The Washington herald., 1908-08-23

anu E-r-1LsA eANE anu AZ DA lAEll4lN "a
the fair archer. is all 20 the advantage
OF the latter. One Of the principal rules
and ethics OF archery Is 10 be very
quiet and deliberate IN ones movements.
never 10 hurry, nor 70 pull Up by jerks.
nor must one talk or move ones feet
while in the act OF shooting
At no time is a pretty woman seen %
such advantage and never IS TIE beauty
Of her figure displayed 10 such perfec-
back 10 its point In England the taste
for archery is as q rule confined To the
ancient aristocracy. and 20 the old cDun-
" families. and il is worthy Of note
that in these classes its votaries are as
numerous as ever. Tennis. bicycling.
motoring. polo. lacrosse. tob0Sauring.
and golf are either having a. the present
time. or else have had in the pas. their
day Of vogue. which has often proved
I ephameraL Archery. however. has main
taIned its popularity steaGfast and Uni-n-
paired through hundreds OF years. and
the enthusiasm 10 which "a has given
rise IS amply shown By the many spirited
verses that have as their theme the bow
and arrow The most important OF all
the archery clubs in Great Britain IS the
Royal Tozopholite Society. Of which King
Edward was president Up 10 the time OF
. his accession. and which represents two
very old corps that Il has absorbed
namely. the Finsbury Archers. and the
Archers' Company OF the Honorable Ar
tillery Company. II owns a quantity OF
valuable old plate. including large sill
yer shield presented by the Portuguese
! consort Of Charles II and some silver ar
rows given by Queen Elizabeth
/ Thanks TO royal favor and state patron
age. Il possesses a large shooting ground
IN Regents Park. that is 20 say. IN al
most the center OF the metropolis The
shooting ground is more than six acres
IN extent. IS shielded by beautiful trees
and in one corner of 81 the society has
| erected its Archsrs' Hail The annual
tournaments held there invariably at
I tract a considerable amount OF attention,
and one or another OF the members OF
the reigning family are usually present
Famous Organization.
Another very famous and ancient or
ga1ization Of archers IS that OF the
Iwoodnea OF Alden. the number Of mem
bers Of which is strictly limited 70 eighty
It's lord warden IS Lord Aylesford. who
makes his home at Packington Hall. sit
/ uated on the border OF the Forest Of Ar
den. IN which the shooting grounds Of
the society. some twelve acres in extent
are situated The Forest Of Arden IS
familiar 20 every reader OF Shakespeare.
and the herd Of black deer that roam in
the park OF Lord Aylesford. which really
forms part Of the forest. are the descend
ants OF those concerning which the IA
nous hard wrote in his As You Ike tt
I should be afraid 10 say how ancient IS
this society. which. we are told was re-
garded as already hoary with age in the
reign OF Queen Elizabeth Some Of its
trophies. however. date back hundreds OF
years. and I may add that the election
Of the officers each year is done by means
OF shooting. the highest diEnities going
90 the most skiIfuI archer. the range
being not less than nine score Yards
/ IN France one finds nos only the nobil-
ity. but also the middle classes. and
what is known as the small bourgeoisie.
/ devoted 10 archery II Paris alone there
are no less than FIVE large corps Of arch
ers- each with a long list Of members. on
1 the roster Of which are 20 be found the
names 0f leading statesmen Of celebrated
painters-slcl as fo- instance Carolus
Durau-great lawyers, and bankers OF
note Thus. Leon Say. the great political
economist. premier. and president OF the
Senate. was devoted 10 archery As q
rule. however. it Is the retired shop
keeper and petty trader who constitute
the rank and file Of the archery clubs
in the French cities-5ust those people.
indeed. whom the now almost forgotten
novelist. Paul de Kock. was 50 fond Of
lportraytng, whereas IN the provinces the
archery clubs and associations are for
the most part confined 20 the arisr0cracy,
and are so exclusive that II is as difficult
20 obtain admission thereto as 10 get
elected % the Jockey Club in Paris
Indeed. 20 be q member Of one OF these
rural archery guilds constitutes. psr-icu-
larry in the north. east. and west Of
France. a sort Of patent OF nobility and
OF blue-blooded ancestry. parve1us and
rich people Of plebelan origin being as a
rule pitilessly blackballed- The members
style themselves for the most part
t"Chevaliers de TArc,'' and in many in
stances the clubs are able tC trace their
foundation TO the sixteenth and seven
lteeuIh centuries Thus. for Instance. his
tory teaches Us that the sO-called Com
pagnie de Precy. which IS among the
most important Of the archery clubs Of
the present day. was already in existence
in I754. when the prizes were presented
at the annual contest by the Prince de
Conde, the creator OF ChantiIly-
On the day OF St Sebastian. who, ow-
ing 10 his having been shot to death by
a whole vOlley OF arrows. has always
been regarded as the patron saint Of bow
men, masses and religious services are
held in many Of the ancient churches Of
France which are attended by the Local
guilds Of archers, in fun array. and attn
much pOmp and ceremony
shoot Over His Crave.
And when a Chevalier de TArc dies the
twelve senior members Of the corps shoot
each three arrows over his grave at the
funeral. while as soon as the latter is
AZ an end the entire club adjourns 70 its
champ de tir,' OF shooting butts, where
a spirited contest takes place. the target
being afterward hung up in the arnory
OF the corps, with the date Of the obse-
Quies inscribed thereon. by way Of a
memorial 10 the dead archer
So picturesque are the ceremonies OF
these associations. and so important Is
the part which archery plays 70 this day
OF rural France. that il is aStonishins
that so little should have been published
about it during the last fifty years IN
the French and foreign papers. OF in the
contemporary French novels. which are
mostly written from the boulevards OF
Paris. Thanks 70 this. there are doubt
less many people OF the present tine whc
are firmly convinced that the art Of
drawing the bow in France died out with
the generation OF Balzac. Of Eugene SUE
ard OF Alfred de AIusset-
Reading in Bed
From the Milwaukee Wisconsin
Though many people insist on indulgine
in il. there are serious objections TO the
practice OF reading in bed. A writer for 8
j