A CHAPTER

ON

FIELD SPORTS AND MANLY PASTIMES.

BY AN EXPERIENCED PRACTITIONER.

ARCHERY.

SOME WORDS CONCERNING ITS ANTIQUITY-AN ACCOUNT OF ITS IMPORTANCE, AND HIGH ESTIMATION AMONG OUR BRITISH PROGENITORS-ITS MODERN REGULATIONS AS A PASTIME-ITS VARIOUS IMPLEMENTS AND THEIR USE.

THE use of the bow is of remote antiquity-its obvious simplicity of construction, as well as the purposes to which it is adapted, having rendered its employment almost universal from the very earliest periods of which we have any distinct account. But we do not wish to trouble our readers with a disquisition upon its ancient history. It was originally formed, no doubt, of the rough bough of a tree, but improvements would be almost immediately discovered. The simple branch would speedily be rendered more convenient by a little cutting, so as to make the curve regular on both sides of the centre. Homer tells us how the bow of Pandarus was fashioned

He heard, and madly at the motion pleased,

His polished bow with hasty rashness seized.

'Twas formed of horn, and smooth'd with artful toil;

A mountain goat resigned the shining spoil,
Who, pierced long since, beneath his arrows bled;
The stately quarry on the cliff lay dead,
And sixteen palms his brows' large honors spread;
The workmen joined and shaped the bended horns,
And beaten gold each taper point adorns.

Herodotus says that the bows of the Ethiopians were four cubits, or not less than six feet long. The Grecian bow is said to have been of the figure of their own letter sigma. The Scythian bow was somewhat of the same form. The bows used by the Daci were made in a very beautiful curve. It has been supposed that the Romans introduced the bow into Britain, or at least very much improved those which they found in use among the natives, and in course of time it became the national weapon of the class of inhabitants called yeomen.

But the Anglo-Saxons and the Danes were certainly well acquainted with the use of the bow; a knowledge they derived at an early period from their progenitors. The Scandinavian Scalds, speaking in praise of the heroes of their country, frequently add to the rest of their acquirements a superiority of skill in handling the bow. It does not, however, appear that this skill was extended beyond the purpose of procuring food, or for pastime, either by the Saxons or by the Danes, in times anterior to the conquest.

Representations of the bow occur frequently in the Saxon MSS. The cut annexed, taken from a manuscript of the tenth century found in the Cotton Library, gives the figure of a Saxon bow and arrow. The bow is curiously ornamented, having the head and tail of a serpent carved at the ends; and was probably such an one as was used by the nobility. In all these old Saxon bows we may observe one thing remarkable, that is, the string not being made fast to the extremities, but permitted

to play at some distance from them. How far this might be more or less advantageous than the present method, we cannot presume to determine.

It is well known that the Normans used the bow as a military weapon; and, under their government, the practice of archery was not only much improved, but generally diffused throughout the kingdom.

In the ages of chivalry the usage of the bow was considered as an essential part of the education of a young man who wished to make a figure in life. The heroes of romance are therefore usually praised for their skill in archery ; and Chaucer, with propriety, says of sir Thopas, " He was a good archere."

In the seventeenth century archery was much commended as an exercise becoming a gentleman to practice, and greatly conducive to health. The ladies also were foud of this amusement. It was usual, when they exercised the bow, for the beasts to be confined by very large enclosures, surrounded by the hunters, and driven in succession from the covers to the stands, where the fair sportswomen were placed; so that they might readily shoot at them, without the trouble and fatigue of rousing and pursuing them. It is said of Margaret, the daughter of Henry the Seventh, that when she was on her way towards Scotland, a hunting party was made for her amusement in Alnwick Park, where she killed a buck with an arrow. It is not specified whether the long-bow or the crossbow was used by the princess upon this occasion; we are certain, that the ladies occasionally shot with both, for when queen Elizabeth visited lord Montecute at Cowdrey, in Sussex, on the Monday, "Her highness tooke horse, and rode into the park, at eight o'clock in the morning, where was a delicate bowie prepared, under the which were her highness musicians placed; and a cross-bow, by a nympth, with a sweet song, was delivered into her hands, to shoote at the deere; about some thirty in number were put into a paddock, of which number she killed three or four, and the countess of Kildare one."

