Texian Stomping Grounds Page: 145
162 p. : ill. ; 24 cm.View a full description of this book.
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PIONEER CHILDREN'S GAMES
If the rider said he wanted a thorn bed, his carrier laid him
down very gently. If he said he wanted a feather bed, he was
shaken off very roughly. So ended the game.
Texas Grunt
Children joined hands in a circle and marched around "It,"
who stood blind-folded in the center. "It" held a stick with
which he beat upon the ground as a signal for the marching to
stop. Then "It" walked straight ahead till he touched a child.
The touched child had to give a grunt. If "It" guessed the name
of the child giving the grunt, they exchanged places, and the
grunter became "It." If he failed to guess correctly, the game
continued until he made a correct guess. The fun came in when
the grunting child tried to mimic another person. The game
could also be played indoors.
Old Uncle Tom
The witch (boy or girl) sat on the ground surrounded by a
group of children. Another child, called Old Uncle Tom, ap-
proached from the outside and pretended to knock at the door.
WITCH. Who's that knocking at my door?
o.u.T. Old Uncle Tom.
wrrITCH. What wants Old Uncle Tom?
o.u.T. To light my pipe.
WITCH. Ain't no fire.
O.U.T. Saw a mighty big smoke over here coming out of your
chimney.
WrrcH. Come on in then and light your pipe
(Uncle Tom comes in and pretends to go through a lot of
pipe-smoking).
WITCH. What else do you want?
o.U.T. One of your chickens.
WITCH. Shan't have any.
(Old Uncle Tom walks away sobbing and crying vocif-
erously).
WITCH. Come back. You can have this one.
(Witch points to a child and Uncle Tom leads him away).
The same thing was repeated until all children were claimed.
Then the witch jumped up and tried to get her chickens away
from Old Uncle Tom. All lined up behind Uncle Tom, who
fought off the witch until all were caught again, as in Chickimee
Craney Crow.145
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Texian Stomping Grounds (Book)
Collection containing sketches of post-war life in East Texas, including descriptions of early recreations and games, stories about Southern food and cooking, religious anecdotes, Negro folk tales, a first-hand account of a Negro folk play about the life of Christ, and other miscellaneous folklore. The index begins on page 159.
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Dobie, J. Frank (James Frank), 1888-1964. Texian Stomping Grounds, book, 1941; Dallas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc67663/m1/153/: accessed April 23, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Press.