_Antiquity of Tarring and Feathering._ Tarring and feathering, it seems, is an European invention. One of Richard Cœur de Leon's ordinances for seamen was, "that if any man were taken with theft and pickery, and thereof convicted, he should have his head polled, and hot pitch poured upon his pate, and upon that the feathers of some pillow or cushion shaken aloft, that he might thereby be known as a thief, and at the next arrival of the ships to any land be put forth of the company to seek his adventures without all hope of return unto his fellows."—_Holinshed_. _Grinning for a Wager._ In 1796, at Hendon, England, on Whit-Tuesday, a burlesque imitation of the Olympic Games was held. One prize was a gold-laced hat, to be grinned for by six candidates, who were placed on a platform with horse-collars to exhibit through. Over their heads was printed in capitals— Detur Tetriori; or, The ugliest grinner Shall be the winner. Each party grinned five minutes _solus_, and then all united in a grand _chorus_ of distortion. The prize was carried off by a porter to a _vinegar_ merchant, though he was accused by his competitors of foul play for rinsing his mouth with _verjuice_. _Eating for a Wager._ The hand-bill, of which the subjoined is a copy, was circulated by the keeper of the public house at which the gluttony was to happen, as an attraction for all the neighborhood to witness— "_Bromley in Kent_, July 14th, 1726.—A strange eating worthy is to perform a Tryal of Skill on St. James's Day, which is the day of our _Fair_, for a wager of Five Guineas, viz: he is to eat four pounds of bacon, a bushel of French beans, with two pounds of butter, a quartern loaf, and to drink a gallon of strong beer." _Curious Wagers._ Mr. Whalley, an Irish gentleman, for a wager of twenty thousand pounds, set out on Monday, the 22d of September, 1788, to walk to Constantinople and back in one year. Some years ago Sir Henry Liddel, a rich baronet, laid a considerable wager that he would go to Lapland, bring home two females of that country, and two reindeer, in a given time. He performed the journey, and effected his purpose in every respect. The Lapland women lived with him about a year, but, desiring to go back to their own country, the baronet furnished them with the means. _The Jumping Jack._ This toy is of quite antiquated parentage. In the tombs of ancient Egypt figures have been found whose limbs were made movable, for the delight of children, before Moses was born. _Love-handkerchiefs._