Chapter LXV: Games and Amusements for the Blind

THE WONDERFUL SENSE OF TOUCH

IT cannot fail to strike those of us who are blessed with the use of our eyes how extremely fortunate it is that our blind friends need not be debarred from many of our games. Being deprived of their sight, their sense of touch is developed to such an incredible extent that in the playing of many games their fingers prove of the same use to them as our eyes do to us.

Practically all games for the blind can be purchased at very moderate cost, yet as they can be quite easily made at home the following hints are offered in the hope that they will prove of use, and help some of our readers to entertain a friend less fortunate than themselves.

CARDS

An ordinary pack of cards can be very simply adapted to the use of the blind.

By means of a large pin, the designation and value of a card can be pricked on the back, so that the upraised holes are perceptible to touch. These values and denominations should be pricked in the corner where the small designation of the value of a card is always to be found, as in Fig. 1.

In Figs. 2 and 3 are shown the marks which should be pricked. These are in the Braille alphabet, now universally understood by the blind, and read by them with the same ease as we read printing.

In Whist or Bridge, each person, as he plays his card, states what it is, King of Hearts, and so on, as this saves feeling the cards after they have been laid on the table.

A very suitable game, calculated to amuse the player for hours, is Patience, under all its forms. For this the cards must be prepared somewhat differently, as in many games the first thing to be distinguished is the color.

The handiest plan is to mark a B or an R for Black or Red, in Braille characters immediately before, or underneath the denomination. A glance at Fig. 4 will serve to show what is meant.

With the cards thus marked, any game of Patience can be played as easily by a blind person as by an ordinary player.

CHECKERS

An ordinary Checker Board can be adapted for the use of the blind with very little trouble and no expense.

Cut thirty-two squares of thick cardboard, each square identical in size with the black squares on the Checker Board. Upon each of the black spaces one of these pieces of card should be glued, so that when complete the board is composed of sunk and raised instead of colored squares.

For the convenience of any ordinary person who may be playing with a blind opponent, the cardboard squares should be colored black with India ink.

The checkers usually purchased have a molding on both top and bottom. It will simplify matters considerably if you can buy a set with one side only molded. By using the white men with the molding uppermost and the black men reversed, as in Fig. 5, the difference will be sufficient to enable the blind person to distinguish by touch.

The same result can be obtained by glueing discs of cardboard or stiff paper, upon one side of each man, of one of the sets.

HALMA

The preparation of a Halma board is very similar to that of a checker board. Having raised the alternate squares with cardboard, the “Homes” at each corner should be further raised by glueing a piece of cardboard over all the spaces, and then raising the alternate squares upon this base, as in Figs. 6 and 6_a_.

In the center of each square a nail should be driven from the back of the board, with the end cut off and point filed to smoothness. These nails should project from the face of the board about half an inch. The ordinary Halma men have a hole on the under side, which enables you to place them upon the upraised points, where they will be held firmly.

It will now be necessary to make some alteration in the men, to distinguish the colors. In Fig. 7 an idea of how this may be done is given. The Yellow men are left untouched, Black have their heads cut right off, Red have one half of the head cut away, while the Green have the head sharpened to a point.

DOMINOES

Owing to their construction, Dominoes really need no alteration to make them suitable for the blind, but care should be taken when purchasing to see that the pips are cut deep into the ivory, so that the player can tell at a touch how many there are in the piece before him.

CHESS

This is one of the games in which the blind frequently excel, and in consequence it is a general favorite. The undivided attention they are able to give, and the natural acuteness which their affliction usually brings to such a pitch of excellence, serves them in good stead when playing “the king of games.”

The board should be prepared as in the case of checkers, _with the exception that points should be made from the back_, in the manner described in connection with the Halma board.

The different men are, of course, by their construction, easily distinguishable from one another, but it will assist matters very materially if a set is used in which the men differ considerably in shape and size.

In the center of each piece a hole must be bored in the base, large enough to allow the man to be placed, and removed from one pin to another with ease. For this reason wooden chess men are preferable.

The question of distinguishing the colors has been solved in various ways. In some cases the tops of the men of one color have been halved, as shown in Fig. 8, and this has proved a very satisfactory arrangement.

Others have used the black men of one set and the white men of another, but this plan is hardly to be recommended, owing to the similarity prevailing between all chess men.

The following method seems to be as good as any, and has the advantage of being easily contrived. Drive a pin firmly into the heads of one set of men (say the black), and either leave plain, or make a little knob of sealing-wax around the pinhead. This will render the different colors perfectly distinguishable to the blind player.

