No. 59.Marching to Quebec.

Here comes a set of jolly sailor-boys,Who lately came on shore;They spend their time in drinking of the wine,As they have done before.As we go round, and around and around,As we go round once more.

New York streets.

At the second verse, the little girls by whom this round is danced turn so as to follow each other in an endless chain, each grasping the skirts of the child in front, while they move faster and faster to the lively tune.

Some of our readers may think this song not a very creditable specimen of modern invention; but it is no doubt a relic of antiquity. A similar round, given in "Deuteromelia," 1609 (as cited by Chappell), begins:

We be three poor mariners, newly come from the seas;We spend our lives in jeopardy, while others live at ease.

The children of the poorer class, therefore, who still keep up in the streets of our cities the present ring-dance, are only maintaining the customs which belonged to courtiers and noble ladies in the time of Shakespeare.

This piece of doggerel may be of revolutionary origin, as it can be traced to near the beginning of the present century. It is unusual for political or military events to be alluded to in children's games.

As we were marching to Quebec,The drums were loudly beating;The Americans have won the day,The British are retreating.March! march! march! march!

So the game was played in Philadelphia in the childhood of a lady born at the end of the last century. In Massachusetts and Maine it continued to be popular until within a few years, as follows:

We were marching to Quebec,The drums were loudly beating;America has gained the day,The British are retreating.The war is o'er, and they are turned back,For evermore departed;So open the ring, and take one in,For they are broken-hearted.Oh, you're the one that I love best,I praise you high and dearly;My heart you'll get, my hand I'll give,The kiss is most sincerely.

We were marching to Quebec,The drums were loudly beating;America has gained the day,The British are retreating.

The war is o'er, and they are turned back,For evermore departed;So open the ring, and take one in,For they are broken-hearted.

Oh, you're the one that I love best,I praise you high and dearly;My heart you'll get, my hand I'll give,The kiss is most sincerely.

Worcester, Mass.

That the population of Dutch extraction in New York had no deep sympathy with the patriotic sentiments of revolutionary times seems to be indicated in a satirical stanza, which has come to us from an informant who learned it in youth of her aged grandmother, and which appears also to have been originally a dance-song. We hope that errors in spelling American Dutch may be forgiven:

Loope, Junger, de roier kome—Spann de wagen voor de Paarde!

That is,

Run, lads, the king's men are coming;Harness the wagons before the horses!

in jesting allusion to the speed with which the patriots were supposed to make off. The refrain is in part unintelligible to us, but seems to belong to a dance.

A visitor approaches the ring from without, and pleads:

It snows and it blows, and it cuts off my nose,So pray, little girl, let me in;I'll light my pipe, and warm my toes,And then I'll be gone again.

He is admitted into the circle, and proceeds to perform the designated actions. Having "lighted his pipe and warmed his toes," he suddenly attempts to make his exit from the ring (all the members of which have clasped hands in expectation of his onset), throwing himself with that object against a pair of linked arms.

Such was, and perhaps still is, the name of an amusement of a not very agreeable nature, familiar at children's parties in New England. A girl was seated on a chair in the middle of the room, and one child after another was led to her throne. She would turn away with an expression of contempt, until some one approached that pleased her, who, after a kiss, took her place.

"Derision" is the name of a game mentioned by Froissart as an amusement of his childhood. It is not at all unlikely that the present sport represents the old French pastime.

Speaking of representations of the passions, we may say that we have heard of a game formerly played in New York, called "Hatred and Revenge;" but have not succeeded in obtaining it.

FOOTNOTES:[90]A friend recollects how he "followed his leader" over the roofs of houses in Boston.

[90]A friend recollects how he "followed his leader" over the roofs of houses in Boston.

He asked a shepherd who stood near:"Why do these lads make merry here,Why is their round so gay?""They dance about a violet sweet, a lad hath found to-day."The drum, the harp, and fife, resounded round their play,All were of heart elate,Each dancing with his mate.I, Nithart, led the row,Once and again, around the violet to and fro.

Minnesinger, 13th century.

This little round, universally familiar in America, meets us again in Germany and Provence. After the transit of various languages, and thousands of miles, the song retains the same essential characteristics.

Ring a ring a rosie,A bottle full of posie,All the girls in our town,Ring for little Josie.

New Bedford, Mass.(about 1790).

Another version:

Round the ring of roses,Pots full of posies,The one who stoops lastShall tell whom she loves best.

