“WHAT shall we do?" One often hears this question during a Christmas house party. Christ- mas, after all, is a time when everybody wants to be enjoying themselves and doing something, and if you have a good fund of tricks and teasers, a few games and some posers up your sleeve. you have every reason to hope for a truly merry time.
THE CHINA MAIL SPECIAL, CHRISTMAS BUPPLEMENT, DECEMBER 19, 1940.
Yuletide Fun
BY
MAX MERVYN
·Fill up a glass jar with peas and invite the victims" to guess how many there are in the jar.
Measure up a yard or so. of string, roll it up into a bit of a tangle, and ask its length.
Make up a sort of mystery par cel, in which some object is wrap- ped in cloth and tissue paper and tied with string. Competitors have to feel the parcel only and try to guess the object It contains. See who can make the highest score with three darts.
and so on! No doubt you will all have much more clever ideas, but remember that very often the simpler the idea the thore it appeals. If you make them too complicated it will take' longer for the games to warm up. In deciding upon the winner, you
It is a good idea to be ready with something to interest and amuse your guests almost from the moment they arrive. For example, if you want a good “warming-up" item, you could not do better than to write the name of each guest expected on a small piece of paper or a slip of card. Put all the cards into a bat or bowl and duly mix them up. Ás
pennies to make that one-inch sheet of glazed paper-notepaper others were accommodated at 15. should give points for each item, the guests arrive see that they are
will do--and place it on top of given one of the names-not their pile.
While talking of tricks, an in- the glass. Press the paper firmly own, of course!--then instruct them to find the person
whose genious after-dinner one is trying with one hand and invert the glass other. Your name they have on the paper.
to turn a wineglass, which is fuil steadily with the
Quite soon, they will all be say ing. "Are you Mr. Brown?" Or more familiarly "is this charming girl Peggy by any chance?"—and the like. This is an excellent iden when a number of strange people get together and it is surprising how FOOT) everybody will be friends
It's a good notion to have a sim- ple little teaser at hand to interest people while waiting for the Jones or Smith (who are always late), Consider this:
Money Teaser
For this item a handful of pen- nies is needed, and the idea is to ask people to say how many pen- ale, placed one on top of the oth, would be necessary to make a stack one inch high.
Of course, a ruler must be rul- ed out, and don't let anyone starį
experimenting with a halfpenny, as that measures one inch across. All sorts of numbers will be ven- tured, and most folk will be sur prised to know that it takes fifteen
per head. The total cost was £6 and then award the prize (or 17s. 6d. Can you work out how prizes) to the highest totals. many children sat in each of the And, by the way, do you hap- two kinds of seat? If that one pen to know the difference be- of water, upside down. The ob- guests and maybe you as well! beats you for the time being carry tween a wife and an income-tax ject being to keep the water in will be surprised to see that the on with this pleture-puzzle.
paper adheres to the glass when the glass, of course.
your hand is removed, and lo, you are holding a wineglass of water upside down, as promised.
While on the subject of tricks, another one that carnis full marks for the person with a steady hand
Water Stays Inside.
If you value that clean table- cloth, or maybe the carpet. don't let anyone forestall the effective- ness of your trick by a few ex- periments. Simply the glass right to the brim and then take a
A11
"YOU KNOW THE PLACE WHERE TO GO FOR A REAL CHRISTMAS GIFT OF QUALITY FOR A MAN, A WOMAN OR A CHILD!!"
ITS----
CHINA EMPORIUM
"The Store with the Christmas Spirit.”
15
To solve it, write down the three words which the pictures illus- trate and use them, together with the other two letters in the puzzle, to spell the name of rather a busy person Just now. All the letters must be used.
And here is another good party
Krofting The Cigarette novelty! Have you ever seen
A Needle That Floats
Iravite the company to tie a knot in a cigarette, but without break-
Believe it or not, such an ap- mg it in any way. This is where parent impossibility can be ac you get out that box of smokes hieved. Like most other things that Aunt What-Was-Her-Nhme there is a catch in this one. The sent you the Christmas before last "effects" comprise El bowl of (It's a good way of disposing of them!). It should not come as a surprise to you that unless they know the trick everyone will fail. That is where you step right in and collect that applause.
Beforehand you should have saved several pieces of Cello- phane wrapping from cigarette boxes and the like.
Select a plece of this Cellophane and wrap it round the cigarette Armly several times, leaving a margin of one inch at either end of the cigarette. Now twist the Cellophune ends slightly, making sure to keep the whole thing quite taut, and you will find that you can gradually turn the whole affair into a knot and duly tle it.
Of course, by means of clever lighting effects and a certain sleight-of-hand, you might be able to persuade the company that the trick was performed without Cellophane even.
It is hardly likely that anyone will receive a Christmas card such as you see here. The circum- stances seem to be, however, that in Furitania the Reigning Fury stopped even the sending of Yule- tide wishes, so that many of the Inhabitants were forced to use cards in code. An example is shown here, and, although it didn't deceive the secret-service organ isation of the country concerned, it may baffle you for a few min- utes.
