Every Boy's Book: A Complete Encyclopaedia of Sports and Amusements Part 118

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13. ANSWER TO THE FOUNTAIN PUZZLE.

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14. ANSWER TO THE CABINET-MAKER'S PUZZLE.

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The cabinet-maker must find the centre of the circle, and strike another circle, half the diameter of the first, and having the same centre.

Then cut the whole into four parts, by means of two lines drawn at right angles to each other, then cut along the inner circle, and put the pieces together as in the above diagram.

15. ANSWER TO THE STRING AND b.a.l.l.s PUZZLE.

Draw the loop well down, slipping either ball through it. Push it through the hole at the extremities, pa.s.s it over the knot, and draw it through again. The same process must be repeated with the other ball; the loop can then be drawn through the hole in the centre, and the ball will slide along the cord until it reaches the other side. The string is then replaced, having both b.a.l.l.s on the same side.

This plan of pa.s.sing the loop over the knot is a key to all the puzzles of this nature.

There is another and perhaps a neater way of performing this trick. Draw the loop through the central hole, and bring it through far enough to pa.s.s one of the b.a.l.l.s through. Having done this, draw the string back, and both b.a.l.l.s will be found on the same side.

16. ANSWER TO THE DOUBLE-HEADED PUZZLE.

Arrange them side by side in the short arms of the cross, draw out the centre piece, and the rest will follow easily. The reversal of the same process will put them back again.

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17. THE ROW OF HALFPENCE.

To perform this trick successfully, you must place the fourth on the first, seventh on the third, fifth upon the ninth, the second upon the sixth, and the eighth upon the tenth.

18. TYPOGRAPHICAL PUZZLE.

This puzzle should be read thus:--

If your grate be (great B) empty, put coal on.

When your grate is (great IS) full, stop putting coal on.

19. THE LANDLORD MADE TO PAY.

The counting, which stopped at every seventh man, was made to begin at the sixth from the landlord, who sat at the end of the table.

20. FATHER AND SON.

The trees were planted in this form:--

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[Ill.u.s.tration: SHOWS.]

Under this head we describe those shows which may be exhibited by any ingenious youth for the amus.e.m.e.nt of a large circle of friends. Parents frequently employ the itinerant Punch-and-Judy man to astonish and delight a juvenile party with his comical puppets; and we are convinced that they act wisely, as children of all ages enjoy nothing so much as a good show. The reader, by following our directions, may exhibit the freaks of Punch and Judy, the dancing figures of the Fantoccini, the grotesque shadows of the Gallanty Show; in fine, he may become quite an expert showman.

[Ill.u.s.tration: PUNCH & JUDY]

By following our directions, the reader may, with comparatively little trouble, construct some comical puppets, and acquire sufficient skill in working them, to give private representations of the celebrated drama of "Punch and Judy," which never fails to excite the laughter of old and young.

In carving the heads of the puppets, the ingenuity of the reader will be most severely taxed. Each head must be fas.h.i.+oned out of a piece of soft wood, with a sharp penknife, and then painted with oil colours. An old wooden doll will be a capital model for the reader to work from, only he must cut much deeper, in order to make the features of his puppets sufficiently prominent. Punch's nose and chin may be formed of separate pieces of wood, and then fastened on to the face with a little glue. Our artist has drawn a full-length figure of Punch (see next page), and the faces of the other characters in the drama--namely, 1. Judy; 2. Beadle; 3. Foreigner; 4. Ghost; 5. Doctor; 6. Clown; 7. Jones; 8. Hangman. The carver should study these ill.u.s.trations attentively, and endeavour to imitate them. The eyes of the Ghost are two black beads, which may be fixed by pins, or loosely attached by short pieces of thread, so that they may roll about in their saucer-like sockets. The eyes of the other puppets may be formed of white beads, fixed by black-headed pins in small cavities made to receive them. The hair and beard of the Foreigner, and the Clown's three tufts, may be made of any kind of fur; the Hangman's wig, and the Doctor's scanty locks, of worsted. Each head should be about the size of an ordinary hen's egg, and should have a hole made at the bottom, large enough to receive the tip of the showman's finger.

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Punch is the only puppet that exhibits his legs to the audience, and therefore the only one requiring lower limbs; these legs, as well as the hands of all the characters, are to be cut out of wood and painted.

