Three Hundred Things a Bright Boy Can Do

by Unknown

Shadow Buff.—A sheet or other large piece of white linen should be fastened at one end of the room, so that it hangs without wrinkles; Buff seats himself on a low stool with his face to the sheet, and a table, on which is a lighted candle, should be placed about four or five feet behind him, and the rest of the lights in the room extinguished. Buff’s playfellows next pass in succession, between him and the candle, distorting their features as much as possible—hopping, limping, and performing odd antics, so as to make their shadows very unlike themselves. Buff, who is not blindfolded, must try to guess to whom the shadows belong, and if he guesses correctly, the player whose shadow he recognises takes his place. Buff is allowed only one guess for each person, and must not turn his head either to the right or to the left to see who passes.

The Boat Race.—A most exciting game, and one that is particularly suited to parties. Any number of players may take part in it, the more the merrier, and they must be divided into two sides. The players stand in two rows, facing one another; at one end of the line there is the starter and at the other the umpire.

At the word “Go!” the starter drops a penny into the hands of each of the two men nearest him. These two men then drop it into the outstretched palms of the people next to them, and so the pennies are passed along from one to the other, and the winning side is the one which manages to get its penny into the hands of the umpire first. A great point which all the players must bear in mind is that on no account must the coin be touched by the fingers. Each player must secure the penny in the palms of his hands placed together, and must drop the penny into the hands of the man next him by simply opening his palms. This greatly adds to the fun of the game. In the hurry to pass on the coin the excited player will drop the money and pick it up in his fingers, and his side is then disqualified for that game.

A Musical Glass.—Take a thin cut-glass goblet, and having cut out of stiff writing-paper a cross with arms of equal length, lay it on the top of the glass, and turn down each end of the four arms, so that the cross will not slip off. Having thus fitted the cross, take it off the glass and pour water into the glass until it is nearly full. Now wipe the rim carefully, so that no particle of moisture remains on it, and replace the cross. You can make the glass vibrate and give out a sound by rubbing your damped finger over some part of the exterior. That is why it is called a musical glass; but an even more wonderful experiment may be made with it. You rub the glass with your damped finger under one of the arms of the cross; the cross will not move. Rub it between any two of the arms, and the cross will begin to turn slowly, as if by magic, and will not stop turning until one of the arms reaches a point immediately over the place you are rubbing. You can then move your finger round the glass and make the cross move as you please.

Boomerangs.

Boomerangs.—The wooden boomerang of the Australian savage has elements of danger, and attempts should not be made to throw it except away from other people and from animals. Even the thrower will do well to have a tree behind which he can retire; but meanwhile much fun can be derived from small boomerangs made of pasteboard. They should be cut in the shapes given, A and B are the best. There is no need to be very exact, but the card should not be bent and should be capable of lying flat upon a table. Other similar shapes may be invented. The curious flight of a little boomerang of this kind is induced by placing it upon a book with one of its ends projecting over the side of the book. Raise the book to a level with your eyes and then with a pencil or penholder strike sharply the edge of the boomerang near the end. Do not treat the boomerang as though you were playing at tip-cat or “peggy,” and avoid smiting it upon its upward flat surface. When you have learned to hit it properly it will skim through the air, then rise a little, and finally come back to some place not far from its starting-point. In any case its peculiar movements are likely to be amusing. A flip with the finger nail is another way to start the boomerang upon its course.

An Amusing Game.—In this game the ball is an empty egg-shell, and the field a covered table.

After the sides have been chosen—any number of persons taking part—the players kneel at both sides of the table, a captain at the head on one side, and another captain at the foot on the other side. In front of each captain are placed two upright articles—candlesticks, tumblers, or what not. These are the goals, across which a ribbon is stretched.

The egg-shell is placed in the centre of the table, and put in play by both captains blowing at it. All the other players then assist in the blowing, which keeps the ball moving about the table at such a rapid succession of tangents as to cause a great deal of fun. Soon most of the players will be helpless with laughter.