A DICTIONARY
OF
BRITISH FOLKLORE

Edited by
G. LAURENCE GOMME, Esq., F.S.A.
PRESIDENT OF THE FOLKLORE SOCIETY, ETC.

PART I.
CLASSIC GAMES

All rights reserved.

WITH
TUNES, SINGING RHYMES, AND PLAYING METHODS
BASED ON THE DIFFERENT VARIANTS AVAILABLE AND
RECORDED IN VARIOUS AREAS
OF THE KINGDOM

COLLECTED AND ANNOTATED BY
ALICE BERTHA GOMME

VOL. I.
ACROSHAY-NUTS IN MAY

LONDON
DAVID NUTT, 270-71 STRAND
1894

TO
MY PARTNER

[vii]

Soon after the Folk-lore Society was established in 1878, my husband started planning and has been gathering materials for a dictionary of British Folk-lore ever since. A lot of the material has been prepared for publication, but at this point, the scope of the work has created an unexpected challenge to finishing it.

To print everything in one alphabet would require more than just effort; it would need the active cooperation of a dedicated team. The time and cost involved in such a project nearly made it seem impossible to ever get it published. Still, without a scientific organization of the widely dispersed material and a detailed comparison of each piece of folklore, it's almost impossible to expect that the complete truth hidden in these remnants of the past will be uncovered.

During my preparation of a book of games for kids, it struck me that separating all the games from the main collection of folklore and making them a part of the proposed dictionary would be a smart move. By organizing the larger groups of folklore into separate sections, the idea of publishing the planned dictionary seemed to come back to life. As a result, the original plan has been modified to the extent that these volumes will become the first section of the dictionary, which will now be released in sections instead of one continuous alphabetical list[viii], with each section arranged alphabetically.

The games in this collection are mostly Children's Games. This means they were either originally designed for kids and later adapted for adults, or they were once serious activities for adults that have since turned into games for children. In both cases, this shift happened naturally over time, rather than through any official changes. As a result, all newly invented skill games are left out of this collection, but it does feature both indoor and outdoor games, suitable for both girls and boys.

The majority of this collection was compiled by me, with significant help from many correspondents, to whom I am truly grateful. I've acknowledged my thanks to everyone, which not only serves as a matter of fairness but also ensures the authenticity of the collection. I've included a list of the collectors, along with the counties where the games originate, at the end of this preface. I especially want to thank Rev. W. Gregor, Mr. S. O. Addy, and Miss Fowler, who generously provided collections they had prepared before learning about my project. I also appreciate Miss Burne, Miss L. E. Broadwood, and others for kindly gathering variants and tunes that I wouldn’t have received otherwise. For the many versions appearing here for the first time, I've included either a full transcript where necessary or a reference when that sufficed, along with printed versions found in well-known collections by Halliwell and Chambers, publications from the Folk-lore and Dialect Societies, and dictionaries by Jamieson, Nares, and Halliwell, among other sources. When quoting from a printed authority, I’ve tried to provide the exact words and always given the reference. I had hoped to cover every game played by children across the United Kingdom in my collection, but it's clear that many counties remain unrepresented; I would greatly appreciate any games from other areas that could help make this collection more complete. The tunes for the games have been recorded as sung by the children, either by me or by correspondents (except where noted), and remain unchanged.

The games are divided into two main categories: descriptive and singing or choral. The descriptive games are organized to show the best example and, when applicable, various types in order, followed by any insights I have on the potential origin of each game. The singing games are structured to present, first, the melodies; second, different versions of the game rhymes; third, the way to play; fourth, an analysis of the game rhymes based on a system developed by my husband, which is a completely new approach to exploring the history of games; fifth, a discussion of the outcomes from the analysis of the rhymes based on the different versions; and sixth, an effort to derive suggestions about the likely origin of the game from the gathered evidence, along with references to early sources and other relevant facts that help clarify the opinions expressed. Where the playing method is involved or where there are multiple variations in the forms, diagrams or illustrations by Mr. J. P. Emslie are included to help the reader grasp the various actions, and in a few cases, I've managed to provide a facsimile reproduction of depictions of the games from early manuscripts in the Bodleian and British Museum Libraries.

[x]Even though none of the versions of the games collected here are in their original form and are somewhat incomplete, it's really clear how fascinating these games are. They are not only entertaining (and there's no doubt about their appeal in that respect) but also offer valuable insight into the customs and beliefs of our ancestors. Children don’t create; they largely imitate or mimic, and many of these games likely contain unconscious folk-dramas of events and customs that were once part of serious life, occurring before the eyes of children generations ago. As for the many interesting aspects of this topic and others, there's no need to go into detail here, as the second volume will include an appendix that provides a complete analysis of the incidents mentioned in the games, along with an attempt to narrate their origin and development, as well as a comparison with children's games from other countries.

The joy I've gained from collecting these games has been greatly boosted by the many messages of similar enjoyment from those who have helped me. It's not uncommon for me to receive thanks for bringing back some of the most exciting memories felt by collectors since childhood. I can’t help but think that if these traditional games can still bring pleasure after so many years, they must offer the same joy to those who are learning them for the first time now.

ALICE BERTHA GOMME.

Barnes Common, S.W.,
Jan. 1894.

[xi]

[xv]

[xx]

[1]

A cap or a small item is placed on the back of a bending boy by other boys, and each of them takes turns jumping over him. The first one jumps and says "Accroshay," the second says "Ashotay," the third says "Assheflay," and the last one says "Lament, lament, Leleeman’s (or Leleena’s) war." If anyone knocks off the item while jumping, they have to take the place of the boy bending down. —Cornwall (Folk-lore Journal, v. 58).

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

“A mere children's pastime” (A Curtaine Lecture, 1637, p. 206). This is definitely the game of “Hide and Seek,” although Cotgrave seemingly equates it with “Hoodman Blind.” See Halliwell’s Dictionary. It’s mentioned in Dekker’s Satiromastix, “Our mask-wearing Poet plays peek-a-boo with your Grace, and cries ‘All-hid,’ like boys do.” Tourneur, Rev. Trag., III., v. 82, “A lady can at such All-hid beguile a wiser man,” is cited in Murray’s Dictionary as the first reference.

—Northall’s English Folk Rhymes, p. 386.

This is a marching game for very young kids, who follow each other in a line.

(b) Halliwell provides just the first two lines (Nursery Rhymes, No. dxv., p. 101), and there seems to be no other record of[2] this game. It's likely very old and used to hold some importance. It harks back to times of bows and arrows, and the mention of killing the wren might relate to the Manx and Irish tradition of hunting that bird.

A kids' game in Newcastle and the surrounding area. A circle about eight inches in diameter is drawn, called the well, with a wooden peg four inches tall placed in the center, balancing a button on top. Those who want to play give buttons, marbles, or anything else agreed upon for the chance to throw a short stick, which they receive, at the peg. If the button flies out of the circle, the player gets double the value of what they put in for the stick. The game is also played at the Newcastle Races and other entertainment spots in the North, using three pegs in three circular holes dug in the ground about two feet apart, forming a triangle. In this version, each hole has a peg about nine inches long, and either a small knife or some coins are placed on top. The player pays a set amount for each stick and collects all the items that get knocked off and land outside the holes.—Northumberland (Brockett’s North Country Glossary).

A Suffolk game, not explained (Moor’s Suffolk Glossary). Jamieson also mentions it without any details. Check out the rhyme in the game “Fool, fool, come to School,” “Little Dog, I call you.”

I.

—Hampshire (from a friend of Miss Mendham).

II.

—Deptford (Ms. Chase).

III.

—Belfast (W. H. Patterson).

IV.

—Earls Heaton (Herbert Hardy).

(b) A complete description of this game couldn't be gathered in each instance. The Earls Heaton game is played by forming a circle, with one child in the center. Once the first verse is sung, a child from the circle moves to the one in the center. The remaining verses are then sung. The actions that go along with the lyrics of the verses don’t seem to have been maintained. In the Hampshire version, after the line “As a bird upon a tree,” the two children mentioned pair off like sweethearts while the rest of the verse is sung.

(c) The analysis of the game rhymes is as follows:Understood! Please provide the text you would like me to modernize.

[6]

It seems from the analysis that all the events of the Hants version of this game happen in one or another of the versions, and these events are likely representative of the game. This perspective would leave out the important events of bride capture in the Earls Heaton version; the bride having a baby in the Belfast version, and the two minor incidents in the Deptford version (Nos. 13 and 15 in the analysis), which are clearly additional. Chambers, in his Popular Rhymes of Scotland, pp. 119, 137, provides two versions of a courtship dance that are somewhat similar to the words of this game, although they do not include the main events. Northall, in his English Folk Rhymes, p. 363, has some verses of a similar nature, but not those of the game. W. Allingham seems to have taken this rhyme as the beginning of one of his ballads, “Up the airy mountain.”

(d) The game is clearly about marriage. It highlights two important aspects of the betrothal ceremony: the “huddling and cuddling” is reminiscent of the rude customs that used to be common at marriage ceremonies in Yorkshire, the northern counties, and Wales, while the bride making the pudding and then sharing it to eat together clearly parallels the bridal-cake ceremony. In Wales, a tradition called “bundling” allowed the engaged couples to sleep in their clothes (Brand, ii. 98). In Yorkshire, the bridal cake was always made by the bride. The awkwardness of the dialogue is particularly striking in this game.

A Suffolk game, not described.—Moor’s Suffolk Glossary. See “Fool, fool, come to School,” “Little Dog, I call you.”

[Play __A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__, __A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_1__]

—Sporle, Norfolk (Ms. Matthews).

[7]The kids gather in a circle and sing the lines above. They "bop down" at the end of the verse. In the Suffolk dialect, "bop" means "to stoop or bow the head."—Moor.

A fun game that young girls play at rural schools. It's similar to “Drop Handkerchief,” but the penalty for not following the same path as the child being chased is to “stand in the circle, facing out, for the rest of the game; if she manages to catch someone, that caught person must stand there, while the other picks up the cap and goes around like before” (Mactaggart’s Gallovidian Encyclopædia). There's no explanation for the name of this game.

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

I.

—Middleton (Burne’s Shropshire Folk-lore, p. 523).

II.

—Shepscombe, Gloucestershire (Ms. Mendham).

III.

—Warwickshire (Northall’s *Folk Rhymes*, p. 394).

IV.

—Hersham, Surrey (Folk-lore Record, v. 87).

[8]

V.

—Halliwell’s Nursery Rhymes, p. 121.

(b) The kids pair up, with one pair following another, arms linked behind. While the first four lines are repeated by everyone, they skip forward and then skip back again. At the end of the last line, they turn around without letting go of each other's hands.

(c) Miss Burne includes this among obscure and outdated games, and Halliwell-Phillips refers to it as a marching game. The first three versions have some qualities of an incantation, while the fourth and fifth versions likely belong to a different game entirely. It’s unclear from the significant differences in the verses which category the game falls under.

An old English game not described.—Useful Transactions in Philosophy, 1709, p. 43.

One child is called the “Angel,” another child the “Devil,” and a third child the “Minder.” The Minder gives the children names based on colors. Then the Angel comes over and knocks, and the following dialogue happens.

Minder: “Who’s there?”

"Angel."

Minder: “What do you need?”

Angel: “Ribbons.”

Minder: “What color?”

Angel: “Red.”

Minder replies, if no child has that name, “Go and learn your ABC.” If the guess is correct, the child is taken away. The Devil then knocks, and the conversation and actions happen again.—Deptford, Kent (Miss Chase).

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

[9]

The kids hold hands and dance in a circle, “with a front step, a back step, and a side step, around an invisible May-pole,” singingUnderstood. Please provide the text to modernize.

Then comes kissing.—Brigg, Lincolnshire (Miss Peacock).

[__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__]

—Biggar (W. H. Ballantyne).

[10](b) Mr. Ballantyne describes the dance happening at the end of a country ball. The guys all sat on one side and the girls on the other. It started with a boy taking a handkerchief and dancing in front of the girls while singing the first verse (fig. 1). He would pick one of the girls and toss the handkerchief into her lap or wrap it around her neck, holding both ends himself. Some would spread the handkerchief on the floor at her feet. The goal in either case was to get a kiss, but it wasn’t given without a bit of teasing, with the girls cheering on their friend at every failed attempt the boy made (fig. 2). Then a girl would take the handkerchief, singing the next verse (fig. 3), and after tossing it to one of the boys, she would run back to her own side with the girls, followed by the chosen boy (fig. 4). Once everyone was paired up, they formed a line facing each other and danced somewhat like the country dance of Sir Roger.

(c) Chambers’ Popular Rhymes, p. 36, provides a slightly different version of the verses, stating that they were sung by children while playing in Glasgow. Mactaggart refers to this game as “‘Bumpkin Brawly,’ an old dance that always concludes parties; similar to the ‘Cushion’ as well.”

[11]

The tune for this song is always played for the dance, says Mactaggart, but he doesn't mention the tune itself. To bab, in Lowland Scottish, is explained by Jamieson as “to play back and forth loosely; to dance.” He then adds, “Bab at the bowster, or Bab wi’ the bowster, a very old Scottish dance, now almost out of use; it used to be the last dance at weddings and celebrations.” Mr. Ballantyne notes that a bolster or pillow was once regularly used. One correspondent from N. and Q., ii. 518, mentions that it is now (1850) danced with a handkerchief instead of a cushion as it was before, and no words are sung, but later correspondents dispute this. See also N. and Q., iii. 282.

