--- "John M. Bennett" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >
Oh Lord, what have I wrought?!
>
> Michael: what are "conkers"?
>
>Hello John,
Well, conkers are the seeds or nut of the horse
chestnut tree. They are found the the spikey pods that
spill out their conkers in september if small boys
havent thrown sticks into the trees first to knock
them down.
The game of "conkers" started in 1845 or thereabouts
and the two players must drill a hole through their
conker and thread a peice of stout string through and
tie a knot at the end so that it doesnt fall off. The
players or combatents must take it in turns to swing
their conker and knock it against the apponants conker
to try and damage it and ultimately smash it into two
pieces. Victorous conkers of two games are called
"twoers" and five games "fivers" and so on.
Conkers fresh from their casings are a beautiful
polished russet colour but soon dull and wrinkle,
especially after a few battles! One can improve the
look and strength by boiling in vinegar and baking in
ovens but this is cheating as far as I'm concerned!
Lots of websites about conker championships. Put in a
search and see some photos of conkering in action!
All the best, michael
____________________________________________________________
Yahoo! Messenger - Communicate instantly..."Ping"
your friends today! Download Messenger Now
http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com/download/index.html
