Mumbly Peg

Joined
Jan 2, 2001
Messages
208
We used to spend countless hours playing this game when I was a kid. I even remember being quite good at it. I would really like to teach my two boys how to play, but I'll be darned if I can remember how. Does anybody know or remember the rules (steps) to this game. TIA
 
We used to play it where you start with the knife on the tip of your finger, then hand, then elbow, etc.

I'm like you, I can't for the life of me remember the rules.

I do remember jumping out of the way a lot, though (avoiding knife through foot).
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Oops! Wrong thread.
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Ken
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"Don't interfere with anything in the Constitution. That must be maintained, for it is the only safeguard of our liberties.
----Abraham Lincoln

[This message has been edited by remster135 (edited 03-18-2001).]
 
Websearcdh on http://www.google.com for "Mumblety Peg" found several live entries. Best information:

According to my Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary (the only source I have at hand at the moment) "mumblety peg" or "mumble the peg" entered the English language around 1630.

http://www.freerepublic.com/forum/a39b9191f28a8.htm

Mumblety-Peg is an old pastime, consisting of tossing a pocket-knife from various positions so that the blade will stick in the ground.

Equipment.--While any pocket knife may be used, the Boy-Scout knife is official for tournament play. The leather punch which this type of knife carries is used instead of the blade - this reduces the danger of players cutting themselves.

Matches.--A match consists of three long games or seven short games. The best two out of three long games or four out of seven short games determines the winner.

Playing Rules.--Players may either sit or kneel on the ground. All throws are made with the right hand unless otherwise specified below. The knife when thrown must stick in the ground so that the referee can place at least two fingers between the ground and the handle of the knife. Each contestant performs the following series of stunts in order. The long game is for boys, and the short game for girls.

The following series of stunts is that considered as official by the National Recreation Association.

Penknife Rules (Long Game):

Front..--Knife on palm of right hand with blade toward finger tips, toss knife upward and inward causing blade to stick in ground.
Back.--Place knife on back of right hand and toss as for front.

Punch.--Make a fist with right hand. Place knife handle across the fingernails with blade toward thumb; twist hand quickly toward the left sticking blade into the ground.

Snaps.--Hold blade between thumb and forefinger of left hand with handle pointing toward the right. Strike the handle downward sharply with right hand, causing blade to stick into the ground.

Seven Pennies.--Hold blade between thumb and first finger of right hand with handle away from contestant and snap knife away from tosser, sticking it into the ground. This must be done seven times in succession.

Around the Horn.--Hold blade of knife between the index finger and thumb of right hand, as for Pennies, and swing the knife, with handle toward the ground, around the head from left to right; then snap away from tosser as in Seven Pennies.

Shave the Peg.--Place blade between the first and second fingers and hold with thumb, have handle pointing away from body and point of blade toward person tossing; snap knife away from tosser.

Cut Left.--Hold knife as for Pennies and snap downward across left arm striking left wrist with the right.

Cut Right.--Opposite to Cut Left.

Headings.--Same as for Seven Pennies except the handle of the knife is touched against the forehead before snapping.

Chinnings.--Same as Headings except that chin is touched with handle.

Snaps.--See Rule 4; must be done three times in succession.

Drop In and Pull Out.--Hold knife handle between thumb and forefinger of right hand and drop the knife through a hole made by touching the tips of the forefinger and thumb of the left hand. After blade sticks in ground, pull knife back through the hole by the blade with the handle touching ground and the index finger and thumb holding blade; snap as in Seven Pennies.

Shave the Barber.--Hold left hand with palm in and little finger toward the ground. Place knife flat against the palm of left hand with cutting edge toward tosser and handle toward the ground. With the fingers of the right hand pull blade of knife toward the contestant, giving a downward snap.
Lady Dives.--Hold right hand vertical with back of it toward the players; place point of knife against the heel of the hand and the handle against the fingertips; push upward and forward, giving a loop effect to the knife.

Pinwheel--With the handle at right angles to the right hand and the arm at right angles to the body, hold the point of the blade loosely between thumb and first finger; flip the knife toward the left with a downward push of the thumb.

Kick 'Em Out.--Place handle of knife flat on palm of left hand with the blade protruding over the little finger side; strike blade downward with right hand.

Cop's Club.--Hold knife as for Seven Pennies, but flip toward tosser. Immediately strike upward with same hand causing knife to spin in opposite direction.

Tony Chestnut.--Starting at toe place point of blade on end of shoe and snap away from player. Repeat same at knee, again at the chest, and then from front part of the head. The toe may be elevated and the point of the knife may be placed against thumb when snapping from chest.

Fingers.--Same as Pennies except that the blade is held between the thumb and each finger consecutively and two snaps are made with the first finger and thumb and one with the second, third and little fingers.
Johnny Jump the Fence.--Stick knife into ground at an angle and about one foot away place left hand with palm toward the knife and little finger touching the ground; with the right hand strike the knife up and forward, causing it to go over the left hand or fence and stick into the ground.

O-U-T Period.--Place point of knife on left wrist and with right thumb and forefinger on top of knife snap to ground; at the same time say "0," repeat at elbow and say "U," repeat at shoulder and say "T." Make a fist as in "Punch" and place knife along fingernails with blade toward little finger side; twist wrist inward quickly and say "period." These last four stunts must be performed consecutively in order to complete the game.

Penknife Rules (Short Game):

Front.--Same as Long Game.
Back.--Same as Long Game.
Punch.--Same as Long Game.

