Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1871-09-07
ON Stills.
BY GEORGE AsPINwALL.

ON STILLS.
RY GEORGE AsPINwALL.
The best stills are made to fasten firm
ly to the leg, leaving the hands and arms
| free The foOt-piece should be four or five
| feet from the ground,-or even higher,
according to the aspirations of the walker
and the upright piece should extend far
enough above that to reach the knee, Just
below which it is to be lashed- Skill is
required, however, to walk safely on such
pair, and fall with them is dangerous.
| A very good pair to practice upon can
be made in half an hour by any school
boy who has the necessary tools and ma
terials at hand. Choose for your stand
ards, or upright pieces, two plain, straight
strips of wood slTong enough to bear your
weight and long enough to reach to the
tops of your shoulders after you are
mounted. For stills to learn on, the foot
piece should not be more than fourteen
inches from the ground, or even less for
/ small boy,-for you will find 1t necessary
to step on and off good many times be-
fore you have learned to walk securely.
| The foot-piece is nailed or screwed to the
standard, from which it projects at right
angles on the inner side, Just far enough to
form a comfortable rest for the foot. 1t
should also be supported by brace on
the under side.
The implement / have described was
known to nearly every lad in America
few years ago but of late stills seem to
nave gone quite out of fashion In some
parts of the country. I am surprised at
this, since they afford really fascinating
exercise to alternate with baseball, kites,
and marbles, and can bemastered by every
owner of good pair of legs, hammer and
nails, and a jack knife.
Your stiits completed, the next thing is
to mount them. Rest the ends on the
ground, grasping the handles in manner
to brlng them behind the shoulders; set
your LETT foot in its place and spring up,
bringing the right foot 70 its place while
| you are in the air; at the same time hold
the standards close to your shoulders, un-
der your arms and partly encircled by
them, with the hands near the hips, press
/ ing forwards. 1t will take you some time
to learn to perform this little feat and re-
main mounted until you are prepared to
take a step. Once well poised on your
stills, YOU will find it easy to keep your
balance as you walk, but not SO easy to
stand still
OF course you will choose hard, smooth
] ground for your first exercise. Afterwards
you may lengthen your stilts, Cross brooks,
and step over fences.
To become good "stiltist one must
have courage and pretty large "organ of
weight" 1t brings into play much the
same faculties that skating does. If you
can wear stilts made fast to your legs,
you will be a skillful walker if you can
trust yourself upon them without carrying
a pole. Your arms set at liberty, you will
find long light pole wonderfully con-
yenient in fording streams, passing rough
places, or resting, when you wish to stand
still
The nature of the soil and the character
of the streams have brought stilts very
much in use IN some countries. On the
"Landes" of Gascony, il France, they are
about as common as shoes. over those
broad. marshy and sandy plains the shep-
herd goes stalking on high stilts, which
not only enable. him to pass the deep
pools and wet places in his way, but also
to overlook his fiocks feeding among the
, low, thorny shrubs and brushwood with
which the region is partly covered. lie
mounts his stills, from the roof of his
, house or his stable roof, early in the morn
} ing. and does not Quit them until night.
They are made fast, not at the knee, but at
, the thigh, in such way as to allow the
: legs to move freely. He carries long
r mole. which serves several purposes: 1t
is his shepherd's crook; and with 1t he
, steadies his steps when necessary, sup
; ports himself when he wishes to rest,
eases his descent to the ground when he
wishes to lie down or sit and gets up
soain at pleasure. Thus lifted above the
earth. he goes striding like an immensely
tall, thin legged giant, over hedges and
, bitches and bushes, with perfect ease and
. security, and sometimes running with re-
, markable speed, ike some grotesque, half
human crane
Gascony, and other countries OF the Soutn
The people of Namur, in Belgium, be
came early famous for their use VI suns
: in CONSCIENCE OF me o'e[noM VI cn1
T;vers Sambre and Meuse, which period
icalIv flooded the city streets In tht
seasons of high water men and Womer
Stenned ont of their windows, going abou
their business and making calls, on suits
: These introduced at first as matter o
! necessity. at length became source o
l amusement. and made Namur faiSous Iol
!, one of the most remarkable games CN Ie
: cord.
This was the battle on stills. The city
. was divided into two sections, called the
!, old and the new town, the lnhaoltants o
: : | which-like those of many another toWr
? in our own day-were constantly at STRIFE
with each other There feuds were OF
. good -natured sort, however, though they
: sometimes resulted in some pretty rough
i sport
i Tie Namurois were fond of games; and
a hundred and fifty years ago the silt
l fight introduced nobody knows when, wa:
j at the height of its popularity. The com
e batants, five or six hundred IN number
t divided into two bands, regularly ofncere
T and distinguished by the colors OF incl
e costumes, advanced upon each othtrm I'M
: nublic square, mounted on sult'
f four feet high. They were un
Y armed: but wrestling and kicking anC
+ thrusting with the stilt-leg-sometimes
f dangerous weapon-were allowable. III
S battle begun with the sound of MARTA
G music. and the armies were led with ga.
s banners. Women followed their lovers
y brothers, and husbands to the tight, thei
II mission being to encourage and cheer then
J. on by their presence, to support the fall
!, ing, and to assist the wounded from IN
q field.
These battles lasted an hour or two, o
e Longer. the combatants often fighting witt
e, great spirit and determination Marshal
t. SAKE. who, in 174S, witnessed one OF thes
encounters. said of it, If two armies en-
10 gared showed as much valor as the youth
= of Namur. it would not be merely battle
Ir but a butcheTy- .u
Once when the Archduke Albert @
A Austria passed through Belgium, the Gov
q !, ernor of Namur promised that he shoul
= see a battle in which the warriors shoul
y firht neither on foot nor on horseback,
Il and got up stilt-combat for his entertain
= ment. The Archduke was so much d'
:; lighted that he at once exempted tn
4 Namurois from the payment of the tax o
,e beer-a privilege which they enjoy,
M think, to this day.
IT In conclusion we must not forget
m mention the Yankee who crossed u
N rapids Of Niagara on stilts lew years az
=. after all, the most daring feat OF stu
n walking of which we have any account
r. Our Young Folks.
., In Germany and German Austria tTel