A New Board upon which Games of Skill and Chance can be Played and Games in connection therewith.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 20th Jan., 1890
Complete Specification Left, 15th Feb., 1890-Accepted, 5th Apr., 1890
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
A New Board upon which Games of Skill and Chance can be Played
and Games in connection therewith.
PHILIP WILLIAM SEYMOUR Medical Electrician 31 St. Peters Road Leicester do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention consists in the construction of a board, upon which games of skill &
chance can be played the scientific principles involved being the rebound and
gravitating roll as shewn by a marble when caused to strike forcibly against any sub-
stance from which it will rebound, & if permitted roll down an inclined plane. Boards
may be made on this principle with either double or single marble shoots, the former
allowing the players to be seated at opposite ends of the board, & conduct their play
without moving their own position, or that of the board, whilst the single marble shoot
boards, necessitate that either the players or the board should change position for
alternate play. In making a double marble shoot board, I prefer a rectangular shape
as Fig. 1, a suitable size for parlour use being thirty inches by thirteen inches,
round the side of such a board with smooth, level surface. I fix a rim of thin wood
or metal forming a raised edge, standing one inch above the board. On each players
right hand runs a strip of wood A, A', extending about four fifths up the length of
the board, & level with the outer rim, forming box like channels B, B₁ one inch
wide, which I call marble shoots. On the outer side of A & A' may be fixed strips of
India ruboer CC, about six inches long, against which the marbles projected from
the shoots strike & rebound, or they may strike directly against the sides of A & A¹;
the india rubber strips deaden the sound.. At each of the left hand corners, curved
strips of metal or wood D & D¹, are fixed into the outer rim, so as to allow the
marbles to pass freely from the shoot into the play part of the board. The same object
may be attained by rounding the left hand corners of the board, & carrying the outer
rim round the curved corners.
At the under part of each end of the board about two inches from the ends E F &
GH, & running parallel with them, is a strip of wood hinged so as to fold flat to
the bottom of the board, & if needed to be raised so as to tilt the board & form an
inclined plane; each end having one of these tilters permits either end of the board
to be tilted, when one is raised & the other folded flat to the hottom of the board.
The part of the board between the marble shoots, has holes drilled nearly through
the board in the positions shewn by the dots numbered 1 to 10, these are slightly
countersunk, & are used for the insertion of pegs, marbles, or miniature soldiers of
wood or metal, for playing the different games-the smaller dots are similar holes but
not countersunk into which arches of wire to represent forts & a castle are placed. The
large central dot is a semicircular hole like a deep countersink, & deep enough to let
a medium sized marble drop into about one third its diameter. The holes placed
diagonally on each side of this central hole, is for a wire arched representation of
a castle.
Having described the construction of the double marble shoot board & the manner
in which the play part is arranged, I will further explain & illustrate the manner in
which I utilize the principles of rebound & gravity, in playing the series of games L
have contrived-
The first I call "The attack on forts and castle." Each side has nine men & one
officer, the men may be small wooden or metal soldiers, or pegs, such as used on
cribbage boards, the officer being longer or in any other way his rank made apparent.
Their position on the board is shown by the numbers from 1 to 10, the officer taking
the position No. 6; each side has also three forts represented by wire arches which
take the positions numbered 10, 15, & 20. The men & forts of each side are

page_text: differently colored. The positions marked 30, 30, on the middle line, one for two forts
which belong to neither side, but with the castle, are the objects of contention. The
castle being in the centre of the board as already explained.
The players are seated opposite one another at the table, having the edge E F in
front of one, the other the edge G. H, if this latter is to play first, the tilter at
the EF end is raised, the other lowered, thus inclining the board towards the player
at G. H, who commences the game by projecting three or five marbles one at a time
up the marble shoot B', either with the back of the forefinger, or a cue, or a spring
trigger at the bottom of the shoot-imparting to the marble such a force, as shall
cause it to strike against the side A of the marble shoot B, & rebounding from thence
towards the middle of the board roll downwards to the bottom.
As each man according to the rules of this game must be struck in their numerical
order, & each fort also passed through similarly, by the marble either in its rebound,
or during its gravitating roll, it is evident the skill of the game consists in being able
to impart just that amount of force to the marble that shall cause it either by rebound,
or gravitating roll or both to pass over any desired point on the board, & strike a
certain man or pass through a particular fort or the castle. The principle rules of this
game are
1st. The play is alternate; each player using three or five marbles for a turn as
may be agreed.
2nd. The marbles can only be impelled up the marble shoot one at a time, either
with the fore finger or a wooden cue.
