Healthful Sports for Boys Part 7

As I have said before, diving may be useful in saving life, or in finding objects that have been lost in the water. In such cases it will be necessary to keep the eyes open, otherwise you will be much like one groping in the dark.

The tendency in diving is to keep the eyes closed. There is a feeling that if they are opened the water will hurt them, or that its touch will be painful; but this is a great mistake. If the water is clear, and clear water is the best to swim in, one can see under water nearly as well as on top and the eyes are in no way affected.

Pearl divers in the Persian Gulf sometimes stay under water for minutes at a time, and if they could not keep their eyes open while searching for the pearl sh.e.l.ls, their descent would not profit much.

The eyes of these people are never injured.

In the Bay of Apia, in the Samoan Islands, I have seen native boys diving from a canoe under the bottom of a great ocean steamer. On one occasion a boy brought up from a depth of fifty feet a silver coin that had been tossed overboard to test his skill.

CLOSING ADVICE

Never go into the water when at all warm. The best way to enter is to plunge or dive in.

Never go in more than twice a day, even if a fresh lot of boys come down to "dare" you. Learn to laugh at dares.

Never stay in the water more than half an hour at a time, unless there is an absolute need for your so doing. You cannot learn too early that good health is easily lost and hard to regain.

CHAPTER X

HOW SIDES ARE CHOSEN IN GAMES

When teams from different clubs, or schools, or places meet to try their skill in some game requiring skill and endurance, there is no occasion to "choose sides" for that has been done in advance. But when boys of the same school or a.s.sociation meet for a game, it is necessary that the leaders should be decided on in advance, as also the means by which the respective sides must be chosen.

When two boys are contesting, one may pick up a pebble and ask, "Which hand is it?" If the guess is right, the boy making it is "It."

"Drawing straws" is another method of choosing sides, and it is often used as a game in itself.

From a handful of gra.s.s, one of the boys selects as many pieces as there are to be players. One of the blades is cut off so that it will be much shorter than the other pieces.

"Straw holder" arranges the straws so that the top ends protrude from his closed fist, either perfectly even or irregular in their height above the hand, according to his fancy. It may happen that the first boy to choose a straw will select the short one. This in a measure spoils the fun, and to guard against it the lads are often made to stand up in a line and each one in turn pulls a straw from the fist of "Straw-holder." Each one is expected and required to put it behind his back immediately and keep it there until all the boys in the line have straws behind their backs.

Then "Straw-holder," holding up the straw left in his own hand, cries, "Who is short straw?" At that each boy produces his straw and compares it with the others.

Another method is to place a b.u.t.ton, pebble or other small object that can be easily concealed in one hand. Then, with both fists closed, place one above the other and ask, "Which is it, Joe; high or low?" If the empty hand is chosen the boy goes free. So it goes on, the last holder of the stone being it, for the one making the unlucky guess has to hold the object.

"Odd or Even" is often the method by which the one having the first choice in choosing shall be selected.

The method is as follows: One boy selects at random a handful of pebbles, marbles or other small objects, and closing his hand, asks, as he holds it out: "Odd or even?"

If the other boy should say "odd," and on count the objects prove to be even in number, he has lost, and the other boy has first choice; or if it is a counting-out game, the one who guesses right goes free and the last is "It."

A very old way is to toss up two coins, sometimes boys carry such things, though never for long. "Heads or tails!" cries the t.o.s.s.e.r. If the other guesses he is free.

Sometimes a stone or a chip, moistened on one side is used, and the boy who tosses it up shouts, "Wet or dry?"

This is simply a variation of heads or tails, or odd or even. Each section and each crowd of boys has its own way of choosing or counting out, and in this case the best known is best.

CHAPTER XI

SOME INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT COUNTING-OUT GAMES AND THE RHYMES USED BY PLAYERS

When children indulge in counting-out games they are quite indifferent to the fact that since the infancy of history and in every land, civilized, barbarous and savage, other children have played the same game, in much the same way, and have used rhymes that are curiously alike. Some learned men use this fact to prove the unity of all races.

Mr. Beard, to whom I am indebted for much, has collected many of these rhymes. It will interest boys to compare some of them with those he already knows.

Sometimes it happens that there are more boys than words in the counting rhyme, or the counter foresees that he himself will be it. In both cases he adds to the verse something like this:

One, two, three, Out goes he!

Often he will add a whole verse and dialogue as follows:

One, two, three, Out goes he, Into the middle Of the deep blue sea!

Are you willing to be IT?

Here is a rhyme that has in it a distinctly American tw.a.n.g:

Ena, mena, mina, mo, Catch a niga by the toe, When he hollers, let him go, Ena, mena, mina, mo.

Here is another familiar jingle:

Anna, mana, mona, Mike, Barcelona bona, strike; Care, ware, frow, frack, Hallico, ballico, we, wo, wack!

Huddy, goody, goo, Out goes you!

Eatum, peatum, penny pie, Babyloni, stick.u.m stie, Stand you out there by!

This is Irish:

A lirripeg, a larrapeg, A bee, a nail, a stone, a stack, A bonny Billie Gelpie, A Belia-bug, a warum rock, Crib-i-stery, Hick!

The little Turks and Armenians use this count:

Allem, Bellem, chirozi, Chirmirozi, fotozi, Fotoz, gider magara, Magarada tilki bash, Pilki beni korkootdi, Aallede shooullede Edirnede, Divid bas.h.i.+ Ben Ilayen kehad bas.h.i.+,

French youngsters use this rhyme:

Un, deux, trois, Tu ne l'est pas; Quatre, cinq, six, Va-t'en d'ici!

One, two, three, Thou art not "it"; Four, five, six, Go away from here!

Here is how Dutch boys do it:

Een, twee, sen kopje thee; Een, klotje er bij, Af ben jij!