Jasper County Democrat, Volume 11, Number 75, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 20 February 1909 — FOR THE CHILDREN [ARTICLE]

FOR THE CHILDREN

Game of Speculation. The leader of this game provides two packs of cards, one of which is dealt one by one around the company till all the pack is dealt. The other pack he keeps in his hand, drawing one card from it at random, which he conceals in his pocket. The players being each further provided with a saucer containing fifty beans, the leader rings a small bell and calls out, “Speculate!” Then for a time there is confusion, the players circulating around the room, offering beans in exchange for certain cards which the neighbors display. Each wishes to hold the duplicate of the card concealed by the leader, though no one knows which it is.

At a second ringing of the bell the players are again seated, while the leader, turning up one card from the pack in his hand, calls out its name. Whoever holds the duplicate must go forward and lay it upon a table provided for the purpose. After a half dozen or more of the cards have been thus collected the signal to “speculate” is again given. Of course the interest increases as the number of cards held by the players diminishes, and sometimes a player will give his last bean for a card which may be called in at the next ringing of the bell. After repeated speculations and callings in one card alone remains—the duplicate of that concealed in the pocket of the leader. The fortunate holder of this wins a prize, as also does the possessor of the greatest number of beans.

The Magnetized Hat. Borrow an old top hat and place it on the table crown uppermost; make a few passes over it; Iqy your hand upon the crown. Then gradually raise the hat in the air and make it float about in various positions. This is done by taking an ordinary black pin bent in the shape of the letter C, which you secrete in your right hand. On receiving the hat, take it in your left hand and while walking to the table put your right hand inside quickly and push the pin up through the crown. Make a few passes over the hat. Lay your left hand on the hat and slip your finger in the hook and lift the hat from the table. You can make the hat float in the air as if magnetized. The pin can easily be withdrawn when giving the hat back.

Phosphorescent Flowers. Many persons do not know thatthere are flowers and plants that give out a phosphorescent light in the dark. The nasturtium is one of them. • The light of this flower is more noticeable after a day of strong sunlight. The marsh lily and the flaxinella also have the light,... In the casep£tbe_flaxlnella the

phenomenon is due to a volatile oil that the plant secretes. It oozes out in warm weather, spreads itself in a thin layer over the flowers and forms a vapor that becomes luminous in the dark. It is said that there is a kind of fungus in the coal mines near Dresden that has the appearance of luminous festoons of shifting colors.

French Blind Man's Buff. The players form a ring, hand in hand, and the blind man stands in the middle, holding a stick or cane. The players dance around him till he raps on the floor, when they all stand perfectly still and silent. Then he holds out the cane, and the one toward whom it points must grasp the end. The blind man then asks any three questions he pleases, all of which must be answered in a changed voice. The blind man must guess who is talking.; If he is right the two change places, but if he is wrong the players dance about him again and the game goes on.

A Watch Puzzle. Ask your friends to think of any number on the dial of a watch. Then point to various numbers, and at each have him silently add one to the number selected until he arrives at twenty, which he will announce aloud, and your pointer will be on the numeral he selected. Solution.—Point promiscuously about the face of the watch until the eighth point, which must be on the 12. Then pass regularly around toward the 1, pointing at 11, 10, 9, etc., until twenty is called, and you will be on the number selected.

Guess Again. What grows bigger the more you contract it? Debt. Which side of a pitcher is the handle? The outside. When is a ship like an auctioneer? When in full sail. When Is a ship like a floor? When she is boarded. When is a ship like a bird? When she is flying before the wind. What did Adam first set in the garden of Eden? His foot. What tree is the sweetest ?->,Maple.

At a Japanese Auction. Japanese auctions are conducted on the silent plan. Each bidder writes his name and bid ufcqn a’ slip of paper, which he places in a box. When the bidding is over the box is opened by the auctioneer, and the goods are clared the property of the highest der.

Making the Best of It. r When it’s raining In the garden and the sky Is very gray We go into the nursery and make a sunny day. I get my horse' and bridle, and, with Nellie at my side, I ask if she la ready, then I take her for ajrlde.—

we drive for miles In fancy, for when clouds have hid the blue The “trying to be cheerful" Is the best thing we can do.