POPE JOAN. This game is a combination of the layout in Matrimony, and the manner of playing in Commit. There are a great many ways of dividing the layout, but the following is the simplest. Five cards are taken from an old pack, and are laid out in the centre of the table, or their names are written on a sheet of paper. [Illustration: 🂾 🂭 🃇 🃊 🃛 ] The cards are thrown round for the deal, and the first Jack deals. The cards are distributed one at a time, the full pack of fifty-two cards being used. The following table will show the number of cards to be given to each player, and that left in the stock to form stops. 3 Players, 15 cards each 7 in the stock. 4 ” 12 ” 4 ” 5 ” 9 ” 7 ” 6 ” 8 ” 4 ” 7 ” 7 ” 3 ” 8 ” 6 ” 4 ” Before the deal, the dealer must dress the layout, by putting one counter upon the Ten, two upon the Jack, three upon the Queen, four upon the King, and five on the Pope, which is the Seven (or the Nine) of diamonds. The eldest hand begins by leading any card he pleases, and if he has those in sequence and suit with it and above it, he continues to play until he fails.
The Hurstmonceux version begins with taking lambs over London Bridge, and the Shropshire version with the players themselves going over; but these are doubtless foreign adjuncts, because they do not properly prefix the main incident of the bridge being broken. The Belfast version has a curious line, Grant said the little bee or dee, which the Cork version renders, Gran says the little D. To these there is now no meaning that can be traced, but they help to prove that the rhyme originated from a state of things not understood by modern players. In all the versions with the prisoner incident it comes quite suddenly, without any previous indication, except in the Kent version, which introduces the exclamation, Here s a prisoner I have got! As the analysis shows the prisoner incident to be a real and not accidental part of the game, and the unmeaning expressions to indicate an origin earlier than modern players can understand, we can turn to other facts to see if the origin can be in any way traced. ANALYSIS OF GAME-RHYMES. +---+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+ |No.| Belfast. | Halliwell. | Liphook. | +---+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+ | 1.
In others it rises and falls in waves of greater or lesser length; while in others it is irregular in the extreme; splashing choppy seas to-day; a storm to-morrow that smashes everything; and then calm enough to make ducks and drakes with the pebbles on the shore. In the lives of all the tide of fortune is uncertain; for the man has never lived who could be sure of the weather a week ahead. In the nature of things this must be so, for if there were no ups and downs in life, there would be no such things as chance and luck, and the laws of probability would not exist. The greatest fallacy in connection with luck is the belief that certain men _are_ lucky, whereas the truth is simply that they _have been_ lucky up to that time. They have succeeded so far, but that is no guarantee that they will succeed again in any matter of pure chance. This is demonstrated by the laws governing _=the probability of successive events=_. Suppose two men sit down to play a game which is one of pure chance; poker dice, for instance. You are backing Mr. Smith, and want to know the probability of his winning the first game. There are only two possible events, to win or lose, and both are equally probable, so 2 is the denominator of our fraction.
If this is still equal, the more valuable suit must be declared. No one but the eldest hand may double, and no one but the dealer may redouble. In order to make this fair for both sides, it is usual to let the pone sort and declare on Dummy’s cards, so that the dealer shall not see them until the first card is led. No matter what points are made for tricks, the dealer only can score them below the line, to count toward game. If the adversaries make the odd trick, they score above the line, in the honour column, so that no one can go out except on his own deal. After the deal is finished and scored, the players move, so as to bring about a change of partners. The one on the left of the vacant place moves into it, and the player on his right deals. Three of these movements bring about the original position. Each player’s score is kept individually, and when one of the three has won two games, the scores are added up and balanced, after giving the winner 100 rubber points. Each then pays the difference to the others.
There are five other numbers that might come up, and the fraction of their probability is ⅚ × ⅚ = 25/36, or 25 to 11 in their favour. Take the case of three dice: As three numbers out of six must come up, it might be supposed that it was an even thing that one would be an ace. But the possible throws with three dice are 6 × 6 × 6 = 216; and those that do not contain an ace are 5 × 5 × 5 = 125; so that the odds against getting an ace in one throw with three dice, or three throws with one die, are 125/216, or 125 to 91 against it. To find the probability of getting a given total on the faces of two or three dice we must find the number of ways that the desired number can come. In the 36 possible throws with two dice there are 6 which will show a total of seven pips. The probability of throwing seven is therefore 6/36, or 5 to 1 against it. A complete list of the combinations with two dice were given in connection with Craps. _=Poker.=_ In calculating the probability of certain conflicting events, both of which cannot occur, but either of which would be favourable, we must make the denominator of our fraction equal in both cases, which will, of course, necessitate a proportionate change in our numerator. Suppose a poker player has three of a kind, and intends to draw one card only, the odds against his getting a full hand are 1/16; against getting four of a kind, 1/48.