(d) Two important suggestions come up regarding this game. First, the dance was originally meant to signal the bride and groom to go with “the bowster” to the wedding bed. Second, it has devolved in Southern Britain into the typical “Drop Handkerchief” games of kiss in the ring. The preservation of this “Bab at the Bowster” example provides insight into both the origin of the current game in an outdated marriage tradition and its evolution into its latest form. See “Cushion Dance.”

A rough version of “Cricket,” played with a bat and a ball, usually using a wall as wickets. “Bad” seems to be a way of saying “Bat.” Halliwell mentions it was a rough game, once popular in Yorkshire, and likely similar to the game of “Cat.” There’s a game like that played today, but it’s called “Pig.”—Easther’s Almondbury Glossary.

[12]

The game of “Hockey” in Cheshire.—Holland’s Glossary.

A rough game, sometimes seen in the countryside. The boy playing the Bear acts on his hands and knees and is kept from escaping by a string. Another boy, his Keeper, is responsible for protecting him from the attacks of the others.—Halliwell’s Dictionary.

This is a boys’ game called “Buffet the Bear.” It can be played by any number of kids. One boy, called the Bear, gets down on all fours and tucks his head toward his chest as much as he can. He holds one end of a piece of rope in his hand, while another boy, called the Keeper, grabs the other end with one hand and holds his cap in the other. The other boys gather around, some holding their caps and others with their neckties or handkerchiefs, and at a signal, they charge at the Bear and throw things at him, especially aiming for his ears and face, while the Keeper tries to protect him. If the Keeper accidentally hits a boy, that boy becomes the Bear, and the previous Bear becomes the Keeper, and the game continues from there.—Keith, Banffshire (Rev. W. Gregor).

I saw this game played on Barnes Green, Surrey, on August 25, 1892. Instead of using their hats, the boys had pieces of leather tied to a string, which they used to hit the Bear on the back. They could only start when the Keeper shouted, “My Bear is free.” If they swung at any other time, the person who struck became the Bear. It's called “Baste the Bear.”—A. B. Gomme.

Chambers (Popular Rhymes, p. 128) describes this game under the title “The Craw.” It was played exactly like the Barnes game. The boy holding the end of the long strap also has a hard twisted handkerchief, called the cout; with this cout, he defends the Craw against the attacks of the other boys, who also have their own couts. Before starting, the Guard of the Craw must call outUnderstood. Please provide the text you want me to modernize.

[13]The first person he hits becomes the Craw. When the Guard needs a break, he shouts outGot it! Please provide the text you'd like me to modernize.

(b) Jamieson defines “Badger-reeshil” as a heavy hit; it is believed to have been borrowed from badger hunting or from the old game called “Beating the Badger.”

—Ms. Poem.

Mr. Emslie says he knows it as "Baste the Bear" in London, and Patterson (Antrim and Down Glossary) mentions a similarly named game. It is played in Marlborough under the name "Tom Tuff."—H. S. May.

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

—Northall’s *English Folk Rhymes*, p. 394.

Two kids stand back to back, linked at the armpits, and measure each other as they repeat these lines.

I.

—Chambers’ Pop. Rhymes of Scotland, p. 115.

II.

—Burne’s *Shropshire Folk-lore*, p. 530.

(b) Kids toss a ball in the air, reciting the rhyme, and figure out how long they’ll live by how many times they can catch it again. In some places, this game is played with a cowslip ball, which is then called a “tissy-ball.”

(c) I've heard other rhymes added to this to decide if the players will marry or not, the future husband's job, what he should wear, how to get to church, etc. (A. B.[14] Gomme). Strutt mentions a handball game played during the Easter holidays for Tansy cakes (Sports, p. 94). Halliwell offers rhymes for ball divination (Popular Rhymes, p. 298) to figure out how many years it will be before marriage happens. Miss Baker (Northamptonshire Glossary) states, “The May garland is hung by ropes from the schoolhouse to a tree on the other side, and the Mayers have fun throwing balls over it. A local from Fotheringay, Mr. C. W. Peach,” says Miss Baker, “has shared memories from his own childhood. He mentions that the May garland was hung in the middle of the street, on a rope stretched from house to house. Then, they would have a contest to see who could toss small white leather balls through the garland's framework, which was quite an achievement.”

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__,” “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_1__,” “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_2__.”

This is a boys’ game. The players can be any number. They line up their caps or hats in a row. One of the boys takes a ball and, from a set spot a few yards away from the hats, tries to throw it into one of the caps (fig. 1). If the ball lands in a cap, all the boys, except the one whose cap it went into, run away. The boy whose cap the ball landed in approaches it, takes the ball out, and shouts "Stop!" The other boys freeze. The boy with the ball tries to hit one of the other boys (fig. 2). If he hits someone, that boy gets a small stone added to his cap. If he misses, he gets a stone added to his own cap. If the boy aiming for the cap misses, a stone goes into his own cap, and he gets another chance. The game continues until one cap has six stones in it. The boy with six stones in his cap has to put his hand against a wall and receives a certain number of hard throws with the ball from one of the players. Those throws are called "buns." The game can keep going like this until each player gets their "buns."—Nairn (Rev. W. Gregor).

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

A line of boys' caps is placed against a wall. One boy throws a ball into one of the caps. The owner of that cap runs away, and all the others chase him until they catch him. He then throws the ball. —Dublin (Mrs. Lincoln).

[__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__]

—Epworth, Doncaster; and Lossiemouth, Yorkshire (Charles C. Bell).

(b) The kids form a circle, holding hands, and dance around singing the first two lines. Then, letting go of each other's hands, they waltz in pairs, singing the last line as a refrain. The game continues, with different colored ribbons being called out each time.

(c) This game was played in 1869, so it couldn't have come from the political movement.

[16]

A game played with an inflated ball made of tough leather, where the ball is hit with the arm, which is protected by a wooden brace.—Brand’s Pop. Antiq., ii. 394.

(b) It is spelled “balloo” in Ben Jonson, iii. 216, and “baloome” in Randolph’s Poems, 1643, p. 105. It is also mentioned in Middleton’s Works, iv. 342, and by Donne.

—Donne’s Poems, p. 133.

Toone (Etymological Dict.) states that it’s a game more for exercise than competition; it was widely known and played in England in the fourteenth century, and it’s noted as one of the sports of Prince Henry, son of James I., in 1610. Strutt (Sports and Pastimes, p. 96) provides two examples of what he believes is balloon ball play, from fourteenth-century manuscripts.

A game played with sticks called “bandies,” which are bent and rounded at one end, along with a small wooden ball, where each team tries to hit the ball to opposite fixed points. Northbrooke mentions it in 1577 as a popular game in Devonshire (Halliwell’s Dict. of Provincialisms). Strutt says the bat-stick was called a “bandy” because of its bent shape, and provides a drawing from a 14th-century manuscript of prayers owned by Mr. Francis Douce (Sports, p. 102). The bats in this drawing look almost identical to modern golf clubs, and “Golf” seems to be derived from this game. Peacock talks about it in his Glossary of Manley and Corringham Words. Forby includes an interesting note in his Vocabulary of East Anglia, i. 14. He states, “The bandy was made of very tough wood, or reinforced with metal, or with the point of the horn or hoof of an animal. The ball is a knot or bump from the trunk of a tree, carefully shaped into a round form. The opposing teams try to hit it with their bandies through one of the goals.”

[17]

A ball game that's popular in Norfolk, and it's played similarly to “Bandy” (Halliwell’s Dictionary). Toone (Etymological Dictionary) notes that it's also played in Suffolk, and in West Sussex, it's called “Hawky.”

The game of “Cricket,” played with a bandy instead of a bat (Halliwell’s Dictionary). Toone mentions it being played in Norfolk (Dict.), and Moor notes it as being played in Suffolk, typically using bricks or, when they aren't available, bats instead of bails or stumps (Suffolk Words).

Each boy gets a button for himself. One boy places his button on the ground, near a wall. The other boys take turns flicking their buttons against the wall. If a button lands within one arm's length of the button on the ground, it scores two (fig. 2); if it's within two arm's lengths, it scores one. If it hits the button and bounces back within one arm's length, it scores four (fig. 1); within two arm's lengths, it scores three; and more than two arm's lengths scores one. Each player takes turns for a set number of rounds; the first to reach that score wins the game.—Deptford, Kent, and generally in London streets (Miss Chase).

This game is called "Spans" in America.—Newell, p. 188.

[18]

To play at "Bar," a type of game that has been traditionally played in Scotland. —Jamieson.

This game was referred to in ancient England as “Bars,” or as stated in an Act of James IV, 1491, edit. 1814, p. 227: “That no one within the town… play at bar,” “playing at Bars.”

I.

—Deptford, Kent (Ms. Chase).

II.

—Clapham, Surrey (Miss F. D. Richardson).

III.

—Lady Camilla Gurdon’s Suffolk County Folk-lore, p. 63.

IV.

—Penzance (Mrs. Mabbott).

(b) Two kids hold hands tightly to form a fortress; one kid stands a little distance away to represent the King of Barbarie, with other kids behind to act as soldiers (fig. 1). Some of the soldiers[20] approach the fortress and surround it, singing the first verse (fig. 2). The kids inside the fortress respond, singing the first four verses back and forth. The soldiers then go to the King while singing the fifth verse (fig. 3), continuing to alternate with the remaining verses. One soldier then approaches the fortress and tries to break through by throwing herself against the clasped hands of the kids forming the fortress (fig. 4). All the soldiers take turns attempting this; finally, the King arrives and breaks through the guard. The entire group of soldiers then rushes through the parted arms (fig. 5).

This is the Deptford version. The Clapham version is almost the same; the children hold each other's skirts and form a long line. If the brave soldier can’t break the clasped hands, he goes to the end of the line of soldiers.[21] The soldiers don’t surround the fortress. In the Suffolk version the soldiers try to break through the girls’ hands. If they succeed, they take the tower. The Cornwall version is not completely an illustration of the capture of a fortress.

Barley-break, also known as the Last Couple in Hell, was a game played by six people, three men and three women, who were paired up randomly. A piece of land was chosen and divided into three sections, with the center section called Hell. The goal for the couple assigned to the Hell section was to tag the others who were moving from the two end sections (figs. 1, 2). If they succeeded, a change occurred, and the couple that got caught had to move to Hell, replacing the couple that was currently there (fig. 3). However, there were some challenges in tagging, as the couple in the middle had to stay together until they caught someone, while the others could let go of each other if they were under pressure. Once everyone had been tagged in turn, the last couple remaining was said to be “in Hell,” and the game was over.—Dekker’s Works, iv. 434.

[22]Jamieson describes this as “a game commonly played by young people in a cornfield. Hence it’s called barla-bracks about the stacks, S. B.” (i. e., in the North of Scotland). “One stack is chosen as the dule or goal; and one person is assigned to catch the rest of the group, who run away from the dule. They don’t leave until everyone is out of sight. Then the catcher goes after them. Anyone who gets caught can’t run out again with their former teammates, as they’re considered a prisoner; instead, they must help their captor chase the others. When everyone is caught, the game ends; and the person who was caught first has to be the catcher in the next game. This innocent sport seems to be almost completely forgotten in the South of Scotland. It is also becoming less common in the North.”

(b) The following description of Barley-break, written by Sir Philip Sidney, is taken from the song of Lamon, in the first volume of the Arcadia, where he relates the passion of Claius and Strephon for the beautiful Urania:Understood. Please provide the text you would like me to modernize.

[23]Sir John Suckling has also described this pastime with symbolic characters, which is referenced by Brand. In Holiday’s play Marriages of the Arts, 1618, this game is featured, as well as in Herrick’s Hesperides, p. 44. Barley-break is mentioned several times in Massinger’s plays: see Dramatic Works of Philip Massinger, 1779, i. 167. “We’ll play barley-break first, and you’ll be in hell” (Dekker’s The Honest Whore). “He’s at barley-break, and the last couple are now in hell” (Dekker’s The Virgin Martir). See Gifford’s Massinger, i. 104, edit. 1813. Also refer to Browne’s Britannia’s Pastorals, published in 1614, Book I., Song 3, p. 76.

Randle Holme talks about this game being popular in his time in Lancashire. Harland and Wilkinson think this game has influenced areas in Yorkshire and Lancashire. A couple join hands and head out from home, shouting something like

and trying to tickle or touch with the free hand any of the boys running around separately. The others try to slip behind the couple and lean their weight on the joined hands to break them apart without being touched or tickled first; and if they manage to separate the couple, each of the individuals has to carry one home on their back. Whoever gets touched takes the place of the toucher in the linked couple (Legends of Lancashire, p. 138). The modern name for this game is “Prison Bars” (Ibid., p. 141). There is also a description of the game in a small booklet called Barley Breake; or, A Warning for Wantons, 1607. It is mentioned in Wilbraham’s Cheshire Glossary as “an old Cheshire game.” Barnes, in his Dorsetshire Glossary, says he has seen it played with one person as the catcher on hands and knees in a small circle (Hell), while the others dance around the circle yelling, “Burn the wold witch, you barley breech.” Holland (Cheshire Glossary) also refers to it as an old Cheshire game.

—Played around 1850 at Hurstmonceux, Sussex (Miss Chase).

