THE REFERENDUM 



459 



ARCHERY IN DES MOINES, IOWA. 



BY "TAG" HUSSEY. 



Des Moines caught the fever in the early- 

 spring of 1878. A meeting was called at the 

 house of Walter E. Andrews, and the "Des 

 Moines Toxophilites" was organized. It was 

 a name which worried some who were not up 

 in pronunciation ; but the members soon 

 learned to pronounce it with a glibness which 

 quite surprised themselves. The names as re- 

 membered were : W. F. Hackney, Chas. A 

 Finkbine, Geo. F. Henry, Robert Fullerton, 

 H. R. Creighton, Ed. C. Finkbine, Jas. G. 

 Berryhill, Elwood Gatch, Rev. Joseph S. 

 Jenckes, Tacitus Hussey, J. H. Windsor, 

 Misses Blanche Mills, Mamie Cole, Mary 

 Love, Hattie Raybourne, Fanny Parsons, 

 Dottie Walters, Laura Owens, Mesdames Jo- 

 seph S. Jenckes, J. H. Windsor, Elwood 

 Gatch, and Tacitus Hussey. The club met for 

 practice once a week, and the distances shot 

 were twenty and thirty yards ; but when more 

 proficient the distance was lengthened out to 

 the American and Columbia rounds. Another 

 club was formed a little latter which bore the 

 very pretty and appropriate name, 'The Cres- 

 cent." 



The names of the members of this 

 club as recalled were : Frank A. Sherman, 

 Walter McCain, C. W. Battell, Geo. L. Eason, 

 Simon Cassady, A. W. De Forrest, Will Hobbs, 

 W. C. Nixon, A. D. Crain, Eugene Bryan, Fos- 

 ter Ross, Misses Lucy Love, Addie Sherman, 

 Sadie Lunt, Sallie Griffith, Helen Andrews, 

 Mesdames Nellie Wright and A. D. Crain. 

 The archery event of the year 1878 in the 

 Toxophilite Club, was the acceptance of a 

 challenge for a series of matches with the 

 Highland Park Archers of Highland Park, 

 111., and the Chicago Archery Club. 



The matches were to be shot on home 

 grounds, and the results telegraphed in to 

 each other as the rounds were completed, 

 with an umpire appointed at each end of the 

 line to see that the shooting was done accord- 

 ing to the rules, and the scorings properly 

 made. The distances stipulated were thirty 

 arrows at 30, 40 and 60 yards each. • 



A match between the Crescents and the 

 Toxies at Terrace Hill on the Fourth of July, 

 1879, resulted in a victory for the Toxies by 

 a score of 1,080 to 827. Governor John H. 

 Gear and his wife sent two magnificent bou- 

 quets for the lady and gentleman having the 

 highest individual scores in the day's shoot- 

 ing. They were won by Miss Maime Cole 

 and Tacitus Hussey. There were other pri- 

 vate matches during the season, and the 

 "twanging of the bowstring," as it was ex- 

 pressed by one witty lady, "was almost con- 

 tinuous between meals !" 



During the early part of the year 1879 the 

 "National Archery Association" was organ- 

 ized, and Chicago was selected as the place of 

 the gathering in August of that year. The 

 Toxophilite Club sent as its representatives 



Mr. and Mrs. Jas. H. Windsor, Mr. and Mrs. 

 Tacitus Hussey, Mrs. Elwood Gatch, C. A. 

 Finkbine, Geo. F. Henry, Robert Fullerton, 

 Misses Fanny Parsons, Laura Owens, Maime 

 Cole and Mary Love. Walter McCain and 

 Will Hobbs were there representing the 

 Crescents ; but 'did not compete for prizes. 

 The Toxophilite team was : Hussey, Henry, 

 Fullerton and Finkbine. This team won a 

 case of archery worth about $250. All the 

 Toxie ladies won prizes. Mr. Hussey won a 

 special prize at the general shoot at the 40- 

 yard range. Mr. Llenry won a special prize at 

 one of the longer ranges, and the Toxies 

 came home much elated. At a state tourna- 

 ment at Des Moines, the same year in Octo- 

 ber, to which all the archers of the state were 

 invited, the Toxophilites won out, Mr. Henry 

 carrying off the honor of championship by a 

 score of 413 at the American round. Shoot- 

 ing was kept up for a few years after that, 

 but was allowed to die out by degrees, and 

 finally ceased after a few spasmodic efforts 

 to revive it. The real reason, it is supposed, 

 was that there were no suitable public 

 grounds for practice. 



In 1904 the matter was again agitated, and 

 it was proposed to the "Golf and Country 

 Club" by two veteran archers that if the club 

 would furnish the grounds they would do 

 their best to revive the sport. Very late in 

 the summer of 1904 this was agreed upon, 

 and shooting was commenced with such arch- 

 ery outfits as was left over from the years 

 gone by. Garrets were ransacked for bows 

 and arrows and a sufficient number of old 

 bows and arrows were found to begin the 

 practice. 



It is most astonishing how a bright-faced 

 target or two on a field of green will 

 arrest an old archer's attention, and so to 

 make a long story short the sport was revived 

 in the hearts of all old archers in this city. 

 To-day they can be seen with a few excep- 

 tions standing before the bright-faced targets 

 and letting their shaft fly, if not with the 

 same skill, with the old love for the beautiful 

 pastime. 



The year 1906 opened up very well, and 

 had there been a full stock of archery on 

 hand there would be many more at the work. 

 But it is increasing in interest, and before the 

 leaves are colored by the frosts there will be 

 a hundred archers, old and young, shooting 

 away at the targets like veterans. A new 

 ground is being laid out by the generous 

 "Golf and Country Club," and a superintend- 

 ent with large archery experience employed 

 for the season for the instruction of beginners 

 and to look after the general welfare of the 

 sport. 



Archery in Des Moines will be a success, 

 and some fine shots will be developed. 

 Practice makes perfect in this as in every- 

 thing else. And it is hoped that future de- 

 velopments will fulfill our brightest hopes. 



