ferred by all instructors
whenever it is possible to adopt it.

It is of no use to say anything in favor of this plan to the boys and
girls themselves, for they never fail to choose that form of exercise
which has a good deal of play in it. And it is well they like it, for
they will get more benefit from an hour of good, vigorous play, than
from many lessons in the monotonous exercises in use in the
gymnasiums.

I shall not now speak of the lively games of boys and girls, by which
their cheeks grow rosy and their legs and arms grow strong, for we all
know enough about them, but I will describe some of the athletic
sports of grown-up folks. There are a great many of these, some of
which are of great antiquity. Wrestling, boxing, vaulting,
foot-racing, and similar exercises have been popular for thousands of
years, and are carried on now with the same spirit as of old.

Out-door sports differ very much in different countries. In the United
States the great game is, at present, base-ball; in England cricket
is preferred, and Scotland has athletic amusements peculiar to itself
In the latter country a very popular game among the strong folks is
called "throwing the hammer."

[Illustration]

These hammers are not exactly what their name implies, being heavy
balls of brass or iron, fitted to a long handle. The hammer is whirled
around the head several times and then thrown as far as possible. The
man who throws it to the greatest distance wins the game.

Another game, very much of this order, consists in tossing a heavy
stone, instead of a hammer. The Scotch call this game "putting the
stone," sometimes using stones that might be called young rocks, and
they "put" or throw them in a different way from the people of other
countries where the game is popular. In some of the mountainous
regions of the continent of Europe the game is played in the manner
shown in the accompanying engraving.

[Illustration]

But it is impossible, in a short article like this, even to allude to
all the different kinds of athletic games, and I will now notice some
of the gymnastics by which people make a living.

Rope-walkers, circus-riders, and acrobats of every kind are now so
common, that a description of their ordinary performances is
unnecessary. They are found on every portion of the globe, some of the
most proficient being now seen in China and Japan.

If any of you have seen the Japanese troupe of acrobats with which
"Little All