[__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__]

In this game, the kids all follow someone called the "mother," singing:

The mother turns around and either catches them or acts like she’s going to beat them.—Dorsetshire (Folk-lore Journal, vii. 231).

—Hersham, Surrey (Folk-lore Record, vol. 84).

A version I'm familiar with is the same as above, but ending with

The mother then chased and hit the children she caught. The idea was, I think, that the kids were imitating or mocking their mother (A. B. G.). In Warwickshire, the four[25] lines of the Surrey game end with the extra linesUnderstood! Please provide the text you'd like me to modernize.

When the mother chases after them and scolds them.—Northall’s English Folk Rhymes, p. 393.

A group of boys decides to play this game, and they split into teams. For example, five boys play on each side. They draw a square on a sidewalk next to the road, called the “Den.” Five of the boys stay by the Den, one of whom is called the “Tenter.” The Tenter is in charge of the Den and must keep one foot in the Den and the other on the road. The other five boys go out to the field, having agreed that they can only run within a certain area or in specific streets (fig. 1). Once the boys in the field reach a certain distance—there's no set limit—they[26] shout “Relievo,” and at this signal, the four boys by the Den chase after them, leaving the Tenter to guard the Den (fig. 2). If a boy is caught, he's taken to the Den and has to stay there unless the Tenter puts both feet in the Den or takes out the one foot that he should always keep in the Den. If the Tenter is caught off guard, the prisoner can escape from the Den. If, during the game, one of the boys in the field runs through the Den shouting “Relievo” without being caught by the Tenter, the prisoner can escape and rejoin his friends in the field. If one of the boys out in the field gets tired and stands by the Den, he can't put his foot in the Den. If he does, the prisoner yells, “There are two Tenters,” and tries to escape if he can (fig. 3). Once all the boys in the field are caught and put in the Den, the roles reverse—the boys who were hunted become the hunters. Sometimes the shout is “Delievo” instead of “Relievo.” There are a few variations in how this game is played. Occasionally, the Tenter stands as far from the prisoner as the prisoner can spit instead of with one foot in the Den. The teams are chosen by tossing. Two boys are picked to toss. One of them throws up his cap and shouts “Pot!” or “Lid!” which means “Heads and Tails.” If a caught prisoner shouts “Kings!” or “Kings to rest!” he’s allowed to escape. This game can get pretty rough.—Addy’s Sheffield Glossary.

Jamieson provides this as the Scottish name for “Hopscotch;” also Brockett, North Country Words.

I.

—Stanton Lacey (Burne’s Shropshire Folk-lore, p. 520).

[27]

II.

—Halliwell’s Nursery Rhymes, p. 283.

(b) The kids line up in long rows, one behind the other. They march and sing the first four lines, then the fifth line, at which point they stop and start again like before.

(c) Miss Burne suggests a link to the old pack-horses. Mr. Addy (Sheffield Glossary) presents the first two lines as a game. He mentions, “The first horse in a team used for carrying lead to be melted down wore bells and was known as the bell-horse.” I remember when I was a child, the first two lines were used to start kids in a race (A. B. G.). Chambers (Pop. Rhymes, p. 148) includes a similar verse that was used to start a race:

and these lines are also used for the same purpose in Cheshire (Holland’s Glossary) and Somersetshire (Elworthy’s Glossary). Halliwell, based on the distorted word “Bellasay,” links the game to a saying about the Bellasis family; however, there’s no proof of such a connection apart from the word distortion. The rhyme appears in Gammer Gurton’s Garland, 1783, with the last words of the second line being “time to away.”

The name for “Blind Man’s Buff” in Upper Clydesdale. Back in the day in this game, the main player was not only deceived but also wrapped in the skin of an animal.—Jamieson.

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

The name for “Blind Man’s Buff” in Roxburgh, Clydesdale, and other border counties. It's likely that the term is related to “Billy Blynde,” which is said to be the name of a familiar spirit or good genius somewhat similar to a brownie.—Jamieson.

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

[28]

A boys’ phrase for sliding on a pond when the ice is thin and bends. There's a game on the ice called playing at “Bend-leather.” While the boys are sliding, they say “Bend-leather, bend-leather, puff, puff, puff.”—Addy’s Sheffield Glossary.

[__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__]

—Kent (J.P. Emslie).

Two kids cross their hands in a way that's called a “sedan chair.” A third kid sits on their hands. The two of them sing the first line. One sings, “You’re the lock,” and the other sings, “and I’m the key,” and as they sing those words, they uncross their hands and drop their friend on the ground. Mr. J. P. Emslie writes, “My mom learned this from her mom, who was from St. Laurence, in the Isle of Thanet. This game probably comes from Kent.”

In Somersetshire, the game of “Hide and Seek.” To bik’ee means that the seekers lean their heads against a wall so they can't see where the others are hiding.—Elworthy’s Dialect.

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

Name for “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.” — Dickinson’s *Cumberland Glossary*.

[29]

[__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__]

[__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__]

[__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__]

[__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__]

[__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__]

I.

—Monton, Lancashire (Ms. Dendy).

II.

—Market Drayton, Ellesmere, Oswestry (Burne’s Shropshire Folk-lore, p. 513).

III.

—Liphook, Hants; Wakefield, Yorks (Miss Fowler).

IV.

—Tean, Staffs.; and North Staffs. Potteries (Miss Keary).

V.

—Nottinghamshire (Ms. Winfield).

[31]

VI.

—Maxey, Northants (Rev. W. D. Sweeting).

VII.

—Eckington, Derbyshire (S.O. Addy).

VIII.

—Enbourne, Berks (Ms. Kimber).

(b) In the Lancashire version, one child acts as the Miller. The other children form a circle around the Miller in the center. They all dance and sing the verses. When it gets to the spelling part of the rhyme, the Miller points to one child, who must shout out the correct letter. If the child messes up, she becomes the Miller. In the Shropshire version, a ring is formed with one player in the middle. They dance around and sing the verses. When it’s time to spell, the girl in the middle calls out B, signaling the next one to say I, then the next says N, the third says G, and then the fourth finishes with “O! his name was Bobby Bingo!” Anyone who makes a mistake takes the place of the girl in the middle. In the Liphook version, when they reach the fourth line, the children stop and take turns quickly repeating a letter while clapping their hands, and at the last line, they turn around, hold hands, and start again. In the Tean version, the one in the center points and remains still, choosing children in the ring to say the letters B.I.N.G; the letter O must be sung; if it's not sung, the person who tries to say it joins the ring and repeats the entire process until the game ends. In another Staffordshire version, when they stop, the person in the middle points to five others in turn, and they must say the letters spelling "Bingo," while the one who gets O must sing it on the note where the others stopped. Anyone who says the wrong letter or fails to sing the O correctly takes the place of the person in the middle. The Northants version follows the Lancashire version, but if all answers are correct, the last line is sung by the circle, and the game starts again. In the Metheringham version, the child in the center is blindfolded. When the song is done, the girls say, “Point with your finger as we go around.” The girl in the center points as directed, and whoever is opposite her when she says “Stop!” is caught. If the blindfolded girl can identify her catch, they switch places, and the game continues as before. The Forest of Dean and the Earls Heaton versions are played the same way as the Lancashire. In the West Cornwall version, as seen played in 1884, a ring is formed with a child holding a stick standing in the middle; the others hold hands and run around in a circle, singing the verses. When they finish singing, they stop running while the one in the center uses the stick to ask them one by one to spell Bingo. If everyone spells it correctly, they start singing and moving again; if anyone makes a mistake, he or she must switch places with the middle person (Folk-lore Journal, v. 58). In the Hexham version, they sing a second verse, which is the same as the first but spells the name backwards. The Berks version is practically the same as the Tean version. The Eckington (Derbyshire) version is played this way: A group of young women form a ring. A man stands inside the ring, and they sing the words. He then picks a girl, who takes his arm. They walk around the circle while the others sing the same lines again. The chosen girl picks a young man from the ring, who then selects another girl, and so on, until everyone is paired off.

(c) The first verse of the Shropshire version is also sung in Metheringham, near Lincoln (C. C. Bell), and Cowes, I.W. (Miss E. Smith). The Staffordshire version of the lyrics is sung in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire (Miss Matthews), West Cornwall (Folk-lore Journal, v. 58), Earls Heaton, Yorkshire (H. Hardy), Hexham, Northumberland (Miss Barker),[33] and Leicester (Miss Ellis). Miss Peacock mentions, “A version is known in Lincolnshire.” Tunes have also been sent from Tean, North Staffs. (Miss Keary), and Epworth, Doncaster (Mr. C. C. Bell), which are almost identical to the Leicester tune; from Market Drayton (Miss Burne), similar to the Derbyshire tune; from Monton, Lancashire (Miss Dendy), which seems to be only the latter part of the tune and is similar to those mentioned above. The tune provided by Rimbault is not the same as those collected above, although there is some similarity.

The editor of Northamptonshire Notes and Queries, vol. i. p. 214, says, “Some readers might recall that Byngo is the name of the ‘Franklyn’s dog’ that Ingoldsby features in a few lines described as part of a simple ballad, which has avoided the research of Ritson and Ellis, but still has remarkable beauty.” In the Nursery Songs collected by Ed. Rimbault from oral tradition is “Little Bingo.” The lyrics of this song are quite similar to the Lancashire version of the game sent by Miss Dendy. There is an extra verse in the nursery song.

A line of boys or girls stands opposite another line. Each person in the first line chooses the name of a bird, and a member of the other line then shouts out all the bird names they can think of. If the person in the middle of the first line has chosen one of those names, they yell “Yes,” and everyone guessing immediately runs to take the spot of the first line, while the members of that line try to catch them. If anyone gets caught, they get to ride on their captors’ backs. —Ogbourne, Wilts (H. S. May).

This is a slate game that two or more kids can play. One person writes the first and last letters of a bird's, animal's, or fish's[34] name, putting crosses (×) for the letters in between, while also stating whether it’s a bird, animal, or fish. The other players take turns guessing what the name is. The first one to guess correctly gets to keep the same number of marks as there are crosses in the word and then writes down a name of their choice in the same way. If the players can’t guess the name, the writer adds the number to their score and writes another. The game is won when one player reaches a previously agreed-upon number of marks. —Barnes (A. B. Gomme).

A long rope is tied to a gate or pole, and one of the players holds the end of the rope, trying to catch another player. When he succeeds, the one who gets caught joins him (by holding hands) and helps to catch the other players. The game ends when everyone is caught.—Cork (Miss Keane).

[__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__]

I.

—Monton, Lancashire (Ms. Dendy).

II.

—Harland and Wilkinson’s Lancashire Folk-lore, p. 150.

III.

—Addy’s Sheffield Dictionary.

IV.

—Earls Heaton, Yorkshire (Herbert Hardy).

(b) One group of kids stands against a wall, while another group stands opposite them, facing each other. The first group sings the first line, and the others respond with the second line, continuing with the third and fourth lines. Then both sides rush at each other, and the second group gets caught. The last child caught joins the first group for another round. This is the Earls Heaton version. The Lancashire game, as described by Miss Dendy, is: One child stands across from a line of children, and the line runs to the other side while the single child tries to catch them. The captured children join the one child and help catch the remaining players. The rhyme is repeated until everyone is caught, with the last player becoming "Blackthorn" for a new game. Harland and Wilkinson describe the game a bit differently. Each player has a spot marked, and after the chant, the players run to each other's marks. If anyone gets caught before reaching their mark, they have to carry their captor back to the mark, where they then become an additional catcher.

[36](c) Miss Burne’s version (Shropshire Folk-lore, p. 521) is nearly identical to the Earls Heaton game, and Easther in his Almondbury Glossary provides a version that is very similar to the Sheffield. Mr. Hardy mentions that it’s sometimes called “Black-butt,” when the other side shouts “Away we cut.” Miss Dendy cites an old Lancashire rhyme that interestingly references the different subjects in the Lancashire game rhyme. It is as follows:Sure! Please provide the text you'd like me to modernize.

Another version is provided in Notes and Queries, 3rd Series, vii. 285.

(d) This is an acting game where the kids pretend to be animals and act out events from the flock's history. Miss Burne classifies it as one of her "dramatic games."

A game that used to be popular in Berwickshire, where all the players were blindfolded except for the one called the Bell. He carried a bell that he rang while trying to avoid being caught by his blindfolded teammates. If he was caught, the person who grabbed him would be freed from the blindfold and take possession of the bell, while the blindfold would then be transferred to the player who was caught. —Jamieson.

(b) In “The Modern Playmate,” edited by Rev. J. G. Wood, this game is referred to as “Jingling.” Mr. Wood mentions that there's a rougher version played at country festivals and fairs where a pig replaces the boy with the bell, but he doesn't specify the location (p. 7). Strutt also talks about it (Sports, p. 317).

In Somersetshire, the game of “Blind Man’s Buff.” It's also played in Cornwall (see Couch’s Polperro, p. 173). Pulman states this means “Blind buck and have ye” (Elworthy’s Dialect).

[37]

A name for “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.” — Jamieson.

The Suffolk name for “Blind Man’s Buff.”—Halliwell’s Dictionary; Moor’s Suffolk Glossary.

I.

—Shrewsbury (Burne’s Shropshire Folklore, p. 525).

II.

—Deptford (Ms. Chase).