The foregoing observations refer chiefly to the long-bow, so called, to distinguish it from the arbalist, or cross-bow, which was not only much shorter than the former, but fastened also upon a stock, and discharged by the means of a catch or trigger, which probably gave rise to the lock upon the modern musket. We cannot pretend to determine at what period the cross-bow was first brought into England, but we believe not long before the commencement of the thirteenth century; at least, we never meet with any representation of such an engine prior to that period. On the continent, where probably it originated, its appearance might be somewhat earlier. Historians assure us, that Richard the First was wounded by an arrow from a bow of this kind, while he was reconnoitering the walls of the castle of Chalezun; which wound was the occasion of his death.

The courage, discipline, strength and skill, displayed by British bowmen, during a period of more than six centuries, are so much a matter of ordinary history that it is hardly necessary to enlarge upon them here. In all the expeditions of which they formed a part, they proved to their adversaries a terror and a scourge. Even the bare appearance of a body of English archers in the field, often led to a bloodless victory; and, as experience had proved that the best armor was no protection against their arrows, their bold and confident spirit often led them into very unequal contests.

Secured in their position by an ingenious mode of fortification,-the materials for which each archer carried on his person,-the English bowmen laughed to scorn the fiercest charges of the steelclad chivalry of the middle ages. Of all the European nations, none suffered more severely, or more requently, from the effects of their archery than the French. Like the Italians, when invaded by the Huns, another nation of formidable bowmen,-they composed a mass, expressly depreciating the calamities it inflicted upon them:-“ Ab Anglicorum nos defende jaculis !”- "From the arrows of the English, defend us, O Lord!"

The ancient legislators, ever on the watch to encourage and enforce the practice of this art, once the sole guardian of the national independence, passed many judicious laws to prevent its falling into disuse. By these, a fine of one mark was levied on every master of a family who permitted any of his male inmates to be without a bow and three shafts, for the space of a month.* The local autho

rities were required to superintend the erection of public butts, in the environs of every town and village. Many of their ancient positions are yet known, however different the uses to which the ground where they once stood, is at present applied.

The nobility and spiritual persons were, by law, excepted; but men of every other rank and calling assembled, at these public shooting-grounds, to ply the sturdy yew and gallant gray goose wing. Thither the lordly baron sent his feudal vassals; thither came the squire, the independent franklyn, the wealthy yeoman, the rude peasant, and the unwashed artizan. All formed one promiscuous multitude, of which the numbers, in populous districts, were so considerable that, after the first season, the grass never grew around these public marks.

The sabbaths and other holidays were appropriated, by the statute, for these exercises of archery. But our British progenitors, enthusiastically attached to their favorite weapon, rendered all penal enactments, for a series of ages, unnecessary. The intervals of labor were all devoted to the shooting-ground, and their bows and arrows accompanied them in every excursion.

The extreme range of a flight shaft, when discharged from one of their ancient bows, is stated to have been four hundred yards, or nearly one quarter of a mile. At about a fourth of this distance, the war arrow would penetrate any ordinary breast-plate, and slay man or horse at little short of two-thirds of it. To maintain and promote this strong and vigorous shooting, the statute of the 33d of Henry the Eighth forbade any man, above the age of four-and-twenty, to use the lighter kind of arrows, unless the butts were upwards of two hundred and twenty yards apart. After the promulgation of this law, the strong and dexterous archers frequently increased the distance, of their own accord, to two hundred and forty yards. The practice is alluded to by Shakspeare, who, beyond all question, was not only a bowman, but an accomplished one. A contempt for mediocrity is one of the characteristics of genius. The pursuits of his juvenile days-for we have all read of his moonlight excursions to Charlecot Deer-Park,-the law of the land, which permitted no youth of his age and rank to remain one month without a bow and shafts-are sufficient evidence; and, if more were wanting, we have it under his own hand.

Burke once playfully observed-and the pointed sally is characteristic of that great man-that fox-hunting formed ne u mportant balance of the British constitution. His meaning is sufficiently obvious. The chase, oy bringing the aristocracy into familiar contact with the gentry and middle classes of society, broke down the bar of exclusiveness, and led to a mutual interchange of good offices, socially, and in many instances, politically advantageous to each.