3rd. Each player is at liberty to use either the rebound or the gravitating roll
pure & simple, which consists in very gently impelling the marble up the marble
shoot, so as to bring it into the playpart of the board without permitting it to strike
against the side of the opposite marble shoot, some men & forts are best reached
this way
4th. The men & forts can only be taken in the following order-men 1, 2 & 3,
then fort No. 10 followed by men 4 & 5 & officer 6, then fort 15 & 20 (see
rule 8).
5th. Every time the right man is struck or fort passed through these
pieces are removed from the board, & the successful player receives one
additional marble for each man & two for each fort taken, with which he takes
other turns.
6th. Any other men struck or fort passed through, out of their turn do not count.
7th. The two forts marked 30, 30 belong to neither side & cannot be taken.
8th. When all the men & forts have been taken except 7, 8, 9 & 10, then the
castle & forts 30, 30 may be attacked, the men 7, 8, 9, & 10 can be taken in their
respective order, & if during the attempts to take any of these men, the marble
should by chance pass through one of these forts, the player receives another marble
to play again, or should he chance to pass through the castle he receives two marbles,
but should his marble instead of passing through the castle, drop into & remain in
the castle hole, then he wins the game. Forts 30, 30 however frequently passed
through are not removed from the board.
9th. The game may be won either by taking all the men & forts as already described,
or else as just explained in rule 8.
The second game I call "The run of the forts," as only the forts & castle are used,
the eight forts & castle being placed in their respective positions. In this game the
whole board is one common play ground. Three or five marbles are then propelled up
the marble shoot (after properly tilting the board) one at a time, into the playground,
& notice taken of the fort or forts through which the marble passes in its downward
progress, the numbers of each fort or forts is then placed to the score of the player.
The principal rules of this game are
1st. Rebound or gravity may be used.
2nd. A marble may pass through any fort either by intention or chance.
3rd. A marble may pass through one two, three, or more forts, & the player add the
numbers of-such-forts to his score.

page_text: 4th. Passing through a single fort does not entitle to another go, but passing
through two or more forts does.
5th. The game may be continued as long as the players desire to play, the winner
being he who scores the highest at the finish.
The third game I call "The marble melée as it is played with marbles only-twenty
are used, & placed in the positions occupied by the men in the game "The attack on
the forts & castle." The marbles retain their positions owing to the depression of
the countersunk holes.
The object of this game is with three marbles projected in the usual manner from
the marble shoot, one at a time, to knock off their positions, & cause to roll to the
bottom of the board (either by the direct stroke of the propelled marble, or indirectly
by the roll of the displaced marbles) as many marbles as possible. The number so
displaced is placed to the score of the player, the marbles are again placed in position,
and the second player takes his turn, the game is continued as long as desired & he
who counts the most at its termination is the winner.
Having now described the construction of the double marble shoot board, & the
kind of games to be played thereon, I will now describe the construction of the single
marble shoot board, as shewn in figure 2, the arrangement of the board & marble
shoot B is exactly the same as in the double marble shoot, except that the indiarubber
strip C is not attached to the marble shoot, but to the inner side of the outer rim as
shewn at C Fig. 2 neither is there any necessity for the left hand corner E to be
rounded in either of the ways described for the double marble shoot board, the end E F
therefore retains its right angle shape, but the right hand corner at the top of the
board at the end G H is rounded as described.
As will be readily seen such a board necessitates that both players play from one
end, consequently either the board or the players must change positions as they take
alternate turns. There is therefore only one tilter fixed at the G H end. The arrange-
ment of the holes for forts & castle & men is precisely the same, & the playing of the
2nd & third games identical, but the 1st game has to be modified being played with
only 9 men 1 officer & forts 10, 15, 20, 30, 30 & the castle, which are set up in usual
places at the G H end of board-the order of striking the men & forts & play of the
game would be the same, but the men or forts are not removed from the board until
both players have succeeded in taking the piece, until this is done each player keeps
account of his own progress.
Dathi 10th Jon of Tonu 1900
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
A New Board upon which Games of Skill and Chance can be
Played, and Games in connection therewith.
PHILIP WILLIAM SEYMOUR 31 St. Peters Road Leicester Medical Electrician do
hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement :-
My invention consists in the construction of a board upon which games of skill and
chance can be played, the scientific principles involved being the rebound and
gravitating roll as shewn by a marble when caused to strike forcibly against any
substance from which it will rebound; and if permitted roll down an inclined plane.
