The Traditional Games of England, Scotland, and Ireland Volume I Part 37

The more general penances imposed upon the owners of the forfeits are as follows, but the list could be very much extended:-

Bite an inch off the poker.

Kneel to the prettiest, bow to the wittiest, and kiss the one you love best.

Stand in each corner of the room, sigh in one, cry in another, sing in another, and dance in the other.

Put yourself through the keyhole.

Place two chairs in the middle of the room, take off your shoes, and jump over them.

Measure so many yards of love ribbon.

Postman's knock.

Crawl up the chimney.

Spell Opportunity.

Miss Burne mentions one penance designed to make the victim ridiculous, as when he is made to lie on his back on the floor with his arms extended, and declare-

Here I lie!

The length of a looby, The breadth of a b.o.o.by, And three parts of a jacka.s.s!

-_Shrops.h.i.+re Folk-lore_, pp. 526-27.

(_c_) Halliwell gives, in his _Nursery Rhymes_, pp. 324-26, some curious verses, recorded for the first time by Dr. Kenrick in his Review of Dr.

Johnson's Shakespeare, 1765, on "rules for seemly behaviour," in which the forfeits imposed by barbers as penalties for handling razors, &c, are set forth. Although "barbers' forfeits" are not of the same nature as the nursery forfeits, it is possible that this general custom among so important a cla.s.s of the community in early times as barbers may have suggested the game. Both Forby in his _Vocabulary of East Anglia_ and Moor in his _Suffolk Words_ bear testimony to the general prevalence of barbers' forfeits, and it must be borne in mind that barbers were also surgeons in early days. A curious custom is also recorded in another East Anglian word-list, which may throw light upon the origin of the game from popular custom. "A forfeit is incurred by using the word 'water' in a brew-house, where you must say 'liquor;' or by using the word 'grease' in a chandlery, where it is 'stuff' or 'metal.' The forfeit is to propitiate the offended _genius loci_" (Spurden's _East Anglian Vocabulary_). The element of divination in the custom is perhaps indicated by a curious note from Waldron, in his _Description of the Isle of Man_ (_Works_, p. 55), "There is not a barn unoccupied the whole twelve days, every parish hiring fiddlers at the public charge. On Twelfth Day the fiddler lays his head on some of the wenches' laps, and a third person asks who such a maid or such a maid shall marry, naming the girls then present one after another; to which he answers according to his own whim, or agreeable to the intimacies he has taken notice of during this time of merriment. But whatever he says is as absolutely depended on as an oracle; and if he happen to couple two people who have an aversion to each other, tears and vexation succeed the mirth. This they call cutting off the fiddler's head; for after this he is dead for the whole year." Redeeming the forfeits is called "Crying the Weds," in Burne's _Shrops.h.i.+re Folk-lore_, p. 526. See "Wadds."

Fox

Fox, a fox, a brummalary How many miles to Lummaflary? Lummabary?

Eight and eight and a hundred and eight.

How shall I get home to-night?

Spin your legs and run fast.

Halliwell gives this rhyme as No. ccclvii. of his _Nursery Rhymes_, but without any description of the game beyond the words, "A game of the fox." It is probably the same game as "Fox and Goose."

Fox and Goose (1)

In Dorsets.h.i.+re one of the party, called the Fox, takes one end of the room or corner of a field (for the game was equally played indoors or out); all the rest of the children arrange themselves in a line or string, according to size, one behind the other, the smallest last, behind the tallest one, called Mother Goose, with their arms securely round the waist of the one in front of them, or sometimes by grasping the dress.

The game commences by a parley between the Fox and Goose to this effect, the Goose beginning.

"What are you after this fine morning?"

"Taking a walk."

"With what object?"

"To get an appet.i.te for a meal."

"What does [will] your meal consist of?"

"A nice fat goose for my breakfast."

"Where will you get it?"

"Oh, I shall get a nice morsel somewhere; and as they are so handy, I shall satisfy myself with one of yours."

"Catch one if you can."

A lively scene follows. The Fox and Mother Goose should be pretty evenly matched; the Mother with extended arms seeking to protect her Brood, while the Fox, who tries to dodge under, right and left, is only allowed in case of a successful foray or grasp to secure the last of the train.

Vigorous efforts are made to escape him, the Brood of course supplementing the Mother's exertions to elude him as far as they are able, but without breaking the link. The game may be continued until all in turn are caught.-_Folk-lore Journal_, vii. 217-18.

In Lancas.h.i.+re the children stand in line behind each other, holding each other by the waist. One stands facing them and calls out-

My mother sits on yonder chimney, And she says she _must_ have a chicken.

The others answer-

She _can't_ have a chicken.