The cloth figures of the puppets must be so constructed, that the exhibitor can easily slip them over his hand and wrist; to these hollow bodies the heads and hands are to be securely fastened with a little glue, or some small tacks. Punch's figure may be formed of red merino, or any other gay-coloured stuff; the "goodly hunch" and prominent stomach must not be forgotten; these important appendages may be stuffed with cotton or tow. Judy's dress may be made of cotton print; the Beadle's, of blue cloth, edged with gold lace; the Foreigner's, of almost any kind of stuff; the Doctor's, of black cloth; and the dresses of Jones and the Hangman, of any sober-coloured stuffs. The Ghost must be enveloped in a long white linen gown; and the popular favourite, the Clown, must be arrayed in the true pantomimic style. In constructing the dresses, the reader will have his patience sorely tried, unless he can persuade a few young ladies to aid him with their nimble fingers.

Motion is given to each of the puppets by the showman's hand, the forefinger of which moves the head, while the thumb and second finger work the two arms; the annexed engraving will elucidate this operation.

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We have not yet alluded to two important characters in the drama--namely, the Baby and the eccentric dog Toby. Any little doll may be dressed in long-clothes to represent the Baby, so the reader may be spared the trouble of carving another head. The part of Toby is generally filled by a living performer, but as we do not suppose the reader to be the owner of a properly-trained cur, we recommend him to procure one of those barking or squeaking dogs which are sold at the toy-shops; with such a Toby, the fun of the piece will be increased rather than diminished.

Punch's stick must be about a foot long, and quite half an inch thick; it must be formed of tough wood, as some rough work is performed with it during the progress of the drama. The gallows must be of the letter [F]

form, and must have two holes bored through the end of the projecting beam; the cord having been knotted at one end, is to be pa.s.sed through each hole.

Having described the puppets, we will now say a few words about the show in which they are to be exhibited. The dingy curtains which conceal the street performer of Punch, are supported by a tall rectangular frame of wood, which the reader could not imitate without considerable labour and some knowledge of carpentry. The show we recommend is simply a box about three feet square, open in front and at bottom; this is hung upon nails against the wall, above the head of the amateur showman, who is hidden from view by curtains which reach from the box to the floor. The box may be a large tea-chest inverted, with the lid and one of its sides removed. The inside of the box should be hung with green-baize, or any other dark-coloured stuff. A proscenium cut out of pasteboard, and tastefully painted, should be fastened in front of the box, so as to conceal the unsightly edges of the wood. A shelf of wood about four inches wide should project beyond the proscenium, so as to form a little stage upon which Punch may drum his legs, lay down his stick, and place the dead bodies of his victims; this shelf may be fixed by screws pa.s.sing through the two sides of the box.

During the performance the puppets must be kept in an open box hanging against the wall within reach of the showman.

The reader having prepared everything, should learn the drama, and practise the different voices which he intends to give to the different characters. He will probably be some time before he can acquire the peculiar squeak of Punch, which is generally supposed to be produced by an instrument called a "squeaker." With none of squeakers we have seen could any distinct words be uttered, and we therefore recommend the reader to trust to his own powers of mimicry. With regard to the musical accompaniments, the amateur showman should get some kind sister or cousin to sit at the piano, the notes of which are much more pleasing than those of the Pandean pipes and drum.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FANTOCCINI]

About sixty years ago, a puppet-show was exhibited at the west-end of London, with the Italian t.i.tle of Fantoccini, which greatly attracted the notice of the public, and was spoken of as an extraordinary performance; it was, however, nothing more than a revival of the old puppet-show, which drew crowded and fas.h.i.+onable audiences during the reign of Queen Anne, and rivalled the more pompous exhibitions of the larger theatres. In the present day Fantoccini are exhibited in the open streets by the itinerant showman, whose ragged coat and battered hat show how puppets have fallen in the estimation of the fas.h.i.+onable public.

Any ingenious youth may amuse and astonish a large circle of friends with an exhibition of dancing puppets, as the different figures are not difficult to construct, and their motions are very easily managed. The puppets may be common wooden dolls dressed up in appropriate costumes.

The arms and legs are to be loosely attached to the bodies, so that they may be moved about in any direction by threads fastened to their extremities. These threads may be formed of black sewing-silk, or strong black cotton. All the threads proceeding from the different limbs and joints of a puppet are to be attached to a stick in such a manner as to allow the figure to stand in a natural att.i.tude; the annexed engraving shows two puppets thus supported.

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