Holiday Frolics; Or, Endless Amusement for the Christmas Fireside / Containing, the Most Astonishing Feats of Legerdemain, and Astounding Conjurings; Entertaining Experiments in Various Branches of Science; Tricks With Cards & Dice. Art of Making Fireworks; Together With an Excellent Collection of Puzzles, Conundrums, Riddles, Charades, &c. &c. The Whole Admirably Calculated to Beguile the Leisure Hours of Our Holiday Friends. Embellished With a Copper-plate Engraving

by Anonymous

Charades.

1. Everlasting. 2. Welcome.

Enigma.

Monosyllable.

To make an Egg Tumble.

Put a penny-worth of Quick-silver into a quill, and seal it at both ends with wax, then boil an Egg, and as soon as you take it out of the water, put your quill through a small hole in the narrow end; put the egg on the table, and it will tumble about as long as the heat remains.

To make Fire Flash from Water.

Pour a small quantity of clear water into a glass, and put a piece or two of phosphoret of lime into it. In a few seconds flashes of fire will dart from the surface of the water, and end in curls of smoke rising in regular succession.

To suspend a Ring by a Thread which has been Burnt.

The thread having been previously soaked in urine, or common salt and water, tie it to a ring, not larger than a wedding ring; when you apply a flame of a candle to it, though the thread will burn to ashes, it will yet sustain the ring.