Toxophilite, but this consisted only of men. Shortly afterwards many
other societies were started, among them in 1787 the Royal British
Bowmen, and to them belongs the honour of being the first to admit
ladies as members, and very sociable, pleasant gatherings they seem to
have had. Other societies soon followed this good example, some admitted
ladies as members, and some like the Woodmen of Arden only as guests.
The assemblies at Meriden are still held every year, the old customs
being strictly kept up.
[Illustration: _Hertfordshire Society of Archers_
_Dutchess of Leeds._ _Marchioness of Salisbury._ _Hon'ble Miss
Grimstone._ _Miss Seabright._]
Women were not slow to appreciate the gracefulness of archery, and it
soon became a fashionable amusement, the Lady Salisbury of the time
being one of its most ardent supporters. Most of the societies adopted a
distinctive dress, in which white and green predominated. The Royal
British Bowmen adorned their Lady Patroness with a white feather in her
hat, the other lady members being compelled to wear black ones, while
their dresses were green with pink vandykes round the edge of skirt. The
Harley Bush Bowmen were so fond of the distinctive colour, that they
even had green boots, and it is pleasant to know that it was provided by
the rules these should be "easy fitting!"
Archery was taken up very strongly in the closing years of the last
century, and of the doings of this period many interesting particulars
are to be found in the collections of Miss Bank Banks, daughter of Sir
Joseph Banks, which are in the British Museum. They give descriptions of
the various meetings, the balls given by the different societies at
which both ladies and gentlemen appeared in uniform, and one of the
anecdotes given may be worth quoting, as, if authentic, it shows greater
success with the bow than has been achieved by any woman in modern
times. "A match was shot at one hundred yards between Mr. Gilpin, Mr.
Wyburgh, and Miss Littledale, in which the last was victorious: during
the shooting, which lasted three hours, Miss Littledale hit the gold
four times, and, what evinces superior skill, the three last hits made
by Miss Littledale were in the gold."
Though archery was taken up so warmly, it died out a few years later, in
consequence of the war, and it was not again taken up until the final
conclusion of peace, in 1815, when it was revived. Many new societies
were started and old ones restored, and from this time it has continued
to flourish, not only in England but in many other parts of the world,
notably in the United States of America, the Mauritius, and at
Melbourne. Space prevents my mentioning these at length.
Besides these societies, which hold prize meetings at intervals, there
are five public meetings in the year, beginning with the Leamington and
Midland Counties' Meeting at Leamington, in June, where the
Championships of the Midland Counties are competed for. The Crystal
Palace Meeting follows, at which the Southern Counties' Championships
are shot for in July. The Grand National Meeting, where the
Championships of All England are shot for, and the Grand Western Archery
Meeting, at which the Championships of the West are awarded, come next,
either meeting being occasionally held before the other. The Grand
Northern Meeting for the Northern Counties' Championships is usually the
last held. These three meetings are held in a different place each year,
to encourage archery in local clubs. At the Grand National, in addition
to the prizes, badges and medals are given, and it is a great joy to the
young archeress to get her first "spider," which is a little brooch in
form of a target with three arrows placed through it.
[Illustration: _Archery Dresses_
(_About 1832_).]
If you wish to compete at a public meeting you pay a
subscription--unless you are an annual subscriber to that particular
society--and a target entrance fee, besides which each archer subscribes
sixpence a day, for the payment of the target boys. There are usually
five or six competitors at each target, No. 3 is the captain or scorer,
who has to keep order, instruct the boys how to pull the arrows out of
the ground, and see that the judge comes to measure golds, etc. She is
assisted in adding up and checking the scores at the target by No. 4,
the lieutenant.
The first Grand National Meeting was held in 1844 but no ladies shot,
and it was not until 1849 that the Double National Round was first shot
by ladies, so that it is only possible to compare the shooting
subsequent to this date. On this occasion the highest score (189) was
made by Miss Temple, two years later Miss Villiers making 504 with 108
hits, the second score being only 293. The number of 600 was first
reached by a lady in 1857, when Miss H. Chetwynd made 634, and this
score remained unbeaten till Mrs. Horniblow scored 660, which in its
turn was surpassed two years later by Miss Betham with 693.