ROUND GAMES

In the majority of round games the blind are able to take an active part, but this depends very much upon the individual concerned. As a general rule rough games should be avoided, especially if the space for playing be limited.

Games in which a certain amount of writing is requisite are rarely suitable, although here again it must be a matter solely dependent upon the person concerned.

At spelling and guessing games the cleverest seeing player must look to his or her laurels, for the blind are very quick-witted in such contests, and frequently have the answer ready while others are still repeating the question.

As a matter of interest as well as of use, the blind alphabet of the Braille system is shown in Fig. 9, and by this means letters and notes can be written, which will be perfectly intelligible to a blind person. In pricking the characters through a paper, it should be remembered that the points must be reversed, and the letters begun from right to left, as the blind person will read from the other side, where the pin-pricked holes will have raised little points of paper.

INDEX

BLIND, games for, 538
Alphabet, the Braille, 543
Cards, 539
Checkers, 540
Chess, 542
Color distinction for Chess men, 542
Color distinction for Halma men, 541
Dominoes, 541
Halma, 540
Patience cards, preparation of, 540

Bunkum entertainments, 127
Ghost, a home-made, 138
Lectures, Bunkum, 135
Maids of Lee, three old, 133
Thought-reading, 130
Trick shooting, 137
Ventriloquism, fake, 131

CARTOONS and “fake” sketching, 263
Drawing-board for, 263
Easel for, 263
Figured faces, 267
Leading characteristics of, 264
Reversible scenes, 270
Simultaneous drawing of, 266
Smoke pictures, 269
Subjects for, 264

Charades, 76
Scenery and “props” for, 76-82

Children’s party, 477

Ciphers and Cryptograms, 527
Appointment, a musical, 530
Cipher, an early, 528
Cipher, the fractional, 530
Cipher, complicated fractional, 530
Cipher, Government, 531
Cipher, a musical, 530
Cipher, “two letter,” 532
Code, the Nihilist, 529
Letters, “transposed,” 528
Lines, “bounding,” 527
“Sphinx,” the, 531
Writing, secret, 527

Circus, home, 367
Ball-balancing, 376
Barricade and ring entrance for, 367
Barricade, construction of, 368
Cards, trick, 376
Circus horses, how to make, 368
Conjuring entertainment, a mock, 372
Decorations for, 369
Dog, performing, 377
Horses for, 368
Indian sack trick, the, 374
Juggling, trick, 375
Plates for spinning, how to make, 376
Target for trick shooting, 373
Tilting scene, 370

Clairvoyance, 426
Character, keys to, 427
Crystal-gazing, 429
Crystal, use of, 430
Kingdoms, the three, 431
Magnetism, power of, 428
Sense, the sixth, 431
Simple manifestation, 430
Sphere, the mental, 433
Visions, to create, 431

Clog dancing, 244
Clogs suitable for, 244
Double shuffle, the, 247
Single shuffle, the, 246
Slide, the, 248
Standing position for, 245
Variations of double shuffle for, 247

Conjuring, 158
Dissolving coin, the, 163
Magic dye-works, the, 160
“Patter,” 162
Servante, the, 158
Table for, 158
Wand, the magic, 159
Watch and target trick, 165

DISSOLVING views, 396
Apparatus for, 396
Apparatus for lighting, 398
Exhibiting, 399

ELECTRICAL effects, some, 285
Arc lamp, principle of, 289
Battery of cells, how to make, 286
Battery of cells, tray for, 287
Compass test, the, 288
Decomposing water by electricity, 293
Electrical weathercock, an, 290
Electro-plating, 294
Electrotyping, 294
Force, magnetic lines of, 289
Granulating zinc. 287
Primitive electro-motor, a, 291
Spark-producing, 288
Warming water by electricity, 293

Experiments, chemical, 312
Chlorine, with, 313-314
Electric fire, 315
Freezing flask of ammonia to wood, 318
Hydrogen, preparation of, 316
Musical flame, a, 317
Niter paper, 314
Novel fountain, a, 319
Soap bubble, to explode a, 317
Sodium or potassium, with, 315
Water’s affection for ammonia, 318

Experiments, electrical, 272
Discharger, the, 278
Dynamic electricity, 272
Electrophorus, the, 277
Electrostatic motor, an, 282
Faraday’s bell chimes, 284
Frictional machine, for producing electric charges, 283
Gold leaf electroscope, how to make, 276
Leyden jars, how to make, 276
Positive and negative electricity, 280
Special apparatus for, 275
Static electricity, 272
Swinging mannikin, the, 281

