[fgoodwin]

What HuntsvilleTxVeteran called “splits” was called “mumbly peg” by the kids I hung out with back in the 50s.

In fact, mumbly peg is the name for yet another game: rapidly sticking a knife between the fingers (see: http://www.makemeking.com/home/dares/381/Mumbly_Peg.html)

So which is the “real” mumbly peg? Your guess is as good as mine.

[mylife]

Mumbly peg as I recall it was like the game I described sans the groveling for the peg in the dirt.

[fgoodwin]

Here’s yet another game called “mumbly peg” different still from the versions described earlier:

http://www.motherearthnews.com/DIY/1978-05-01/Two-Games-for-a-Knife-and-a-Way-of-Life.aspx

Photos:
http://www.motherearthnews.com/gallery.aspx?id=66236&seq=1

I don’t know if there is a universally accepted definition of the game, and maybe we called the wrong game “mumbly peg”, but that’s what it was called where I grew up.