A NEW GAME
Year: 1886

page_text: I, MARIE DENIS BULLOCK, of the City of Philadelphia, in the County of
Philadelphia, and State of Pennsylvania, United States of America, gentlewoman,
do hereby declare the nature of my invention for "A NEW GAME," and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement :—
My invention has relation to a game known as "Progressive Angling" and
which is played subject to the rules hereinafter set forth, and it comprehends the
apparatus used in playing the game which embraces a novel article of manufacture
by the aid of which the said game is played, viz. a toy animal, preferably being a
representation of a natural fish.
The game is played with a quantity of these toy animals, which as hereinafter
set forth may be of any preferred construction, and which are to be caught or
hooked from off tables by means of a hook attached to a line and rod or to a
handle.
The game, hereinafter described as played with toy fishes, is played in accordance
with the following rules -
'

page_text: MARKING GAMES WON.
Those partners who win at the king table shall each receive a gold fish as a
marker.
Those partners who win at any of the tables except the king table, shall each
receive a silver fish as a marker.
:
:
Those partners who lose at the booby table, shall each receive a red fish as a
marker.
As some players will endeavor to win the booby prize by failing to angle, and
thus get the lowest score, each person at the booby table must catch at least
one fish.
AWARDING PRIZES.
Those persons having the greatest number of gold flsh marking games won at
the king table, shall receive the king prizes.
Those persons having the greatest number of silver fish marking games won at
the tables other than the king table, shall receive the progressive prizes.
Those persons having the greatest number of red fish marking games lost at the
booby table shall receive the booby prizes.
:
Should there be a tie between two ladies or two men, it shall be decided by each
one catching one fish and the prize shall be given to the person who catches the
fish bearing the lowest number.
;
I KIZES.
There should be two each, king, progressive, and booby prizes.
DURATION
то
At the time of beginning the referee of the game who is usually the host or
hostess should announce the hour when play shall cease and the prizes be awarded.
Each fish employed in playing the foregoing game is provided with an eye, loop,
catch, hook, ring, or kindred contrivance by which it may be hooked or caught by
a hook, and is also stamped, marked, impressed, indented, or otherwise provided
with a number, as, for instance, zero, five, ten, fifteen, twenty-five, or fifty,-upon
the under side or that portion of the fish which is concealed from view by being
next to the table when the fish is laid upon the table.
In the accompanying drawings I have represented toy fishes conveniently
embodying my invention. These dummy or imitation fishes, which may be made
in the semblance of any desired species of natural fish or animal that lives in the
water, may be each made of any preferred material (all, however, being of the same
size and shaped to the outline desired, or to that represented in the drawings) each
stamped or marked upon the under side with a number or other designating and
distinguishing character, and each provided as to an exposed portion, conveniently
a fin, with a ring, eye, loop, hook or other catch.
Plastic compounds are cheap materials of which to make the fishes, but sheet
metal, porcelain, paper, celluloid, or other material or composition of matter may
be employed, which, if desired, may be painted, silvered, gilded, or otherwise
decorated at will.
In the drawings figure 1 represents in perspective a toy fish embodying my
invention and designated "A," a is a loop or eye applied to the upper side of the
said fish; B is a hook, C a line, and D a rod preferably ornamented by means of
the ribbon d. By the aid of the hook line and rod the fish in the figure has been
caught and lifted from the table.
Figure 2 is a side view of the fish represented in figure 1, representing also the
catching hook as about to be engaged with the eye or loop on the fish.

page_text: Figures 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8, are bottom plan views of fishes embodying my
invention, respectively provided with the numbering 0, 5, 10, 15, 25, and 50, but
otherwise essentially identical in appearance.
It is obvious that the form and material of the fishes may be varied, it being,
however, essential that they should all be alike, and of such construction as to be
each provided with an eye, loop, ring, or kindred contrivance into which a catching
hook can be engaged and by which they can be respectively and separately lifted,
and as to also be each provided with a distinguishing number or mark, which is
concealed when the fish is laid upon the table and exposed to view when it is
raised therefrom.
From what has been stated it will be apparent that it is no departure from the
invention to substitute for a fish or water animal, as hereinbefore particularly
referred to and preferred, a representation of some other animal or animate thing
the hooking of which it would be readily possible to imagine, and the invention is
broad enough to comprehend any such substitution.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare what
I claim is:
1. Apparatus used for playing the game of " * Progressive Angling," which
consists of hooks each manually controlled by a rod or handle, and also of toy
animals having each a loop, eye, ring, or hook by which they can be separately
caught and lifted, and being also each provided with a designating letter or
character so applied as to be concealed when the animal is laid upon a surface but
exposed when the animal is caught and lifted by the engagement of the hand-
controlled hook with the eye or ring of the animal, substantially as set forth.
2. As an article of manufacture, a toy animal provided with a loop, eye, ring, or
hook, by which it can be lifted, and also provided with a distinguishing letter or
character so applied as to be concealed when the animal is laid upon a surface,
substantially as set forth.