Experiments, more, 329
Carbonic acid gas, 338
Coin, a disappearing, 333
Electrified balloons, 335
Electrified paper, 334
Exploding flour, 335
Flying coin, the, 330
Gas-making, 337
Lamp-glass, a cigarette-smoking, 331
Mirror, a novel, 333
Refractory cork, the, 329
Water swinging, 332

Experiments, odd, 320
Glass-cutting, 327
Illusion, an optical, 321
Pyrometer, the, 325
Revolving man, the, 322
Wall, mysterious writing on, 320

Experiments, scientific, 297
Bottle cannon, the, 310
Changing water into wine, 300
Electric fountain, an, 309
Eruption of Vesuvius, the, 301
Floating pins, the, 304
Glass-emptier, a novel, 307
Glass raising, 305
Glass raising, extraordinary, 306
Match trick, a, 298
Peculiar candlestick, a, 302
Swimming paper fish, the, 303
Syphon, 308
Tricolor glass, the, 299
Vacuum, creating a, 305

FIREWORKS, indoor, 400
Designs for, 401
Firework boxers, the, 403
Frame and side wings for, 400
Revolving wheel for, 401
Views, changing, 403

Fortune-telling, 452
Arcana, Major, 461
Arcana, Minor, 462
Cards, by, 452-455
Dice, by, 455
Dominoes, by, 456-457
Futurity, figured, 458
Tarocs, divinations by, 461

GRAPHOLOGY, 465
Character by handwriting, 466-471
Signs of, 466-467

HANDBELL-RINGING, 105
Bell-ringing companies, 106
Flourishing with, 108

Handkerchief manipulation, 169
Bow, the double, 170
Knot, the disappearing, 172
Knot, a flick, 172
Knot, the one-hand, 169
Knot, the wrist, 169
Knots, the instantaneous, 171

Hypnotism, 416
Auto-suggestion, 422
Gaze, the, 416
Hands, motion of, 419
Hypnosis, to induce, 416
Hypnotizer, 422
Hypnotist, 422
Method, the mental, 416
Method, the physiological, 416
Self-hypnosis, 422
Subject awakening, 424
Test, a sure, 417
Timing experiments, 424
“Under-sleep,” 416

ILLUSIONS, ghost, 183
Coffin trick, the, 186
Frauds, mirror, 183
Ghost producing, stage for, 184
Nymph, the sea, 186
Paris, 185
Plan of room for, 188
Reflection, principle of, applied to ghost illusions, 183

Illusions, optical, 519
Black print red, how to make, 526
Color top, the, 525
Dwarf, the man, and the giant, 524
Hills that don’t rise, 522
Pins, the standing, 522
Zollner’s lines, 521

Illusions, stage, 189
Cupboard, the magic, 189
Disappearing princess, the, 199
Floating lady, the, 194
Indian basket trick, the, 197
Mandarin’s head, the 191
Mesmerism, Houdin’s, 195
Queen Mary illusion, the, 193
Reflection, principle of, for stage illusions, 189

Impersonations, 41
Rehearsing, 42
Stage table for, 44

JUGGLING, 225
Double inside fall, the, 228
Double over fountain, the, 231
Double vertical fall, the, 228
Falls from right to left, 227
Horizontal pass, 227
Inside and outside falls, 227
Parallel fall, the, 226
Shower, the, 230
Triple shower, the, 230
Triple over pass, the, 229
Triple pass, the, 229
Vertical fall, 225

MAKE-UP, 26
Adhesia, 29
Crêpe hair, 29
Grease-paints, 26
High lights, 27
Juvenile, 29
Liners, 28
Lining, 26
Lining paint, 27
Lip-rouge, 30
Low lights, 28
Mustache-making, 33
Nose putty, 32
Old age, 31
Removal of, 33
Wig, measuring for, 32
Wig, mid-gray, 31
Wig-paste, 26

Marionettes, 354
Curtains, arrangement for drawing, 356.
Curtain, movable, 356
Figures, home-made, 358
Interior decoration for, 357
Puppets, the working of, 357
Stage, construction of, 355
Stage for, 354
Stage, plan of, 354

Marionettes, living, 363
Black cloth arrangement for, 364
Effects, comical, 365
Stage for, 363
Stage, sectional view of, 364

Minstrelsy, 56
End-men, 56
Interlocutor, 56
Make-up, minstrel’s, 57
Negro minstrel troupe, seating arrangements for, 56
Nigger black, 57
Programmes, 60-61
Songs and gags, 59
Speeches, stump, 59, 65
Wig, end-man’s, 57
Wig, interlocutor and sentimentalist’s, 57

