The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-10-23
cuLrTvATE YOUR FISTS.
Nature's weapons, Which Every Mau
 Should Know How to Use.

Should Know How to Use. Maurice Maeterlinck in Baltimore
 American.
 During the vacation months which have just ended. and which most of us spend at least part of in the country. the thought comes quite naturally that we should try to develop our body, try to develop our strength and agility, the qualities which are possessed by the beautiful and healthy animal which is ever ready to meet all dangers some time ago when I praised the foil I was rather unjust to the only weapon which nature has given us the fist--and I write these lines to right the wrong I committed then. Fist and foil go very we'll together, but the foil is, after all, an ultima ct sacra ratio," or should at least be considered SO. It should only be used with great caution and ceremony. The fist on the other side. is the weapon of everyday life, the only human weapon. the only weapon which agrees with the organic resis- tance of our body.
 When we stop to think we have really worry little reason to be con- ceited--we are. after all, the most fragile and weak of all creatures
 How poorly we begin to compare with the insects, which are provided with such terrible weapons of attack and defense. Look at the ant, which you may bury under a weight 10000 to 2o. 900 times as great as that of its own without crushing it. Look at the June bug. the weakest of all bugs. Try how heavy a weight you may put on 1t before its armor bends or breaks. The strength of the snail Is wonder full, Compared to these, we and the majority of all mammals are only mis- erable mollusks slightly different from the original protoplasma.
 Our skeleton alone possesses some little power of resistance. But how poor is even this skeleton! One might think a child had made 1t. Look at our spinal column, the mainstay of our whole body, a number of frail verte- brae. which are so loosely jointed that they hold together only as if by miracle.
 And to use against this frail and feeble body we have invented weapons which might kill us were we protected by an armor much stronger in propor- tion than that of the insects.
 Should we follow the logic of nature we might we'll use these weapons against other and more powerful ene- mics. but against our equals we should use only the weapons which nature herself has provided us with.
 If humanity would strictly follow the will of nature the fist-which is the same to us as the horns to the hull and the paws of the lion-ought to be a strong enough weapon to be used under all circumstances. when we should want to fight beings of our own class.
 A wiser race would forbid the use of all other weapons as contrary to the laws of nature, and if this was done we might, after three or four gener- ations. learn to value human life.
 When we look at trained pugilist we become aware how sadly we have neulected one of the most wonderful gifts of nature to us. We see at once how much we might gain by oontin- ued training of our muscles and eyes.
 The kick of horse, the bite of a dog. the goring of a bull, are mechahi. cally and anatomically perfect anu could not be improved upon' put We' who consider ourselves the master ninces of the Creator, do not know how to strike a decent blow with our fist. We do not even seem to know that we possess a natural weapon, and un- til a teacher has spent hours training us we are absolutely helpless against an enemy who knows how to use prop erly the strength of his arm and shoul- der.
 Look at two workingmen or farm CTS who fall out. Is there anything more disgusting? After having fought with their tongues until they havo used up all their. profane words they take Hold of one anothers hair or throat, kick, bite and scratch, strike at one another with almless blows, half of which never hit at all, and keep this