Boards may be made on this principle with either double or single marble shoots,
the former allowing the players to be seated at opposite ends of the board, and conduct
their play without moving their own position or that of the board, whilst the single
marble shoot boards necessitate that either the players or the board should change
positions for alternate play. In making a double marble shoot board, I prefer a
rectangular shape as Fig. 1 (as per drawings left with provisional specification) a
suitable size & substance for parlour use being 30 inches by 13 inches, and half inch

page_text: thick, round the sides of such a board with smooth and level surface, I fix a rim of
thin wood or metal, forming a raised edge standing one inch above the board; on
each players right hand runs a thin strip of wood A, A' extending about four fifths
up the length of the board, and level with the outer rim, forming box like
channels B, B one inch wide, which I call marble shoots; on the outer side of A, &
A' I prefer to fix strips of India rubber, or leather or other similar material C, C
against which the marbles projected from the inarble shoots may strike & rebound, or
they may strike directly against the sides of A & A¹. The length of these strips may
vary according to the length of the board, being about six inches in a two feet board,
and in a four or five feet board could with advantage be made to extend the whole
length of A & A¹, as it then greatly facilitates the striking of some of the pieces on
the lower part of the right hand side of the board by a double rebound of the projected
marble. This double rebound is produced by forcibly projecting the marble say up
the shoot B causing it to strike against the India rubber strip C sufficiently hard to
cause it to rebound diagonally across the board, and strike against the side A from
which it would a second time rebound into the centre of the board. Such strips of
India rubber or leather both deaden the sound of the stroke of the marble, and at the
same time assists the rebound.
At each of the left hand corners curved strips of metal or wood D, D', are fixed
into the outer rim, so as to allow the marble to pass freely from the shoot into the
play part of the board, the same object may be attained by rounding the left hand
corners of the board and carrying the outer rim round the curved corners.
At the under part of each end of the board about two inches from the edges E F &
GH, and running parallel with them, is a strip of wood about two inches wide
hinged so as to fold flat to the bottom of the board, and if needed can be raised so
as to tilt the board and form an inclined plane, each end having one of these tilters
permits either end of the board to be tilted when one tilter is raised and the other
folded flat to the bottom of the board.
The part of the board between the marble shoots, has holes drilled nearly through
the board in the positions shewn by the dots numbered from 1 to 10, these are slightly
countersunk and are used for the insertion of miniature soldiers of metal or wood or
pegs or marbles, which are used for playing the different games, the smaller dots
between which the figures 10. 15 20 & 30 are placed are similar holes but not counter-
sunk into which arches of wire to represent forts are placed, the large central dot is
a semicircular hole like a deep countersink and deep enough to let a medium sized
marble drop into about one third its diameter. The dots placed diagonally on each
side of this central hole are small holes to receive a wire arched representation of a
castle. Having described the construction of the double marble shoot board, and
manner in which the play part is arranged, I will further explain and illustrate how I
utilize the principles of rebound and gravity, in playing the series of games I have
contrived. In the smaller size boards under three feet long I find it of advantage to
prevent overcrowding that part of the board to omit the positions 7 & 10, using
only 8 & 9 which would then be respectively numbered 7 & 8 instead of 8 & 9. The
first game I call "The attack on forts and castle."
Each side has seven or nine men (according to the size of the board) and one officer
the men may be represented by small wooden or metal soldiers, or pegs as used on
cribbage boards. The officer is on horseback or if a peg is longer or in any suitable
way his rank made apparant.
Their position on the board is shewn by the numbers from 1 to 10. The officer
taking the position No. 6. Each side has also three forts represented by the wire
arches which take the positions numbered 10, 15 & 20. The men and forts of each
side are differently colored.
The positions marked 30. 30. on the middle line are for two forts which belong to
neither side but with the castle are the objects of contention the castle being in the
centre of the board as already explained. The players are seated opposite one another
at the table having the edge E F in front of one, and the other the edge G H, if this
jatter is to play first, the tilter at the E F end is raised and the other lowered, thus

page_text: inclining the board towards the player at GH, who commences the game by pro-
jecting fine marbles one at a time up the marble shoot B¹, either with the back of the
finger or a cue, imparting to the marble such a force as shall cause it to strike against
the side A of the marble shoot B and rebounding from thence towards the middle of
the board roll downwards to the bottom. As each man according to the rules of this
game must be struck in their numerical order by the marble, either in its rebound or
during its gravitating roll, it is evident the skill of the game consists in being able to
impart just that amount of force to the marble, that shall cause it either by rebound
or gravitating roll or both to pass over any desired point on the board and strike a
certain man or pass through a particular fort or the castle. The principal rules of
this game are :-
1st. The play is alternate, each player using five marbles for a turn.
2nd. The marbles can only be impelled up the marble shoot one at a time, either
with the back of the forefinger or a cue.
3rd. Each player is at liberty to use either the rebound, or the gravitating roll pure
and simple, which consists in very gently impelling the marble up the marble shoot,
so as to bring it into the play part of the board without permitting it to strike against.
the side of the opposite marble shoot, some men and forts are best reached in this.
way.
