Evening Republican, Volume 17, Number 277, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 November 1913 — MME. MERRI’S ADVICE [ARTICLE]

MME. MERRI’S ADVICE

THREE GOOD IDEAS FOR EVENING « ENTERtAINMENTS. - ( Old Pastime That Is Just as Enjoyable as It Ever Was—Charades Easy to Arrange-’-Fiower Contest Is Well Worth While. At a recent card party a few of the grand dames 'pfesent began talking of the pastimes of their childhood and one and all agreed that “Logomachy” had been not only enjoyable -but most instructive. So I immediately inquired into the game and found that it would be most excellent, as it cannot help but teach spelling, which is one of the crying needs of the day. I dislike to say so, but many of my letters from school children, even of high school age, are often . badly spelled and badly written. The regular “Legomachy” sets may be obtained, and “Anagrams” may be used. The cost is very small. Homemade sets are quickly constructed by taking letters from the top of a daily paper (as they are usually good-sized letters), mount them on squares of cardboard or very thin wood. With a scroll saw, tliese are easily managed. Make about three dozen of the letters most commonly used, with a few extra vowels; a hair dozen each of “Q, X,” and “Z” will be enough. To play the game, give each one the same number of letters, the faces turned downward on the table. Each onq in turn places a letter face up in the center of, the table and if he can form a word of not less than three letters from those collected, he takes them. This may be done either before or after the player has turned up the letter. The one playing continues to draw new letters as long as he can add them to words already made by himself or any other person. The one who turns up the last letter is permitted about twenty seconds to claim the word, after which any one may take it by first naming it. Any player may take from another a word, if by adding another letter he can make a materially different word from it. A change of verbs into their own participles, or nouns to adverbs or adjectives, is not counted. Proper nouns and abbreviations are not counted. A standard dietionary should be agreed upon as an authority for settling any controversy. If one player has a word which may be changed into another he must name this transposition, if he does not do so, one of the others upon announcing it may capture the word for himself. When any one player has ten words, all must count the number of their words contain and the person having the greatest number of syllables wins that game. Some players count the one who first has ten words as the winner. This point may be decided by those playing, before the game is started. An Old Flower Contest. The request for floral contests is perennial, and I am sometimes forced to give some that have appeared in the department, as this one has, but It was so many years ago that I feel sure that it will be new to many of our readers. 1. An ajniable man. (Sweet William). 2. The pulse of the business world. (Stocks). 3. A title for the sun. (Morningglory). 4. A bird and a riding accessory. (Larkspur). 5. A pillar of a building and a syllable that rhymes with dine. (Columbine). 6. A flower between mountains. (Lily of the vaHey). 7. A farewell sentiment. (Forget-me-not). 8. A dude and an animal. (Dandelion).

t. A part t of the day. (Four o’clock). 10. The result of Cupid’s arrows. (Bleeding heart). 11. The place for a kiss. (Tulips). * 12. A-yellow stick. (Golden-rod). 13. A product of the dairy and % , drinking utensil. (Buttercup). 14. One of the Four Hundred. (Aster): 16. What Cinderella should have advertised forf (Lady’s slipper). Charades. With the old-fashioned gowns there has been a renewed interest in many of the amusements of our grandmother’s day and among them none is more popular than “Charades.” They may be informally arranged by an after-dinner company or they may be planned for in quite an elaborate manner, with, costumes and scenery,. It is great fun to divide into sides In a club and each side get up a charade for an evening entertainment I will give a list of words that are yery easily adopted to representation: Window, groomsman, music, breakfast, bandage, courtship, cannibal, carmine, forty, clothes-horse. Words of two syllables are easiest to act, but others may-be worked out equally as well. Amateur .theatricals are exceedingly popular, so much 'so that there are a number of semi-pro-fessional people* who make a business of coaching for this sort of thing. MME. MERRI.