. William Shakespere : a biography. a mighty bowe. Upon his arme he bare a gaie bracer. The lots are cast; three archers on either side. The marker takes his place, to cry aim. Away flies the first arrow— gone —it is over the butt; a second— short; a third— wide ; a fourth hits the white,— Let him be clappedon the shoulder and called Adam ; f a fifth handles his bow like a crow-keeper, X Lastly comes a youth from Stratford, and he is within an inch ofcleaving the pin. There is a maiden gazing on the sport; she whispers aword in his ear, and then the very pin of his heart is cleft with the bhnd
. William Shakespere : a biography. a mighty bowe. Upon his arme he bare a gaie bracer. The lots are cast; three archers on either side. The marker takes his place, to cry aim. Away flies the first arrow— gone —it is over the butt; a second— short; a third— wide ; a fourth hits the white,— Let him be clappedon the shoulder and called Adam ; f a fifth handles his bow like a crow-keeper, X Lastly comes a youth from Stratford, and he is within an inch ofcleaving the pin. There is a maiden gazing on the sport; she whispers aword in his ear, and then the very pin of his heart is cleft with the bhndbow-boys butt-shaft.§ He recovers his self-possession, whilst he receives hisarrow from the marker, humming the while— The blinded boy, that shoots so trim,From heaven down did hie ;He drew a dart and shot at him,In place where he did lie. Il • Midsummer-Nights Dream, Act i., Scene ii. -f Much Ado about Nothing, Act I. J Lear. § Romeo and Juliet, Act ii., Scene iv. II of King Cophetua and the [The Crab-tree.] After repeated contests the match is decided. But there is now to be a triuof greater skill, requiring the strong arm and the accurate eye—the old Englislipractice which won the day at Agincourt. The archers go up into the hills:he who has drawn the first lot suddenly stops ; there is a bush upon the risingground before him, from which hangs some rag, or w^easel-skin, or dead crow ;away flies the arrow, and the fellows of the archer each shoot from the samespot. This was the roving of the more ancient archery, where the mark wassometimes on high, and sometimes on the ground, and always at variable dis-tances. Over hill and dale go the young men onward in the excitement oftheir exercise, so lauded by Richard Mulcaster, first Master of Merchant Tai-lors School :— And whereas hunting on foot is much praised, what moving otthe body hath the foot-hunter in hills and dales which the roving archer hathnot in variety of grounds ? Is his
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookpublisherlondon, booksubjectshakespearewill
