Archery And Outfits

Tor tar;ret practico there sliould be at lenst four persons, lmt i larer niuiiber than tbat will make a mcrrier cotnpany. II' tlie l)ows avo pnrchased tney shonltl Aot be stoel bows or metallic bowa of anv gort. Tlic only bow worthy of the naino is tlie lim; bow, made óf some "rood live, spriivry wood, swch as seconrt-growth white asli, luckory, lancewood, lemonwood, snako Avond, or Enylisli ycw. Hitlierto, Eiüilish-made bows of yer hnve been liell to bo miporior to all othcra, and doservedly so; but rtóvr there are ïnanufiiotu red in America flno Vancewood. ah and snakewood bows, tnat are cvery wint as goou i the Kimlish bows in quality, ftnii far superior in artistic finish. And the same tnay besaid of arrows. Böwa aro of varions "weightó." T?y weigtit is meant the number ofponndg in strength rcquired to draw the bow, - not the weight of the bow üterally. [ir.ty ponnd bow is beid to be aböui Ilii' right wnight for a lady, or a hu of ten or twelve. Ono needs to be able to draw it wilhoul. too great an effort; in a woi-d, rteadily. For a youth of si x teen or twenty, a iil'iy pound l)ctw niay prove the beal weight. Thero are hisflier weights, running up to sovouty-flve,oighty,and a hundred pounds. A hundred pound bow is a powerful wcapon, Bufficient to bringdovrn a dcor, a bear, or even a tiger. The oíd Eoglish rule tbat the bow sbould be of the same lengtli as the person's height who usos i t, is a very aood one. This rule lias itsexceptions nowever. Arrows vary in length to snit tha bow, frotn sixteen ineiics to thrcc fcet. The point or béad of au arrow is called the pile; the shaft is termed the stele ; the notch at the leathered1 end, the nock. All arrows must bo feaihered on two, or, botter stil], on thrce sides of the stele near the nock, - either with the feathera ot' birds, or with hair-cloth, - and the steles of all arrow sliould be perfoctly straight. Good vrell-finisliod bowa of seeond growth a.sh and otlier American woods eell generally at froin one dollar to threa dollars, or even more accoi'ding to sb.e. Uows ot' lancevrood, snake■wood, yew and oüier Íoroii4'n woods, cost i'rom two to eiht dollars. Target arrows will range, aecording to their leugth, i'rom two dollars and a half to live dollars per dozen. Huntinu' arrows wiih barbed piles lor large gaine, are still higher in priee ; wliile fight birding arrows, with pewter heads, are eheaper. Bow strings come at twenty, twen. ',"-livc, and up to sixty cents each, and iirgets range in prico t'roin one dollar ,o six dollars. Quivurs (with belt) made of tin and covered with Hght leather, cost i'rom one dollar to two dollars and a half encli. liut lor inmune excursions, juivcrs r.ulo of Li it harneas leather, apablü of holding two or thrco dozen arrows aro best. Bittcers, or arm-guards, will cost líie ièi'i arm frotn tliebfóvrs ana chafingof the bovr-spri'ng. Tlic thrce-flngereu shooting tflove for tho right hanil, liáviiy the fiugerciiils oi' sume sliil' siiiooth loaüior, is lold for a dollar. Untan okt kid or lisie Üiread glove wiü auswur nearly as woll. Tht; bows, the arrowa and the en tire ontlit, ciin of couitic, bc niado at homo, [f for any reason a porsou does not, wisb to parchase them. lt is not necessary Hint (he bow ahould bu made ironi any oub particular kind ofwood. Mulberry, hickory and red oak, are all SUitable, and I haru seen good bows ot' liazel, wnito maple and even of poplai'. There is not so miich in the kliiii of wood as in having the píceo Wfll seaeonod, and chousing 8 live, spriugy stick to start with. Mr. Thompson says Xlmt tho back of a bow shonlü be made Kat, and the inside round. The Üut backinusttbllow the srmin of