The Washington herald., 1913-03-14
SOCIETY ROMPS
after Lecture
Matrons and Debutantes En-
ter Into Spirit Of Charles
F. Weller's Talk.
NEW GAMES ARE TAUGHT
Jump the Shot," "Poison Snake"
and Other Children's Amu,e-
ments Are Practiced.
NEW GAMES ARE TAUGHT

About five score notables of Washing.
ton society gathered at the residence
of Mr.. and Mrs. Arthur ]. Parsons
Eighteenth and r Streets Northwest
yesterday afternoon to hear Charles +.
Weller, the noted social worker lecture
on Fairgrounds, and ended up by hop
ping, skipping. and jumping all over the
parlor themselves.
Mr.. Weller told his audience that mod
ern children didn't know how to play.
Moving picture shows and theaters, he
said, did their playing for them. This,
he continued. was where the Fairgrounds
came in. These open-air recreation cen
tiers, he declared. enable the children to
play their own games and enjoy them
selves Just as children did before there
were any movies" This was where
the practical application came In.
Mr.. Weller produced several tenni,
balls and some tenpins. He proceeded
to explain some OF the new" game.
which playground children play. II,
suggested that maybe his audience would
like to play some OF the games them
selves. The audience was agreeable
Chairs We're moved out of the way. and
in about a minute the drawing room OF
the handsome residence was a grown
up playground.
Former Secretary of the Treasury Mac.
Veagh and Mrs. MacVeagh sat on the
'sidelines" and watched Mrs. Parsons
Mrs. Arthur Lee. Mr. Henry White. Mrs
Julian James, Mrs. Charles Henry Butter
Mrs. Robert Hinckley, Miss Gladys
Hinckley. Miss Clementina Surness and
other prominent society matrons and de-
butantes cavort over the thick carpet
with prominent society men.
The most popular game was Jump
the shot" The shot consisted of a
tennis ball on the end of a long string.
Mr.. Weller held the end of the string
and whirled the ball around in a circle.
for all the world as il he was putting
the shot, and intended to throw il into
the next county. 1t was up to the other.
in the party to leap over the whirling
string without getting it caught in their
ankles.
Real High Jumps.
II they didn't jump high enough and
the string wrapped around their ankles,
the tennis ball giving them a sharp slap
on the ankle bone, they We're out"
Many a pretty pair of ankles whisked
gracefully through the air and over the
string. Those wearing the latest hob
hles" were. Of course, at disadvantage.
The men of the party cleared the 'haz-
ard" just naturally.
Then there We're other games. Poison
snake made big hit. Poison snake
consisted of about sixteen persons gath
ering in a sort Of ring ng-around-a-rosy,
with a full set of tenpins in the center.
The object of this pastime was to push
your neighbor into the tenpins and to
try to keep from being pushed into them
yourself. Because II YOU knocked the
tenpins down you were out.
Then some of the party got hold of
the tennis balls and started a game OF
'two-knockers one" or lone old cat.
whichever you want to call II. They
didn't use bat. but tossed the ball from
one to the other. while a runner tried
to get between them without being put
out
BY this time gentle perspirati ton
bathed the fair players, and those of
the sterner sex were painting like the
exhaust OF a locomotive. So the prac-
teal demonstration was called off. and
everybody went home with a roaring
appetite. pronOuncing the event COM
plets success.
Mr.. Weller was the only speaker al
the meeting. He told of the work the
Playground and Recreation Association
Of America is carrying on. Mr.. Weller
is the man who led to the establishment
of Fairgrounds in Washington. He will
remain in the city several days and then
return to New York. Miss Ellen Hope
Wilson. assistant director of Washing
ton Fairgrounds, assisted in conducting
the games