Rabbit's Ears.--Extend index and little fingers; hold the second and third fingers closed with thumb; rest knife on extended fingers with blade toward thumb side; stick knife into ground with inward twist of wrist.

Snaps.--Same as Long Game.

Five Pennies.--Same as Long Game except five flips are made in succession instead of seven.

Slice the Ham --With the left palm toward the player place point of knife against the thick of the hand near the little finger side, handle of knife toward the thumb side of hand. With right forefinger and thumb end of the handle pull the knife toward the contestant.

Lady Dives.--Same as Long Game.
Shave the Peg.--Same as Long Game.
Cut Right.--Same as Long Game.
Cut Left.--Same as Long Game.
O-U-T Period.--Same as Long Game.

 
Hey EB, thanks. I dont remember our game being quite that complicated, but it is interesting to know the real rules. You failed to state one step ( which must have been exclusive to our neighborhood, but my favorite part). Determined by the number of something in the final throws, the winner got to take so many wacks at the peg with the handle of the knife (to drive it further into the ground). The loser then had to remove the peg from the ground with his teeth. Boy the things we used to do for fun. No wonder my face was always dirty.
 
When I was a kid, the game we played was simply throwing the knife in the ground to make it stick. In one variation, we would throw it farther and farther out and the other guy had to stretch his leg to reach it. Game was won when he could no longer make the stretch. In the other version, called "chicken," you started out stretched and you threw it toward the center and kept moving the legs in. Game was over when the feet were close together and one of you was afraid to let the other guy throw.
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Hey Yitz,

That's the way I remember it being played(Both ways)and with a live blade, not a leather punch. Must be a New York thing
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C.O.'s-"It takes balls to work behind the walls "
 
Stretch and chicken were big with me growing up also think its more an EastCoast thing.We played mumbly-Peg but had are own rules. We used to flip that knife off of every part of our bodies but it always usually came back to stretch or chicken.
Bob

[This message has been edited by Strider (edited 03-19-2001).]
 
Jailhack:
Leather punch? I don't know what that is. When I was a kid, we didn't even have shoes!
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Anymore, a group of kids playing this would probably end up in jail. That is a shame.

Life is good............

Greg

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Always do right....this will gratify some and astonish the rest.
Mark Twain
 
Learned one other game that was called mumblety peg locally. spread your left hand on the table, starting with the knife between thumb and forefinger, move it back and forth from there to between index and middle finger than twixt middle and ring then 'tween ring and pinky, then work your way back. start slowly, gradually going faster.do this till either your nerve or your reflexes fail.

needless to say, we very rarely actually did this with a blade, or most of my friends would be sans digits.

Dave

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A syllogism is a logical statement in three parts.
This is not a syllogism.
 
Kkimo-That`s how I thought it was played. Just like Bishop, the android, in Alien 2. I`d never heard of the other game.
 
We also played the version with both standing with legs wide apart and throwing into the ground between. Gradually moving the feet closer until one person gives up. I also remember sticking a pocket knife into my Brother's shin doing this. He was none too happy about that, I'll tell ya!


"If you can't beat em, arrange for them to be beaten!"



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Danbo, soul brother of Rambo
 
Hey, nothing says "I love ya, bro" like a knifeblade in the nads.

One of those situations where when you lose, it's usually a good thing.

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Professor.
 
I remember the stretch game, but the chicken game sounds pretty cool!
EB's "official" version sounds to dangerous for an old bird like me!
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"May you live in interesting times"

AKTI - A000389
 
I just found those rules on a websearch. We played a much simpler game. We also aimed for the dirt, not each others' feet or shins, and we never played that "Russian roulette with knives" !!! Ouch
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Using the awl -- hey, call it a spike if 'awl' sounds to wimpy for ya -- we flipped the knife off fingers, elbows, arms, chins, foreheads. we also 'jumped the fence' by sticking it in the dirt and then smacking it over a hand held in front of the knife.

No wonder kids today shoot each other up. They don't grow up with an appreciation for the fun things you can do with weapons. We would have gone out to play without shoes before we left our knives at home. Well, maybe not without shoes in NY with all those dogs.

I never dreamed anyone would cut someone with a knife. Maybe bash them with a spaldeen ... that was a weapon of choice!
 
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Equipment.--While any pocket knife may be used, the Boy-Scout knife is official for tournament play. The leather punch which this type of knife carries is used instead of the blade - this reduces the danger of players cutting themselves.</font>
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Kinda funny since throwing an open knife like this is against the rules that I read. -for cub scout totin' chip
 
Boy this thread, sure brought back memories. All those games, stretch, chicken and mumbly peg, were a summer activity, back in my youth. And yes, it must have been a east coast thing, or more specifically a north east thing, as I was raised in north Jersey. Thanks for the trip down memory lane. Al
 
strech and chicken were both played as well as mumbly peg and eat the peg the peg games were the same 'cept that eat the peg had the loser draw a peg from the groung with the teeth. rules were as follows:

using a small pen knife (or a large one if you have good callouses) fip the knife off eah finger going from pinkie to thumb, then the front and back hand flips as described above, then the wrist elbow shoulder head (twice) and back down the 1st one back to the pinkie is the winner, occaionally we played for blades. Chances were also allowed in some games if you mis you can stop and wait for te other person to go or take a chance if you miss again you must start over at the pinkie on your next turn we played in the ground and on stumps.

 
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