It was not until 1870, at Bath, that 700 was attained, that score being
made by Mrs. Horniblow. Mrs. W. Butt added 52 to this record in 1876,
and this remained the top score until 1881, when Miss Legh made 763. The
highest score made by any lady at any Grand National was Mrs. Bowly's
823 in 1894. Miss Legh's 866 at Leamington, in 1895, being the highest
ever made by a lady at a public meeting, though perhaps the same
shooter's score at Bath, in 1881, of 840, was an even better
performance, as no arrow was dropped on either of the first two days,
and only one on the third.
It will thus be seen what a great improvement has taken place in
shooting during the last fifty years.
Beatrice P. M. Walrond.
[Illustration: _Lombards and Co. 13, Pall Mall East._
_MRS. BERENS._]
ARCHERY.--II.
I have been asked to write the practical part of this article, though
why I cannot imagine, for although I can sometimes pull off a good score
with bow and arrow--when the wind does not blow and when my loose is
good--I am of no use whatever with a pen, and never wrote an "article"
on anything in my life. The Badminton book on Archery, with its valuable
teaching, often stands me in good stead when I get into any of the
innumerable tricks which beset the path of the archer, and which well
nigh bring the beginner to _despair_ of ever becoming a steady shot. How
many beginners have I met who have had to learn by bitter experience
that to shoot a good arrow is not so easy as appears at first sight, and
that to make perhaps a very fine score of three hundred and odd, does
not by any means prove that one has conquered all difficulties. There
are so many things to think of at once, and though you may try to do
this conscientiously you will find your performance often terribly
inadequate. But after all the great fascination of archery consists in
the continual battling against faults which creep upon the archer
unawares. This we find to our cost on a windy day, for there is nothing
like wind to prove that we do not get the real power out of bow and
loose.
I always recommend to a beginner an inexpensive lancewood bow weighing
about twenty-four to twenty-six pounds, the cost of which amounts to
about twelve shillings, but when the archeress has practised
sufficiently to understand what she requires and _why_, then I should
advise a yew-backed yew of good quality as giving more cast and
retaining it longer than other kinds. I should perhaps say that by cast
is meant the rapidity and ease with which the arrow is delivered from
the bow. Many shooters prefer to use a self yew bow, but it must be
remembered that this is more delicate and requires to be drawn with
great care. A three piece bow of yew, fustic and hickory, price about
thirty shillings, will do good service, though the cast does not last so
long if one practises constantly, as that of the yew-backed yew. There
are many archers who have ruined their style and shooting with too
heavy a bow, one weighing twenty-seven or twenty-eight pounds can do all
that is necessary for the National Round of sixty and fifty yards if it
is properly handled, and for the six dozen arrows at seventy yards,
called the Hereford Round, I can use one of the same weight. For eighty
yards, however, I prefer a bow of twenty-nine or thirty pounds, still my
advice to all beginners is, "Do not shoot with a bow which is beyond
your control."
Now to choose the bow. The first thing to see to is that the grain of
the wood is straight, even, close, and free from knots or pins, more
especially on the rounded part and within about six inches of each end.
This applies to any sort of bow, but more especially to yew, as crysals
are apt to develop wherever there is a pin. A crysal is a small crack in
the wood, which at first is often difficult to detect, but which is a
serious source of weakness and often ends in the breaking of the bow.
The length of a lady's bow should be from 5 ft. 3 in. to 5 ft. 6 in.
[Illustration]
To string the bow, place the lower horn against your right foot, the
"back" or flat part of the bow towards the body, and taking the handle
of the bow in your right hand, place the ball of your left thumb four
inches from the top horn. Then while drawing it to you with the right
hand, press it from you with the left and slip the upper loop of the
string into the nock of the horn. The method of unstringing is precisely
similar, except that the loop is slipped out instead of being passed in.
