ut the centre one which is only
five inches square. The players stand off from six to twelve feet
according as their skill increases with practice and try to throw the
bags through the holes. There are various rules for playing the game
which you can arrange to suit yourself, or to make a change. One way
is have the bags in sets of six, each six being of one color,
different from the others. The players stand in a line and all throw
at once, trying to get their six bags in the holes as soon as
possible. When they have thrown their bags they rush up to the board,
gather up those which have gone wild and run back to the firing line.
The one who gets his six bags in first wins the game. A bag thrown
through the small centre hole counts as two.

[Illustration: BEAN-BAG BOARD]

Another way to play it is to throw in turn, each throwing all his six
bags one after another. The one who gets most in is the winner.

Ring-Toss

Ring-toss is another game in which skill can be acquired only through
practice and it is very good for rainy-days. It is really indoor
quoits, and is a favorite game for shipboard. Any one with a little
patience and care can make the rings which are of rope fastened
together with slanting seam, wound with string so that there is no
bulging, overlapping hump at one side.

[Illustration: ROPE RING]

A stake is nailed upright to a board (the stake can be a section of an
old broom handle, or a smooth, small, straight peeled branch of a
tree) and the outfit for the game is complete. It is played with the
same rules as quoits (see "Outdoor Games for Boys"), and a very
considerable degree of skill can be obtained by practice. As in
pitching quoits, the rings should be thrown with a little level twist
to make them whirl about.

Ring-the-Nail

A variation of this can be played with common large nails and brass
curtain rings. Eight nails are driven into a board in a circle,
leaving about an inch sticking up. In the centre, one is driven,
standing about three inches tall. Small rings, curtain rings, for
instance, are thrown toward this. Each time they encircle one of the
lower nails is counted five, and the centre nail ten.

Soap-Bubbles

A soap-bubble race is easy to arrange and very good fun. An old shawl
or blanket is laid on a table or the floor, goals are made at each end
of it with piles of books, leaving an opening between, and each person
is provided with a pipe for blowing bubbles. One bowl