Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 2, 1891.djvu/94

 86 is done only when the sea is smooth. A flat stone is taken and thrown along the surface of the water. The aim of the player is to make it rebound the greatest number of times on the surface before it. The children inland, that live near streams, lochs, or ponds, have the same pastime. It is called "skippin'" (Keith), and the first stroke on the water used to be called "the drake", the second "the deuk", and the rest "the young deuks" (Personal).

{i) Another pastime among boys inland was "cuttin' the water". A thin, sharp-edged stone was chosen, and the boy took his stand beside the pool or pond (if a little above the level of the water so much the better), and tried to strike the water without dashing it up. To do so with neatness requires a good deal of practice.

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