At the command, she who has been named turns, so that she faces outwards
now, with her back to the centre of the ring; though she still clasps
hands with those on either side, and continues in the movement, singing
with the others. When all in like manner have been chapped out, and are
facing the open, the game is finished.
* * * * *
"~The Emperor Napoleon~" is a little game which affords, invariably, a
good deal of fun. Again, as so commonly, the form is in a ring, and all
go round, singing:--
The Emperor Napoleon has a hundred thousand men,
The Emperor Napoleon has a hundred thousand men,
The Emperor Napoleon has a hundred thousand men,
As he goes marching along.
In each successive singing of the verse, one syllable after another in
the main line, beginning at the far end, is left out--or at least is not
spoken--the blank, or blanks, as it happens latterly, having to be
indicated merely by nods of the head. As each player makes a mistake, by
speaking, instead of nodding, or _vice versa_, she pays a forfeit and
drops out. The play goes on till all have fallen.
* * * * *
"~A' the Birdies i' the Air~," purely Scotch, is a simpler form merely
of "London Bridge." Two players, facing each other, hold up their hands
to form an arch, and call the formula:--
A' the birdies i' the air
Tick-to to my tail.
The others, who may be running about indifferently, decide in time which
side they will favour, and when each and all have chosen which champion
they will support, and have taken their places at her back, a tug-of-war
ensues. Afterwards the victors chase the vanquished, calling, "Rotten
eggs! rotten eggs!" and the game is ended; to be followed perhaps by
* * * * *
"~Through the Needle-e'e, Boys~," played also to some extent in the form
of "London Bridge," and much resembling "Barley Break," a pastime of
highborn lords and ladies in the time of Sir Philip Sydney, who
describes it in his _Arcadia_. The boys first choose sides. The two
chosen leaders join both hands, and raising them high enough to let the
others pass through below, they sing:--
Brother [John], if ye'll be mine,
I'll gie you a glass o' wine:
A glass o' wine is good and fine,
Through the needle-e'e, boys.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Children's Rhymes, Children's Games, Children's Songs, Children's Stories: A Book for Bairns and Big Folk — John Shaqi
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