III.

—Cornwall (Folk-lore Journal, v. 57, 58).

IV.

—Cumberland (Dickinson’s Glossary).

[38](b) In the Deptford version, one of the players is blindfolded. The person who blindfolds checks that the player can't see by asking the first question. Once the players confirm that the blindfolding is done, the conversation starts, and the blindfolded player is spun around three times. The goal is for him to catch one of the players; if he guesses correctly, that player will be blindfolded in turn. Players are allowed to pull, pinch, and push the blindfolded player.

(c) This sport is depicted in the illustrations of an old missal that used to belong to John Ives, referenced by Strutt in his Manners and Customs. The two illustrations are replicas from drawings found in one of the Bodleian manuscripts, showing that the head was fully covered and that the game was played by adults. Gay mentions it—

And another reference is cited by Brand (ii. 398)Understood. Please provide the text you'd like me to modernize.

—The New Metamorphosis, 1600, MS.

Other names for this game are “Belly Mantie,” “Billy Blind,” “Blind Bucky Davy,” “Blind Harie,” “Blind Hob,” “Blind Nerry Mopsey,” “Blind Palmie,” “Blind Sim,” “Buck Hid,”[39] “Chacke Blynd Man,” “Hoodle-cum-blind,” “Hoodman Blind,” “Hooper’s Hide,” “Jockie Blind Man.”

(d) There is reason to believe that this game can be linked to very old rituals connected with prehistoric worship. The name “Billy Blind” referred to the person who was blindfolded in the game, as shown in an old poem by Lyndsay, quoted by Jamieson:

And also in Clerk’s Advice to Luvaris:

“It’s likely,” says Jamieson, “that the term is the same as Billy Blynde, which is said to be the name of a familiar spirit or good genius somewhat similar to the brownie.” Professor Child links it to Odin, the blind deity. Another name used in Scotland is “Blind Harie,” which is not the common Christian name “Harry,” as this name was not familiar in Scotland. Jamieson thinks Blind Harie may come from the rough or hairy clothing worn by the main character. Auld Harie is one of the names given to the devil and also to the spirit Brownie, who is shown as a hairy being. Under “Coolin,” Jamieson describes an interesting Highland custom that closely resembles the game of “Belly Blind,”[40] and supports the idea that the game has roots in rituals where animal gods were represented. Playing with animals before sacrificing them was a common aspect of these rites. It is known that the Church opposed people mimicking beasts, and in this context, it’s interesting to note that in South Germany, the game is called blind bock, meaning “blind goat,” and in German blinde kuhe, or “blind cow.” In Scotland, one of the names for the game, according to A. Scott’s poems, was “Blind Buk”:

It can therefore be assumed that the person who was deceived took on the appearance of a goat, deer, or cow by wearing the skin of one of those animals.

He who is crowned twice or touched on the head by the taker or the one who is tricked, instead of just once, according to the rules of the game, is said to be brunt (burned), and regains his freedom.—Jamieson.

A boys' game played with small bird eggs. The eggs are placed on the ground, and a blindfolded player takes a certain number of steps towards them; he then hits the ground with a stick three times, hoping to break the eggs. Then it’s the next player’s turn, and so on.—Patterson’s Antrim and Down Glossary.

The Whitby term for “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”—Robinson’s Glossary.

One of the names for the game of “Blindman’s Buff.”—Jamieson.

Suffolk name for “Blind Man’s Buff.”—Forby’s Vocabulary of East Anglia.

[41]

This is a boys’ game that requires seven players. One boy, the Block, goes down on all fours; another, the Nail, does the same behind the Block, with his head close to his rear. A third boy, the Hammer, lies on his back behind the two. Of the remaining four boys, one stands at each leg and one at each arm of the Hammer, lifting him up. He is swung back and forth three times in this position by the four, who keep repeating “Once, twice, thrice.” When the word “Thrice” is said, the rear end of the Hammer is knocked against the same part of the Nail. Any number of knocks can be given, depending on the mood of the players.—Keith (Rev. W. Gregor).

A guy is on all fours—this is the Block; someone holds him steady in front—this is the Study; another person becomes the Hammer, swung by kids against the Block (Mactaggart’s Gallovidian Encyclopædia). Patterson (Antrim and Down Glossary) talks about a game called “Hammer, Block, and Bible,” which is likely the same game.

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

A children's game where players jump to catch cherries above their heads using their mouths (Halliwell’s Dictionary). It's referenced in Herrick’s[42] Hesperides as “Chop Cherry.” Major Lowsley describes the game as taking the end of a cherry stem between the teeth and keeping the head perfectly level, trying to get the cherry into the mouth without using hands or moving the head (Berkshire Glossary). It’s also mentioned in Peacock’s Manley and Corringham Glossary. Strutt provides an interesting illustration of the game in his Sports and Pastimes, which is reproduced here from the original manuscript in the British Museum.

The Staffordshire St. Clement Day custom (Poole’s Staffordshire Customs, &c., p. 36) and the northern Hallowe’en custom (Brockett’s North-Country Words) likely point to the game's origins in an ancient ritual.

A popular play among young people in the villages, where one person hunts several others (Brockett’s North-Country Words). The game is referenced in a song provided by Ritson (ii. 3), and Jamieson describes it as a Scottish game.

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

The child’s game of finding the hidden person in the group.—Robinson’s Whitby Glossary. See “Hide and Seek.”

[43]

This is a boys’ game. The players put their hats or caps in a pile. Then, they join hands and form a circle around it. They pull each other and twist and wiggle around and over it until someone knocks it over or knocks a hat off. The player who does this gets lifted onto someone else's back and is pelted by everyone else with their hats. —Keith, Nairn (Rev. W. Gregor).

[__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__]

—Norfolk, 1825-1830 (J. Doe).

(b) One boy lies down and pretends to be Booman. The other boys form a circle around him, holding hands and alternatively raising and lowering them to mimic pulling a bell, while the girls who are playing sit down and cry. The boys sing the first verse. The girls look for daisies or any wildflowers and join in singing the second verse, while the boys lift the fallen Booman and carry him around. During the third verse, the boys pretend to dig a grave, and the "dead" boy is lowered. The girls scatter flowers over the body. When it's done, another boy takes on the role of Booman.

(c) This game is definitely dramatic, meant to imitate a funeral. Mr. Doe writes, “I have seen somewhere [in Norfolk] a tomb with a crest on it—a leek—and the name Beaumont,” but it doesn’t seem necessary to explain the game this way.

[44]

A game of marbles. Strutt describes it like this: “One player rolls a marble to any distance they want, which serves as a target for their opponent to aim for. The opponent's job is to either hit the marble that was rolled first or place their own marble close enough so they can reach both marbles with their hand. In either case, they win. If they don’t succeed, their marble stays where it landed and becomes the target for the first player, and they take turns like this until the game is won.” —Sports, p. 384.

The same as “Boss-out.” It is mentioned, but not described, in Baker’s Northamptonshire Glossary.

[__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__]

—Useful Transactions in Philosophy, p. 44.

This rhyme is repeated when it's time to start any game, serving as a general call to the players. The writer mentioned earlier states[45] that it appears in a very old manuscript but doesn’t provide a reference for it. Halliwell quotes the first four lines, noting that the first line says “Boys and girls” instead of “Boys, boys,” from an interesting ballad written around 1720, which was previously owned by Mr. Crofton Croker (Nursery Rhymes). Chambers also includes this rhyme (Popular Rhymes, p. 152).

A game that used to be popular at fairs, also known as “Hit my Legs and miss my Pegs.”—Dickinson’s Cumberland Glossary.

A game of marbles. The boys have a board that’s a foot long, four inches deep, and about an inch thick, with squares like in the diagram; there are several holes at the bottom edge, numbered randomly. The board is placed firmly on the ground, and each player rolls their marble at it. They win the number of marbles shown above the hole their marble goes through. If they miss a hole, their marble is lost to the owner of the Bridgeboard.—Earls Heaton (Herbert Hardy). [The owner or keeper of the Bridgeboard presumably pays the boys who manage to win marbles.]

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

A boys' game, not described.—Patterson’s Antrim and Down Glossary.

Ebenezer is sent out of the room, and the remaining group selects one of their own. Two kids coordinate, understanding that the last person who spoke before Ebenezer left the room is the one to be chosen. The person left in the room makes the others think of this individual without letting them realize they’re not choosing freely. The medium then says, “Brother Ebenezer, come in,” and asks him one by one, “Was it William, or Jane,” etc., mentioning[46] several names before hitting the right one, with Ebenezer responding “No!” to all until the last speaker is named.—Bitterne, Hants (Mrs. Byford).

A child’s game, unnamed.—Halliwell’s Dictionary.

The name of a game is probably the same as “Nine Holes.”—Halliwell’s Dictionary.

A boy leans down so his arms are on the table; another boy sits on him like he would on a horse. He then holds up (let's say) three fingers and saysUnderstood. Please provide the text for modernization.

The bent-over boy takes a guess, and if he guesses wrong, the other one saysUnderstood! Please provide the text you would like me to modernize.

When the bent-over boy guesses correctly, the other one says—

The boy then gets off and bends down for the other one to get on, and the game starts again.—London (J. P. Emslie).

Similar action accompanies the following rhyme:—

—Almondbury (Easther’s Glossary).

A different activity takes place in other areas. It's played by three boys like this: One stands with his back against a wall; the second bends down with his head against the stomach of the first boy, “forming a back;” the third jumps on it and raises his hand with fingers spread, saying

[47]If the guesser guesses correctly, everyone switches places, and the jumper takes the back. Another way to play this game, which is a bit gentler, is for the guesser to face a wall with their eyes closed.—Cornwall (Folk-lore Journal, v. 59).

In Nairn, Scotland, the game is called Post and Rider. One boy, the Post, stands beside a wall. Another boy bends down with his head touching the Post’s chest. Several other boys bend down in the same way behind the first boy, all in a line. The Rider then jumps onto the back of the boy at the end of the line of bent boys, and from his back to the one in front, and so on from back to back until he reaches the boy closest to the Post. He then holds up a certain number of fingers and says—

The boy takes a shot at it. If he guesses wrong, the Rider reveals both the guessed number and the correct one, then holds up that many again, saying

This continues until someone guesses the correct number, at which point the guesser becomes the Rider. The game was called “Buck, Buck” at Keith. Only three players participated in the game—the Post, the Buck, and the Rider. The words used by the Rider wereUnderstood. Please provide the text for modernization.

If the guess was wrong, the Rider hit the Buck as many times as the difference between the correct number and the guessed number, either with punches or kicks. This continued until the right number was guessed, at which point the Rider and the Buck switched places.—Rev. W. Gregor.

(b) Dr. Tylor says: “It’s interesting to see how widely spread and long-lasting these small things are in history when we read the following passage from Petronius Arbiter, written during Nero’s time:—‘Trimalchio, trying not to show he was upset by the loss, kissed the boy and told him to climb on his back. Without hesitation, the boy got on and slapped him on the shoulders with his hand, laughing and shouting, [48] “Bucca, bucca, how many are here?”’—Petron. Arbitri Satiræ, by Buchler, p. 84 (other versions are buccæ or bucco).”—Primitive Culture, i. 67.

A rough game among boys.—Dickinson’s Cumberland Glossary.

“A type of game that boys played in the streets of London during Henry VIII’s reign, which is now no longer in use and I believe forgotten” (Blount’s Glossographia, p. 95). Hall references this game, during the time of Henry VIII, f. 91.

For this, the boys split into teams. One team “stays at home,” while the other goes off to a predetermined distance and yells “Buckey-how.” The boys “at home” then run after them, and when they manage to catch an opponent, they bring him back home, and he stays there until everyone on his team is caught, at which point they switch roles and become the chasers.—Cornwall (Folk-lore Journal, v. 60).

—Shropshire (Burne’s Shropshire Folklore, p. 526).

Same verses as in Shropshire, except the last, which goes like this:Understood! Please provide the text you'd like me to modernize.

[49]

—Cheltenham (Miss E. Mendham).

Same verses as in Shropshire, except the last, which goes like this:Understood. Please provide the text you'd like me to modernize.

—London (J.P. Emslie).

(b) Five or six kids line up in a row. Another kid walks up to the first one in line and strikes the ground with a stick. The child facing him asks the first question, and the one with the stick responds. At “strokes his face,” he matches the action to the words, then hits the ground with his stick at the start of the last line. The goal for all the players is to make Buff smile during this silly game, and if he does, he'll have to pay a forfeit.

Another version has one child blindfolded, standing in the middle of a circle of kids, holding a long stick. The group dances around him to a tune and sings a chorus [which the author doesn’t provide]. They then stop. Buff extends his stick, and whoever it points to must step out of the circle to hold the end of it. Buff then asks questions to the stick holder by making three grunting noises, and they respond in the same way. Buff then tries to guess who is holding the stick. If he guesses correctly, the stick holder becomes Buff and joins the circle. (Winter Evening’s Amusements, p. 6). When I played this game, the circle of kids walked in silence around Buff three times, then stopped and knelt or bent down on the ground, remaining completely silent. Buff asked three questions (whatever he wanted) to the child he pointed at with the stick, who answered by mimicking animal or bird sounds (A. B. Gomme).

