CONIFEREA. . 279 
The trunk of the tree appears to have been the part chiefly used in bow-making ; 
for Roger Ascham, in his “ Toxophilus,” says that the boughs, though sometimes em- 
ployed, were “knotty and full of priunes,” and recommends the archer to provide 
himself with a bow made from the bole or trunk. The last statute that appears in 
the books respecting the use of the yews for bows is the 13th of Hlizabeth, which 
directs that bow-staves shall be imported into England from the Hanse Towns and 
other places. In Switzerland, where the yew tree is scarce, it was forbidden, under 
heavy penalties, to cut down the tree for any other purpose than to make bows of the 
wood. The Swiss mountaineers call it ‘ William’s tree,” in memory of William 
Tell. Now, when the rifle has taken the place of the bow in the hands of the British 
soldier, and the formidable weapon of our ancestors has become a mere toy, the 
ancient value of yew is forgotten ; but the wood, though scarce, is not unfrequently 
employed by the turner and cabinet-maker for their finer work, and, when well veined, 
fetches a high price. It is universally allowed to be the finest European wood for 
cabinet-making purposes. Tables made of yew, when the grain is fine, according to 
Gilpin, are more beautiful than tables of mahogany, and the colour of its root is said 
to vie with the ancient citron. The sap-wood, though of as pure a white as the wood 
of the holly, is easily dyed of a jet black, when it has the appearance of ebony. 
Where it is abundant it is valued for works under ground, such as water-pipes, 
pumps, piles, &c. The yew will last longer than any other wood. ‘Where your 
paling is most exposed either to wind or springs,” says Gilpin, “strengthen it with a 
post of old yew.” It is a common saying among the inhabitants of the New Forest, 
that a “post of yew will outlast a post of iron.” Kyelyn mentions the yew trees at 
Box Hill as both numerous and large. Marshall, writing in 1796, says that a few of 
these trees which remained had then lately been taken down, and the timber of such 
as were sound was sold to the cabinet-makers at very high prices for inlaying ; one 
tree in particular was valued at 1001., and half of it was actually sold for 507. The 
least valuable were cut up into gate-posts, which are expected to last for ages. Even 
stakes made from the tops of yew have been known to stand for a number of years. 
Boutcher mentions one of the uses to which the wood is applicable, which ought to 
recommend it to all cabinet-makers—that the wooden parts of a bed made of yew 
will most certainly not be approached by bugs. ‘ This is a truth,” he adds, “ con- 
firmed to me by the experience of trees I had cut down and used myself in that way.” 
The accounts we have of the making of bows in England in early times are very 
interesting. In the time of the Saxons, yew bows the height of a man were brought 
over by Vortigern, and soon became general, till, according to one of the versifiers of 
the fifteenth century, the enemies of England in every country, 
“ By shafts from bows of bending yew, 
In streams of crimson gore paid nature’s due.” 
Mr. Loudon tells us that in the reign of Henry VII. “ Prince Arthur held sports of 
archery at Mile End, when there was created, in jest, a Duke of Shoreditch, and two 
Marquesses of Clerkenwell and Islington, and an Earl of Pancras. The Duke of 
Shoreditch was the best archer in the king’s guard, and the others the next best. 
These dignitaries played their parts like the king and queen on Twelfth Night, and 
a full detail of the ceremonies will be found in Wood’s ‘ Bowman’s Glory.” In 1544 
Roger Ascham published his “ Toxophilus,” a work replete with the quaint learning 
and involved sentences of the time. He gives directions for choosing a bow, and 
learning the art of using it. Of materials for making the bow, he gives decided 
preference to the yew. In his time a good bow consisted of a single piece of wood, 
