Charade No. 36

My first the lawyer and the beggar urge,
And when they've gain'd their point they are my second.
And if you look the world all round and round
My whole, man's chief pursuit is too much reckon'd.

Enjoy!

Charade No. 35

Apologies for not posting in quite a while. Here is a charade originally published in a magazine where the winner sent his or her answer in rhyme. Once one of you has guessed the answer, I will post the rhyming version.

Take the name of a thing that your body contains,
Then scan all your thoughts, and puzzle your brains,
Add to it a thing, which in vallies (sic) is plenty,
But go to the hills and you’ll find it right scanty;
And those two together, when you have made known,
To the world you’ll discover a rich trading town.

Enjoy!

Charade No. 34

You witness in my beauteous first
The wonders of creation;
My next is blessed or accurst (cursed),
As he fulfills his station:
My total (whole) dances round the year;
The present soon will disappear.

Enjoy!

Charade No. 33

My first is a plaything;
My second few play with;
My whole plays with nobody.

Charade No. 32

My first descends from yon eternal skies;
A winged weapon from my second flies;
And in my whole these colors may be seen,
Yellow and blue, as well as red and green.

How to Find Regency Charades

Here are a few pointers if you’d like to find Regency charades on your own.

The most available sources for a modern collector are books and bound magazines. Originals can cost up to hundreds or (low) thousands of dollars (USD). A warning: some of these have very poor bindings; these were often intended to be rebound to the taste of the purchaser, a common practice in that period.

Now that many older books are being reprinted by automated processes, collections can be found for a lot less, up to roughly 20 - 40 USD. There are some difficulties with these newer versions: many have errors in the text due to the scanning and optical character recognition (OCR) software that are sometimes used; some listings have disclaimers about this. Another issue is that the online listings don’t often list the original publication date, so you may want to contact the bookseller to get this and other details.

Some good places to look:

• Bookfinder (www.bookfinder.com): this is a “federated search” site for many antiquarian book dealers and sites, including AbeBooks, Alibris, and many smaller dealers, as well as Amazon and eBay. This is a favorite of mine, but you will find that a search on “charades” returns many titles that have nothing to do with Regency charades.

• eBay (www.ebay.com): there are sometimes good bargains on this site.

• Amazon (www.amazon.com): includes listings by some sellers.

When searching, keep in mind that titles originally published after about 1840 are often about acting charades, rather than the rhyming riddles featured in this blog.

Another source, in case you don't necessarily want to buy, is the Special Collections department of a university or major public library.

If you have other sources to recommend, or have found an interesting collection, please post a comment to share.

Enjoy!

Charade No. 31

Oh! dear loved first, without thy useful aid,
This my charade would never have been made.
My second modern misses think the fashion,
By giving way to an imprudent passion;
My whole in Homer's Odyssey you'll find,
A noble pattern for all womankind.

Enjoy!

Charade No. 30

When Strephon tells his tender tale,
To Celia, young and gay,
Without my first, the melting strains
Would die unheard away:

But if the gentle nymph inclines
His passion to approve;
By them, ere long my second's sought,
To crown their virtuous love.

Possest [possessed] of this, 'tis ten to one,
Before the year goes round,
Attending near her lovely cheek,
My tout-ensemble's [whole] found.

Charade No. 29 - En Français!

Charades began in France; here is one in French.

Jeunes fillettes, mon premier
Souvent occupe vos pensées;
Vous sentez que dans mon dernier
Vous pourriez être delaisses.
Songez donc vite à mon entiere,
Mais gardez-vous a être abusées;
Tel qui parait souple est altier,
Et par de faux dehors les femmes sont trompées.

J'espère que tu apprécies!

Charade No. 28 - Answer unknown (so far!)

I have published answers available for many, but not all, of the Regency charades I have collected. This one appeared on a folding fan; I have not yet found a copy that includes an answer.

My first some often take
Entirely for my second's sake.
But very few indeed there are
Who both together well can bear.

I look forward to seeing your guesses!

Charade No. 27

A liquor, my first, of true English make,
Sometimes of an Evening a glass-full I take;
And when I have friends, such as Herry or Jem,
My next, with my first I fill up to the brim:
How smart in my closet, my total (whole) appears,
A place it has had there a number of years.

Enjoy!

Charade No. 26

My first is a serpent, my next is a rag, my third
is you and me, and my whole is a vegetable.

A few of the charades, like this one, didn't rhyme.

Charade No. 25

My first, 'tis true, may be a wound,
And give both smart and woe;
But if my second's constant found,
It sooths full many a throe;
My whole in vain its edge may boast
To awe the gallant tar,
Whose valour guards the British coast,
And mocks the din of war.

Enjoy!

Charade No. 24

Chloe I love, and yet I plainly see
That I my first from her shall soon receive;
Yet she's the very second made for me,
And that she loves me I would fain believe;
But all her anxious friends around her cry,
"He has my whole; 'tis madness to comply."

(quotes added)

Charade No. 23

Tho' my first to my second gives birth,
In their age no distinction prevails;
In my whole they are one, which on earth,
As the parent of rest, labor hails.

Enjoy!

Charade No. 22

My first's the foe of rats and mice,
My next you'll meet with in a fair;
My third of various form and price,
Oft decorates a lady's hair:
My whole, in foreign climes is said
To form a mansion for the dead.

Enjoy!

Charade No. 21

My first I hope you are;
My second I see you are;
And my whole I know you are.

Charade No. 20

My first is a plaything;
My second few play with;
My third [whole] plays with nobody.

Charade No. 19 (with answer in verse)

I had mentioned in an earlier post that it was sometimes the practice to provide an answer to a charade in verse. This was done, for example, in some magazines, where readers submitted their answers in rhyming form, and the magazine published one or more.

Here is one of them. The first comment gives the original rhymed answer.

My first you will be,
    If you're good and upright;
My second you'll see
    In a sharp frosty night.

Together combin'd
    I'm a virtue that's great,
That should govern each mind,
    And preside in each state.

Charade No. 18

A country enrich'd by my first
While peace and prosperity reign,
May yet be reduc'd to the dust,
If pleasure ascendancy gain.

My second has never been seen,
Nor ever by stratagem bound;
But yet in all countries has been,
And only is known by a sound.
 
There is not a seafaring soul,
That has to the Indies been borne,
But owes to the aid of my whole
His safety and speedy return.


Enjoy!