Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1914-03-13
THINGS BOYS KNOW
Curious Things That All Youngsters
Have Faith In.

There's freemasonry of boyhood
that extends from Maine to Oregon
and from Michigan to Texas. Nobody
passes the signs along, but the young
Floridian and the Iowa youngster have
the same superstitions, the same line
| OF lunches and the same good omens
as the boys in Utah and New Jersey.
Every boy knows that snake, NOR
| tally wounded at any hour of the day,
, will not die until the sun sets. That
rule has been proved by unlucky rep
tiles from the Lakes to the Gulf.
Another bit Of snake lore that the
boys all know is that hair from a
horses tail dropped into a pool Of
water, will, IL given time, develop into
horsehair snake, wriggly and mystic
rious
Mulberries left in water will also de-
velop reptilian tendencies, as boys
from time far past have known.
A turtle will never let go until It
hears the rattling Of thunder, though
1t is possible to fool the tenacious
bird" with good heavy club and
an empty barrel II you cut off a tur-
ties head 1t will toddle, headless, an
exact, measured mile. before 1t wab-
bles over and dies. That bit Of infor-
nation has been the execution writ for
thousands Of turtles all over the Unit
ed States. For a novice 1t might be
difficult to induce the turtle to obtrude
Its head from the shell long enough
for the execution, but with a certain
magic tumble of words recited in it's
presence the turtle will at once re-
spond to the cue and hasten the exc
cution.
The subject Of luck makes all boys
akin. II horseshoe Is found In the
road the finder has but to pick 1t up.
make a wish, expectorate Justify upon
the horseshoe, hurl 1t backward over
his head and walk away whistling a
certain tune. II he keeps on going,
without looking back, the wish will be
realized.
If horseshoe is not available, a
perfectly round stone treated In the
same way will produce similar results.
That rule will work on all subjects but
one, and that is wish that the school
house will burn down.. All sorts CT
tricks Of black magic have been tried
without avail In that case
II one sees a load of hay and makes
a wish while 1t is passing along the
road, that wish will come true.
The first star at night Is also a full
filler Of wishes IL the wish is prefaced
with thiH formula:
Star bright, star light, first star I've
seen tonight,
wish may; I wish might
Have this wish come true tonight.
Every gray horse one sees is an
omen Of good luck IL proper recognition
is made. One must wet the tip of the
forefinger, touch the palm Of the hand
and then hit the palm vigorously with
the clenched hand. Count each gray
horse this way until ninety-nine have
been noted. Upon seeing the hum
dredth something of value may at once
be found. In this game a gray mule
counts ten votes.
1t Is bad luck to kill a frog. Such
an act affects the milk of the cow
supplying the family Of the youngster
killing the frog and thus serves to
convict the culprit at the dinner table.
II one will catch butterfly and bite
off its head the bitter will receive a
suit Of clothes the exact shade and
coloring of the butterfys wings. Boys
do not care for the motley colors rep
resented by some butterflies, but little
girls sometimes secure fine, new
dresses by taking advantage of the
same rule.
In order to catch good string Of
fish in Virginia or Vermont, or any
where else for that matter, It is only
necessary to bait the hook with a nice,
wriggly angleworm; make a wish and
expectorate on the unfortunate bait
and place the line in the water. Fish
will respond almost Immediately.
Snake feeders dragon fiies) along
streams or in marshes indicate to all
boys the imminence of snakes. All
boys take warning upon seeing this
insect and give the snake which 1t is
attending wide berth. Nobody has
ever seen a snake feeder arranging
the snakes lunch, but it Is known to
be positively true that the insect Is
the snakes chef.
to go swimming during dog days, but
the period Of dog days may be narrow
ed to suit the material convenience Of
the individual. In other words, the
dog days rule may be suspended by Il
vote Of a good sized crowd Of young
sters unable to resist the purling lure
Of the stream.
The danger from snakes and turtles
while swimming does not deter young
sters, for II is a we'll known fact that
a snake cannot bite under water, for
the simple reason that the minute it
opens its mouth to nab the unsuspect-
ing swimmer 1t chokes The same rule
applies to turtles.
Another bit of swimming lore is the
remedy of boyhood for water in the
ears. A fiat sun warmed stone will
draw all water right out Of the ear OF
the boy who seeks relief
The universal knowledge Of boys ex-
tends we'll into the field of materia
medica. A bee sting or an insects bite
may be instantaneously cured by plac-
ing the mingled juices Of three weeds
any three-upon thed iscomforted
portion Of the anatomy. Ordinary cob
web is generally known to be a means
Of stopping the flow of blood when the
jackknife goes wrong.
If one has a tooth pulled and will
refrain from putting ones tongue in
the cavernous vacancy, a new tooth.
fully crowned in resplendent gold will
grow there.
The guild of boyhood also promul-
gates certain rules calculated to pro-
tect the brethren from their foes.
1t is known fact that II one calm
ly fares the onrushing ram. the fero-