At the end of the words the children suddenly stoop, and the last to get down undergoes some penalty, or has to take the place of the child in the centre, who represents the "rosie" (rose-tree; French,rosier).

Vulgarized forms of the round are common:

Ring around the rosie,Squat among the posies.Ring around the roses,Pocket full of posies,One, two, three—squat!

Ring around the rosie,Squat among the posies.

Ring around the roses,Pocket full of posies,One, two, three—squat!

And finally it is deformed past recognition:

A ring, a ring, a ransy,Buttermilk and tansy,Flower here and flower there,And all—squat!

This last corruption was in use some forty years since in Connecticut.

A ring of dancers with clasped hands. A girl circles about the outside of the rest, who join in singing—

Go round and round the valley,As we are all so gay.

The players now let go hands, and she winds in and out of the circle, singing—

Go in and out of the windows,As we are all so gay.

She now stands facing one of the children, who sing—

Go back, and face your lover,As we are all so gay.

Taking the hand of one of the children, she salutes her—

Such love have I to show you,As we are all so gay.

The child selected then takes her place.

New York streets.

The farmer in the dell,The farmer in the dell,Heigh ho! for Rowley O!The farmer in the dell.

The first child chooses and places beside himself a second, then a third, and so on, while the rest sing to the same tune:

The farmer takes the wife—The wife takes the child—The child takes the nurse—The nurse takes the dog—The dog takes the cat—The cat takes the rat—The rat takes the cheese—The cheese stands alone.

The "cheese" is "clapped out," and must begin again as the "farmer."

New York streets.

A girl is chosen to be theOcean. The rest representrivers. The rivers, by very devious courses (around school-desks, etc.), flow into the Ocean. Not unfrequently in their course to the sea, the rivers encounter somewhat violently.

New York.

"Quaker, Quaker, how is thee?""Very well, I thank thee.""How's thy neighbor, next to thee?""I don't know, but I'll go see."

The question is accompanied by a rapid movement of the right hand. The second child in the ring inquires in the same manner of the third; and so all round. Then the same question is asked with a like gesture of the left hand, and, after this has gone round, with both hands, left foot, right foot, both feet, and finally by uniting all the motions at once. "A nice long game," as our little informant said.

New York, Philadelphia, etc.

This absurd little rhyme was formerly used to accompany an animated dance, in which the arms were placed behind the waist, and the hands rested on the hips, with alternate motion.

Darby, darby, jig, jig, jig,I've been to bed with a big, big wig!I went to France to learn to dance—Darby, darby, jig, jig, jig!

Philadelphia; Massachusetts.

Put your right elbow in,Put your right elbow out,Shake yourselves a little,And turn yourselves about.Put your left elbow in,Put your left elbow out,Shake yourselves a little,And turn yourselves about.

Put your right elbow in,Put your right elbow out,Shake yourselves a little,And turn yourselves about.

Put your left elbow in,Put your left elbow out,Shake yourselves a little,And turn yourselves about.

Then followedright earandleft ear,right footandleft foot, etc. The words we give were in use some sixty years since, when the game was danced deliberately and decorously, as old fashion was, with slow rhythmical motion. Now it has been turned into a romp, under various names (in Boston, "Ugly Mug"). The English name is "Hinkumbooby."

"My master sent me to you, sir.""For what, sir?""To do with one as I do, sir."

The person who gives orders beats time with one foot, then both feet, one hand and both feet, two hands and both feet, etc. The game, like the preceding, is performed with a dancing motion.

New York.

This game is for girls only. All present sit in a circle, then each girl gathers her skirts tightly, so as to enclose her feet. The leader begins some rhyme; all join in, and at a word previously agreed on, keeping the skirt tightly grasped, throw themselves over backward. The object now is to recover the former position without letting go the skirt.

New York.

This familiar little rhyme is accompanied by two players with alternate striking of the hands together and against the knees, in a way easier to practise than to describe. School-girls often use it to warm their hands on cold winter mornings.

Pease porridge hot,Pease porridge cold,Pease porridge in the pot,Nine days old.

Up the street, down the street,Here's the way we go.Forty horses standing in a row;[Dolly] on the white one,[Harry] on the black one,Riding to Harrisburgfivemiles away.

Philadelphia.

