commanded to have a bow with sharp arrows if they dwelt without the royal forests, and a bow with round-headed arrows if they resided within the forests. In the reign of Richard II. an act was made to compel all servants to shoot on Sundays and holydays. Henry IV. ordained 'sy a law, that the heads of arrows should be well boiled and brazed, and hardened at the points with steel, under pain of for. feiture and imprisonment. Henry V. ordered the sheriffs of several counties to procure feathers from the wings of geese, picking six from each goose. In the time of Edward IV. every Englishman was ordered to provide himself with a bow of his own height, and butts were directed to be put up in every township, for the inhabitants to shoot at on feastdays. In the reign of Henry VII. the crossbow was forbidden by law to be used, and so much importance was still attached to the use of the long-bow, even so late as the 33d Henry VIII., that a statute of that date directs that all men under sixty (except spiritual men, justices, &c.) shall use shooting with the long-bow, and shall have a bow and arrow ready continually in the house. It was also enacted, that no person under the age of twenty-four should shoot at a standing mark, except it be a rover, where he may change his ground every shot. And no person above twenty-four shall shoot at any mark of eleven score yards, or under, with any prick-shaft, or flight-arrow, under pain of 6s. 8d. penalty for every shot.

Besides making laws in favour of archery, Henry VIII. instituted a chartered society for the practice of shooting, under the name of the Fraternity of St. George, at whose exercises he sometimes attended. It is said, that one day having fixed a meeting of them at Windsor, a person of the name of Barlow far outshot the rest, which pleased the king so much that he saluted him with the name of Duke of Shoreditch, of which place the man was an inhabitant.* This dignity was long preserved by the captain of the London archers, who used to summon the officers of his several divisions by the titles of Marquises of Barlow, Clerkenwell, Islington, Hoxton, Earl of Pancras, &c. Hollinshead, who wrote in the sixteenth century, lamients the decay of archery in his time, and thus praises the bow

men of King Edward's days. “In times past the chief force of England consisted in their long-bows, but now we have in a manner generally given over that kind of artillery, and for long-bows indeed do practise to shoot compass for our pastime. Cutes, the Frenchman, and Rutters, deriding our new archery in respect to their croslets, will not let, in open skirmish, to turn up their tails and cry-shoote, Englishmen! and all because our strong shooting is decayed and laid in bed; but if some of our Englishinen now lived that served Edward III., the breech of such a varlet should have been nailed to him with an arrow, and another fea: thered in his bowels."

Even so late as the reign of Elizabeth, it remained a doubt with many which was the most advantageous weapon, the matchlock or bow; a question which will not appear surprising, when we consider that the former was at that period very cumbersome in weight, and unskilful in con. trivance, while archery had been carried to the highest state of perfection. Mr. Grose įnforms us, that an archer could formerly shoot six arrows in the time necessary to charge and discharge a musket; and even in modern days, a practised bowman has been known to shoot twelve arrows in a minute, into a circle not larger than the circumference of a man's hat, at the distance of forty yards. Sir John Hay. ward observes, that a horse struck with a bullet, if the wound be not mortal, may perform good service; but if an arrow be fastened in his flesh, the continual irritation produced by his own motion renders him utterly unmanageable; and he adds, that the sight of a shower of arrows is much more appalling to the soldier than the noise of artillery. Archers usually performed the duty of our sharpshooters, occupying the front, and retiring between the ranks of the Leavy-armed men as the battle joined. In later times, being armed with a shield, a sword, and javelins, as well as a bow, they were not afraid to venture into the midst of the battle. Mention is made, in the reign of Edward III., of two hundred archers on horseback; and in the seventh year of Richard II. the bishop of Norwich offered to serve the king abroad with 3000 men-at-arms and 2500 archers, well horsed and appointed. Henry VIII.'s attendants at the meeting of the field of gold cloth were principally mounted archers, carrying their long-bows with them.

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It is a mistake, in the opinion of Mr. Douce,* to suppose that yews were planted in the churchyards for the purpose of making bows, for which the more common materials were elm and hazel. It is by no means improbable, that the superstition of our ancestors planted yews in the churchyards for their supposed virtue in warding off evil spirits, or as a protection against the fury of the winds, which might otherwise injure or unroof the sacred building. Accordingly, in a statute made in the latter part of the reign of Edward I., to prevent rectors from cutting down the trees in churchyards, we find the following passage: arbores ipsæ, propter ventorum impe us, ne ecclesiis noceant, sæpe planlantur."