Musical glasses, 101
Harmonica, 101

Musical sketches, 86
Accompaniment, 89
After-dinner stories, 86-87
Burlesque, 91
Dual art, the, 89
Self-accompaniment, 88

Mysteries, black stage, 174
Assistant for, 175
Barrel, the floating, 179
Dimensions of, 177
Head, the floating, 174
Lighting, 178
Vanishing man, the, 181

Mystery, room of, 201
Electric bells for, 207
Ghostly sounds, apparatus for producing, 205
Haunted house, how to make a, 201
Magnet, use of, for mysterious tongue, 209
Mysterious hatstand, the, 206
Plan of, 206
Potato trick, the, 209

PALMISTRY, 437
Characteristics, distinguishing, 437
Hands, 437
Hands, proportion of, 437
Hands, quality of, 437-438
Hands, shape of, 437-438
Hands, texture of, 437
“Mounts” and their signs, 438-439
Palm, principal lines of, 441-443
Phalanges, the, 440

Papergraphy, 220

Parlor games, 475
Apples and nuts, 488
Auction, the, 482
Brothers, the blind, 484
Buff, musical, 481
Cabbages, 478
Coming, the lover’s, 479
Dog, the amiable, 489
Fan fight, the, 480
Gardeners, 476
Hieroglyphics, magic, 481
Jack’s going strong, 486
Lawyer, the, 478
Line, the longest, 481
Name divinations, 486
Panama Canal, 480
Poets’ corner, the, 485
Proverbs, 476
Ring, the missing, 488
Shadows, game of, 476
Telegrams, 479
Tidings, 477
Whistle, the, 483
Wizard photography, 487

Peep-show, 378
Candle stand and roof protector for, 380
Lighting of, 380
Scenes for, 380
Scene-raising apparatus for, 380-381
Stage front for, 379

Peep-show, mechanical, 383
Scene, a double-barreled, 384
Wings, revolving, 385

Phonograph, 97
Programme for, 99
Programme, a Sunday, 100
Records, 97
Songs, humorous, 97

Photo pastimes, 341
Blue print paper, 346
One person in two places, 349
“Photo-chemical,” 344
Photography, meaning of, 341
Photography, spirit, 350
Photos, fireside, 343
Pictures, imitations of crayon, 352
Portrait effects, 352
Printing double, 353
Printing triple, 353
“Stops,” 342
White light, constituents of, 347

Phrenology, 445
Chart, phrenology, 445
Craniology, 445
Side, the humorous, 450

Plate-spinning, 233
Balancing, 236
Plate waltzing, 238
Prepared plates for, 235
Spinning wand for, 233
Table prepared for, 238

Punch and Judy show, 387
Figures, working the, 392
Framework for, 387
Ghost, how to make, 393
Packing up, 389
Puppets, how to make, 390
Scenery for, 389
Stage for, 388
Squeaker, the, 395

Puzzles, 510
Anarchists, the dangerous, 511
Chain, the broken, 513
Checker, the traveling, 510
Diamond cross, the, 513
Donkey, catching, 512
Like to like, 512
Miter, the, 514
Railway problem, 514
Railways, the quarrelsome, 513
Rings, joining the, 510
Rows, the ten, 511
Solutions to, 515-518

QUICK-CHANGE, 34
Cues, 38
Curtain-raiser, 36
Dressers, 37
Entrances and exits, 36, 38
Scenery for, 36
Sketch for, 39
Transformations, one-piece, 39

RECITALS, 116
Attitude for, 116
Gesture, 119

SECOND-SIGHT, mechanical, 211
Codes for, 211-219

Secret Signs, 533
“Cheek,” the, 535
“Eyebrow,” the, 534
Handshake, the, 534
Hat flourish, the, 535
Italian secret society, an, 535
Pass-words, 536
“Patteran,” the, 536

Shadow drawings, 271

Shadow shows, puppet, 256
Plays for, 261
Puppets, how to make, 257
Puppets, manipulation of, 259
Screen for, 256
Stage for, 256

Shadows, figure, 253
Arrangement of screen for, 254

Shadows, hand, 250
Light for, 250
Pictures, how to make, 251
Screen for, 250

Singing, 111
Accompanist, value of, 113
Breathing, 111
Pronunciation, clear, 111
Rehearsing, 114
Songs, modern, 112
Voice production, 111

Suggestions in black, 62
Banjo, 62
Bones, how to play, 62, 63
Jokes, 63
Music for minstrelsy, 66

