und again. To do this, as it cannot be done with a mere rope,
you must make a new rope of whipcord, in the middle of which you place
a small chain about a foot long. This chain gives the weight necessary
for whirling the rope very swiftly through the air.

Tom Tiddler's Ground

The player who is first going to be Tom Tiddler stands or sits inside
the part of the garden (or room) marked off for him, pretending to be
asleep. The others venture on his ground, crying, "Here we are on Tom
Tiddler's ground, picking up gold and silver." As Tom still sleeps
they grow bolder and bolder until he suddenly awakens and dashes for
them. The one that is caught becomes Tom Tiddler. Tom may not cross
the boundary-line.

Old Stone

Another "Tom Tiddler's Ground." One player crouches down pretending to
be a stone. The others run round about her, gradually, as she shows no
sign of life, getting nearer and more bold. The stone suddenly leaps
up and begins to chase them, and the one caught is the old stone.

Hen and Chickens

Even more exciting than "Tom Tiddler's Ground" is "Hen and Chickens."
In this game one player represents a fox and sits on the ground
looking sly and hungry. The others, who are the hen and chickens, form
a procession, holding each other's skirts or coats by both hands, and
march past the fox, saying in turn--

Chickany, chickany, crany crow,
I went to the well to wash my toe,
And when I came back a chicken was dead.

Then they leave go of each other and stand round the fox, and the
leader, the hen, says, "What are you doing, old fox?" The fox replies,
"Making a fire"; and the conversation goes on like this:--

The Hen: What for?
The Fox: To boil some water.
The Hen: What is the water for?
The Fox: To scald a chicken.
The Hen: Where will you get it?
The Fox: Out of your flock.

With these words the fox springs up and the hen and chickens run in
all directions. The chicken that is caught becomes the new fox, and
the old fox is the new hen, the leader of the procession.

The same game is played by Essex children with an old woman in place
of the fox, and with different words. In this case the hen and
chickens make a procession in front of a player who personates an old
weeping woman. As they march by, the hen sings--

Chickens, come clock, come clock, come clock,
Chickens, come clock, come clock, come clock,
The hawks are away and the crows are asleep,
It's time that my