AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 
November, 1912 
There is not a more healthful, grace-giving exercise than that of archery 
The Revival of Archery 
By Helen N. Marion 
RCHERY, a favorite diversion in the days 
of Robin Hood and his “merrie men,”’ is 
becoming one of the popular as well as 
harmless and fascinating sports of to-day. 
The game of archery is as old as history, 
but like everything else connected with long 
bow shooting, it was brought to perfection in England dur- 
ing the period between the Conquest and the date of the 
adoption of fire-arms for the infantry of Great Britain. 
As soon as guns had supplanted the bow and arrow as a 
means of warfare, the great practice fields made for public 
shooting were dismantled, and archery became simply a 
sport, adopted by the wealthy, and all the archery tourna- 
ments were confined to the beautiful parks. belonging to the 
old societies, or to the lawns prepared at the country places 
of gentlemen who patronized the sport. 
These English archery meetings were often conducted 
with great grandeur. Showy tents were set up on the lawn, 
bands played popular airs, while the bowmen, gayly dressed, 
paraded here and there about the grounds. Again the 
shoots were social affairs, conducted with more privacy, 
held under the auspices of some interested friend of the 
sport, who invited a few congenial spirits for an afternoon’s 
shoot and simple informal dinner. 
This old-fashioned game is coming into vogue more and 
more here in America. One of its greatest charms lies in 
the fact that it is an exercise which is not confined to men 
alone. Women have attained a great amount of skill 
with the bow, and it is especially recommended to those 
who do not enjoy the more violent forms of exercise. 
It combines interest and health giving activity, and is an 
excellent game for developing the muscles, giving grace of 
carriage, adding suppleness to the body, and training the 
eye, and it has the advantage of showing off a good figure, 
or of developing one for the girl who wishes to attain it. 
The first point to consider, if one wishes to take up with 
archery, is the bow. ‘This should not be too strong, as 
archers new to the sport are apt to make this error. Even 
of more importance than the bow is the arrow, as this re- 
quires the greatest nicety to make. One can get on with a 
bow of inferior make, but unless the arrow be of the best, 
Robin Hood himself would have aimed in vain. The best 
wood for arrows for target shooting is hard seasoned pine. 
Next to having a perfectly straight and even arrow, the 
feathers should be considered. For long range shooting 
the feathers of the arrow should be narrow, and the shaft 
light, while for short range more accurate shooting, the 
shaft must be heavy and the feathers broad. 
If a girl wishes to take up this sport as an exercise only, 
and is not particular about making record shoots, just as 
