Outdoor Sports and Games

by Claude Harris Miller

FAT

This is the universal game of marbles. It is sometimes called “Yank,” or “Knuckle There.” A ring is scratched in the ground a foot or two in diameter. It is then divided into four parts by two lines drawn through the diameter. The first step is for each player to “lay a duck,” which in simple language means to enter a marble to be played for. This is his entrance fee and may be either a “dub,” an “alley,” a “crystal,” or sometimes a “real,” although this is very rare as well as extravagant. About ten feet from this ring a line is made called a “taw line.” The first player, usually determined as soon as school is out by his having shouted, “First shot, fat!” stands behind the taw line and shoots to knock out a marble. If he is successful he continues shooting; if not he loses his turn and Number 2 shoots. Number 1 after his first shot from the taw line must then shoot from wherever his marble lies. If Number 2 can hit Number 1 he has a right to claim all the marbles that Number 1 has knocked out of the ring. In this way it is very much to the advantage of each player to leave himself as far from the taw line as possible.

FEATHER RACE

The contestants endeavour to blow a feather over a certain course in the shortest time. The rule is that the feather must not be touched with the hands. Out of doors this game is only possible on a very still day.

FOOT AND A HALF

This is a game of “Leap Frog” also called “Par” or “Paw.” One of the boys is chosen “down,” who leans over and gives a “back” to the rest, who follow leader, usually the boy who suggests the game. He will start making an easy jump at first and over “down’s” back, then gradually increase the distance of the point at which he lands, and each of those following must clear this line or become “it” themselves. The leader must also surpass his previous jumps each time or he becomes “down” himself. In this way the smaller or less agile boys have a more equal chance with the stronger ones.

FOOTBALL

The present game of football as played in American schools and colleges is a development of the English game of Rugby. There are twenty-two players, eleven on a side or team. The game is played on a level field, at each end of which are goal posts through which the team having the ball in its possession attempts to force or “rush” it, while their opponents by various means, such as tackling, shoving or blocking, strive to prevent the ball from being successfully forced behind the goal line or from being kicked over the crossbar between the goal posts. A football field is 330 feet long by 160 feet wide. It is usually marked out with white lines five yards apart, which gives the field the name of “gridiron.” The various positions on a football team are centre rush, right and left guards, right and left tackles, right and left ends, quarter-back, right and left half-back, and full-back. As in baseball, the rules of football are constantly being changed and the game as played ten or fifteen years ago is very different from the modern game. The various changes in rules have been made with a view to making the game less dangerous to the players and more interesting to the spectator.

The principal scores in football are the “touchdown” and the “field goal.” In a touchdown the ball is carried by one of the players and touched on the ground behind the opponents’ goal line. In a field goal, or, as it is often called, “a goal from the field,” the ball is kicked over the crossbar between the goal posts. In a field goal the player executing it must not kick the ball until after it has touched the ground. Such a kick is called a “drop kick” as distinguished from a “punt” where the ball is released from the hands and immediately kicked before touching the ground. A team in possession of the ball is allowed a certain number of attempts to advance it the required distance. Each of these attempts is called a “down.” If they fail to gain the necessary distance, the ball goes to their opponents. It is customary on the last attempt, or down, to kick the ball so that when the opposing team obtains possession of it will be as far as possible from the goal line toward which they are rushing. In this play a “punt” is allowed. There are also other scores. A safety is made when a team is forced to touch the ball down behind its own goal line.

The ball used in American football is a long oval case made of leather and inflated by means of a rubber bag or envelope. The football player’s uniform consists of a heavily padded pair of trousers made of canvas, moleskin, khaki or other material, a jacket made of the same material, a tight-fitting jersey with elbow and shoulder pads, heavy stockings, and cleated shoes. Players will often use other pads, braces and guards to protect them from injury. Football is usually played in the fall months after baseball has been discontinued on account of the cold weather. A full game consists of four fifteen-minute periods.