Lizzie Borden Society Forum

From the LB virtual museum & library list " you know you're a brodenite when "
You've tried to do the "egg thing" that Hannah Reagan bet Lizzie she couldn't do.
Whats that about ?

The "egg thing" refers to an incident testified to by jail matron Hannah Reagan while Lizzie was awaiting the Preliminary hearing. This is Mrs. Reagan's testimony from the trial, page 1221+.

"Q. Now let me go a little further and see if I can refresh your recollection. Don't you remember that Mrs. Holmes was there that afternoon and you had some conversation about an egg?
A. About what?
Q. About an egg.
A. I remember about the egg, but I couldn't tell you whether it was that afternoon or not, sir.
Q. What was it about the egg?
A. The breaking of an egg.
Q. Well, what was said or done?
A. We were talking in the afternoon, me and Lizzie Borden, and I says, "I can tell you one thing you can't do," and she says, "Tell me what it is, Mrs. Reagan." I says, "Break an egg, Miss Borden," and she says, "Break an egg?" I says, "Yes." "Well," she says, "I can break an egg." I says, "Not the way I would tell you to break it." She says, "Well, what way is it, Mrs. Reagan?" So I told her that she couldn't break it the way I wanted her to break it, and I said I would bet her a dollar that she couldn't, and she said she would bet me a quarter, and in the afternoon some one fetched Lizzie an egg, and Miss Emma Borden was sitting down beside her, and I told Miss Emma Borden to get a little ways away, "because," I said, "if she will break the egg the wrong way it will destroy your dress," and she did get the egg, and she got it in her hands, and she couldn't break it, and she says, "There," she says, "that is the first thing that I undertook to do that I never could."

That must have been that old belief that you cant break an egg in your hand by squeezing it? A friend of mine told me I couldn't break an egg that way when I was twelve. The yolk squirted out about ten feet all around. He was from Lizzie's home state.

-1bigsteve (o:

Hi Hyacinth, welcome to the Forum! I found a video that best illustrates how this trick is to be done. You don't squeeze the egg around the middle, you try to break it by squeezing the top and bottom of the egg. Though I imagine if you are a bodybuilder like our Big Steve, all bets are off!

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/352944/th ... kable_egg/

hmmm read that carefully.."break the egg the wrong way it will destroy your dress..." No, you can break an egg by squeezing it. that's the suggestion here.

There is one other way that while it's not impossible, it's certainly not easy to do. Hold the egg upright, between the thumb and forefinger, and try breaking it using only those two fingers. See what I mean?

Susan, you beat me to it. That video link is just what I was thinking of!!

Shame on you Doug! I got egg on my belt, right sleeve, left pant leg and boot. Thank goodness I wasn't wearing a dress. Next time I'll do it outside.

That was fun. Got any other tricks?

You mean Lizzie was not above in engaging in a little fun? Way to go Lizzie!

-1bigsteve (o:

well, not everybody's a Mickey Hargitay yaknow, pal. I wonder if that same trick would work with a hard boiled egg?? probably not...

Thanks , I was wondering if they were betting Lizzie couldn't lay an egg. Lizzie Borhen ?

Thanks for the video Susan. It's nice to have finally figured out just what the egg trick was all about.

You're welcome. Its amazing how long that trick has been around, I was shown that trick as a girl. I wonder if it was old even by Lizzie's time?