(b) In this game two children cross hands, grasping each other’s wrists and their own as well: they thus form a seat on which a child can sit and be carried about. At the same time they sing the verse.[Addendum]
Carrying the Queen a Letter
The King and Queen have a throne formed by placing two chairs a little apart, with a shawl spread from chair to chair. A messenger is sent into the room with a letter to the Queen, who reads it, and joins the King in a courteous entreaty that the bearer of the missive will place himself between them. When he has seated himself on the shawl, up jumps the King and Queen, and down goes the messenger on the floor.—Bottesford and Anderly (Lincolnshire), and Nottinghamshire (Miss M. Peacock).
(b) This is virtually the same game as “Ambassador,” described by Grose as played by sailors on some inexperienced fellow or landsman. Between the two chairs is placed a pail of water, into which the victim falls.
Cashhornie
A game played with clubs by two opposite parties of boys, the aim of each party being to drive a ball into a hole belonging to their antagonists, while the latter strain every nerve to prevent this.—Jamieson.
Castles
A game at marbles. Each boy makes a small pyramid of three as a base, and one on the top. The players aim at these from a distant stroke with balsers, winning such of the castles as they may in turn knock down (Lowsley’s Glossary of Berkshire Words). In London, the marble alluded to as “balser” was called “bonsor” or “bouncer” (J. P. Emslie).
See “[Cockly Jock],” “[Cogs].”