Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 53.djvu/825

Rh and dams, paddle-wheels and boats, simple machinery of all kinds. Many games are now played: "duck on the rock," "black man," "blindman's buff," "crokinole," "croquet," "leapfrog"; simple feats of all kinds, turning somersaults, rolling over backward, marbles, "mumble the peg," "prisoner's base," "puss in the corner," "tiddledywinks," "touch wood." Girls play some of these games: hunt the handkerchief, many games in which the circle is used, one individual running inside or outside, hide and go seek. These games are almost exclusively individualistic and competitive, forming a strong contrast to the plays of early childhood. The distinction between girls and boys in the plays of this period is marked. Boys play games in which competition is more intense, muscular co-ordinations more accurate, and the constructive work more definite and logical.

During early adolescence—from twelve to seventeen—is preeminently the group game period: baseball, football, hare-and-hounds, hockey, lacrosse, basket-ball, all sorts of tournaments. It seems to be the age for the formation of gangs. Boys love to play Indian; they have their "pals"; play robber, and sometimes act it. The predatory instinct develops early in this period. Most boys steal apples or watermelons, or something of the kind, not because they want them, but because of an inherent demand. It is a special period for the love of outdoor life; camping out appeals to the boy strongly; to build fires. He now enjoys fishing. He is possessed with a great desire to hunt, to fight Indians, and to discover the north pole. Adventure of all kinds fascinates him. His spontaneous reading reflects these same plays. Stories of chivalry, of adventure, of discovery, fascinate him. He loves animals often—some particular dog, or cat, or horse. He favors strange pets. If he has the opportunity, he will probably have the "hen fever," or something analogous, and a garden that he will take care of with great diligence for a little while. This is a large group of plays. Two elements seem to predominate: (1) that the plays are predominantly team games, in which the individual is more or less sacrificed for the whole, in which there is obedience to a captain, in which there is co-operation among a number for a given end, in which the play has a programme and plan. The second characteristic is, the period, with reference to its place, seems to be all of savage outdoor life—hunting, fishing, stealing, fighting, hero-worship, adventure, love of animals, etc. This characterization obtains more with reference to boys than to girls. I have not studied the plays of girls for this period.

During later adolescence—seventeen to twenty-three—there is a development of these same plays and games, but they are sufficiently different, so as, I think, to warrant making a separate group of them. The plays are pushed to the limit of endurance and strength, as they