(c) This is a well-known game. It's also called “Buffy Gruffy” or “Indian Buff.” The Dorsetshire version in Folk-lore Journal, vii. 238, 239, is the same as the Shropshire version.[50] Halliwell (Nursery Rhymes, cclxxxii.) offers a slight variation. Mr. Addy also provides it in his Sheffield Glossary, with the words being the same except for the last two lines, which sayUnderstood! Please provide the text you would like me to modernize.

This seems to be an old name for some game, probably “Blindman’s Buff,” Sw. “Blind-bock,” q. “bock” and “hufwud head” (with a head that looks like a goat). However, the meaning would fit better with “Bo-peep” or “Hide and Seek.”—Jamieson.

One kid stands in the middle of a circle of others. He then asks each person in the circle one by one, “Where's the key to the park?” and everyone replies, except for the last person, “Ask the next-door neighbor.” The last one says, “Get out the way you came in.” The kid in the center then tries to grab the hands of some of the circle, and keeps trying until he breaks through, at which point all the others chase him. Whoever catches him then becomes Bull. —Liphook, Hants (Miss Fowler).

“The Bull in the Barn” is clearly the same game. The players create a circle; one player in the center is called the Bull, while one on the outside is called the King.

Bull: “Where's the key to the barn door?”

Chorus: “Go to the neighbor next door.”

King: “She left the key in the church door.”

Bull: “Steel or iron?”

He then pushes his way out of the ring, and whoever grabs him becomes Bull.—Berrington (Burne’s Shropshire Folk-lore, pp. 519, 520).

Another version is that the child in the center, while the others danced around him in a circle, saying, “Pig in the middle and can’t get out,” responds, “I’ve lost my key but I will get out,” and suddenly throws his whole weight onto the clasped hands of a couple to try to unlock them. When he succeeds, he changes the words to, “I’ve broken your[51] locks, and I have gotten out.” One of the pair whose hands he had opened takes his place, and he joins the ring.—Cornwall (Folk-lore Journal, v. 50).

(b) Mr. S. O. Addy says the following lines are said or sung in a game called “The Bull’s in the Barn,” but he does not know how it is played:Understood! Please provide the text you want modernized.

A game among boys, where they all hold hands in a line, and one boy at the end stays in place while the others twist around him. The main fun comes from trying to knock the whole group down to the ground. —Jamieson.

A children's game. “Bummers—a thin piece of wood swung around by a cord” (Blackwood’s Magazine, Aug. 1821, p. 35). Jamieson notes that the term clearly comes from the booming sound it makes.

A hole is dug in the ground with the heel, shaped like a small dish, and the game involves tossing a marble as close to this hole as possible. Sometimes, when multiple holes are created, the game is referred to as “Holy.” —Addy’s Sheffield Glossary; Notes and Queries, xii. 344.

[52]

Played by kids in pairs (one kneeling and one standing) in a circle. The inner child of each pair kneels. The following dialogue starts with the inner circle asking the first question, which is answered by the outer circle.

“What time is the King getting home?”

"1 PM."

“What does he have in his hand?”

“A bunch of ivy.”

The rhyme is repeated for every hour up to six, the outer circle going around the inner as many times as the number mentioned. The children then switch places and repeat. —Monton, Lancashire (Miss Dendy).

[__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__]

A group of boys splits into two teams. One team, the Buckets, crouches down like they're getting ready for “Leap-frog,” lining up one after the other. The last one leans against the one in front of him, and the one at the front leans against a wall (fig.). This creates a straight and solid line with their backs. The other team, the Bungs, jumps onto the backs of the Buckets, with the first one climbing as high up the row as possible, the second squeezing in right behind the first, and so on. If they all manage to find a stable spot, they shout out the first two lines twice.

[53]If no breakdown happens, the Buckets get one point, and the Bungs start over. When a breakdown does happen, the Bungs replace the Buckets.—Barnes, Surrey (A. B. Gomme).

(b) Mr. Emslie, who I owe the tune of this game to, gives me the lyrics as

He says, “I once heard this sung three times, followed by ‘Ha! ha! he!’ to the tune of the last bar.” Mr. W. R. Emslie says the game is known in Beddgelert as “Horses, Wild Horses,” he thinks, but he’s not entirely sure.

Northall (Rhymes, p. 401) describes a game very similar to this one called “Buck,” where the rhyme and method of play are the same as in that game. He goes on to say, “This is closely related to a game referred to in Warwickshire as ‘Jack upon the Mopstick.’ However, in this game, there’s no guessing involved. The jumping team must hold their position while their leader says

A game played with a ball. One of the players throws the ball against a house or wall and calls out immediately after it's thrown for another player to catch or keep it before it hits the ground. Everyone else runs off except this one player, who stands a short distance away. If he doesn't manage to keep it, he shouts "Burly Whush;" then everyone else has to stop running and can't go any farther. He picks one person and throws the ball at them, often aiming well enough to hit. The person the ball is thrown at then gets to call out "Burly Whush" with the ball to anyone they choose. If there's a corner of a house nearby, which is usually the case, and any of the players hide behind it, they still have to show one hand past its edge to the Burly Whush player, who sometimes hits it so hard with the ball that it ends up spinning for an hour afterwards.—Mactaggart’s Gallovidian Encyclopædia.

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__,” “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_1__,” “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_2__.”

Two or more boys take two buttons in their right hands and try to throw them both into a small hole in the ground about two yards away. The boy who manages to get both buttons in starts first in the next game and keeps a button as a prize. [This seems like just a simple version of marbles.]—Lincolnshire (Rev. —— Roberts).

There were several games played with buttons—some on flat ground, in a circle or square; but the most popular was with a hole dug in the ground near a wall or the trunk of a large tree. The hole should be about the size of a small teacup, and the players stand on a scratched line about four or five feet from the hole, after determining who goes first. Each player (usually two) contributes an equal number of buttons, say from two to ten, all of equal value or quality. The first player takes all the buttons in their hand and tries to pitch as many as possible into the hole. If all the buttons go into the hole, they win and take all the buttons used in the game. However, if one or more buttons are left outside the hole, the non-player chooses one that they think will be hard to hit and asks the player to hit it with their nicker. This is made of solid lead, about the size of a florin but twice its weight, and each player has their own. A lot of strategy is needed in this selection, as the goal is to make it challenging not only to hit the chosen button but also to prevent it from being knocked into the hole, or causing the nicker to go in, or hitting another button, or missing entirely. In any of these cases, the player loses, and the non-player takes all the stakes. In the next game, the previous non-player becomes the player.—London (C. A. T. M.).

The value of the buttons was as follows:Understood! Please provide the text you would like me to modernize.

[55](1.) The simple metal button with 3 or 4 holes, known as a Sinkie, is worth 1 point.

(2.) The same type of button, featuring letters or an inscription on the edge, is worth 2 points.

(3.) The small metal shank button, known as a Shankie, without any writing, is worth 3 points; if it has writing, it's worth 4 points; the larger sizes and their descriptions are valued at 4 and 5 points, respectively.

(4.) The small Shankies, with a crest (livery waistcoat buttons), 6 points, and the large corresponding, 7 points.

(5.) The small Shankies, with a coat of arms, are worth 8 points, and the large corresponding ones are worth 9 points.

(6.) Decorative and various other buttons, like military, official, mounted, and engraved with flowers and other designs based on the arrangement, up to 20 points.

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__,” “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_1__.”

A local name for “Hockey,” which used to be a really popular game among the young men of Shrewsbury and Much Wenlock. It’s just called “Bandy” in Ludlow and Newport.—Shropshire Folk-lore, p. 525.

The game of “Tennis.” —Jamieson.

The game of “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

—Lyndsay’s S. P. Repr., ii. 243.

This language Lyndsay puts in the mouth of a Catholic priest. The game seems to be that of handball, as compared to “Football.”—Jamieson.

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

This game is thought by Jamieson to be similar to[56] “Drive the Goose,” and it seems to be the same as a game still played by young people in some areas of Angus, where one person, with something embarrassing pinned behind them without knowing it, is chased by everyone else, who keep shouting, “Hunt the Goose!”—Jamieson.

A game once popular among schoolboys, and occasionally played by men along the Suffolk coast—especially in the area of Hollesley Bay between the Rivers Orwell and Alde—was sometimes played school against school, or parish against parish. Here’s how it worked: Goals were set up about 150 or 200 yards apart, usually made from the discarded clothes of the players. Each team has two goals, ten or fifteen yards apart. Teams of about ten or fifteen players line up, facing their own goals and each other, standing about ten yards apart, right in the middle between the goals, closest to their opponents’ goal. An impartial spectator, agreed upon by both teams, throws a ball the size of a regular cricket ball into the air, right between the facing players, and then quickly gets out of the way. The players aim to grab the ball and carry it between their own goals. The initial rush is intense, and catching the falling ball can be quite chaotic. The first player to catch or grab it races towards their goal, chased by their opponents (who they must navigate through), assisted by their teammates. If they get caught or risk being caught, they throw the ball—but must never give it away—to a teammate who is in a better position and has more space. If the teammate catches it and manages to avoid the eager opponents, they also sprint towards their goal, in turn being pursued, challenged, and aided, aiming to score a notch (or snotch) by carrying, not throwing, the ball between the goals. However, in a close game, this is no simple task and often takes time, requiring many turns, detours, and effort. If the ball holder gets caught while still having the ball, they lose a snotch; if the pressure is on, they throw it to a teammate who has more energy. Each time a snotch is gained or lost, the game restarts, giving everyone a moment to catch their breath. The game is played to seven or nine notches, which can sometimes take two or three hours to achieve. Sometimes, a larger football was used, and the game was called “Kicking Camp”; if played with shoes on, it was called “Savage Camp.” —Moor’s Suffolk Words.

(b) The sport and name are very old. The “Camping pightel” appears in a document from the 30 Henry VI.—around 1486; Cullum’s Hawstead, p. 113, where Tusser is cited to show that not only was the activity manly and beneficial, but also good for the pightel or meadow:

—P. 65.

And he says, on page 56:

Ray mentions that the game is popular in Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex. The Rev. S. Arnot, in Notes and Queries, 8th series, vol. ii. p. 138, who served as the rector of Ilket’s Hall in Suffolk, states that the ball was about the size of a cricket ball and was kicked through a narrow goal. Based on the parish clerk's testimony, it seems clear that it was not “Football.” Additionally, refer to Spurden’s East Anglian Words, and County Folk-lore, Suffolk, pp. 57-59.

There are Upper Campfield and Lower Campfield at Norton Woodseats. They’re also known as Camping fields. This area was likely where football and other local games were played. These fields are next to the Bocking fields. In Gosling’s Map of Sheffield, 1736, Campo Lane is referred to as Camper Lane. The same map shows the location of the old Latin school, or grammar school, along with the writing school. These schools were very close to Campo Lane, and it seems likely that the game of football was played here (Addy’s Sheffield Glossary). “The camping-land designated for this game appears in several sources from the fifteenth century” (Way’s Note in Prompt. Parv., p. 60). In Brinsley’s Grammar Schoole, referenced by Mr. Furnivall in Early English Meals and Manners, p. lxii., there’s this passage: “In this way, the students can be kept in their seats and focused on their studies, without running off to the Campo (as they call it) during school hours, which leads to numerous disturbances, such as waiting for the club and wasting time in the fields.”

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

A hole is dug in the ground, and a line is drawn behind it, called a Strand, where the players must stand. The goal is to throw the bowl into the hole from this distance. The player who gets it in the hole the most times wins. It's now more commonly referred to as “The Hole,” but the old name is still occasionally used. In Angus, it’s played a bit differently. Three holes are made at equal distances. The first player to get their bowl into each of these holes three times in a row wins the game (Jamieson). It is mentioned in The Life of a Scotch Rogue, 1722, p. 7.

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

[59]

I.

—Belfast (W. H. Patterson).

II.

—Notes and Queries, 4th series, xii. 479.

III.

—Northall’s English Folk Rhymes, p. 353.

(b) In this game, two kids hold hands, grabbing each other’s wrists and their own too: they create a seat where another kid can sit and be carried around. At the same time, they sing the verse.

The King and Queen have a throne made by positioning two chairs slightly apart, with a shawl draped over them. A messenger comes into the room with a letter for the Queen, who reads it and asks the King to kindly invite the messenger to sit between them. Once he sits on the shawl, the King and Queen jump up while the messenger sits down on the floor. —Bottesford and Anderly (Lincolnshire), and Nottinghamshire (Miss M. Peacock).

(b) This is basically the same game as “Ambassador,” which Grose described as being played by sailors on some unsuspecting rookie or outsider. A bucket of water is set up between the two chairs, into which the unfortunate participant falls.

A game where two opposing teams of boys use clubs to hit a ball into a hole owned by the other team, while the other team does everything they can to stop them.—Jamieson.

A game of marbles. Each boy builds a small pyramid with three marbles at the base and one on top. The players take turns trying to knock these down from a distance using their marbles, winning the castles they manage to hit (Lowsley’s Glossary of Berkshire Words). In London, the marble referred to as a “balser” was called a “bonsor” or “bouncer” (J. P. Emslie).

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__,” “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_1__.”