We suppose the above formula to be a rhyme for starting in a race. The common schoolboy verse—

One to make ready,Two to prepare,Three togo slambang,Right—down—there,

appears to be a parody of the older English rhyme,

One to make ready,And two to prepare,Good luck to the rider,And away goes the mare.

We find mentioned in the "Girls' Own Book," Boston, 1856, a dance of girls which has the characteristics of an old game. Girls take hold of hands, one standing still; the rest twist about her until they form a knot. They then untwist in the same manner, singing, "Twine the garland, girls!" and, "Untwine the garland, girls!"

This name was formerly given in New England to a dance similar to that known in Scotland asCurcuddie. The hands were clasped under the knees, and the children slowly and solemnly described squares and triangles on the floor.

We may add here an unnamed amusement for school-girls, which consists in joining hands behind the back (giving the right hand to the left hand of a partner), and then turning, while retaining the hold, so as to stand facing each other. This movement is then repeated until the couple whirl about with considerable rapidity.

—fulle stuffed a maleOf disportes and newe pleyes.

Chaucer's Dreme.

A child lays on a table his clenched fist, with the thumb elevated; another grasps the raised thumb with his own fist, and so on until a pile of fists is built up. A player, who remains apart from the group, then addresses the child whose hand is at the top:

"What's that?""A pear.""Take it off or I'll knock it off."

The same conversation is repeated with the next child, and so on; the fist being withdrawn as speedily as possible, to escape a rap from the questioner. When only one is left, the following dialogue ensues:

"What have you got there?""Bread and cheese.""Where's my share?""Cat's got it.""Where's the cat?""In the woods.""Where's the woods?""Fire burned it.""Where's the fire?""Water quenched it.""Where's the water?""Ox drank it.""Where's the ox?""Butcher killed it.""Where's the butcher?""Rope hung him.""Where's the rope?""Rat gnawed it.""Where's the rat?""Cat caught it.""Where's the cat?""Behind the church-door. The first who laughs, or grins, or shows the teeth has three pinches and three knocks."

Then follows a general scattering; for some child is sure to laugh, and if he does not do so of his own accord, his neighbors will certainly tweak him, poke him, or otherwise excite his risibility.

Georgia.

In Pennsylvania the conversation ends:

"Where's the butcher?""He's behind the door cracking nuts, and whoever speaks first I'll slap his fingers,Because I am the keeper of the keys,And I do whatever I please."

This dialogue, based on a well-known nursery tale, has maintained itself with remarkable persistence, and even verbal identity, in several European languages. We meet it in Germany and Denmark, as well as England.

This celebrated game was formerly much played in New England during the winter evenings. A stick was lighted, and passed from hand to hand. It was an object to transfer it as quickly as possible; but each player, before handing it to his neighbor, must repeat the rhyme—

The bird is alive, and alive like to be,If it dies in my hand you may back-saddle me.

Or else, "Robin's alive," etc.

The "back-saddling" consisted in depositing the person, in whosehand the light went out, upon the back on the floor, and afterwards piling upon him (or her) chairs and other furniture.

Another formula is given in the "Girls' Own Book:"

"Robin's alive, and alive he shall be; if he dies in my hand, my mouth shall be bridled, my back shall be saddled, and I be sent home to the king's Whitehall."

When the light expired it was said: "Robin is dead, and dead he shall be; he has died in your hand, and your mouth shall be bridled, your back shall be saddled, to send you home to the king's Whitehall."

This game is played all over Europe with similar formulas; but we are not aware that the "back-saddling" feature has been practised out of England and America. The person in whose possession the light is extinguished usually pays forfeit.

It has been suggested, with plausibility, that the sport is connected with an ancient rite: namely, the races of torch-bearers, which formed part of certain festal ceremonies, and in which the courier in whose hands the torch went out was a loser. Such contests are repeatedly alluded to by classic writers; but their exact conduct is involved in some obscurity. In such a race, at Athens, the torch was kindled on the altar of Prometheus, and handed to the runner, whose duty it was to pass it, while still alight, to a second, and so on. This ceremony has suggested a celebrated line to Lucretius, who compares the flying ages to "runners who pass from one to another the torch of life."

There is a whole class of games of which the object is to excite to laughter by means of some ridiculous action.

Such games are sometimes played with a lighted candle. The players approach each other from opposite sides of the room, and sustain a dialogue in solemn tones, while they must keep a grave countenance on penalty of paying forfeit. For example:

"The king of Turkey is dead." "What did he die of?" "Doing so" (some ridiculous gesture).

