Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1874-10-30
Professors Of Marksman ship.

The exploits in craftsmanship per-
formed at Creedmoor by the Irish
and American "teams" naturally
cause the mind to revert to the crack
shots whose skill in the use of weap
ons has become more or less historl-
cal. But it was not until the Eng
lish, under the Norman conquerers
and their SUCCESSORS, elevated archery
into fine art, that we begin to get a
glimpse of some extraordinary per-
tormances with the long bow.
Saxon archers were wont to pierce
a hazel rod, not thicker than 4 mans
thumb and five feet long, at a dis
tance of three hundred yards. To
fail to strike the rod at that distance
was esteemed very bad shooting.
What the English were with the long
bow the Genoese were with the cross
bow. In our days among our Amer
lean Indians the Comanches are skill
full archers. 1t is no unusual thing
for them while chasing buffalo at
full speed to transtix the animal with
their arrows at fifty and seventy-tive
yards.
The Swiss AMI the people of Tyrol
always have been famous marksmcn.
The exploit accredited to the Tell of
legend-that Of shooting an apple
from his sons head-was, perhaps,
merely an ordinary entertainment OF
that period indulged in by good shots
at the archery meetings among the
Swiss of the twelfth century, and
which has descended to our days III
the shape OF a tradition. But there
is no doubt of the fact that for many
years the population of the Swiss and
Tyrolese Alps have been renowned
as rifemen.
In consideration of the question
of skill with the rifle the palm is GER
tainly be awarded to the Americans.
AS far back as the Revolutionary
war the British were taught to respect
the rifles of the patriot soldiery. The
provinces of Morgan's rihemen is
historical. Dating from that period
and up to the present time the re-
cords of American pioneer, frontier,
and military life TEEN with the won
derful accounts Of the correctness OF
aim and keenness Of vision OF Amer
lean riflemen. They were with Jack
son at the battle Of New Orleans in
1914, and they decimated the British
troops. In this country the great
rifle shots have been almost invaria-
bly pioneers and hunters, although
throughout the settled South and
Southwest there are thousands OF
men in the country districts whose
skill with the ordinary rifle is so great
that they deem it child's play to shoot
off the head Of y partridge OF Of Il
squirrel within such distance rs the
head may be visible for u fair aim.
There seems to be, however, an intl-
mate connection between the exist
ence of pioneer and his skill with
the rifle. Daniel Boone, David
Gro ;kett, Kit Carson, and men OF
that class were famous shots, and in
the far West, among the rough trap
pers and hunters Of the frontiers,
their memory is preserved in many q
story of their prowess told around
lonely camp-fres.
A fine shot rs well as u bold hun
ter was the late Ronalleyn Gordon
Cumming-better known as Gordon
Cumming-a Scotch sportsman and
British army officer, who, between
the years lS43 and l849 made five
hunting expeditions into the wilder
nesses Of South Africa, starting OH
his journeys from Cape Town. MIR
Cumming afterwards made collec