An old game played in Angus and Lothian. Three people play, and they each have a club. These clubs are called “dogs.” The players cut out two holes, each about a foot wide and seven inches deep. The distance between the holes is about twenty-six feet. One person stands by each hole with a club. A piece of wood about four inches long and one inch in diameter, called a Cat, is thrown from one hole toward the other by the third person. The goal is to stop the Cat from going into the hole. Every time the Cat goes in, the player at that hole loses their club, and the person who threw the Cat takes both the club and the hole, while the previous owner has to take charge of the Cat. If the Cat is hit, the player who hits it switches places with the person holding the other club; each time these positions change, the two players with clubs count it as one in the game, and they are seen as partners.—Jamieson.

[61]

The name of a game played by young people in Perthshire. In this game, one player, unnoticed by the others, cuts the turf at very uneven angles. These cuts are all covered, and each player places their hand on what they think is the smallest section since everyone has to cut off the entire surface of their part. The cutting speed is determined by a throw of the knife, and the person throwing must cut as deep as the knife goes. The last person to finish cutting their section has to carry all the clods, crawling on hands and knees, to a specific distance set by the next player, who throws the knife through their legs. If the person carrying the clods drops any, the others have the right to throw them at him. They often place them very loosely on purpose so they can enjoy throwing them.—Jamieson.

One child holds a piece of string formed into a loop on his raised palms, wrapping it once around each hand. By placing the middle finger of each hand under the opposite loop, he crosses the string from finger to finger in a unique shape. Another child then removes the string from his fingers in a different way, resulting in a second shape. Repeating this process creates a third shape, and so on. Each of these shapes has a specific name based on its resemblance to an object—barn doors, bowling green, hourglass, pound, net, fiddle, fish pond, diamonds, and others.—Notes and Queries, vol. xi. p. 421.

The following forms are the ones I know, along with their names. They are presented one after the other.

1. The crib.
2. The soldier's bunk.
3. Candles.
4. The crib turned upside down, or feeding trough.
5. Soldier's bunk again, or jewels.
6. Jewels, or cat's eyes.
7. Fish on a plate.
8. Crib as before.

[62]The different orders or arrangements must be taken from one player by another without messing up the setup.—A. B. Gomme.

(b) Nares suggests that the proper name is “Cratch Cradle,” which comes from the old word cratch, meaning a manger. He provides several sources to back this up. The earliest form is quite similar to a manger. Moor (Suffolk Words) lists names like cat’s cradle, barn doors, bowling green, hourglass, pound, net, diamonds, and fish pond. They were named based on their supposed resemblance. Britton (Beauties of Wiltshire, Glossary) states that the game in London schools is called “Scratch-scratch” or “Scratch-cradle.”

The game is known to be brutal to people. Professor Haddon observed it among the Torres Straits people, who begin the game the same way we do but carry it on differently (Journ. Anthrop. Inst., vol. xix. p. 361); and Dr. Tylor highlighted[63] the importance of these string puzzles among primitive societies in Journ. Anthrop. Inst., ix. 26.

A child's game where players jump over a stick that is positioned at a right angle to two others that are fixed in the ground.—Halliwell’s Dictionary.

(b) In Ross and Stead’s Holderness Glossary, this is referred to as “Cat-gallas.” It's described as three sticks set up like a gallows for boys to jump over. It's called that because it's high enough to hang cats from. This term is also mentioned in Peacock’s Manley and Corringham Glossary, Elworthy’s West Somerset Words, Brogden’s Provincial Words, Lincs., Dickinson’s Cumberland Glossary, Atkinson’s Cleveland Glossary, Brockett’s North Country Words, Evans’ Leicestershire Glossary, Baker’s Northants Glossary, and Darlington’s South Cheshire Glossary. In one of the stalls at Worcester Cathedral, featured in Wright’s Archæological Essays, ii. 117, there is a carving showing three rats actively trying to hang a cat on a gallows like this.

A game that's popular in Fife and maybe in other places. If seven boys are playing, they make six holes at certain distances. Each of the six stands at a hole with a short stick in hand, while the seventh boy stands some distance away holding a ball. When he gives the signal or sign they agreed on, all six switch holes, running to their neighbor's hole and placing their stick in the hole they’ve just claimed. While they’re changing holes, the boy with the ball tries to toss it into an empty hole. If he succeeds, the boy who didn’t have his stick (since the stick is the Cat) in the hole he ran to is out and has to take the ball. There’s often a fierce competition over who gets their stick or the ball, or Cat, into the hole first. When the Cat is in the hole, the rules of the game say you can’t put the ball in there.—Jamieson.

(b) Kelly, in his Scottish Proverbs, p. 325, says, “‘Lost cat,[64] lost game;’ a reference to a play called ‘Cat in the Hole,’ and the English ‘Kit-cat.’ Said when lawyers have lost their main evidence.”

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__,” “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_1__,” “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_2__.”

(b) Played at Monton, Lancashire (Miss Dendy); Clapham Middle-Class School (Miss Richardson); and many other locations. It’s basically the same game as “Drop Handkerchief,” played without any words. Strutt describes it on page 381, suggesting that “Kiss-in-the-Ring” comes from this “Cat and Mouse.”

One bicken is required in this game, and at this a boy must stand with a bat and ball in hand. He hits the ball away along the sand. Another boy picks it up and asks the striker, “How many?” who replies

The ball is then thrown to the bicken, and if it doesn’t come within the distance specified—two bats—the striker sends the ball away again, and the question is asked againUnderstood. Please provide the phrases you'd like me to modernize.

And so on until the boy who stands out throws the ball to the required distance.—Old newspaper clipping without a date in my possession (A. B. Gomme).

Scotch term for “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”—Jamieson.

[65]

In Langley’s abridgment of Polydore Vergile, f. 1., we find a description of this game: “There is a game played with the ankle bone of a sheep, cow, goat, fallow deer, or red deer, which is called talus in Latin. It has four possible outcomes: one side, called Canis or Canicula, is the ace point; whoever rolls it puts down a penny, or whatever amount the players agree on; the other side is called Venus, which stands for seven. If someone rolls this outcome, they win six and all the money placed down for rolling Canis. The other two sides are called Chius and Senio. Someone who rolls Chius wins three. And someone who rolls Senio gains four. This game (as I understand it) is played by children in Norfolk, and they call it the Chance Bone; they play with three or four of these bones together; it is either the same or very similar to it.”

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__,” “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_1__.”

In this game, as many chairs are arranged around the room as there are people, minus one. The person left without a chair is determined by a sort of lottery, which is governed, like many other games, by the repetition of an old rhythm. Once everyone else is seated, the person without a chair stands in the middle, repeating the words “Change seats, change seats,” and so on, while everyone else stays alert to hear when he adds, “the king’s come,” or, as it is sometimes phrased, change their seats. The fun comes from the chaos as everyone tries to avoid being the unfortunate one left without a chair. The main person often playfully says, “The king’s not come,” when the group should actually stay seated; however, due to their anxious anticipation of the usual cue, they often jump up, which creates a lot of laughter.—Brand’s Pop. Antiq., ii. 409.

(b) Dr. Jamieson says this is a game popular in Lothian and the southern part of Scotland. Sir Walter Scott, in Rob Roy, iii. 153, says, “Here old ordering and reordering—but patience! Patience!—One day we may play at Change seats, the king’s coming.”

[66]This game is meant to mock the frantic competition for positions that happens during a change of government or when someone is taking over.

Easther’s Almondbury Glossary describes this game like this: A set of checks includes five cubes, each about half an inch on each side, and a ball the size of a standard bagatelle ball, all made of pottery. They’re called checkstones, and here's how you play. You throw down the cubes all at once, then toss the ball into the air, and while it’s in the air, you pick up one stone with your right hand and catch the falling ball with the same hand. Put down the stone and do it again, picking up two stones, then three, then four, until you finally “sum up” all five at once and successfully catch the ball. If you fail, you have to start all over again.

(b) In Nashe’s Lenten Stuff (1599) occurs the following: “Yet towards dawn she dozed off for a bit, and then she dreamed that Leander and she were playing checkers with pearls on the ocean floor.”

A game played by kids with small round pebbles (Halliwell’s Dictionary). It is also referenced in the early play Apollo Shroving, 1627, p. 49.

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__,” “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_1__.”

“Cherry-pit” is a game where players toss cherry pits into a small hole. It is mentioned in the Pleasant Grove of New Fancies, 1657, and in Herrick’s Hesperides. Nares (Glossary) notes that it is still played using lead counters called Dumps or with money.

[67]

—Crockham Hill, Kent (Ms. Chase).

The kids sing the first line while they go around in circles. For the second line, they move a bit down the road and spin around as they finish the rhyme.

Several boys, with their hands clasped together, press against a lamp-post and recite these lines, then they take off running, still holding hands. One boy in the middle tries to grab as many of them as he can, lining them up in a long chain, hand in hand, as he catches them. Those who are still free attempt to break through the line and rescue their friends. If they manage to separate the line, they can carry one boy on their back to the lamp-post, making him “safe.” The boy who gets caught second to last becomes “it” for the next game.—Deptford, Kent (Miss Chase).

A schoolboy's game that involves hitting someone on the chin with your knuckles; when done skillfully, it creates a kind of rhythm.—Addy’s Sheffield Glossary.

A game of marbles played by "chocking" or pitching marbles into a hole made for that purpose, instead of shooting at a ring[68] (Northamptonshire, Baker’s Glossary). Clare mentions the game in one of his poems.

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__.”

Same game as “Chuck-farthing,” with this difference: if the pennies roll outside the ring, it’s a “dead heat,” and each boy gets his penny back.—Peacock’s Manley and Corringham Glossary; and see Brogden’s Lincolnshire Words.

A game with marbles played by girls (Mactaggart’s Gallovidian Encyclopædia). A writer in Blackwood’s Magazine, August 1821, p. 36, mentions that “Chucks” is played with a bowl and chucks—a type of shell (Buccinum lapillus) found on the beach [“bowl” here likely refers to a marble]. Brockett (North Country Words) notes that this game is played by girls using five sea-shells called chucks, and sometimes with pebbles, referred to as chuckie-stanes. Jamieson explains that a number of pebbles are laid out on a flat stone; one of them is tossed up, and a specific number must be collected while catching the fallen one with the same hand.

See “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__,” “__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_1__.”

Two houses facing each other are chosen, and a boy either volunteers to be "It," or the last one in a race between the houses does. The others then move to one of the houses, and the chosen boy stands in between them. The players then try to run between the houses, and if the boy in the middle catches anyone while saying, “One, two, three, I catch you; help me catch another,” they have to stay and help him catch the rest until only one is left. If this last person manages to get between the houses three times after everyone else has been caught, he gets to choose who will be "It" in the next game; if he doesn’t succeed, he has to take on the role himself.—Marlborough, Wilts (H. S. May).

See "__A_TAG_PLACEHOLDER_0__."

—Isle of Man (A. W. Moore).

These verses and the game are now pretty much forgotten, both in English and Manx. It was sung by kids dancing in a circle.

“A type of play called clout-clout, to carry around, or my hen has laid.” —Nomenclator, p. 299.

A youthful game similar to “Doddart.”—Brockett’s North Country Words.

A Christmas game referenced in Declaration of Popish Impostures, p. 160.

A game of marbles played by two or three boys, rolling a main marble into holes dug in the ground for that purpose, usually there are four holes. —Baker’s Northamptonshire Glossary.

[71]

A school game where two boys are held by their legs and arms and bumped against a tree, with the one who lasts the longest being the winner.—Ross and Stead’s Holderness Glossary.

This was performed by a boy bending down until he was almost sitting on the ground, tucking one leg under him so the toe rested on the ground, and balancing himself by pushing the other leg forward so that the heel was on the ground. His arms and head were extended forward as far as possible to help him keep his balance. The leg that was pushed out was pulled back while the tucked-in leg was kicked out at the same time. This motion was repeated, each time bringing the toe and heel down to the ground with a sound like hammering on a lapstone. The arms also moved back and forth simultaneously to mimic a cobbler sewing. —London (J. P. Emslie).

The kids in Yorkshire play a game that's probably an old English tradition. Many hazelnuts are strung together like rosary beads. The game is played by two people, each holding a string of nuts. They take turns hitting one of their nuts against a nut from their opponent's string. The battleground is usually the top of a hat. The goal for each player is to smash their opponent's nuts. A nut that has broken several of the opponent's nuts is called a Cob-nut.—Brand, ii. 411; Hunter’s Hallamshire Glossary.

(b) This game is played in London with chestnuts and is called “Conquers.” In Cornwall, it's known as “Cock-haw.”[72] The boys refer to the fruit of the common hazel as Victor-nut and play to the words: “Cockhaw! First blaw! Up hat! Down cap! Victor!” The nut that cracks another is called a Cock-battler (Folk-lore Journal, v. 61). Halliwell describes this game differently. He says it “involves throwing at a row of nuts stacked in heaps of four, three at the bottom and one at the top of each heap. The nut used for throwing is called the Cob. All the nuts knocked down belong to the person throwing.” Referring to the first version described, he mentions that it “is probably a more modern game,” and quotes Cotgrave sub voce “Chastelet” as a reference for the earlier version as he describes it (Dictionary). Addy notes that the nuts were hardened for this purpose. When a nut was broken, it was said to be “cobbered” or “cobbled” (Sheffield Glossary). Evans’ Leicestershire Glossary also describes it. Darlington (South Cheshire Words) states that this game only differs from “Cobblety-cuts” in using small nuts instead of chestnuts. George Eliot in Adam Bede mentions, “Gathering the large unripe nuts to play at ‘Cob-nut’ with” (p. 30). Britton’s Beauties of Wiltshire includes the Isle of Wight and Hants as other places where the game is known.