The one then endeavours to catch the last child of the tail, who when caught comes behind the captor; repeat until all have changed sides.-Monton, Lancas.h.i.+re (Miss Dendy).

A version of this game played at Eckington, Derbys.h.i.+re, is played as follows:-A den is chalked out or marked out for the Fox. A larger den, opposite to this, is marked out for the Geese. A boy or a girl represents the Fox, and a number of others the Geese. Then the Fox shouts, "Geese, Geese, gannio," and the Geese answer, "Fox, Fox, fannio." Then the Fox says, "How many Geese have you to-day?" The Geese reply, "More than you can catch and carry away." Then the Geese run out of the den, and the Fox tries to catch them. He puts as many as he catches into his den (S. O. Addy).

(_b_) This game is a very general one at Christmas time. It is practically the same as "Gled Wylie," and "Hen and Chickens," and the "Hawk and Chickens" of Mr. Newell's _Games and Songs of American Children_, pp. 155-56. By referring to these games it will be seen that the whole group are mimic representatives of farmyard episodes, though the animal characters are giving way to more domestic affairs, as shown in the Pins and Needles version of "Hen and Chickens." It is possible that the different animals which are victims to the Fox appearing in the different games may arise from local circ.u.mstances, and that in this case a real distinction exists between the various names by which this game is known. A game called "Wolf and Deer," similar to "Fox and Geese," is given in _Winter Evening Amus.e.m.e.nts_, by R. Revel. The last one at the end of the tail may, if she has no other chance of escape, try and place herself before the Deer or Hen. She is then no longer to be hunted; all the others must then follow her example until the deer becomes the last of the line. The game then terminates by exacting a forfeit for each lady whom the Wolf has suffered to escape his clutches (pp. 64, 65).

See "Gled Wylie," "Hen and Chickens," "Old Dame."

Fox and Geese (2)

A game known by this name is played with marbles or pegs on a board on which are thirty-three holes, or on the pavement, with holes sc.r.a.ped out of the stones. To play this game there are seventeen pieces called Geese, and another one either larger or distinguished from the Geese by its colour, which is called the Fox. The Fox occupies the centre hole, and the Geese occupy nine holes in front, and four on each side of him.

The vacant holes behind are for the Geese and Fox to move in. The game is for the Geese to shut up the Fox so that he cannot move. All the pieces can be moved from one spot to another in the direction of the lines, but cannot pa.s.s over two holes at once. The Geese are not permitted to take the Fox. The Fox's business is to take all, or as many of the Geese as will prevent him from being blockaded. The Fox can take the Geese whenever there is a vacant s.p.a.ce behind them, which he pa.s.ses to, then occupies.

This game has been very popular among schoolboys in all ages. Mr.

Micklethwaite, in a paper on the Indoor Games of School Boys in the Middle Ages (_Arch. Journ._ xlix. 322), gives instances of finding figures of this game cut "in the cloister benches of Gloucester Cathedral and elsewhere, and there are several on the twelfth century tomb at Salisbury, miscalled Lord Stourton's," and also at Norwich Castle. For the date of these boards, Mr. Micklethwaite says for the last three centuries and a half cloisters everywhere in England have been open pa.s.sages, and there have generally been schoolboys about. It is therefore not unlikely that they should have left behind them such traces as these play-boards. But if they are of later date they would not be found to be distributed in monastic cloisters with respect to the monastic arrangement, and we do find them so. Strutt describes the game (_Sports_, p. 319).

See "Nine Men's Morris," "Noughts and Crosses."

Fox in the Fold

"The Tod (Fox) i' the Faul (Fold)." This game is commonly played by boys. Any number of boys join hands and stand in a circle to form the Faul. The boy that represents the Tod is placed within the circle. His aim is to escape. To effect this he rushes with all his force, increased by a run, against the joint hands of any two of the players. If the rush does not unloose the grasp, he hangs on the two arms with all his weight, pressing and wriggling. If he fails he makes a rush at another two, always selecting those players he thinks weakest. When he does break through he rushes off at the top of his speed, with all the players in full cry, till he is caught and brought back. The game begins anew with another boy as Tod.-Keith (Rev. W. Gregor).

See "Bull in the Park," "Frog in the Middle."

Fox in the Hole

All the players are armed with handkerchiefs. One of the players is chosen for Fox, who has his den marked out. The Fox hops out on one leg, with his handkerchief ready to strike. The players gather round him and attack him. If he can strike one of his a.s.sailants without putting his foot to the ground from his hopping position, the player so struck is chased by the others into the den, and he then becomes the Fox for another round of the game.-Cork (Miss Keane).

Halliwell (_Nursery Rhymes_, p. 228) describes the game in practically the same manner, but adds that when the Fox is coming out he says-