_Proof of a Sword_ (vol. iv., p. 39.).--ENSIS asks, "What is the usual
test of a good blade?" The proof by striking on the surface of smooth
water, is not uncommon in India; though, in my opinion, it is a very
inefficient one, and there is no doubt that "the Toledo blades in the
Crystal Palace" would stand it as well as any others of moderate
goodness. "The Toledo blades that _roll_ up in a circle" can be as
easily made in England as in Spain, but they are useless toys: there is
an English one in the Exhibition, Class viii., Case 200., which fits
into the circular Toledo scabbard placed above it; but they are only
curious to the uninitiated. What, then, is an efficient proof? I reply,
first strike the flat side of the blade on an iron table (by means of a
machine) with a force of 300 to 400 lbs., and then on the edge and back
over a round piece of hard wood with a force of 400 to 500 lbs.: after
which thrust the point as hard as possible against a thick iron plate
and through a cuirass, without turning or breaking it, and bend so as to
reduce the length in the proportion of about one inch and a half to a
foot. When thus proved, a sword may be relied on, and the operation may
be seen every day at 27. Pall Mall.