Convinced, as we are, that the practice of archery possesses in point of health and exercise all the diversion and advantages of field sports, without their cruelty to animals and demoralizing oppression to our fellow-creatures, we shall conclude our chapter with an extract from a writer in whose sentiments upon this subject we fully concur. " That archery possesses many excellences as an amusement will require little trouble to prove. It is an exercise adapted to every age and every degree of strength; it is not necessarily laborious, as it may be discontinued at the moment it becomes fatiguing; a pleasure not to be enjoyed by the hunter, who, having finished his chase, perceives that he must crown his toils with an inanimate ride of forty miles to his bed. Archery is attended with no cruelty. It sheds no innocent blood, nor does it torture harmless animals, charges of which lie heavy against some other amusements.”

“ It has been said that a reward was formerly offered to him who could invent a new pleasure. Had such a reward been held forth by the ladies of the present day, he who introduced archery as a female exercise would have deservedly gained the prize. It is unfortunate that there are few diversions in the open air in which women can join with satisfaction; and as their sedentary life renders motion necessary to health, it is to be lamented that such suitable amusements have been wanting to invite them. lirchery has, however, contributed admirably to supply this defect, and in a manner the most desirable that could be wished. But I do not intend to sing the praises of this elegant art in their full extent. I subjoin a wish, however, that it may be universally cultivated and approved ; and may we see the time when (with Statius) it can be said, • Pudor est nescire sagittas;' it is a reproach to be unskilful with the bow.”—Moscley's Essay on Archery, p. 180.

CHAPTER XIV.

Bull-Fights and Baiting of Animals.

“ Each social feeling fell, And joyless inhumanity pervades And petrifies the heart.”

Thomson's Spring. ALTHOUGH we have expressed an intention of restricting ourselves chiefly to the sports of our own country, we can hardly leave unnoticed a subject so celebrated and so long connected with romantic and chivalrous associations as the bull-fights. The Spaniards, who have always been the most celebrated for this cruel diversion, generally dedicated their bull-feasts to St. John, the Virgin Mary, &c., never seeming to entertain the smallest suspicion that they were desecrating the patron, instead of sanctifying the inhuman sport, by a conjunction so incongruous. According to some writers, the people of the Peninsula derived this sport from the Moors, among whom it was exhibited with great éclat. Dr. Plot is of opinion that the Thessalians, who first instituted the game, and of whom Julius Cæsar learned and brought it to Rome, were the origin both of the Spanish and Portuguese bull-fighting and of the English bull-baiting. In the Greek bull-fights, several of these animals were turned out by an equal number of horsemen, each combatant selecting his bull, which he never quitted till he had overpowered him. Some authors maintain, that in consequence of a violent plague at Rome, chiefly occasioned by eating bull's flesh, the Taurilia were established so early as the time of Tarquinius Superbus, who justly dedicated them to the

infernal gods. At all events, the practice maintained itself in Italy for many ages. It was prohibited by Pope Pius V., under pain of excommunication incurred ipso facto; but succeeding popes have granted several mitigations on behalf of the Torreadores.

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From the following account of a bull-feast in the coliseum at Rome, 1332, extracted from Muratori by Gibbon, the reader may form some idea of the points, the ceremonies, and the danger which attended these exhibitions :"A general proclamation as far as Rimini and Ravenna invited the nobles to exercise their skill and courage in this perilous adventure. The Roman ladies were marshalled in three squadrons, and seated in three balconies, which on this day, the 3d of September, were lined with scarlet cloth. The fair Jacova di Rovere led the matrons from beyond the Tiber; a pure and native race, who still represent the features and character of antiquity. The remainder of the city was divided between the Colonna and Ursini families; the two factions were proud of the number and beauty of their female bands; the charms of Savella Ursini are mentioned with praise; and the Colonna regretted the absence of the youngest of their house, who had sprained her ancle in the garden of Nero's tower. The lots of the champions were drawn by an old ari respectable citizen; and they descended into the arena or pit to encounter the wild bulls, on foot, as it should seen, with a single spear, Amid the crowd our annalist has selected the names, colours, and devices of twenty of the, mos conspicuous knights. Several of the names are the most iustrious of Rome and the ecclesiastical state; Malatesta, Polenta, Della Valle, Cafarello, Savelli, Cappoccio, Conti, Annibaldi, Altieri, Corsi. The colours were adapted to their taste and situation; the devices are expressive of hope and despair, and breathe the spirit of gallantry and arms:- 'I am alone, like the youngest of the Horatii,' the confidence of an intrepid stranger: 'I live disconsolate,' a weeping widower: "I burn under the ashes,' a discreet lover: 'I adore Lavinia or Lucretia,' the ambiguous declaration of a modern lover: My faith is as pure'-the motto of a white livery: Who is stronger than myself?' of a lion's hide: If I am drowned in blood, what a pleasant death the wish of ferocious courage. The pride or prudence of the Ursini restrained