sary to unblock, without knowing how to do it systematically. These writers all had a desire to show length and strength of suit, which has been met by N. B. Trist, of New Orleans, who, in American Leads, proposes a systematic course of play when opening, and continuing leads from strong suits. Within the last forty years Short Whist has been substituted for Long Whist in England. The signal for trumps has also been introduced, and is now at first it was strongly opposed by many of the best players. full account of their various methods of cheating being given, with the way to defeat them. "Formerly," he says, "it was usual to deal four cards together; but it is demonstrable there is no safety in that method; but now the cards are dealt round one and one at a time, as the securest and best way." It also appears from this book that two-handed and three-handed Whist were sometimes played. In the latter, each player had twelve cards, and, says Seymour, "always two | recognized as legitimate, although strive to suppress and keep down the rising man." About this time Whist began to be a fashionable game, and in 1743 appeared an anonymous treatise upon it, of which it is thought Edmund Hoyle was the author. At this time Hoyle gave lessons in Whist for a guinea each, and he did so much for the game that he is often called the father of Whist." It was then thought necessary for all well-educated people to know how to play it. In the "Rambler " for May 8, 1750, occurs the passage, "Papa made me drudge at Whist till I was tired of it; and Mr. Hoyle, when he had not given me above forty lessons, said I was one of his best scholars." Since Hoyle's time there have been many writers on the game. Whist means silence; and it is supposed that the game was so named from the necessity of silence while it is being played. WHISTLE, Experiment with a. Fit over the mouth-piece of a toy fife or whistle the end of a rubber tube several feet long. Blow through the tube, and at the same time swing the whistle around in a circle so that it will sound while swinging. If a person twenty or thirty feet distant listens to the whistle, he will hear its sound grow alternately sharper and flatter, as it approaches him and recedes from him. This is because the pitch of sound depends on the speed with which the sound-waves reach the ear, and they get to the ear faster when the sounding body itself is moving toward the listener. WHO WAS HE? A game played by any number of persons. One begins by giving a brief sketch of some historical character, and then asking "Who was he?" He who makes the first correct answer gives another similar sketch, and so on as long as the players choose. Whist had been treated as though the art of the game depended on arbitrary rules, but it is now granted that all rules for play depend on general principles. The modern game is but an elaboration of the old one. Before Hoyle, Matthews had an idea of the discard, which is now accepted by all advanced players. In the writings of Deschapelles, a noted French player, and of Clay, Drayson, and Cavendish, celebrated English players, WINDMILL, THE. A SOLITAIRE the rules of the Crown Coffee House game of CARDS, played with two (1728) are still the important ones. packs. An Ace is placed on the They were (1) "Lead from your table to begin with, and the first strong suit. (2) Study your partner's eight cards played are laid in order hand. (3) Attend to the score." in a circle around it, so as to reHoyle understood that it was neces-semble the sails of a windmill, but WICKET. See CRICKET. four families on the Ace by piling | Fig. 1.) It will run off the foot upward, beginning another family in drops, fall on the side of the with another Ace when the one before it is completed. Suit need not be followed in any of the piles. In piling, the sails of the windmill may be used, each being at once replaced by the next card played. Useless cards are laid aside to form stock, of which the top card can be used at any time, instead of playing from the pack. WINE CLASSES, Experiments with. 1. Dip two wine glasses under water, and while they are there bring them mouth to mouth, seeing that both are completely full. Lift them out together and stand them on the table, one being on the other and both still full of water. It will be found that the upper one can be lifted up a very little way without any of the water running out. Holding it in this way, pour slowly on the foot of the upper Fig. 1. glass some red wine, or some al- glass and trickle down to the open cohol colored with carmine. (See space between the two glasses, when it will enter the water and rise into the upper glass. The water in the upper glass can, with Fig. 2. care, be colored red in this way, while that in the lower glass remains transparent. The wine or alcohol rises in the water because it is lighter. 