A more characteristic version (in Nantucket, Mass.) had it: "The royalRussian princess, Husty Fusty, is defunct." To which it was necessary to answer soberly—"I'm very sorry to hear it; even the cats bewail her loss."

A game which was formerly popular with children in Massachusetts was to lean a staff in the corner, while a player was seated in the centre of the ring. Another child now entered, took up the staff, approached and addressed the one sitting, and a rhymed dialogue ensued:

"My father sent me here with a staff,To speak to you, and not to laugh.""Methinks you smile." "Methinks I don't.I smooth my face with ease and grace,And set my staff in its proper place."

If the staff-bearer laughed, he or she must take the chair; otherwise the next player continued the game.

A third amusement is for girls to excite one another to laugh by gently pinching in succession the ears, nose, lips, etc., while making use of some ridiculous expression.

This usage is alluded to more than three centuries ago by Rabelais.

In a Swiss game, this performance is complicated by a jest. Each child pinches his neighbor's ear; but by agreement the players blacken their fingers, keeping two of the party in ignorance. Each of the two victims imagines it to be the other who is the object of the uproarious mirth of the company.

The children sit in a row, with the exception of one, who goes in succession to each child, and asks him what he will give to the bachelor's kitchen. Each answers what he pleases, as a saucepan, a mousetrap, etc. When all have replied, the questioner returns to the first child, and puts all sorts of questions, which must be answered by the article which he before gave to the kitchen, and by no other word. For instance, he asks, "What do you wear on your head?" "Mousetrap." The object is to make the answerer laugh, and he is asked a number of questions, until he either laughs or is given up as a hard subject. The questioner then passes to the next child, and so on through the whole row. Those who laugh,or add any other word to their answer, must pay a forfeit, which is redeemed in the same way as in other games.

Cambridge, Mass.

Little girls, with appropriate motions of the closed fist, or of the inverted hand with raised fingers, say,

Here is the church,Here is the steeple,Here is the parson,And all the people.

An Italian finger-game well exhibits the different mental state of children in the two countries. The words are: "This is the Inferno, and this the Paradiso." The fingers of the two hands, crossed within, represent the disturbed world of wretchedness; the back of the hands, turned, where all is calm, typify Paradise.

A tumbler of water and a thimble are required. One child is sent out of the room, and to each of the others a different color is allotted. The first is then expected to name the color of some child. If she succeeds in her guess, a thimbleful of water is thrown in her face. The guessing is continued till this takes place, when the thrower becomes the guesser for the next turn.

Cincinnati.

There are games in which the guesser has onlyScogan's choice[91]between two sorts of disaster.

Thus, a party of boys pitch on two who are unacquainted with the game, and ask them if they would not like to play "Beetle and Wedge." "The fun is to be the Beetle and the Wedge," they explain. The victims consenting, the Beetle is then driven against the Wedge, back to back, with a force that "sends him flying." This amusement belongs to Connecticut.

In Philadelphia a boy is asked whether he prefersmustardorpepper; in either case receiving corresponding personal inflictions. So in the English game of "Trades" a boy is made to guess the trade of the questioner, and ishammered,planed, orrasped, accordingly.

All the children, except two, are seated in a row. One of these whispers in the ear of each child, "I present you with this." The second, in like manner, adds, "I advise you what to do with it."

Another old whispering-game, belonging, like the preceding, to New York, is called "Sentiment." Each child tells his neighbor on the right the name of a person, and repeats to the one on the left a verse of poetry, usually of a sentimental character. The name and verse are then to be repeated together as in the former game.

"I, genteel lady, always genteel, come from the genteel lady, always genteel, beg leave to inform you that my ship has just come in from China laden with apricots."

The next player has to repeat, adding some object beginning withb, such as biscuit; the next player one beginning withc, and so down the alphabet. If any one hesitates, or makes a mistake, a lighted "lamp-lighter" (New England,spill) is stuck in her hair, and she is the "one-horned," instead of the "genteel" lady; and for two mistakes the "two-horned" lady, and so on. This juxtaposition of curls and "lamp-lighters" is by no means always safe.

Georgia.

Of this game we observe that, like several amusements familiar in this State, it is of French origin.[92]

A member of the party throws to another a knotted handkerchief, saying one of the above words, and counting up to ten. The catcher must answer in the given time the name of some animal of the kind required, not already cited by some other player.

