At parties, the men folk would vote on the prettiest girl. This was done by paying one penny for one vote. whoever won the vote was awarded a cake. The crowd also voted on the ugliest man. The winner of this contest was awarded a bar of soap.
Candy Breakings...were special ways of getting to kiss your gal or beau. The parents would break pieces of peppermint sticks into small bits. Each boy and girl then drew a piece. When they paired off into couples, if they could not break the shortest of the two pieces, then they had to bite if off.
Pound Suppers...were given where everyone would bring a pound of food. The boys would choose a partner and everyone would eat and have a good time.
Play Parties...were given in homes. The old folks would stay in one room, and the young children would go to another. This left the parlor for the teenagers. They couldn't have music but they could shoe-tang. This was like square dancing.
Wink...was another game that they played at these parties. All of the girls would sit in a chair, and their boyfriend would stand behind them. There was also an empty chair. One girl would wink at another one and she would try to get to the empty chair, before her boyfriend tapped her on the shoulder.
Pretty Bird My Cup, What Sort Yours?...was also a game. This was played on one person who didn't know the game. There was a a person who asked the question (the title). Before this he would have given everybody a name of a bird as an answer. Everybody, except the person who the game was played on. He was told that he was a letterfly. The game might proceed as follows:
Questioner: Pretty Bird My Cup, What Sort Yours?
1st Person: I'm a redbird.
Questioner: Pretty Bird My Cup, What Sort Yours?
2nd Person: Bluebird.
Questioner: Pretty Bird My Cup, What Sort Yours?
3rd Person: Sparrow.
Questioner: Pretty Bird My Cup, What Sort Yours?
4th Person: Letterfly.
At this time, the questioner would produce a cup of water from behind his back, AND LET IT FLY!!!
"What do I look like to you?"...was a question that also represented a fun game. One person would ask another the question, and the object was to make up the funniest answer that you could and try to make the other person laugh. If they laughed, they lost. When Thessie Wilson onced asked Jesse Ball, What do I look like to you, Jesse replied, "The double-backed action of a bullfrog.
Fair dinners...were given by the parents of the groom after a wedding. The whole community was invited to come and congratulate the newlyweds.
Copyright © 2005: by Linda Hunt Hamlett
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