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One boy is chosen as the Cock. The players line up along one side of the playground. The Cock stands in front of the players. When everything is set, the players rush across the playground. The Cock tries to catch and "croon"—that is, put his hand on the head of—as many players as he can while running from one side of the playground to the other. Those who get caught help the Cock during the rush back. This back-and-forth continues until everyone is caught. The key to capturing was to "croon." When a boy was being chased to be caught, his main goal was to avoid having the top of his head touched by any of his pursuers when they got close. —Nairn (Rev. W. Gregor).

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Children, under the title of “Cock-battler,” often play with the old plantain during country walks. They hold it by the sturdy stem about two inches from the flower head, and take turns trying to knock off the head of their opponent’s flower.—Cornwall (Folk-lore Journal, v. 61).

In the North and in Suffolk, it’s known as “Cocks,” “a childish game with the tough, tufted stems of the ribwort plantain” (Brockett’s North Country Words). Moor (Suffolk Words) references the game, and Holloway (Dictionary of Provincialisms) mentions that in West Sussex, boys play a similar game with the heads of rib grass. The first one to lose the head is the loser. It’s called “Fighting-cocks.”

This is a boys’ game. Two boys cross their arms, and then, hopping on one leg, they bump into each other with their shoulders until one puts down his leg. Any number of pairs can join in this game.—Nairn (Rev. W. Gregor).

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One boy is picked as the Cock. He’s blindfolded and stands alone with his legs spread as far apart as possible. The other boys then toss their caps as far as they can between the extended legs of the Cock (fig. 1). After the boys have thrown their caps, and each boy has positioned himself beside his cap, the Cock, still blindfolded, bends down and crawls to find the caps[74] (fig. 2). The boy whose cap he finds first has to run about twenty yards while the other boys hit him, mainly targeting his head. He becomes the Cock in the next round of the game.—Rosehearty, Pitsligo (Rev. W. Gregor).

This game is pretty straightforward: one boy climbs onto another's shoulders, draping a leg over each shoulder and down his front. The boy who’s carrying grabs hold of the legs of the one on his neck and starts trotting around, running back and forth until he gets tired of the load. The bigger the carrier is, the more fun it is for the one being carried.—Keith (Rev. W. Gregor).

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Young women have a playful game that they call making Cocklebread; they get on a table, pull their knees and their skirts up as high as they can, and then they sway back and forth with their hips as if they were kneading dough, saying these words:

In Oxfordshire, the maids, once they're in the right position, say this:Sure! Please provide the text you wish to modernize.

—Aubrey’s Remains, pp. 43, 44.

To make "Barley bread" (in other areas, "Cockley bread") this rhyme is used in West Cornwall:Understood! Please provide the text you'd like to modernize.

—Folklore Journal, v. 58.

The Westmoreland version is provided by Ellis in his edition of Brand as follows:Understood. Please provide the text you would like me to modernize.

The term “Cockelty” is still heard among our kids while they play. One of them crouches down with their hands clasped under their thighs, and being lifted by a couple of others who hold onto their bent arms, they're swung back and forth and bumped on the ground or against the wall, while continuing the words, “This is the way we make cockelty bread.”—Robinson’s Whitby Glossary, p. 40.

The making of "Cocklety-bread" is still a play activity among rowdy girls, though it's beginning to fade. It involves sitting on the ground, raising their knees, holding them with their hands, and then moving in a wavy motion like they're kneading dough.

—Hunter’s MSS.; Addy’s Sheffield Glossary.

(b) The Times of 1847 includes an interesting notice about this game. A witness, whose behavior was criticized as inappropriate and[76] unseemly, is asked to explain to the court, where a breach of promise case was being heard, what “mounting cockeldy-bread” means; she describes it as “a game among children” where one lies on her back on the floor, rolling back and forth while reciting the following lines:Understood. Please provide the text you would like me to modernize.

While one person from the group lay down, the others sat around; and they took turns lying down and rolling like this.

These lines are still included in today's nursery rhyme books, but most people don't really understand their connection to the game "Cockeldy-bread." There used to be a type of bread called "cockle-bread," and cocille-mele is referenced in a very old manuscript cited in Halliwell’s Dictionary. In Peele’s play, Old Wives’ Tale, a voice speaks from the bottom of a well:

A game played by boys. Stones are loosely stacked on top of each other, and other stones are thrown to knock the pile down.—Dickinson’s Cumberland Glossary.

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A game where boys climb over each other’s shoulders.—Halliwell’s Dictionary.

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A boyish game that Cope mentions but doesn’t describe in his Hampshire Glossary. He cites the Portsmouth Telegraph as the source, dated 27th September 1873.

A game for kids like “Cricket,” where a short piece[77] of wood is hit with a long stick instead of a ball with a bat. It’s also known as “Tip and Go” or “Tip and Slash.”—Robinson’s Whitby Glossary.

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A striped snail shell. It's a typical boyhood game to hold one of these shells between the last joints of bent fingers and press the tip against another shell held in the same way by an opponent, until one of them, through persistent pressure, breaks into the other; the one that wins the most matches in these contests is called the Conqueror and is highly prized (Northamptonshire, Baker’s Glossary). The game is referred to as “Fighting Cocks” in Evans’ Leicestershire Glossary. In London, it was played with walnut shells.

The top stone of a stack is hit by a stone thrown from a certain distance, and the more hits, or "cogglings off," the higher the player's score.—Robinson’s Whitby Glossary.

Apparently the same game as “Cockly-jock.”

A game played with a ball and a bent stick (cut from a tree or hedge), with a hook at the end (same game as “Hurl”).—Dublin (Mrs. Lincoln).

The same game as “Cogger.” The game is more commonly referred to as “playing at sneel-shells.”—Ross and Stead’s Holderness Glossary.

I.

—Burne’s Shropshire Folklore, p. 531.

II.

—Notes and Queries, 5th series, x. 378.

III.

—Darlington’s Folk Speech of South Cheshire.

IV.

—Lawson’s Upton-on-Severn Words and Phrases.

V.

—Chamberlain’s West Worcestershire Glossary.

(b) This game is played with horse chestnuts threaded on a string. Two boys sit across from each other on a bench or a log. If they can find a patch of grass, that's even better. One boy places his chestnut on the grass, and the other tries to hit it with his chestnut; they take turns striking until one chestnut breaks the other. The chestnut that remains intact is then "conqueror of one." A new chestnut takes the place of the broken one, and the game continues. The chestnut that wins this time becomes "conqueror of two," and so on, with the winning chestnut adding to its score from previous victories. Players often harden their chestnuts by placing them in a chimney or carrying them in a warm pocket; a chestnut that becomes conqueror of many gains value in the eyes of schoolboys, and I've often seen them sold or swapped for other toys (Holland’s Cheshire Glossary). Generally, the game is played with one boy hitting his opponent’s chestnut with his own, both standing and holding the string. It's considered poor play to hit the opponent's string; only the nut should be struck. Usually, three attempts are allowed.

[79](c) For information on different versions of this game, check out Notes and Queries, 1878. Also, see Elworthy’s West Somerset Words. The boy who first recited the rhyme gets the first turn at Oswestry. The game is also known as “Cobbet” (Meole Brace) and “Cobbleticuts” (Burne’s Shropshire Folk-lore, p. 531). In “Conquer-nuts,” “obbly” was likely “nobbly” or “knobbly,” describing the look of the string of nuts; and “onkers” was probably made up to rhyme with “conquers” (Upton-on-Severn Words and Phrases, by R. Lawson).

I.

—Cornwall (Folk-Lore Journal, vol. 52).

II.

—London (A. B. Gomme).

(b) A ring is made by each child holding one end of a handkerchief. One child stands in the center and acts as the leader. The ring moves around slowly. The leader recites the words as mentioned above while the ring is moving, and then suddenly calls out one of the two phrases. If he says “Hold fast!” everyone must immediately let go of the corner of the handkerchief they are holding. They should all drop to the ground at once. When he says “Let go!” everyone should keep holding on to the handkerchief. Forfeits are given for any mistakes.

This game, called “Hawld Hard,” is usually played around Christmas time, where several people hold onto a piece of a handkerchief. One person then moves their hand around the handkerchief, saying, “Here we go round by the rule of Contrary; when I say ‘Hawld hard,’ let go, and when I say ‘Let go,’ hold tight.” Forfeits are imposed on those who don’t follow the instructions. —Lowsley’s Berkshire Glossary.

[80]

The game of “Chuck-farthing.”—Norfolk and Suffolk (Holloway’s Dict. of Provincialisms).

A square shape is divided by four lines that intersect at the center. Two of these lines connect opposite corners, while the other two connect the sides at the midpoint. There are two players, and each has three pieces. There are seven spaces for these pieces to move: six along the edges of the square and one in the center. The pieces belong to each player but are not placed together like in checkers; they are mixed with each other. The player who makes the first move usually has the advantage, as the game is won by aligning three pieces in a row. —Mactaggart’s Gallovidian Encyclopædia.

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A flat stone is used, called a Hob, where players place equal amounts of Cots and Twisses. Cots are brass buttons, and Twisses are pieces of brass—a solid brass Twiss is worth many Cots. Each player brings their own nice flat [key] stone and, from a set distance, tosses it at the Hob. If they knock off any Cots or Twisses that are closer to the players than the Hob, they can claim them. The other players try to move the Hob away with their key-stones from any Cots or Twisses that haven't been claimed. If any key-stone touches the Hob after all players have thrown, the owner cannot claim any Cots or Twisses.—Earls Heaton (Herbert Hardy).

Each player picks a Cast or stone to throw; another stone, called the Hob, is where the Cots and Twys are placed; at some distance, Scops are set in the ground. First, the players throw from the Hob to the Scop, and whoever gets closest goes first. Then he throws at the Hob, and if he knocks off the stakes, he takes them, as long as his Cast is closer to them than the Hob is; if not, the other player gets a turn. When throwing upward, one Cast can rest on another, and if the boy whose stone is underneath can lift it to knock the other Cast away, it has to stay where it lands; if he can’t do this, the second player can remove his Cast and place it next to the first. Whoever knocks off the stakes gets them, and they go to the boy whose Cast is closest to them. The Hob and Scop are usually three yards apart. The Cot was a button from the waistcoat or trousers, the Twy was one from the coat, and, as the name suggests, was equal to two Cots. Back in the day, when cash was much rarer among boys than it is now, these buttons served as their currency. The game around 1820 seems to have mostly been about tossing and was played with buttons, which were common then. Now, since metal buttons are rare, it’s played with pieces of brass or copper of any shape. The phrase, “I haven’t a cot,” is sometimes used to mean that someone has no money. —Easther’s Almondbury and Huddersfield Glossary.

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The game of "Course of the Park" hasn't been explained, but it's mentioned in the following verse:Understood. Please provide the text you'd like me to modernize.

—The Slighted Maid, 1663, p. 50.

A game played with a ball hit with sticks (Brogden’s Provincial Words, Lincolnshire). This is played on Barnes Common and is apparently a form of “Hockey” (A. B. Gomme).

The game of “Nine Holes.” This is the game described by John Jones, M.D., in his book titled The Benefit of the Ancient Bathes of Buckstones, 1572, p. 12, as being played by women at Buxton for their entertainment during rainy weather. See Pegge’s Anonymiana, 1818, p. 126, and Addy’s Sheffield Glossary.

[82]

An old game called “Crooky” used to be played in Portarlington, County Laois, and Kilkee, County Clare. Fifty years ago, it was played with wooden crooks and balls, but about twenty-five years ago, or maybe a bit more, mallets were introduced in Kilkee; later on, the name was changed to “Croquet.” I’ve heard that this game was brought over by the French refugees who settled in Portarlington.—G. H. Kinahan (Folk-lore Journal, ii. 265).

The game now known as “Heads and Tails” (Halliwell’s Dictionary). See Nomenclator, p. 299; Addy’s Sheffield Glossary. Strutt notes that in the past, English coins were marked on one side with a cross. Also, check Harland’s Lancashire Legends, p. 139.

A boys' game.—Halliwell’s Dictionary.

Nares (Glossary) refers to this game in a quote from Wilson’s Inconstant Lady, 1614. “Cross Questions and Crooked Answers” was a popular game at kids' parties. The players sit in a circle, and each player whispers a question to the person on their left, while also whispering an answer to a question they asked the person on their right. Each player must remember both the question they were asked and the answer they received, which must be stated aloud at the end of the round. If any mistakes are made, forfeits must be given.—A. B. Gomme.

One of the players is chosen to be Tig. He calls out the name of the person he's going to chase and runs after them. Another player runs in between Tig and the one fleeing, and then Tig chases this new player until another player runs in between Tig and the fugitive again; and so on. Each time a player runs between Tig and the person he’s chasing, he switches his pursuit to the new runner. When he captures, or in some areas, touches one of the players he's chasing, that player becomes Tig, and the game starts over.—Ireland (Miss Keane).

This game is known in and around London as “Cross Touch.”

This is an old game where boys shove one of their group into a circle they've formed, and as he tries to get out, they push him back, shouting, “No child of mine!” (Leigh’s Cheshire Glossary). He adds, “This might be the reason behind a husband denying his wife when he ‘notchils’ her.” To “cry notchil” means that a man is declaring he won't be responsible for any debts his wife incurs.

