6). Addy (_Sheffield Glossary_) under the name of Hop-score says it is a game in which certain squares are drawn or _scored_ on the ground. The piece of stone which is pushed with the foot is called the scotch. Elworthy (_West Somerset Words_) says a piece of tile is kicked over lines and into squares marked on the ground. It is called Hickety-Hackety, also Huckety. Cope (_Hampshire Glossary_) says it is played in Hants. Moor (_Suffolk Words and Phrases_) describes this game under the name of Scotch-hob, by hopping and kicking a bit of tile from bed to bed of a diagram which he gives (fig. 5, here printed). Brockett (_North Country Words_) calls it Beds. Barnes (_Dorset Glossary_) only says hopping over a parallelogram of scotches or chalk-lines on the ground.
The _dramatis personæ_ were a mother, an eldest daughter, the younger children, a witch, and a pot was represented by another child. The Mother names the children after the days of the week. She tells her eldest daughter that she is going to wash, and that she expects her to take great care of her sisters, and to be sure and not let the old witch take them. She is also to look after the dinner, and be sure and not let the pot boil over. The Mother then departs, and stays at a little distance from the others. The eldest daughter pretends to be very busy putting the house to rights, sweeps the floor, and makes everything tidy; the younger children pretend to play, and get in the elder sister s way. She gets angry with them, and pretends to beat them. Now, the girl who personates the Witch comes and raps with her knuckles on a supposed door. The Witch stooped when walking, and had a stick to help her along. Come in, says the eldest sister.
Suppose Dummy holds six clubs to the Ace King, and not another trick in his hand. The dealer has two small clubs only to lead. If the two winning clubs are led right out, it is impossible to catch the Q J 10, no matter how those cards lie, therefore the dealer leads a club, but makes no attempt to win the first round. No matter what is played by the adversaries he _=ducks=_ the first round, keeping his Ace and King. Next time the dealer gets in, he leads another club, and now he is able to win the second and third rounds of the suit, and will probably catch all the adverse cards and establish it. The dealer’s play always requires careful planning of the whole hand in advance. _=THE NULLO.=_ Although not yet in the official laws of the game, this bid seems to be a popular one with many players. It is a contract to lose tricks instead of winning them, and is primarily a defence against overwhelmingly strong no-trumpers. A bid of three nullos means that the declarer will force his opponents to win nine tricks, he winning four only, so that each trick _=under=_ seven counts for the nullo player on his side.
With antidote, I snapped. He trotted away. Darlin Billy! she said, and her heart stopped. She was dead. I picked her up in my arms and carried her to the same sawdust-strewn private dining room where I d given Barney the Blackout. I had to split the lift. The tourniquet was an absolute necessity, or more of the nerve poison would enter her system. But her heart _couldn t_ stop. The brain can only stand a few seconds of that. I hadn t let it miss three beats.
The same is true of a trey and deuce. _=Keeping.=_ In selecting the hand to keep, much depends on the score. Early in the game you want a counting hand; near the end, especially if you have only four or five points to go, you want a pegging hand; that is, one with every card different, so that you can pair several cards, or make fifteens with almost anything that the pone may lead. In keeping a counting hand, much depends on whether it is good in itself, or needs a starter. In reckoning on the possibilities of the starter, it must never be forgotten that there are sixteen tenth cards in the pack, and that they are therefore the most probable starters of all. It is better to keep sequences open at both ends than those open in the middle. With two Sevens and two Eights, either a Six or a Nine will make your hand worth 24; but with two Eights and two Sixes, nothing but a Seven will improve your hand more than 4 points. Sequences are the best to keep, especially those of three cards with a duplicate. After them pairs royal are valuable, and next to them cards which will make a number of fives in various combinations, such as two Threes and two deuces.