This makes it clear to the leader how many and what he holds. _=High Cards Third Hand.=_ When the third hand tries to win his partner’s lead, he does so as cheaply as possible. That is, holding both King and Queen, he plays the Queen, not the King. If his cards are not in sequence, he should always play the best he has. With Ace and Queen, for instance, he must play the Ace if the King is not in the Dummy. To play the Queen would be to throw it away if the declarer has the King. If the leader has the King, third hand gets out of his way by giving up the Ace. _=FOSTER’S ELEVEN RULE.=_ In trying to win tricks as cheaply as possible, third hand may often be guided by the Eleven Rule, which can be applied to any lead of a small card.
_=SECOND HAND PLAY.=_ The easiest position to play as second hand, is, of course, with the Dummy on your left, because Dummy’s cards will show what is best to be done. If a small card is led, you having King, put it on if Dummy has not the Ace; unless you want partner to get the lead. If Dummy has only two cards of the suit, neither of them the Ace, always play your King. When the declarer leads a suit it is often important to count how many he and your partner can possibly hold. For instance: You have four, K x x x; Dummy has four, A J 10 x, and declarer leads the Queen. It is useless to play your King; for either the Queen is a singleton, and the declarer cannot continue the suit, which will compel Dummy to lead it to you eventually; or, the third round will be trumped, perhaps by your partner. If you have only two small cards with the King, put it on the Queen. You cannot save it, but you may establish your partner’s 9. In the last three tricks, if you find yourself with a doubtful card, and the best and a small card of a suit which the declarer leads through you, win the trick and lead the doubtful card, for if the declarer held the best of that suit he would have led it first, to be sure of a trick.
Chance Bone In Langley s abridgment of _Polydore Vergile_, f. 1., we have a description of this game: There is a game also that is played with the posterne bone in the hinder foote of a sheepe, oxe, gote, fallow, or redde dere, whiche in Latin is called _talus_. It hath foure chaunces: the ace point, that is named Canis, or Canicula, was one of the sides; he that cast it leyed doune a peny, or so muche as the gamers were agreed on; the other side was called Venus, that signifieth seven. He that cast the chaunce wan sixe and all that was layd doune for the castyng of Canis. The two other sides were called Chius and Senio. He that did throwe Chius wan three. And he that cast Senio gained four. This game (as I take it) _is used of children in Northfolke_, and they cal it the Chaunce Bone; they playe with three or foure of those bones together; it is either the same or very lyke to it. See Dibs, Hucklebones.
|Stamping grass and | -- | -- | | |parsley. | | | |11.|Marigold leaves and | -- | -- | | |daisies. | | | |12.|One rush, two rush. |One o my rush, two o |One in a rush, two in | | | |my rush. |a bush. | |13.| -- | -- | -- | |14.|Pray thee, fine lady, |Please, young lady, |Pretty my lady, pop | | |come under my bush.
| | |14.| -- | -- |Bride with a baby. | |15.| -- |Doctor, cat, and | -- | | | |devil. | | |16.| -- | -- |Applause for the | | | | |bride. | +---+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+ +---+----------------------+ | |Earls Heaton (Yorks.).| +---+----------------------+ | 1.|Roving life.
See Doncaster Cherries. Bag o Malt A bag o malt, a bag o salt, Ten tens a hundred. --Northall s _English Folk Rhymes_, p. 394. Two children stand back to back, linked near the armpits, and weigh each other as they repeat these lines. See Weigh the Butter. Ball I. Stottie ba , hinnie ba, tell to me How mony bairns am I to hae? Ane to live, and ane to dee, And ane to sit on the nurse s knee! --Chambers _Pop. Rhymes of Scotland_, p. 115.
The player who undertakes to win in a particular manner, and either draws the game, or wins in some other manner, must be adjudged to be the loser. In all other respects, the play in games at odds must be governed by the regulations before laid down. RULES FOR PLAYING CORRESPONDENCE AND CONSULTATION GAMES. I. In playing a game by correspondence or in consultation, the two parties shall always agree beforehand in writing or otherwise as to the persons who are to take part in the contest, as to the time and mode of transmitting the moves, as to the penalties to be inflicted for any breach of the contract, and as to the umpire or referee. II. In games of this description each party is bound by the move dispatched; and in this connection the word move refers to what is intelligibly written, or delivered _viva voce_. In any game the announcement of a move which does not include the actual transfer of a man from one square to another, shall be considered as a move not intelligibly described within the meaning of this section. III. Each party must be bound by the move communicated in writing, or by word of mouth, to the adversary whether or not it be made on the adversary’s board.