tlio -woort oxactlr. How innch it should be shaved down can on 1 y be dtermined by trying it, at times, as you work it. Iftaorn lips are used, they cnn bo cnrved froiti iEe on Is of two cow-horns, baring flret soaked them soft in warm water. At the centre of the how, fino ona hand-piece of velvet or balso. It is tlion readv &r stringinz. Vcry goocl bov-sfrin2S can be made from ooinmon shoemakei-'a thread, or, as it is generally caHed "shoe-tln-eniï." Bow-stringa should not be vtey hard twisted. In making arrows, the first Uiin? to be thooght oï is to ii'ivn the stele, or shaft, perfisctly straight. Siich can sometimos bo obtainncl fcoin straightgraiued plne or northerii sprnce. The writer once made some good steles frora the sprouts of a cluinp of green osier. T remember that T made the beads of these osier arrows heavy by bor'm ; out the heart of the sprout at that end with a -inilet, and insertiug an ary tennenny nal], But if you wiab to mako arrows with barbed or bodkin pointe, it is botter to buy the points, or have them nimio by a .sniitji. Theso points can then bu inserted In a slit in the stele, and secured by a wrnpptag of twine or wirc. For bird-arrows, bluut pewter heads can be run, or moiilded, on the ends of theshafts. The most delicate part of arrowmakkig is to properly feather tlie arrows. Tliey should bc feathercd on thrce sidos, ucar tho nock oud of the stele. First, mark tho throe sides each a third of the oiroumforenoe oí' the stelo apart. Then peel off tho outcr skin of a goose w'mg feather with the broad vane attached, md glue one of these ranea to each of the throe sides. Feathers i'roin the wiug of a dnok, or those of a partridge, or common barn fovvl, will anawei', buttliose from a goose-wing are lield to bo best. Tue V&nes :ire sometunes dyöd scarlot, which assist in fiuding tho arrow. A good target eau bo ma lo of pasteboard, and set up il! a spliut stick,. Rtuck in tlie ground ; and ai'in-gaarda can be potten up from a piece ot' ïiini, polishod leather, with elastic bands to liold it upon the arm. Tliere is butoiie wnv to shoot well, anti it is beller to adopt tuut at tlia outset, First, brace the bow ; that is to say striug it. For a bow should never be put away gtruBg. ïüea putthoaruow nock on the string witli your vight hand, vrhiie your lof't graspa tho hanillc of the bow, holding it horizontaLly, with the arrow uu the siriug.. Hook the üi-si, eecond and third iingers under the striug, taking the arïow betvveeu thejirst and seco hu. Now, with tiie loft hand, turn tho ' bow tül it sUmls porpcndicula'ilr foro you, your let't hand extended towaras tJiu targut. Draw witli your right and push finnly witii your lelt hand Uil thu ! row-head rests on t lio lowestjuiut of four left forofinger. hand wili aow touch your right ear. "Look str.iilit and hard at tho centre of the target, but do not even jluuce at yonr arrovv. Blindly diioct vuur arrow by youi' sen.se ot' feeling. Let go. These are the direotions giveii by lurice Thoiupsou of Indiana, Litan whoni there is no uetler living auilioriiy. .Never try to "take aim" nor sight alongthe arrow as if it weie a gunbai-rcl, but shoot IVoni your general tense of direction. Stick to thia rule, even if your Urst note are very wild. When done shootiug, even tbr 111 hour, uustring tlic bow. üivo it a rust. Never put it awuy striny. After eaon day's shootiiijj mb and polisli it witii oil ; or, butler, witli a mixture of oil uid was. A bow demandi ovou more cai-e tlianarifle. ltsliouldalways bn kept in a dry chost or closet aad will do bettor service if kept wrappod in oil skin or gréen baise. The object Is to keep all moisture out of thejfiuia anl übre of the wood.