TABLEAUX, 68
Lighting arrangement for, 71
“Props” for, 74
Staging for, 71

Table-turning, 434
Medium, the, 435
Medium, to discover, 436
Power, magnetic, 435
“Unbeliever,” to discover, 435

Telegraphy, 410
Alphabet, Morse, 415
Framework for, 411
Galvanometer, a, 410
Keyboard, the, 413
Message, transmitting, 414
Needle, magnetized, 412
Pointer, the, 412
Receiver, how to make, 410
Testing, 413
Transmitter, how to make, 410

Telephone, 405
Bar-magnets for, 406
Bar-magnets, testing, 406
Battery with connection, 407
Magnets, cases for, 406
Microphone, 408
Microphone, connection with, 409
Microphone experiment, 409
Mouthpieces, how to make, 406
Receivers, 405-406

Theatricals, 11
Back-cloth for, 21
Fire for stage, 19
Fireplace for, 19
“Flats” for, 14-15
Footlights, the, 13
Gesture for, 23
Graining, 21
Make-up for, 24
Plays for, 22
Potzentausend, play of, 22-24
Prompter for, 23
Proscenium, the, 21
Scenery for, 13-14
Scene-painting, 21
Stage for, 12-13
Stage door, the, 15-18
Stage-manager, 25
Stage porch, the, 18
Stage sideboard, 20
Stage trees for, 14
Stage windows, 15
Wigs for, 22

Tight-rope, the, 240
“Backward spring,” the, 243
“Backward walk,” the, 243
Balancing pole, the, 241
Fixing bars for, 240
“Forward spring,” the, 243
“Forward walk,” the, 242
Trick balancing on, 240

Tricks and puzzles, parlor, 490
Banana, the obliging, 500
Bands, the mysterious, 501
Bite, the magician’s, 506
Bottle, to blow through, 494
Fish, dying, 498
Needle-threading extraordinary, 505
Repeater, the magic, 499
Scissor trick, 494
Smoker’s fancy, 501
String puzzle, 503
Sunshine trick, 507
Tangrams, 490
Will-power test, 499

UNIVERSAL hat, 50
Chapeaugraphy, 50

VAMPING, 92
Vamping chords and relative changes, 93-96

Ventriloquism, 140
Breathing for, 143
Dialogue, ventriloquial, 150
“Distant,” 145, 151
Figures, ventriloquial, 148
Figure manipulation, ventriloquial, 149
“Grunt” voice, 146
Imitations, ventriloquial, 154
“Near,” 144
Speaking with still lips, 144
“Theek” voice, 147

WHISTLING, 123
Solos, 125

THE END

Transcriber’s Notes

The language used in the source document has been retained (including
inconsistent, archaic and unusual spelling, hyphenation and
capitalisation), except as mentioned below. In particular, non-English
words and phrases have not been corrected unless mentioned under
“Changes made”.

The (minor) deviations in spelling in the Index compared to the text
have not been standardised.

Depending on the hard- and software used and their settings, not all
elements may display as intended.

Discrepancies between illustrations and their descriptions (e.g., Fig.
1B in Chapter L) have not been rectified unless listed below. Items
that cannot work as described (e.g. the rotating target in Chapter XX)
have not been corrected or explicitly noted. Possibly offensive
language (e.g. in the minstrel entertainment) and dangerous activities
(as the experiments with hydrogen and chlorine gas) have been included
in this transcription without further explicit warning.

Page 119, the David: as printed in the source document.

Page 184, The space, D, G, is also invisible: possibly an error for
The space, D, C, is also invisible.

Page 216, The code for playing cards ...: the intended meaning of the
suits (clubs and spades) given and the explanation (well and very
well) in the text contradict each other.

Page 295, various combinations of wines and liquids: as printed in the
source document. Possibly an error for wires and liquids.

Page 458: It is not clear why One-blank is not listed.

Changes made

The (single) footnote has been moved to the end of the chapter.

Some minor obvious typographical and punctuation errors and misprints
have been corrected silently.

Page 65: emotional parts of thumping changed to emotional parts or
thumping.

Page 214: closing bracket added after the last two responses by the
professor.

Page 257: The complete illustration consisting of Figs. 10-12 has been
flipped horizontally, as have the individual figures.

Page 295: ‘the coil has been mentioned’ changed to ‘the coin has been
mentioned’.

Page 438: reference to Fig. 2 changed to reference to Fig. 3.

Page 475: CHAPTER LVIX changed to CHAPTER LIX.