Chase and Catch Games Pebble Chase
( Chase and Catch, Guessing, Mystery )One player who is the leader holds a small pebble between the palms of his hands while the others stand grouped around him each with his hands extended palm to palm. The leader puts his hands between the palms of each player ostensibly to drop therein the pebble which he holds as in the game called “Button button.” The player who receives the pebble is chased by the others and may only be saved by returning to the leader and giving the pebble to him. This chase may begin as soon as the players suspect who has the pebble. Each player should therefore watch intently the hands and faces of the others to detect who gets it and immediately that he suspects one start to chase him. It is therefore to the interest of the player who gets the pebble to conceal that fact until the attention of the group is distracted from him when he may slip away and get a good start before he is detected. He may do this whenever he sees fit but may not delay after the leader has passed the last pair of hands. The leader will help to conceal the fact of who has the pebble by passing his hands between those of the entire group even though he should have dropped the pebble into the hands of one of the first players.
If the pebble holder gets back to the leader and gives him the pebble before being tagged he continues with the group. If the pebble holder is caught before he can get back to the leader he must pay a forfeit or change places with the leader whichever method is decided on before the game opens.
In a crowded playground it is well to require that the chasers follow over exactly the same route as the pebble man. Under such conditions the game is more successful if limited to ten players to a group.