Whoever fails to reply while the counting is going on, is out of the game. After the names of commoner animals are exhausted, the game becomes a test of quickness and memory.

A picture of a wheel is drawn upon the slate, and a number written between each of its spokes. The eyes being then closed, the child whose turn it is raises a pencil in the air, twirling it, and saying,

Tit for tat,Butter for fat,If you kill my dog I'll kill your cat.

At the last word the pencil is brought down; if the point of the pencil falls on a space, the number there written is scored; if on a line, or outside the circle, or on a number previously secured (and erased by a line), the turn is forfeited. The game is continued until a certain number has been scored by the winning player.

Georgia.

"I went up one pair of stairs.""Just like me.""There was a monkey.""Just like me.""I one'd it.""I two'd it," etc."I ate [eight] it."

This (to children) exquisitely witty dialogue has its German counterpart.—"I went into the wood." "So did I." "I took an axe." "So did I." "I made a trough." "So did I." "Seven pigs ate of it." "So did I."[93]

Equally well known is the jest, "I am a gold lock," "I am a gold key," etc.—ending "I am a monk-lock," "I am a mon-key."

We may mention also a familiar catch, "Say my cat, my cat, and not my dog." "My dog" must not be spoken.

Of a different character are the following jests:

The lights being extinguished, a knife is passed round the circle of players, and the following conversation ensues, each phrase being continued from left to right of the ring:

"What's this?""A dagger.""Where did you get it?""Stole it.""What was done with it?"

All of the company who understand the jest shriek aloud, which accomplishes the object of terrifying the rest.

Somewhat similar (in New York) is the following:

"Neighbor, I've got a hatchet to sell.""Did you buy it?""No.""Did you steal it?""Sh—"

In the following conversation, one sentence at a time is repeated in a whisper to the left-hand neighbor, and so passed round the circle, the fun consisting in the imitation of crowing at the end.

"Hath she feathers?" "Feathers she hath." "Doth she crow?" "Crow she doth." "How doth she crow?" (An imitation of crowing follows.)

An evening amusement formerly common in Massachusetts. All present laid their hands with fingers resting on the knees. The speaker then told off the words of the rhyme, one for each finger. The rhyme being thus recited, that finger to which the last syllable fell must be quickly withdrawn, on penalty of being sharply rapped by the hand of the leader. After all had been counted out but one person, he or she was liable to the same risk for every word of the rhyme—the result of which situation is alluded to by the epithet "black finger."

Intery mintery cutery corn,Apple-seed and apple-thorn,Wire, briar, limber lock,Twelve geese in a flock;Sit and sing by a spring,O-u-t spells out, and in again.Over yonder steep hills,Where my father he dwells,He has jewels, he has rings,And very many pretty things.Strike Jack, lick Tom,Blow the bellows,Black finger—out-of-the-game.

The girl who is to assign the penalty by which the forfeit must be redeemed lays her head on the lap of another who sits on a chair, while a third, standing behind, holds the article over her head and asks:

"Here is a forfeit, a very fine forfeit; what shall be done to redeem it?""Is it fine or superfine?" (i.e., does it belong to a gentleman or to a lady).

The sentence is then declared.

Another formula, used in the Middle and Southern States, is:

"Heavy, heavy, what hangs over you?"

The German usage is nearly the same, the question being "Lord judge, what is your sentence, what shall he do whose pledge I have in my hand?"

The following are examples of old penalties, which usually involved kissing, with infinite variety of method:

To go to Rome.To kiss every girl in the room.Flat-irons.The lad and lass lay their hands on the wall and kiss.Measuring yards of tape, and cutting it off.To kiss with the arms extended."I'm in the well." "How many fathoms deep?" (Any number is answered.)"Whom will you have to take you out?" (Some one of the company is named.) Each fathom represents a kiss.

To go to Rome.To kiss every girl in the room.

Flat-irons.The lad and lass lay their hands on the wall and kiss.

Measuring yards of tape, and cutting it off.To kiss with the arms extended.

"I'm in the well." "How many fathoms deep?" (Any number is answered.)

"Whom will you have to take you out?" (Some one of the company is named.) Each fathom represents a kiss.

This is a very popular game with girls in various parts of the United States.

