose squares is 24.
208.
In every hedge my second is,
As well as every tree,
And when poor school-boys act amiss,
It often is their fee.
My first likewise is always wicked,
Yet ne’er committed sin,
My total for my first is fitted,
Composed of brass or tin.
209. My first is a pronoun; my second is not high; my third we must all do; my fourth is a pronoun of multitude; my whole is musical.
210. What is the difference between a grandmother and her infant grandchild?
211. Add one to nine and make it twenty.
212. What is that which the dead and living do at the same time?
213.
When winter months have passed away,
And summer suns shine bright,
You ope the coffer where I lay,
And bring my first to light.
My second is a valiant knight,
Who wears his crest and spur,
And when he’s challenged to a fight,
He does not long demur.
My whole, as ancient fables say,
Was once a friend of Juno,
In dress he makes a great display—
His name by this time you know.
214. Why is a bullet like a tender glance?
215.
When innocence first had its dwelling on earth,
In my first’s lovely form it alighted;
And still to this time, from the hour of its birth,
In my first it has greatly delighted.
My second’s a part of a smart lady’s dress,
Yet on age it may also be found;
Again, ’tis a garb when the heart feels distress—
And my whole does with pleasure abound.
216. Why are children at play like a bird in her nest?
217.
My first is male or female, young or old,
’Tis very sad if you are forced to doubt one;
Much must we pity the false heart or cold,
Who is so selfish as to live without one.
My second is a noble work of art,
Which brings together distant shores and lands;
Though neither feet it has, nor head, nor heart,
’Tis often furnished with a hundred hands.
My whole in youth or age, sickness or health,
In joy or sorrow, charms to life can give;
Without it, all in vain are hoards of wealth,
By it unblest in solitude we live.
218. What spice are the Hindoos fond of?
219. Why is a dog like a tanner?
220. Why are A B’s successors seedy?
221. What is nothing good for?
222. I am composed of four letters—the initials of four of the principal personages in Europe—the name of a river in Russia; transposed, I am a part of the Crystal Palace; transposed again, I am not proud, although elevated above the heads of most people.
223.
My first is when the summer wind
Sweeps rustlingly through the trees,
When the jasmine spray and the eglantine
Are swayed by the whispering breeze;
My second, a weapon of bloody strife,
Of steel, so cruel and cold,
Which ruthlessly takes the soldier’s life,
The cowardly, and the bold;
My whole is a Poet, by every one known,
So wide is his renown.
224. Why is the letter y like a young spendthrift?
225. Why is memory like the peacock?
226.
My first in the garden luxuriantly grows,
Delicious and sweet, as every one knows;
My second a noisy, vain, garrulous thing,
The lord of a harem, as proud as a king;
My whole is still prouder, and seems to rejoice
As much in his tail as he does in his voice.
227. One man said to another, “Give me one of your sheep, and I shall have twice as many as you.” The other replied, “No, give me one of yours, and I shall have as many as you.” How many had each?
228. Where were potatoes first found?
229. Where did cherries come from?
230. Why is a ship under full sail like Niagara?
231.
O’er a mighty pasture go
Sheep in thousands, silver white;
As to-day we see them, so
In the oldest grandsire’s sight.
They drink—never waning old—
Life from an unfailing brook;
There’s a shepherd to their fold,
With a silver-horned crook.
From a gate of gold let out,
Night by night he counts them over;
Wide the field they rove about,
Never hath he lost a rover:
True the dog that helps to lead them,
One gay ram in front we see;
What the flock, and who doth lead them,
Sheep and shepherd, tell to me?
232. I am a word of four letters. Take off my hat, and you have something which you do every day. Take off my head, and you have a preposition. Leave off my head and put on my hat, and you have something used before a door. Entire, and taken backward, with my two middle letters transposed, I am a very convenient thing. I, myself, am often eaten.
233. What part of a ship was Cain?
234. What animal resembles the sea, and why?
235. What animal is the most windy, and why?
236. What animal is like an apothecary?
237. What animal is like a stone-breaker?
238. A man had a bar of lead that weighed 40 lbs., and he divided it into four pieces in such a way as to allow him to weigh any number of pounds from one to forty. How did he manage the matter?
239. What is the best key to a good dinner?
240. Why is a farm-yard like a hotel?
241. If a woman stands behind a tree, how does the tree stand?
242. Wherein does a turkey-cock differ from a lady?
243. Three men buy a grindstone, 40 inches in diameter, on equal shares. Each one is to use it until he has worn away his share. How many inches in diameter must each one use?
244. What two letters of the alphabet do children like best?
245. Why are Cashmere shawls like deaf persons?
246.
Ye mortals—wonder! I’m an elf,
A strange, mysterious thing;
More powerful than all the sprites
Within a magic ring.
I speak—although I have no tongue—
I speak, and thrill the soul;
I sing—and many a song I’ve sung
Resounds, while ages roll.
I am a weapon, strong and keen,
All made of glittering steel;
But human souls—not senseless flesh—
My sharp two-edges feel.
The greatest writer e’er was born—
But, ah!—a thievish elf;
For what I write is not, alas!
Original with myself.
I often take a cooling bath;
But, like the Ethiop’s skin,
When I have bathed, I’m blacker still
Than when I did begin!
Most kind am I; I glad the heart
Of many a wretched wight,
And many a sufferer is by me
Transported with delight.
Most cruel I; I’ve pierced the soul
With cutting, burning darts;
I’ve dashed the fondest hopes to earth,
I’ve crushed the lightest hearts.
Yet wise and powerful as I am,
A very slave am I;
I’m forced the mandates to obey
Of both the low and high.
Now, witty brains, tell who this is,
Who blesses and who curses;
Who has no hands, yet still who is
The writer of these verses.
247. Why is an Indian like a flirt?
248. Why is an Indian like a scholar?
249. How much silk is required to make a spherical balloon, 16 inches in diameter, without allowing for seams?
250. All children love to go to sea, and why?
251.
That gentle picture dost thou know,
Itself, its hues, and splendor gaining?
Some change each moment can bestow,
Itself as perfect still remaining;
It lies within the smallest space,
The smallest framework forms its girth,
And yet that picture can embrace
The mightiest objects known on earth:
Canst thou to me that crystal name
(No gem can with its worth compare)
Which gives all light, and knows no flame?
Absorbed is all creation there!
That ring can in itself inclose
The loveliest hues that light the heaven,
Yet from its light more lovely goes
Than all which to it can be given!
252.
From 6 take nine, from 9 take 10;
From 40 take 50, and 6 remain.
253. Why is marriage like truth?
254. Required to divide 45 in four parts, so that the first part with two added, the second with two subtracted, the third divided by two, the fourth multiplied by two, shall equal each other.
255. Where was Major Andre going when he was captured?
256.
There is a mansion, vast and fair,
That doth on unseen pillars rest;
No wanderer leaves the portals there,
Yet each how brief a guest!
The craft by which that mansion rose,
No thought can picture to the soul;
’Tis lighted by a lamp which throws
Its stately shimmer through the whole.
As crystal clear, it rears aloof
The single gem which forms its roof,
And never hath the eye surveyed
The master who that mansion made.
257. Why is a sculptor like a man who “splits his sides with laughter?”
258. Why were the Scribes and Pharisees like a great conflagration?
259. My first is a collection of water, my second is used when speaking of myself, my third is a fruit, my whole is a town in Hindostan.
260.
X U R, X U B,
X, 2 X U R 2 me.
261. Why was Daniel like Nebuchadnezzar’s image?