When the bow is strung, the distance from the inside of the handle
should be five-and-a-half inches to the string, which for one inch above
and five inches below the handle should be neatly whipped with waxed
thread or silk to prevent its being injured, should it strike the
bracer. Then exactly opposite the top of the handle of the bow, the
nocking point must be made, which should be sufficiently tight to retain
the arrow when hanging downwards from the string. When strung the bow
should be held, string uppermost, the lower horn resting on the ground,
and on looking down the string, it should appear to cut the bow in the
centre. In a good bow the centre sixteen inches should be rigid, and
thence the bend should be regular and even. The string should be of the
best hemp whipped with silk, and a nocking point neatly made exactly in
the right spot. It is better looped at each end, as in the event of its
being slack it can then be twisted up in a moment, thus avoiding all
flurry of undoing in the old way of knotting the end. I have already
said that it is better to have a string with loops spliced at each end,
it is as well, however, to say how the loop can be made in a new string.
The knot is a timber hitch, to make which take a turn of the lower end
round the string and twist it three times round the loop. The string is
whipped in the following manner: String the bow and find the exact spot
where the nocking of the arrow will come, then wax the string for an
inch and a half above, and five inches below the spot, and take some
silk or carpet thread, also waxed, and lay half an inch of the thread
along the string beginning at the upper portion. Then wrap the thread
over that part of itself which has been laid down until the waxed
portion is covered. In order to fasten off, take six or seven turns of
the thread over the string in the reverse way, place the end of the
thread against that part of the lapping that was last done, wrap the
reverse turns of the thread over the end of the lapping of the string,
then pull the end through and cut it off. The manner of putting on the
knocking point is the same.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
The weight of the arrow is mainly determined by that of the bow. Arrows
are weighed against new silver, and when one talks of a 3/6 arrow, the
allusion is to the weight, not to the price. For a beginner a 3/- or 3/3
arrow is about right for a 26 pounds bow, but all these little points
are for the archer to work out for herself. If the experienced archer
should find that she has to aim considerably below the target, she may
increase the weight of the arrow with advantage, as the heavier the
arrow, the lower will be the trajectory. It is bad economy to have any
but the best arrows, and these should be made according to the archer's
pattern, that is to say, as to the colours on them, and should have her
name and the number painted on each. To prevent the paint from the
target sticking to the arrows, it is well to wipe the ends of the latter
with a little vaseline or sweet oil, and care should be taken to choose
the arrows of as nearly as possible the same weight before shooting, as
whatever they are marked, they are sure to vary slightly. The best
arrows are footed as it is termed, _i.e._, they have a piece of hard
wood dovetailed in at the pile end. The best shaped arrow for a beginner
is the straight one, and care should be taken that it is stiff, and not
weak at the feather end. There are two kinds of feathers, parabolic and
straight, but there is very little difference in their flight. The best
kind of feathers come from the wing of the peacock, turkey's wing
feathers being the next best.
[Illustration]
The other equipment required is an arm guard or bracer with straps, cut
out of one piece of brown leather,--the leather bracers lined with silk
having elastic fastenings are no good--and a belt with a quiver to hold
six arrows, as the first shooter at a target at a big meeting should
always have six arrows to shoot with, to avoid delay in the beginning.
On this belt should hang a tassel for wiping dirty arrows, a pencil and
scoring book, a little bag containing glove, extra string, a piece of
wax and some silk to whip the bow string when necessary. It is also
useful to have a knife, and a pair of scissors.
[Illustration]
As to the question of gloves or tips, I always recommend a kid glove, a
size larger than the ordinary wear, with pieces of smooth leather--not
soft or spongy--neatly sewn on to the three first fingers, care being
taken not to put the leather below the first joint of the finger. Many
people, however, shoot with either knuckle or screw tips, which are
bought ready made of the bow maker. If tips are used they should fit the
fingers accurately, all three being of the same thickness. It is
important to have two gloves or sets of tips for shooting in case of
accident, and they should be exactly alike. Other necessaries are a
waterproof bag for bow, and a wooden box with spaces for arrows.