The children sit in a row, with the exception of the mother, who comes up and asks each child in turn, "How did you tear your dress?" After hearing their various excuses, she again traverses the row, indicating the part of the dress to be mended, and saying:

I give you so much work to do,Use thimble, thread, and needle too;If you don't get it done before I come back,I'll give you a slap across your back.

She slaps her children on the shoulder and goes out, forbidding them to follow her. As soon as her back is turned, they all jump up and run after her, shouting, "Old mother Tipsy-toe,"[94]or, as in a variation from New York:

Old mother Tippety-toe, old mother Tippety-toe,I'll follow my mother wherever she go.

The mother now goes into a shop, and orders various articles, the children repeating after her whatever she says. For instance, the mother says, "I want two pounds of butter." "I want two pounds of butter," shout the children in chorus. Finally she says, "And I want a stick to whip my children with," upon which she turns to leave the shop, while the children rush before her, and scramble back to their seats before their mother comes home. The latter then goes to each child in turn, saying, "Let me see how well you have mended your dress." The children all hold the hem of their dresses as firmly as they can, with their hands somewhat apart. The mother strikes with her hand the part of the dress that is between their hands; and if they let it go, she scolds and beats them for their bad mending.

Cambridge, Mass.

In another way of playing, which makes the game one of chase, "Old mammy Tipsy-toe" addresses her children:

I give you this much work to do,Use thread and needle, thimble too;If you don't have it doneBy the time that I come home,You'll be beaten black and blueWith my old shoe.

She then makes preparations to depart:

I'm going to Lady Washington's,To get a cup of tea,And five loaves of gingerbread,So don't you follow me.

The children, of course, pursue her with shouts of defiance, upon whichshe turns and chases them, while they rush to their places. She comes back, and demands of the children:

"Have you been out to-day?" "No." "You have. Where have you been?" "To grandmother's." "What did you get?" "A slice of cake." "Where is my share?" "In the band-box." "But I might break my neck getting it." "I wish you would." On this, she chases the children, who fly and scatter. Any child she catches is out of the game, which is continued until all are captured.

Philadelphia.

The children being seated in a circle, a child, who does not take part in the game, whispers to each of the rest a name representing some color, as "Red-cap," "Blue-cap," "Yellow-cap," etc. Two players are excepted, one of whom is called "My man John," and one represents the cardinal. The latter now leaves the room, first placing in the hands of "John" a little billet of wood, bidding him take care of the Cardinal's hat, which at the same time he declares to be of some particular color, as green. "John" conceals this somewhere in the room. The child who went out then enters, armed with a cane, and demands the Cardinal's hat. "John" affects to have forgotten all about it, and asks, "What color was it? green?" and so on until he guesses the color. Being thus reminded, he declares that some one of the group, as, for example, "Red-cap," has stolen it. "Red-cap" is now asked by the questioner, "Red-cap, did you steal the Cardinal's hat?" He also must pass on the charge, saying, "No, it was White-cap" (or any other color). If he omits to do so, or names a color not included among the players, he must pay forfeit. Meanwhile the questioner becomes indignant at the numerous denials, and proceeds to extort confession by torture, rapping with his cane the fingers of those whom he addresses. If he succeeds in obliging any child to confess, the latter must pay forfeit. At last "My man John" owns the theft, produces the hat, and the game is begun again, until a sufficient number of forfeits have been collected.

Saratoga, New York.

This game is also played in Switzerland. The name of a color having been given to each child, a ball is stealthily passed about the circle. The"Abbot of St. Gall" enters, and exclaims, "The Abbot of St. Gall has lost his night-cap; they say White stole it." The player whose color is named, if he has the ball, must pass it behind his back to another, saying, "Not White, Red has it." Whoever is caught in passing the ball, or names a color not in the game, or fails to answer when his name is called, must pay forfeit, or have his face marked with burned cork. It will be seen that the Swiss game corresponds to the American, except that in the latter the ball is concealed instead of being passed round; but we think it likely that the memory of our informant (a child) may have been at fault in this respect.

TheGentleman's Magazine, February, 1738, mentions a game called "The Parson hath lost his Fuddling Cap."The Spectator, No. 268, also refers to this sport: "I desire to know in your next if the merry game of 'The Parson has lost his Cloak,' is not mightily in vogue amongst the fine ladies this Christmas, because I see they wear hoods of all colours, which I suppose is for that purpose." From this last extract it appears that the names "Red-cap," etc., are a reminiscence of the variously colored hoods once employed in the game.

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