"And surely"—says a very agreeable writer, and one evidently well conversant with the subject" the praise of these excellent qualities belongs more especially to modern archery. No visitant of the splendid bow-meetings which each revolving summer recals into existence, throughout the sylvan glades of this romantic land, ever remained uninfluenced by the joyous hilarity, the delightful ease and freedom which light each countenance with smiles. There, where men of various ranks, and, grace á Dieu! women too assemble, to bear away—

The arrow with a golden head,

And shaft of silver white,

the plumed hat and forest green place all upon a temporary equality. Superior adroitness alone confers distinction. The possessor of a ducal coronet, whose ill-aimed shaft flies wide of the mark, cheerfully yields precedence to the untitled bowman who has placed his within its broad circlet of gold. Hail then to the free, frank, and joyous spirits which compose an assemblage of British bowmen! No doubt but the circumstances under which the archer pursues his amusement, have considerable influence in producing this happy condition of mind. The balmy breezes of summer,—the charms of picturesque scenery,-the romance with which glorious tradition has invested his pursuits,-and the emulation engendered by the knowledge that most of his competitors boast a skill little inferior to his own,-keep the spirits in a state of agreeable excitement. He cannot be unconscious that he is the observed of all observers;' for every attitude-whether it be the preliminary action of stringing the bow, or the final one by which an arrow is discharged against a distant mark,-displays unrivalled manliness and grace. His bow, arrows, belt, bracer and shooting-glove are, for the most part, exact counterparts of those used by England's yeomanry, five centuries ago. Even the attire in which he shoots bears a general resemblance to the costume of the same warlike period. These things never fail to tinge imaginations at all excitable with a strong feeling of enthusiasm; and which the regulations of an archery fête are certainly not calculated to weaken. The contest takes place in the presence, and amidst the plaudits, of assembled hundreds.

Store of ladies, whose bright eyes

Rain influence and adjudge the prize,

are there; and from the hands of female beauty he receives the reward of his dearly-earned triumph.

Hints for a Justice of the Peace.

† Neade's Double-armed Man. 4to., 1627.

It is to the good sense and discernment of the Woodmen of the Forest of Aiden' that we owe, in modern times, the introduction of the bow, as a suitable and healthful recreation for their fair countrywomen;-and it was fortunate that their individual position in society entitled them to dictate laws to fashion, under whose powerful auspices the practice of archery by females was introduced to the world.

Attended by a fair portion of the excitement peculiar to the chase, but without its perils and its cruelty-requiring no excessive corporeal exertion-offering a combination of the most graceful positions appropriate to every other exercise, and invariably associated with refined and polished society, archery, from that time, made rapid advances in public estimation. The British fair quickly emancipated themselves from the ancient tyranny of back-bones, embroidery frames, spinnets, harpsichords, and all the other foolery of their grandmothers.

In the goode greene woode,
Among the lilie flower,

they sought that health and vivacity which pure air and active exertion can alone confer. The ladies associated with the woodmen were, originally, restricted to their own immediate family connexions. Soon, however, the admissions became less exclusive. The prizes awarded by this society have always been distinguished for their splendor and variety. But the Aylesfords, the Mordaunts, the Adamses, the Molands, and the Bagots, of the last-with the Boultbees, the Parkers, the Gresleys, and the Wises, of the present, age-the fair victors who have won, or still win and wear them'-have displayed a skill in all respects worthy of their magnitude.

6

Mrs. Crespigny's public breakfasts were another interesting feature in the annals of female archery. Many a delightful morning's lounge did these same breakfasts afford to such of the fashionable world' as had the good fortune to obtain cards of invitation. They were the most literal and practical illustrations of the utile dulci that I ever knew. The company shot' games,' as they are called in the technicalities of archery. Eleven was the decisive number; and the arrows count according to their positions in the target. A shot in the gold circle reckons as nine,-the red, seven,-the inner white, five, the black, three, the outer white, one. Fines of half-a-crown were paid by the losers, the amount being appropriated to the support of a Sunday-school. The girls of the charity attended these archery meetings, attired in dresses of grass-green.

