Jasper County Democrat, Volume 13, Number 43, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 September 1910 — FOR THE CHILDREN [ARTICLE]

FOR THE CHILDREN

Summer Weather. Sing of summer weather, Wind and sky together, Clover top and berry bloom and haycocks in the sun; All the forest places 7 / Spread with shaded laces! Oh, I breathe a sorry sigh when summer time is done! Fleets of clouds are floating On the sky a-boating. Meadow birds are flying past with wing* of red and blue. ; All my :.eart keeps saying As 1 go a-piaylng: "Summer time, 'tis summer time! The world is all for you!” —Youth's Companion. A Chinese Game. The players stand tn two lines facing each other, with a large open space representing a river between. The watare sprite, standing in the river, beckons to one of the players to cross. This one signals to a player on the other side, and they run to exchange places. If the water sprite tags either one of the players while crossing that one then becomes the sprite. This game is sometimes played in schools where some of the players are little Chinese. When these beckon and signal they have a little rigmarole which they repeat In their own language. American children think it very odd and very pretty. The game is said to be of Chinese origin and to be founded upon a legend which says that every year a sprite appears in the rivers, beckoning to the people on the shores. It is a fancy, of course, and the sprite represents spring.

A Merry Game. One of the merriest games that children enjoy is the old time “grunt.” The children stand in a circle one person in the center of the ring is blindfolded and given a long cane; the children now circle around him until he gives the signal for them to stop, the signal being given by thumping smartly on the floor with the cane; he now stretches forth his cane, and the person it touches must take hold of It and, placing it to bls lips, give three distinct “grunts.” From these sounds the blindfolded one must guess his identity; if he falls in this the children resume their circling around him, and he is given another opportunity of guessing; if, however, he Is successful in bis guess the person whose identity be has discovered takes his place in the center of the circle. _. A Burns Under Water. In a short, thick candle end press tn from underneath an iron nail so as to make this end heavier so that the candle will keep right side up. Then put it in a glass of cold water and light it. You would naturally expect that the candle would burn down to the water’s level and that then the water would put out the flame. But this does not happen. The cold water keeps the outside wax from melting so that the flame burns down until you can see it through the candle as through a milky shade. It will burn down until the hole is so deep that fresh air cannot reach the flame. It is a pretty sight just before the flame goes out, choked, not drowned. Gams of Whistle Puff. A small fluffy feather is selected for this game. All of the players sit in a circle. Some one starts the game by throwing the feather as high a*, possible into the air. The feather musk not be allowed to fall to the floor or to alight on any player. To prevent this any player may blow the feather to keep it from alighting, but he must whistle before every puff which he gives. If the feather should touch any player or any player should not whistle before blowing the game must stop long enough for the person upon whom the feather alighted or the player who did not whistle before the puff 10 whistle any song selected by the starter of the game. Peanut Plants. Five cents’ worth of roasted peanuts can be made to last a long time if you are not too hungry. But did you ever think how much longer they would last if you planted fresh ones? Try planting a few kernels in a ; pot or box of loose, mellow earth. Keep in a rather warm place and water moderately. The kernels will soon sprout, and the plant grows quickly. As the foliage spreads gracefully over the pot you will be surprised to And bow beautiful the plants are. Indeed, florists grow them for sale. They are well worth the slight care they require, and the plant has some interesting habits that sharp eyed boys and girls will enjoy watching.

What Tw6 Sparrows Did. The town clock in Sarnia. Ont, stopped one morning not long ago. and on investigation the bands were found securely tied down by strands of twine and grass. The mischief had been done by a pair of sparrows. Desiring to build a nest in the angle of the bands, the movement of which Interfered with their plans, they tied the bands to each other and to the framework in such a manner that it took considerable time and labor to remove the obstructions. The engineering skill displayed and the amount pf industry and perseverance exhibited make the feat quite phenomenal in bird annals. Skin Shoes. “Do you know, Dot,” said Johnny, “that they can make shoes out of all kinds of skins?** “Not out of banana skins?” “Sure! They’ll make slippers out of them."—Philadelphia Ledger., -