The usual distances shot by women are sixty and fifty yards, four dozen
arrows at sixty yards and two dozen at fifty yards, being what is called
the National Round. Of late, shooting at seventy yards has been
re-introduced, six dozen arrows at that distance followed by four dozen
at sixty yards and two dozen at fifty yards, being named the Hereford
Round.
The targets are four feet in diameter and are made of twisted bands of
wheat straw fastened together with tar cord, then covered with painted
canvas. There are five concentric rings painted on them, the centre
gold, which scores nine, the red seven, blue five, black three, and
white one, and in scoring, the arrow counts as being in the highest
colour which it touches. The targets are supported by iron or wooden
stands, the centre of the target being four feet from the ground, and
slightly tilted back. They should not be placed at the exact distance it
is intended to shoot at, but from two to four yards further back, a mark
being placed in the ground at the correct distance for the archer to
stand on, and no one should be allowed to stand in front of the targets
except the archer who is actually shooting. It is important that quiet
should be maintained behind the target, and archers, especially at
public meetings, should assist the captain, whose duty it is to see that
order is kept.
The ground should be as level and smooth as possible, and the targets
should be placed exactly opposite each other; if more than one pair are
in use, the ground will require squaring, in order that the pairs may be
exactly opposite each other.
The directions given for the position for shooting hold good at all
distances, and no alteration ought to be made with the exception that
the left hand must be raised higher at the longer distance, greater
elevation being required in order to obtain a sufficiently high flight.
It is a great mistake to draw to a different place on the face, or not
to draw the arrow fully up, at the shorter distance. _Always_ draw the
arrow till the pile reaches the bow and your hand the right place, viz.,
under your right jaw below the axis of vision of the right eye.
Having described most of the details to be attended to, we now come to
the all important subject of how to shoot. I must first of all impress
on all beginners that it is absolutely necessary there should be
nothing on the dress which could by any means catch or interfere with
the string. Nothing is more suitable than a plain tailor-made dress, or
a skirt and blouse, the latter with no frills. The sleeves should be
sufficiently easy to allow the elbow perfect play without being too
large. In putting on the bracer care should be taken to keep the sleeve
smooth, any fulness being drawn to the back of the arm, and the top of
the sleeve pinned back out of the way.
_Standing._ Take up your position on the shooting spot, with feet six or
eight inches apart, standing easily in an upright position, with the
shoulders in a direct line between the targets. Care should be taken
that the knees are perfectly straight, the balance of the body being on
the heels, and the position of the shoulders must be obtained by moving
the feet and not by twisting the body.
_Nocking._ The bow to be held in a perpendicular position, between the
second knuckle of the first finger and the ball of the thumb of the left
hand. The main grasp of the bow should be in the upper part of the hand,
the other fingers being held close to the bow. The test as to whether
you are holding the bow correctly is to drop the left arm by the side,
the wrist being quite straight, and if the string touches the bracer,
the position of the bow in the hand is not correct. The nocking is to be
accomplished by bringing the arrow over the bow, which should be held
directly in front, and fitting it on the nocking place, remembering to
keep the cock feather--_i.e._, the one which is at right angles to the
nock--uppermost, and not to alter the grasp of the bow until after all
three arrows have been shot. Place the three fingers of the right hand
evenly on the string, and do not pinch the arrow with the first finger,
otherwise it will fall off the left hand at the moment of drawing. The
right wrist should be held straight.