2. Fill a soup plate with water, and on a cork or an inverted butter plate in the middle place a crumpled piece of paper as large as one's fist. Set fire to it and at once turn a goblet over it. The water will be drawn up into the goblet. (See Fig. 2.) The reason is that the paper, in burning, exhausts the oxygen under the goblet, reducing the pressure there, and the pressure of the outside air then forces up the water. 3. Fill a glass with water so that it almost overflows, and then place over it a sheet of paper which touches both the edge of the glass and the surface of the water. Turn the glass upside down, and the water will not run out. (See Fig. 3.) To guard against accidents, this should be done over a basin or sink. A piece of glass may be used instead of paper; but if the tumbler be tilted a little to one side it will slide off. To prevent this, bits of cork may be glued to it on the inside. 4. Place a lighted candle in a goblet or large wine glass. After it has burned a few seconds, lay on the glass a piece of wet paper having a hole cut in the middle, and then press down on it another glass inverted. The paper is to make the two glasses fit together very tightly. Soon after the upper glass has been pressed down on the lower, the candle will go out for want of air, and it will be found that the two glasses stick together very tightly, so that the lower can be lifted by the upper, and so that it requires considerable force to pull them apart. This is because some of the air inside, heated by the candle, has risen out of the glass, so that the they cry out "Coming! say noth- goal. The game may be block- Wrestling-Fig. 1. players, therefore, before the game, | allowed to hold one another. The should agree either that the Wolf simplest and best kind for boys is must select some one player to the kind first practised in Cumberpursue, and allow that player to re-land, England. In this country this turn to goal if not caught in a cer- form of wrestling is commonly tain time, or that all the players must run in to goal, letting the Wolf touch whom he can. When there are several Wolves they may hide in the same place or different places, as they choose, and any one of them may run out when he pleases. If the Wolves arrange among them where they shall hide and how they shall run out, they usually succeed in catching more players than when each follows a method of his own. Any player called "backhold" catch. In it the contestants are allowed to hold each other in only one way, which is arranged before the wrestling begins. The wrestlers stand chest to chest, each placing his chin on the other's shoulder and grasping him around the body, as shown in Fig. 1, the right arm of each being under his opponent's left. They are allowed to use every means to throw each other, except kicking or similar injury, and if either con testant unclasps his hands he is regarded as beaten, just as if he had been thrown. A wrestler is considered thrown when both shoul A Wrestling-Fig. 2. ders touch the floor. The object of each contestant in this kind of wrestling should be to force his right shoulder beneath his opponent's arm-pit. To prevent this, the latter must keep his left arm pressed in as far as possible. Each tries to throw the other by swinging him sidewise, pulling him forward, or pushing him backward, at the same time trying to trip him in various ways. Some of the devices employed are described below. The Back-heel. The wrestler puts his foot behind his opponent's heel and tries to bend him over it. To meet this, the latter may loosen his hold or turn his side. The Buttock. The wrestler turns as far as he can to the right, then he straightens up and at the same time throws his left leg back of his opponent's left, which will enable him to bend him over backward for a fall by doubling him over his hip. To meet this the opponent will hold him tight, and at the moment of his trying to trip, he will endeavor to lock his left leg from the inside around the left of his adversary, and then bend him over backward for a fall. This last is called a" back-hank." The Hank. The wrestler turns sidewise, twists his leg about that of his adversary, and pulls him backward. To meet this the opponent should lean forward and strengthen his hold. The Click. The wrestler pulls his opponent forward to make him resist by dragging back, and then suddenly ceasing, trips him up with one foot. The Hipe. The wrestler forces his shoulder under his adversary's right arm, lifts him up as far as possible, and at the same time catching the opponent's left leg with his right, drags it up. If properly done, this brings the opponent down on his back. The hipe may be performed with the left shoulder and leg; and though this is not so easy, if it fails, the wrestler is left in a position for a Buttock. Dog Fall. This occurs when both wrestlers fall to the ground together. They must then break their hold, rise, and begin the contest anew. |