Who Is This?
collector? In case you don't the answer is fifty you see, an in- come-tax collector only takes your money twice a year, whercas 3 wife "collects" fifty-two times per annum.
Now for another puzzle. It is quite an easy one really, and the idea is simply to replace each row of asterisks below with a season- able word. If the right words are selected you will be able to read off eight four-letter words in each of the down columns thus formed.
1
EX
A O
*
**
S T
*
#
EHA AIT
*
J * * ✡
SWSLY W
And now, if by any chance you want to win some money, or at least be on the right side of things, here is
24
A CERTAIN WINNER For this item you require match-sticks and a willing victim. You invite your oppönent to enjoy a little game of matchstick grabbing, and before the game starts even, you can tell him he is going to lose.
The rules of the game are sim- ply these: each player takes it in turn to remove from the pile of 24 matches either one or two sticks at each turn. More than one or two sticks at each go must not be re- moved, but whether it is one or
two is entirely at the player's op-
tion.
you
The winner is the person who removes the last match or water, a needle, and a piece of matches from the table. cigarette paper. First of all, you Supposing your opponent goes rest the needle on the piece of first and takes une match cigarette paper, and then place must ther take two; should he that very gently on top of the have taken two matches, however, water in the bowl. Gradually the you must take one only. Knowing paper will absorb water and then this trick you will realise that the slowly sink. But, don't be alarm- matches are removed in threes ed, the needle is left floating on and therefore you must win 'the the surface of the water, and you game. If you should go first, 'take take your bow as an obvious ma- only one match, and if your op- gician.
ponent takes one, you take one formed with a candle and matches. ordinary way, making sure that Another effective trick is per- again, and then follow on in the A half-used candle is preferable, each pair of moves adds and the whole affair looks much three:
And now finally,
up to
better in a darkened room. Place You will find that whatever The code was formed by mak- the candle on a table and light it, moves your friend makes, keeping ing one letter of the alphabet introducing some cross-patter these simple rules in mind, you stand for another. See if you or while the wick gets well warmed, will always win the game by your guests can decipher the Ask someone to come and blow taking the last match or matches greeting. It would be a good iden out the candle, after which you on, the table. to put up a prize for the first one inform the company that you can rotting the message right, wouldn't relight it without actually touch- Each letter in the following sum 112
ing the wick.
stands for a figure and the first In fact, you say that the feat stage of the sum is multiplication will be performed by holding the and the second addition. Curiously lighted match an inch or so above enough, as you can see, the final the candle. The secret is to have answer is the reverse of the num- the match lit and reddy, to hold in ber you start with. that position immediately the can- 'dle is blown out, Because guses Will mingle with the smoke HS soon as the candle is out, and these rise up to the match which thites theit. The flaite, runs down the coluihn bf sthøke to the wick Be careful not to risk spoiling this trick by a draughty robm,
FSF'T
XJTIJOH ZPV BMM B USVMZ NESSZ DISJTUNBT
Queer Card.
GYC BRALNT
N
TNLAR B C G Y T
TNLAR BCY G Now then, can you puzzle out which figures the letters stand for? The Mystic Greeting: "Here's wishing you a ituly merry Christ-
Have you ever thought what
Christmas Charity: 75 at 1/6 good in can be had from a few and 26 at 1/-. aimple guessing, competitions and
Pleture Puźźle: Father Christ- the like: worked in the form of n
mus.
Word progressive test? It is really good
Puzzle: Presents and fun and interesting for your
Yuletide.
A Games Drive
guests, especially if there is a prize : sum:
to be won at the end.
This item needs a little prepara- tion beforehand. About a dözen. different items will be wanted, al- though these can be varied ac- -cording to the number of your And talking of prizes, here's an party and the time you wish the excellent scheme if you want a "turn" to last. Arm each guest good party competition, Lay in a with a pencil and paper. and tell stock of ordinary wire pipe-clean them that there are, say, twelve ers and give three to each person tasks for them to do, and they entering the competition, Compe- must write the result of each one tltdraaie instructed to make the on their answer papers as mrost thibresting or amusing object complete it. they can by twisting and joining No doubt you will have all sorts the three pipe-cleaners. They of clever ideas of your own as to must not be cut in any way, and what tests to impose, but here are for the sake of fairness, all three a few to show you the sort of cleaners must be used in each things that prove effective. "création.”
Christmas Charity Now try this seasonable pro- blem. It concerns a certain char- itable gentleman who took 100 children to a pantomime. He ob- stained, sesta for some of the virth-nadh the
they
See how many grains of ice can be extracted from a déép bowl, in half a minute, by means of two knitting needles.
"Glve twelve (or more) letters on cards, all mixed up, and aske competitors to mako" the Tonkest word they can. from these, Award pointa socording to the number of letters used t
123456789 times 8 plus 9=987654321.
"The Best Gift For Students, Teachers, Business Men, Etc.
CHINA TYPEWRITERS & CO
Room 720, China.
7th Floor
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