Part 4 (1/2)

Mamma.--How kind of him! But be sure you are careful not to offend him, Tommy. He is rather a touchy old gentleman.

Sister.--I wonder what it will be, Tommy.

Brother.--I hope it will be a set of cricket things, and then we can play cricket in the summer.

Tommy.--Oh! yes, I hope it will be, but whatever it is, it is sure to be something nice.

(Begins hopping about again. Enter Uncle d.i.c.k, a very old gentleman with a gouty foot. Tommy does not see him and goes banging into him, treading on his gouty foot.)

Uncle d.i.c.k.--Oh! oh! oh! oh, my toe!

Tommy.--Oh! Never mind your toe! Where's my Christmas box?

Uncle d.i.c.k.--Your Christmas box, you young scamp! Think of my toe.

Tommy.--Please, uncle, I'm very sorry, but I do so want to know what you have brought me for a Christmas box.

Uncle d.i.c.k (roaring).--Here's your Christmas box, and may it teach you to be more careful in future. (Boxes Tommy's ears.)

(Curtain falls.)

Here is a list of words which will divide easily into charade words:

Brides-maids. Sea-side. Car-pen-try.

Cur-tail. Nose-gay. In-do-lent.

Hand-i(I)-craft. Turn-key. Hand-some.

Key-hole. Rail-way. Sweet-heart.

Port-man-teau(toe). Mad-cap. A-bun-dance.

In-no-cent. Fox-glove. Pat-riot.

To make your charades a real success, you will, of course, require a curtain. A very effective one can be made with a little trouble and at a small cost; indeed, the materials may be already in the house.

First you must fix a couple of supports on each side of the room, taking care that they are screwed firmly into the wall, and also taking care not to damage the paper.

If you are a neat workman, you will find on taking out the screws that the two small screw-holes on each side will scarcely be noticed, as of course the supports must be fixed near the ceiling.

You must then put up your curtain-pole, which should be as thin as possible, so that the rings may run easily. A cheap bamboo pole is the best.

Two wide, deep curtains are required; very likely the nursery curtains may be suitable.

On to these curtains you sew a number of small bra.s.s rings, which you can buy for about 20 cents a dozen, or even less. The rings should be sewn on the curtains, as you see in the ill.u.s.tration, right across the top, and from the extreme top corner of the curtain, slantingwise across to the middle.

The top rings are pa.s.sed along the curtain-pole, a string (marked in the ill.u.s.tration A1) is sewn on to the curtain, and threaded through the rings until it reaches A2. It is then threaded through the rings on the pole until it reaches A3, when it is allowed to fall loose.

The same arrangement is gone through with string B. The bottom of the curtain must be weighted with shot, or any other weights that may be convenient.