If the May-queen and her forces are defeated, they must strip off their floral decorations and give them to the victors, who, decked in these trophies, become the representatives of Spring, and the Queen of Winter is made Queen of May and is crowned by her vanquished and dethroned opponent. The former May-queen and her retinue, after offering their congratulations, must serve as attendants on the triumphant queen and do her bidding. When the May-queen proves victorious the programme is reversed, and Winter and her party become the subjects of May. =The May-pole.= An old writer, speaking of the May-games held in England, says, “Their cheefest jewell is their Maie-poole,” and to leave the May-pole out of our list of May-sports would indeed deprive the day of one of its most important and prettiest features. The appropriate place for the May-pole is, of course, out of doors; yet the climate in most of our Northern States is so changeable and uncertain it may be found necessary for comfort to hold the festivities in the house, and in that case the following directions for erecting the pole in a room of moderate dimensions will be found useful. =How to Erect a May-pole in the House.= A May-pole from ten to twelve feet high is as tall as the ceilings of most rooms will admit. The pole should be round, smooth, and about five inches in diameter at the base, growing gradually smaller toward the top. [Illustration: Fig. 36.] For its support a wooden box is necessary, the average size being three feet long, two feet wide, and one foot high. Remove the top of the box, and directly in the centre of it cut a hole large enough to admit the pole. Take two sticks, two inches wide, and long enough to fit lengthwise in the box, and two shorter ones fitting the box crosswise, and nail them securely in the position shown in Fig. 36, driving the nails from the outside of the box. Slip the pole through the hole which has been cut in the top, and then stand it in an upright position between the four sticks in the centre of the box (Fig. 37). Be sure that the pole stands perfectly straight; then, before nailing down the top, fill the box with sand, bricks, or stones, packing them tightly around the pole; this will give sufficient weight to prevent its tipping. Nail the top on, and cover the box with moss or green cloth, and bank it up with flowers. =How to Dress a May-pole.= In olden times the May-poles were painted in alternate stripes of yellow and black, but a white pole is prettier and shows the decorations to better advantage. Tack the ends of eight or ten variously colored ribbons, one and one-half inch wide, around the pole near the top. For a pole ten feet high the ribbons should be four yards long. Around where the ribbons are fastened on, suspend a wreath of flowers, as shown in Fig. 38. Decorate the extreme tip of the pole with gaily colored streamers, or small flags. =May-pole Dance.=