[Illustration: _BEFORE THE DRAW._]
_Drawing._ The usual position of archers before they actually begin to
draw, is with the left elbow bent just above the hip, the bow being
perpendicular, but to speak from my own experience, I find it better to
hold the bow easily in the hand with the left elbow straight, though
without stiffness, raising both arms simultaneously on a level with the
point of aim. Then draw in a straight line with the target, till the
pile of the arrow comes on to the bow, and the right hand with the
fingers bent, is held in such a position that the thumb is pressed
against the throat below the jaw and under the axis of vision of the
right eye. The left arm should be straight but not rigid, the final
grasp of the bow being made directly the aim is taken. The head must be
erect, and turned towards the point of aim. The body should be erect and
the weight thrown as much as possible on the heels. A common fault I
have noticed with young archers, is to draw the right hand too high and
rest it outside the jaw instead of underneath it. This should be guarded
against. Bring the pile of the arrow on to the point of aim immediately,
keeping the right elbow up as you do so and the shoulders pressed back.
Every care, too, should be taken that the arrow does not "creep,"
_i.e._, that it is not allowed to slip forward on the bow.
_Aiming._ To aim correctly the archer should see the point of the arrow
covering the point of aim. By "the point of aim" I mean some given spot
on the target or ground, the height of which must be found by each
archer for herself, as it is governed by so many things, such as
difference in sight, height, weight, and cast of bow or arrow, etc.,
etc. If the archer finds that she has persistently to aim to the right
or left of the target, there being no wind, it is a proof that
something in her position, draw, or loose is incorrect, _i.e._ that she
does not stand with shoulders in line with the targets, or that she does
not keep her right hand in the proper position, or again that she does
not loose the arrow evenly from all three fingers at once. I must
caution every young archer against the terrible habit of merely glancing
at the target and then loosing the arrow, without taking proper aim.
Very many archers who have asked my advice on decreasing scores or
inability to hit the target have had really _no clear_ idea of any aim
whatever. They "think they aim at the top of the target," perhaps, but
by a system of catechising I discover that such is actually not the
case, and until a real firm point of aim is found and known to the
archer--though an occasional good score may be fluked--no lasting
progress will be made. Therefore as soon as you have learnt to draw up
properly, make it your next study to find your point of aim, and
remember that this will vary with different bows and according to the
direction of the wind, and also according to whether the atmosphere be
heavy or light.
_Loosing._ Remember that the grip of the left hand on the bow must not
give, nor the tension of the muscles be relaxed, until after the arrow
has left the string. Keep the right hand tight to its place, with the
thumb pressed under the jaw beneath the axis of vision of the right eye,
taking care not to relax the pull on the string until the moment of
release, or the arrow will creep. The release is effected by drawing the
fingers back evenly towards the thumb, and the hand must on no account
leave the face while this is being done, nor must it drop down or follow
the string in ever so slight a degree. The wrist must be straight and
the elbow well up. After the release keep up the bow hand and retain the
right hand in its place till the arrow has reached its destination, then
drop the right hand easily and without hurry, preparatory to nocking the
next arrow. Nothing is more ugly or more likely to unsettle you than any
flurry or undue haste.
It is well to warn beginners that great care must be taken of all the
archer's equipment. If the bow or arrows at any time get wet, they
should be carefully dried and the bow should not be replaced in its
waterproof case for some time. The feathers of the arrows can be
restored after being wet by passing them quickly backwards and forwards
above a jug of boiling water. Neither bow nor arrows should be put near
the fire. They should be kept in a dry even temperature.
It is a good thing if a beginner can find a friend who is able and
willing to correct her and help her to overcome some of the faults into
which she is almost certain to fall. But great care should be taken in
the selection of this coach, and even after the beginner has obtained
some degree of proficiency, she ought to be very careful whose opinion
she takes as to her shooting. I have met many young archers who will ask
anybody at the same target "if they would kindly tell them any faults
they see in their shooting." But such general advice will do little
good, for some people cannot detect a fault when it is there, much less
describe it with any accuracy, and some again imagine faults which do
not actually exist. Too many instructors thus spoil the archer, who will
get hopelessly muddled with all the advice given her, and will often
alter what she should leave alone, and not correct her real faults.
[Illustration: _FULL DRAW._]