"You say nothing," remarked one of my hearers, "about the movement,
which consists in reversing the lunge."
"No," I answered; "because I believe that this device, which is only
proper in certain exceptional circumstances, is likely to prove very
dangerous if it is employed at the wrong moment or at random. If it
does not come off, you are left without defence at your opponent's
mercy.
"To put the matter shortly:--if you adopt my plan, you retire and at
the same moment offer your point either with a straight thrust or with
a disengagement; then you immediately recover your guard and bring
your forearm back to its original position. Whether your thrust has
succeeded or not, you are always provided with a sound defence, you are
set firmly on your legs, your balance is undisturbed, and upon your
opponent's advance you can repeat the process again and again.
"Now suppose that you decide to lunge to the rear; that is to say, to
reverse the lunge by throwing the left leg back to its full extent and
dropping the body, without moving the right foot; well, when will you
do this and how?
"You are not an expert. What secret instinct will inform you that the
opportune moment has come for executing this manoeuvre? For after you
have executed it, you must recover, and recover smartly, if you are
to regain your guard; no easy matter, I assure you. In attempting to
perform a movement so complicated, you with your want of experience can
hardly fail to be thrown into disorder, to the great advantage of your
adversary, who will seize the opportunity to press you briskly and get
command of your blade.
"Even supposing that you escape from this danger, you cannot go on
repeating the process continually; you cannot repeat it indifferently
on every attack, or on every semblance of an attack that is made upon
you. You must judge your opportunity. Now fencing judgment, especially
in a duel, implies knowledge, and remember we are arguing on the
assumption that you are ignorant.
"For these reasons I should never think of recommending the lunge to
the rear to anyone who has not acquired some familiarity with his
weapon.