Posted by The Game of Familiar Quotations is an old card game which was published by McLoughlin Brothers of New York in 1887. Consisting of 42 cards, the object of the game is to match the familiar quotations from 14 different authors. The player with the most points at the end (determined from these matches) wins the game.
The game begins by dealing all the cards out to the players. Once this is finished, each player looks at their cards. If they happen to have a set of three which is needed to complete a match, they can immediately place ‘the book’ in front of them on the table. Below is an example of a ‘book.’
Play continues with each player taking turns trying to complete ‘books’ from in their hand and laying them down. This is accomplished by players reading the bottom quote from a card to any player of their choice. If that player has the card with the quotation or name at the top, he must give the player his card. The player then asks for ‘the author’ and is given that card to complete the ‘book.’
For example, (from the set above), if the player had a Shakespeare card with the quote, “All the world’s a stage” at the bottom, he would read this to another player.
If the player is successful and receives the cards he asks for, his turn continues. If a player being asked does not have the card which is being called for, the turn is ended and it would be the next players turn. The game is ended when all ‘books’ are completed.
There are three American author cards and eleven English author cards with familiar quotations written on them. After all cards are matched, each player calculates their points. American author ‘books’ are worth 2 points and English author cards are 1 point.
The American cards and their quotes are as follows:
Franklin- “Time is money” and “Snug as a bug in a rug”
Bryant- “The groves were God’s first temples” and “The rock-ribbed hills”
Emerson-“Hitch your wagon to a star” and “Good is a good doctor”
The English cards and their quotes are as follows:
Byron- “Fools are my theme” and “When Rome falls –the world”
Scott- “Love is heaven” and “Beard the lion in his den”
Carlyle- “Silence is deep as eternity” and “Clever men are good”
Browning- “God is the perfect poet” and “Italy, my Italy”
Shakespeare-“All the world’s a stage” and “In single blessedness”
Coleridge-“Red as the rose is she” and “A sadder and a wiser man”
Tennyson- “He that runs may read” and “Across the walnuts and the wine”
Goldsmith- “Silence gives consent” and “The luxury of doing good”
Burns- “Auld lang syne” and “Pleasures are like poppies spread”
Ben Jonson- “Care’ll kill the cat” and “That old bald cheater, Time”
Moore- “Oft in the stilly night” and “Eyes of unholy blue”
The old card game of Familiar Quotations is small in size and quick in play but provides a unique look into some of literary’s treasured words.