One hundred yards was the space between the targets. When the gentlemen had shot, they walked, in procession with the ladies, thirty paces forward; and the latter then discharged their arrows, at the unusual distance of seventy yards. Many will agree with me in thinking that these archery breakfasts might be judiciously revived, at the present day."

REVIEW OF NEW BOOKS.

The History of the Navy of the United States of America. By J. Fenimore Cooper. Lea and Blanchard, Philadelphia.

In appearing before the public with this History of our Navy, Mr. Cooper has had two serious difficulties to surmount-one of prejudice, and one of exaggerated anticipation. It cannot be denied that, for many years past, he has been rapidly sinking in the estimation of his countrymen, and indeed of all right minded persons. Even his firmest friends were becoming ashamed of the univer sality of his cynicism; and his enemies, ceasing in a measure from open hostility, have been well content to abide the apparently inevitable self-ruin which his own unconquerable ill temper was so speedily bringing about. A flashy succession of ill-conceived and miserably executed literary productions, each more silly than its predecessor, and wherein the only thing noticeable was the peevishness of the writer, the only thing amusing his self-conceit-had taught the public to suspect even a radical taint in the intellect, an absolute and irreparable mental leprosy, rendering it a question whether he ever would or could again accomplish any thing which should be worthy the attention of people not positively rabid. In this state of affairs, it was not at all wonderful that the announcement of a Naval History of the United States, by the author of the attack upon Sir Walter Scott, was received with apathy and general distrust-with a feeling very different indeed from that which would have agitated the whole reading world at a similar announcement during the golden days of the celebrated novelist, and once exceedingly popular man.

Among the few, on the other hand, who had better opportunities of penetrating the mystery, and fathoming the extent, of that obstinate disease of the spleen which had so long made the author a burden to himself, and an object of compassion to his friends-among those who knew the disorder not altogether incurable, and who had good reason to rely firmly upon the innate vigor and elasticity of the constitution-even among these we have noticed a want of proper consideration in regard to the subject matter of the anticipated work-a misconception of the extent and capacities of the theme-which has operated to the temporary disadvantage of the historian.

Mr. Cooper's strength in sea narrative was well known, and justly appreciated; and in a work on Naval History, much was expected of a character very similar to that which had afforded its charm to the "Pilot,” and rivetted attention in the "Red Rover." This expectation would have been comparatively well founded had the announcement been that of a Naval Biography. Here, an allowable minuteness of detail would have given vigor and vitality to the narration, and the personal adventures of the several heroes would have been overspread, in the simple discussion of fact with all the warm hues of the most spirit-stirring romance. In no general naval record, however, should we look too confidently for interest, beyond that grave species which is attached to the mere statement of fact. In records of our own marine, especially, we should look for little farther than this. The story of the simple events of our experience (for we are a nation of single ships) must always be deficient in that excitement which is derivable from the unity and majesty of the combined operations of fleets. Here then our sea-history labors under disadvantages not experienced by that of Europe. The tales we have to tell, of detached combat after combat, can form, at best, but a series of monotonous episode, where if the mind seeks, as it will, for connexion, this can only be established by means of a dry and barren mass of documental and statistical detail.

Notwithstanding these difficulties, however, (whose importance we have by no means adequately pointed out) Mr. Cooper has succeeded in writing a book which cannot fail to do him lasting honor, not more in a literary point of view, than as affording evidence of the final triumph of his kindlier and more manly feelings over the promptings of Satan and the spleen. The very preface is redolent of a returning good humor-of a recovered modesty-of a resuscitated common sense. Mr. Cooper is evidently Mr. Cooper once again, and as such we most cordially welcome him home to the good will, and to the affections, of his countrymen. That he, in preference to any one, should have written the Naval History of the United States, is a matter about which there is but little difference of opinion; and we rejoice, from the bottom of our heart, that he has arisen to the good work, from the moral death which has so long enwrapped him, while it is yet a convenient season for the undertaking-before the veteran actors in the drama have all passed away from among us-while there is yet many a tongue to tell what the eyes have seen many a living witness to the gallant and glorious exploits which have had so much to do in the rendering us, and in the preserving us, a free people.