lie Trench Marble 



^llfci-S; Play ed •. 



**^?^$s/^ 



AN exceedingly interesting marble 

 game can be played by using the 

 trench system of laterals. 



The device is mounted on a board 

 9" X 20", preferably of soft pine, an 

 inch thick. This has strips on one end 

 and along the two sides 

 which project an inch 

 above the surface of the 

 board. Between these 

 strips are nine zig-zag walls, 

 each an inch in width, or in 

 height, which are arranged 

 ^" apart. 



The detail drawing shows 

 one of these strips in per- 

 spective. Each section, be- 

 tween the bends, is lyi" in 

 length, except the first 

 section, which is ^". The 

 chance element of the game 

 is provided for by forming 

 openings, at odd intervals, 

 through the zig-zag walls. 

 No two strips are alike in 

 this particular. 



Use heavy block tin, or 

 No. 18 gage galvanized 

 iron. After cutting each 

 strip lY/ wide and iiK" 

 long, make the seven cross 

 marks where the bends are 

 to be, as shown, 

 and then cut out 

 openings at the 

 places indicated. 

 Then, at each 

 corner, cut a 



„„ . ., rflSTENINS TIPS 



OPENINGS 



VltW OF STRIP BETWEEN LATERALS 3S &'«0 



Strip Indicating Details of the Second 

 Wall on the Playing Board 



triangular tip, or point, as 

 shown. 

 Lay out the board, showing 

 where each wall is to be placed, 

 and with a hammer drive the tips 

 into the board, after the wall is 

 put in position. In this manner 

 eight lateral trenches are formed which 

 lead to the main trench at the oppo- 

 site end of the board. 



The knuckles of the hand must not 

 pass beyond the end on the board in 

 shooting. The player may select any 

 lateral in shooting, the 

 object being to win the 

 highest number. The 

 device not only cultivates 

 accuracy in shooting, but 

 develops the element of 

 speed. 



When a marble is shot 

 into a particular lateral it 

 may or it may not follow 

 along that course from end 

 to end. Probably, if the 

 marble should be allowed 

 to roll by gravity along 

 each lateral, it would not 

 deviate. But the marble 

 must be shot, and the 

 result is that in passing the 

 bends in the lateral it is 

 thrown violently in the 

 direction of the communi- 

 cating trenches. For in- 

 stance, player A made his 

 shot into the lateral 5; at 

 the second bend it was di- 

 verted to trench 10, and a 

 little further on to lateral 

 25, only to be thrown back 

 again into 10. The player 

 B started in lateral 40, 

 but the marble ended in 

 the main trench at 15. 



455 