:
4th. The men and forts can only be taken in the following order-Men 1, 2 & 3,
then fort No. 10, followed by men 4 & 5, & officer 6, then fort 15 & 20 (for further
play see rule 8).
5th. Every time the right man is struck or fort passed through, these pieces
are removed from the board, and the successful player receives one additional
marble for each man & two for each fort taken, with which he continues his.
turn.
"
'
6th. Any other men struck or fort passed through out of their turn do not
count.
. 7th. The two forts marked 30, 30 belong to neither side and cannot be taken.
1-
8th. When all the men & forts have been taken as by rule 4, except 7, 8, 9 & 10,
or in the smaller boards 7 & 8, then the castle & forts 30. 30 may be attacked,,
the remaining men may be taken in their respective order, & if during the attempts
to take either of those men, the marble should by chance pass through one of these,
forts, the player receives another marble to continue his turn; or should it pass
through the castle, he receives two marbles, but should the marble instead of passing
through the castle drop into. & remain in the castle hole then he wins the game.
Forts 30. 30 however frequently passed through are not removed from the board.
9th. The game may be won either by taking all the men & forts as already described;
or else as just explained in rule 8.
The second game I call. The run of the forts," as only the forts and the castle.are
used, being place in their usual positions. In this game the whole board is one
common playground, five marbles are propelled up the marble shoot (after properly.
tilting the board) one at the time, into the playground and notice taken of the fort or
forts through which the marble passes in its downward progress, the number of each
fort or forts is, then placed to the score of the player. The principal rules of this,
game are
1st. Rebound or the gravitating roll may be used.
2nd. A marble may pass through any fort either by intention or chance.
3rd. A marble may pass through 1. 2. 3 or more forts & the player add the
number of such forts to his score.
4th. Passing through a single fort does not entitle the player to receive a marble
to continue his turn, but passing through two or more forts does.
5th. The castle passed through counts 50..
6th. The game may be continued as long as the players desire, the winner being he
who scores the highest at the finish.
The third game I call "The marble melée " or "marble skittles," as it is played
with marbles only, which are placed in the positions occupied by the men in the

page_text: game "The attack on forts & castle," the marbles retain their positions on the board-
owing to the depressions of the countersunk holes. The object of this game is with
three marbles to knock off their positions & cause to roll to the bottom of the board,
(either by the direct stroke of the propelled marble or indirectly by the roll of the
displaced marbles) as many marbles as possible, the numbers so displaced. is placed to
the score of the player. The marbles are again placed in position, & the second.
player takes his turn, the game being continued as long as desired & he who counts
most at its termination is the winner. Having now described the construction of the
double marble shoot board, and the kind of games to be played thereon I will now.
describe the construction of the single marble shoot board, as shewn in fig. 2 as per
drawings left with the provisional specification. The construction of the board and
marble shoot B, is exactly the same as in the double marble shoot board, except that
the India rubber strip is not attached to the marble shoot, but to the inner side of
the outer rim, as shewn at C Fig. 2 neither is there any necessity for the left hand
corner E to be rounded in either of the ways described for the double marble shoot
board, the end E F therefore retains its right angle shape, but the right hand corner
at the top of the board at the end G. H. is rounded as described. As will be readily
seen such a board necessitates that both players play from one end, consequently
either the board or the players must change position as they take alternate turns,
there is therefore only one tilter fixed at the G. H. end.
The arrangement of the holes for forts castle & men, is precisely the same & the
play of the second & third games identical, but the first game
"The attack on.
forts & castle" has to be modified, being played with either seven or nine men
(according to size of board as explained in describing the first game for the double
marble shoot board) & one officer, also forts 10. 15 20 30. 30 and the castle;
which are each set up in their usual places at the G H end of the board, the
other half of the board having neither men nor forts. The order of striking the
men, & passing through the forts & castle, & play of the game, would be the same,
but the men & forts are not removed from the board until both players have
succeeded in striking the same piece, each player must therefore keep account of his
own progress during this game.
Having now particularly described & ascertained the nature of my invention
& in what manner the same
is to be performed I declare that what 1
claim is :-
1st. The use of tilters at both ends of a game board, enabling the board to be
tilted so that either end can be made to form an inclined plane, thereby permitting
the players to sit at opposite ends & conduct their play without changing either their
position or that of the board.
2nd. The arrangement of double marble shoots for the same object.
3rd. The rounding of both players left hand corners in the double marble shoot
boards for the same object.
4th. The arrangement of forts, castles, pegs & marbles in the games described.
5th. The use of India rubber leather or other similar strips as described in the
double & single boards, for deading the sound & facilitating the rebound of the
marbles.
6th. The rounding of one corner in the single board to permit of the use of the
principle of rebound, by conducting the marble in the direction of the substance
against which it is to strike for the purpose of rebound.
: