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By Dan Beard
From a handful of straws or grass, one of the boys selects as many pieces as there are to be players in the proposed game. One of the blades of grass or pieces of straw is cut off so that it will be much shorter than the other pieces.
" Straw-holder " arranges the straws so that the top ends protrude from his closed fist, either perfectly even or irregular in their height above the hand according to his fancy.
It may happen that the first boy to choose a straw will select the short one. This in a measure spoils the fun, and to guard against it the lads are often made to stand up in a line and each one in turn pulls a straw from the fist of "Straw-holder." Each one is expected and required to put it behind his back immediately and keep it there until all the boys in the line have straws behind their backs.
Then "Straw-holder," holding up the straw left in his own hand, cries, "Who is short straw?" At that each boy produces his straw and compares it with the others.
While it adds greatly to the interest to have all the straws of different lengths, it is best to make the short straw unmistakably shorter than any of its fellows. Otherwise the game may be broken up by a heated and angry dispute, a state of affairs never desirable and one which is easily avoided by the precaution suggested above.
After comparison of the relative length of all the straws, the boy found with the shortest straw in his possession is "It."
OHB
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