Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 16, 1905.djvu/257

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Collectmiea. 219

day, however, MacL. senior, when dressing for church, was amazed to find his Sunday trousers entirely buttonless. It was easy to make a shrewd guess as to what happened between sire and son, the more so as for a long time thereafter A. MacL. avoided Teetotum for buttons religiously.

In Orkney, Teetotum is known by the name of " Catapult ! "

NINE HOLES.

(P. 128, after line 3.)

Polly, Polly, what o'clock is 't ?

Two play, a certain number — say fifty — being agreed on as game. One of the players marks down on his slate the figures from I to 12 inclusive, with a concealed figure, as described in " Na Figures." He — A — says to B, " Polly, Polly, what o'clock is't?" B guesses one of the exposed figures, and if on A disclosing the concealed one it is found to be that guessed by B, B counts one, the slate is cleaned and he does as A did before. If B's guess is wrong, a stroke is drawn through the figure. A again conceals a number, any number up to 1 2, and repeats his question, " Polly, Polly, what o'clock is 't ? " B again guesses, and if wrong, the figure is stroked through, and this process is continued till B guesses aright, when he scores i as if he had been right in his answer to A's first question, but A adds up B's failures as marked out, and the total is put to his credit. Thus they play alternately till one of them can show a total of 50.

HANDCLAPPING.

(P. 131, bottom of the page.)

In some places a line is added to the above rhyme —

  • ' like z. pain across my back "

" Poc is one, poc is tiuo, poc is mine over yon.'

Jolly Sailors

Is a game m which hand-clapping plays a part. A ring is formed round one of the girls who stands in the centre.