The Republican journal., 1877-10-18
CROQUET.

There is Il great deal OF this high moral game
rolling around us now III fact ii is about all the
game there is III the market 1t Is too early in the
season and the weather IS too warm for venison or
poker 50 the people have to be content with GRO
quot,
Croquet is Il cross between base bali and billiards,
and fills up and fits into moral hole i'll those peo-
pie who too lazy To play base ball and too pious
10 play billiards 1t is II sort OF national Boston
Museum. which gives an orthodox crowd chance
to a good play. without attending theatre,
and il is better than muddvday to allow the girls
to exhibit the silk clocks on their stockings.
Croquet is generally played III the open air the
same as a brass band IS, and is a ladies' game. al
most as exclusively darning stockings. 1t is
played on the lawn. and it takes eight to play the
game. The players AT croquet party are four
girls, who do the PLAYING and four gentlemen,
who are invited to make up the eight, though Their
duties chiefly consist in pmpiring the game, part
IN the girls when they ret fighting, and in furnish
Ing the fruit and confectionery for the occasion,
that is to say, the girls.
There is no time in girls life that she has such
an opportunity OF bringing into public those little
qualities that she usually keeps hidden away on
the shelf on other occasions, as at game of GRO
quet. All those gentle and angelic traits of char
acter that no one. except everybodys own lndi
vidual mother known to possess. those
qualities that make women ''but little slower than
the angels, she scoops out OF her before making
her appearance on the lawn and she seems to have
converted her whole anatomy into one bone-the
jaw.
Two ladies are leaders of the two sides. They
choose the PLAYERS. and here another trait of wo
man character stands out as prominent as a 60
pher mound on Il prairie. \ gentleman under
such circumstances would first choose the girl he
thought the most of without regard to her skill as
d player or what anyone might think of his choice.
but girl invariably chooses the gentleman she
thinks the least of and then hates herself all
through the game for doing it. and because her
friends all the oDDOSjtp side dis
cover why this is SO any more than can why a
country school-house is always painted red. once
thought that perhaps the reason of that was that
the scholars read so much inside the house that
possibly 1t might strike through and make the out
side red too. could have sold this solution at one
time for SO but to-day don't presume it is worth
;hc paper It is printed on.
The weapons used in hunting this variety OF
game are balls and mallets the skill consisting in
knocking your own ball through wire wicket, and
keeping your opponent from getting his through.
70 do this well, one must &C wire considerable pro
hclencY. Some 'Ope refuse to play this game,
because they consider tia wick But on second
thought. will not finish that pun, because every
reader has been waiting anXOusly for it. and
shall dash this disappointment on his head, with
the overpowering force Of a SNOW slide.
attended a croquct party the other afternoon.
\ remarkably charming girl invited me. The first
question she asked after extending the invitation
was. "lf knew whether there were any nice
peaches in the MARKET" | accepted her invita-
ton and carried the peaches She gave me to un
derstand that she shonld want me on her side
Tins was the first croquct party had attended. !
learned enough that afternoon 10 make quite an
acceptable appendix to a cycopedia
eonbed my hair, turned my collar. scented my
handkerchief, blacked my boots, and otherwise or
namented myself sparing neither time nor ex
enSe and was at the appointed place at the proper
time. My lady friend took the first occasion to re
mind ne that She wanted ne on her side and then
lQuDcentE manfred Nv hat in the world | had in
that paper ba" and then we had peaches and
scream, and then she said, hat ever possessed
You Ia bring them /" and smiled ana picked her
ONT AnOther rIbe