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A child hides and calls out "Cuckoo." The seekers respond—

—Burne’s Shropshire Folk-lore, p. 222.

Halliwell calls this a ball game, and the rhyme goesPlease provide the text you would like modernized.

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Two boys join hands and feet over the back of a third, who crawls away on hands and knees for a certain distance. If he can manage this, the Cuddy gets to ride as one of the powks on someone else's back.—Mactaggart’s Gallovidian Encyclopædia.

Four or more boys can play this game, and teams are formed. Two holes are dug in the ground about eight to ten feet apart. A ring about a foot in diameter is drawn around each hole. One boy stands at each hole with a stick, which he uses to guard it. Two other boys stand behind the holes and act as bowlers. One of them throws a small piece of wood shaped like a cat and tries to land it in the hole. The boy guarding the hole tries to hit it with his stick. If he gets it, he and the boy at the other hole switch places. If the boy throwing the piece of wood gets it into the hole, the batters are out. If the cat falls into the ring or just outside it, one of the bowlers picks it up, and both run to find a hiding place. They then decide who will hold the cat. It must be carried so it can't be seen by the batters, with both boys taking the same position. They then return to their previous spots, kneeling down while keeping the same positions. The batters, with their sticks in the holes, decide which of the two is holding the cat. One batter runs over and puts his stick into the hole behind the boy they think has the cat, while the other returns to his place. If they guess correctly, the holder of the cat throws it for the opposite bowler to put it in the hole before the second batter reaches it. If they guess incorrectly, the holder of the cat puts it into the hole as soon as the batter runs, and they then become the batters for the next game. If the batters leave their holes unguarded with the stick, the boys holding the cat can put them “out” at any time by throwing the cat into a hole. If more than two boys are playing on a team, the others field as in “Cricket.”—Barnes (A. B. Gomme).

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I.

—Chambers’ Popular Rhymes, p. 139.

II.

—Biggar (William Ballantyne).

(b) This is a bizarre kind of dance, done while sitting on one's haunches with arms on hips, where the dancers create a circle of individual figures. It always gets a good laugh from the older spectators; but, silly as it is, it allows for some show of energy and agility, as well as skill, since there's always a chance of falling over. Each performer sings the verse (Chambers; Mactaggart’s Gallovidian Encyclopædia).

Mr. Ballantyne says that each person tried to dance by sticking out their feet and hopping to the side.

(c) The first syllable of this word is, according to Jamieson, definitely the verb curr, which means to sit on the hocks or thighs. The second part may come from the Teutonic kudde, meaning a flock; kudd-en, coire, [86] convenire, congregari, aggregari; kudde wijs, gregatim, catervatim, suggesting to curr together. The same game is called Harry Hurcheon in the North of Scotland, either because someone in this position resembles a hurcheon or hedgehog crouching under a bush; or from the Belgian hurk-en which means to squat, to hurkle.—Jamieson.

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I.

—Earls Heaton (Herbert Hardy).

II.

—Dickinson’s Cumberland Glossary.

(b) Two kids, a girl and a boy, break away from their friends, who are just hanging out, the boy gently stroking the girl’s hair and singing the lyrics.

(c) This game is clearly a dramatic portrayal of[87] courtship, and it’s likely that the game’s action has never fully played out in the nursery. The verses are listed as “nursery rhymes” by Halliwell, Nos. cccclxxxiii. and ccccxciv. The tune is from Rimbault’s Nursery Rhymes, p. 70. The lyrics he provides are the same as the Earls Heaton version.

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(b) This is a description of the dance as it was known in Derbyshire among the farmers' sons and daughters and the domestic workers, all of whom were on pretty equal footing, which is very different from what we see in farmhouses today. The “Cushion Dance” was a well-known traditional entertainment in the North, and the people of Northumberland still commonly participate in it. The dance was enjoyed with lively fun, quite different from the game played in higher social circles, where the conditions and rules were more sophisticated.

The company was seated around the room, with a fiddler in a raised spot in the corner. Once everyone was ready, two of the young men left the room and soon returned; one was carrying a large square cushion while the other had a drinking horn, china bowl, or silver tankard, depending on the family's possessions.[88] The one with the cushion locked the door and put the key in his pocket. Both young men then approached the fiddler, and after the cushion-bearer placed a coin in the vessel held by the other, the fiddler began playing a lively tune. The young men started dancing around the room, singing or reciting along with the music:Understood. Please provide the text you would like me to modernize.

After going around the room, they stopped when they got to the fiddler’s corner, and the cushion-bearer, still to the music of the fiddle, sang or recited:Understood. Please provide the short phrases you'd like me to modernize.

The cushion-bearer and vessel-holder continued with the dance, moving around the room as before, singing “Frinkum, frankum,” etc., until the cushion-bearer reached the lady he liked, where he stopped, set the cushion down at her feet, and knelt on it. The vessel-bearer then offered the cup to the lady, who placed money in it and knelt on the cushion in front of the kneeling gentleman. The couple kissed, stood up, and the gentleman, after handing the cushion to the lady with a bow, positioned himself behind her, holding onto part of her dress. The cup-bearer joined in as well, and they danced toward the fiddler's corner, repeating the ceremony as before, substituting the name “John” for “Jane,” like this:Understood, I'm ready to assist. Please provide the text.

The dancing continued, and the lady, upon choosing her partner (a gentleman, of course), placed the cushion at his[89] feet. He put money in the horn and knelt. They kissed and stood up, he taking the cushion and his position in front of the lady, leading the next round of dance, while she held his coat-tails. The first gentleman followed behind the lady, with the horn-bearer bringing up the rear. The dance continued in this manner until everyone present, alternating between ladies and gentlemen, had participated in the ceremony. The dance ended with a lively romp around the room to the upbeat music of the fiddler, who at the end received all the money collected by the horn-bearer.

At Charminster, the dance starts with one person (either a man or a woman) who moves around the room holding a cushion. When the music ends, they stop and sing:Understood. Please provide the text you would like me to modernize.

Then the following words are sung as in the first example:Understood! Please provide the text you would like me to modernize.

And so she lays down the cushion in front of a man, who, kneeling on it, greets her while she sings—

Then, he picks up the cushion, and they join hands and dance around, singing like before; they keep doing this until the whole group is included in the circle. Then the cushion is placed down in front of the first man, with the woman singing, “This dance,” etc., just like before, except instead of saying “come to,” they say “go fro,” and instead of “Welcome, John Sanderson,” etc., they sing “Farewell, John Sanderson, farewell,” etc., and they exit one by one just as they entered.—Charminster (Notes and Queries, ii. 517, 518).

This description is pretty much the same as a seventeenth-century version. The dance starts with one person (either a man or a woman), who, holding a cushion in their hand, dances around the room. At the end of the tune, they stop and sing:

The Musician responds:

Then he places the cushion in front of a woman, on which she kneels, and he kisses her, singing—

Then he gets up, picks up the cushion, and they both dance, singing

Then, stopping for a moment, the person sings like beforeI'm ready. Please provide the text you would like me to modernize.

And so she places the cushion in front of a man, who, kneeling on it, greets her while she sings.

Then, he picks up the cushion, they join hands and dance around, singing just like before. And they keep doing this until everyone in the group is part of the circle. Then, the cushion is placed in front of the first man, and the woman sings, “This dance,” etc. (just like before), but instead of “come to,” they sing “go fro,” and instead of “Welcome, John Sanderson,” etc., they sing “Farewell, John Sanderson, farewell, farewell;” and so they leave one by one as they came in. Note, that the woman is kissed by all the men in the circle when she comes in and goes out, and the same goes for the man from the woman.—The Dancing Master: London,[91] printed by J. P., and sold by John Playford at his shop near the Temple Church, 1686, 7th edition.

Another version presents the words like this:Understood! Please provide the text you'd like me to modernize.

Children form a circle with one kid in the middle, who lays a cushion on the ground. They sing the first two lines, and the child in the center points to one, while the others dance around singing the other lines. The child in the middle pretends to drag the imaginary Mrs. Sargesson onto the cushion, kisses her, and leaves her in the center. Then Mrs. Sargesson points to someone in the circle, and the game starts again.—East Kirkby, Lincolnshire (Miss Maughan). The tune sung is the same as the “Mulberry Bush.”

Miss Baker (Northamptonshire Glossary) says the Cushion Dance is still around, with some variations, and usually wraps up the evening's fun. One of the young guys tries to sneak in a cushion and locks the doors to keep the young women from escaping; then everyone joins hands and dances three times to the left and three times to the right. After that, everyone sits down except for the young man holding the cushion. He goes up to the fiddler and saysUnderstood. Please provide the text you would like to have modernized.

The cushion-holder then approaches the girl he likes the most and drops the cushion at her feet. She kneels down with him on the cushion, and he greets her. They then stand up and dance around together to the fiddler's music. The girls follow the same pattern, saying, “young men,” and then “a young man,” and so on, until the whole group has participated in the same ceremony,[92] which ends with everyone dancing around three times, just like at the beginning.

The Norfolk and London versions are simplified to a basic “Kiss in the Ring” game, with the following verse:Sure, please provide the text you'd like me to modernize.

—Sporle, Norfolk (Ms. Matthews).

(c) Selden, in his Table Talk, refers to this game:—“The Court of England has changed a lot. At a formal dance, you start with the serious measures, then move on to the Cervantoes and the Golliards, all done with ceremony. Eventually, it leads to Trenchmore and the Cushion Dance; then everyone dances together, lord and groom, lady and kitchen maid, with no distinction. But during King Charles’s time, it was just Trenchmore and the Cushion Dance,” &c. The “Whishin Dance” (an old-fashioned dance where a cushion is used to kneel on), mentioned by Dickinson in the Cumberland Glossary, is probably the same dance, “whishin” meaning cushion. Brockett in North Country Words talks about “Peas Straw,” the last dance at a rural party; something similar to the traditional “Cushion Dance” at weddings. It’s also mentioned in Evans’ Leicestershire Glossary, and by Burton in this passage from the Anatomy of Melancholy: “A friend of his criticized him for dancing below his dignity, likely at some cushion dance.” In the version from East Kirkby, Lincolnshire, the phrase “in our degree” in the first line of the verse seems meaningless, and it’s likely a distortion of “highdigees, highdegrees,” a dialect term for lively, merry, dancing, and romping. Elworthy in Somerset Words gives this term and quotes the following line from Drayton:Understood, please provide the text you would like me to modernize.

—Polyolbion, Book 25, line 1162.

(d) The shift from a dance to a pure game is well[93] illustrated by the various versions, and the link between the dance and marriage ceremonies is clear. A fascinating account of the festivities at weddings is found in Coverdale’s Christen State of Matrimony, 1543: “After the banquet and feast, a crazy and rude tradition begins; for the bride must be taken into an open dancing area. Then there is so much running, jumping, and flinging about that one might think all these dancers have thrown all shame aside and become completely mad, as if they were sworn to the devil’s dance. Then the bride must dance with all the dancers, refusing none, no matter how shabby, dirty, drunk, rude, or shameless they may be. . . . After dinner, they must start piping and dancing again. And although the young people come close to resting, they can find no peace.”—1575 edit., fol. 59, rev. 60. Edward L. Rimbault, writing in Notes and Queries, vi. 586, mentions that it used to be common at weddings, both rich and poor, to dance after dinner and supper. In an old court masque from the time of James I, performed at the wedding of Philip Herbert and Lady Susan (MS. in the writer’s possession), it is directed that, “after supper,” the company “dance a round dance.” This was “dancing the bride to bed.” William Chappell (Notes and Queries, ii. 442) notes, “I have a tune called ‘A round dance to dance the bride to bed.’ It dates back to around 1630, or earlier, and resembles ‘The Hunt is up.’” Dancing was considered so crucial at weddings (according to Grose) that if in a family the youngest daughter happened to marry before her elder sisters, they must dance at her wedding without shoes. Could the custom of throwing old, worn-out shoes at the bride have come from the practice of dancing? The danced-out shoes may have been the ones used. Interestingly, the cushion is part of marriage ceremonies among the Brahmins. Mr. Kearns, in his Marriage Ceremonies of the Hindoos of the South of India, p. 6, notes that a stool or cushion is one of the preparations for welcoming the bridegroom, who sits on the stool presented to him upon entering the room. He says,[94] “I step on this for the sake of food and other benefits, on this beautifully adorned footstool.” The bride’s father then presents him with a cushion made of twenty leaves of cúsa grass, holding it up with both hands and exclaiming, “The cushion! the cushion! the cushion!” The bridegroom replies, “I accept the cushion,” and taking it, places it on the ground beneath his feet while reciting a prayer. It’s likely that the “Cushion Dance” holds the last remnants of a very ancient ceremony and serves as evidence of how a game can originate from custom.

Children sit with their hands under their knees and jump around the room. The one who can keep it up the longest wins the game.—Dublin (Mrs. Lincoln).

(b) In Notes and Queries, x. 17, “E. D.” mentions that this pastime was trendy sixty years ago, and comments on its indecency due to the low-cut dresses worn by women at that time. He includes excerpts from a satire called Cutchacutchoo, or the Jostling of the Innocents, 2nd ed., Dublin, where the game and its context are referencedI'm ready to assist you! Please provide the text you'd like me to modernize.