The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-04-06

From present indications society will
no longer be divided upon the lines Of
birth, breeding or wealth, but the quail
fcation for membership in the innermost
circle will be ability to play ping pong,''
that fascinating parlOr game that has
recently come over the seas to us from
aristocratic London.
Age, sex, color or previous condition
make no difference with the devotees of
the game and in England duchesSes have
been known to struggle for the honor Of
having champion ping pong player from
some suburb at their receptions Success
full authors, artists and actors are no
longer being lionized and made to roar
for the benefit of society. Their place is
but secondary now to the man who can
make the highest score with the bellum-
covered racquets and the celluloid balls.
The craze has but just struck the West
although in New York, and. in fact in
all of the Eastern cities, it is raging al
most as widely as 1t does in England.
The dealers say they are unable to keep
up with the demand for the game and
that thousands of sets have been sold,
with the demand still increasing. Ping
pong parties are taking the place of
bridge whist and cinch contests and even
of bowling tournaments. No longer does
the Western swain sit contentedly in the
parlor with the girl of his heart, discuss
ing the weather undisturbed by the other
members Of the family. Now the parlor
is in use. Father and mother and the
neighbors are Serving and returning"
and calling love Is, love 80, deuce adj
vantage, etc.
Ping pong is simply modified tennis
played upon table in the house instead
of a court in the open air and is in fact,
table tennis. But when the little celluIoid
bah strikes the hard surface of a table
the contact produces sound best
described by the word ping" and as it
bounds against the vellum racquet the
sound pong" a full note lower, issues.
Some person with a quick ear and a
quicker Imagination translated these
sounds and the game was christened with
the catchy name ping pong" a name
tnat has helped to call attention to it.
The balls are very light, much like blown
birds eggs to the touch, and there is no
possibility of their breaking or of injur-
ing anything they may strike except, of
course, fragile bric-a-brac. The racquets
are light rattan affairs, covered with
velium. In this respect they differ from
those used in ordinary tennis although
the dealers are showing some specially
constructed ones strung with catgut, as
are tennis racQuets. They were ordered
by ping pong players who are also tennis
experts and who believe they can play
better with the strung racquets than with
tha Vellum- covered ones. ANY table
about the height of a billiard table and
in the neighborhOod o. nine feet long by
five feet wide will do for the game Many
use dining tables. To be correct one
should have table, the surface of which
has been painted dark green, or covered
with billiard cloth. 1t makes no difference
in the game whether it is played with or
without a cloth upon the table Without
cloth the balls will of course bounce
higher The game is played by two or
contest in which there are two players
and this is the game in high favor each
player stands at one end of the table
The one first delivering the ball is called
the server" the other person is the
strlkeout." AT the end Of the first game
the strlkeout| becomes the Server and
SO on alternately to the end of the sets
AS soon as the ball is served and drops
any where on the table top beyond the net,
IT IS play. If it drops into the net. or
or the table it counts to the strike out .
Ilere IS no second service as i'll lawn ten
mis-. On either player winning the first
strike, the score is called fifteen for that
fourth stroke won by either PLAYER is sec
Ond game" unless both PLAYERS have
won three strikes forty ali" when the
score is called deuce. and the next stroke
won by either player is scored "advan-
tage to that player.
If the same player wins the next stroke
the game is his; If he loses the next
stroke the score is again deuce, and so
on until either player wins the two
strokes imediately following the score
player; on either player winning his or
her second stroke. the score for that play
er is thirty. On either player winning the
third stroke, the score is forty, and the
OF deuce, and the game is scored for
that player. The player who first wins
six games wins the set. In tourna
ments usually three sets are played by
each competitor against each other one.
The rules for playing are similar to
those in lawn tennis, except that no over
hand service is allowed. There are 10
courts marked as in lawn tennis, the
top of the table forming the court, so
that the ball striking any part of the ia
BILE is in play The strokes. apart from
the service are divided into two main
Classes-the half volley and all other
strokes. The half vOlley is when the ball