The stile was not always made of the same sort of wood, but varied as occasion required to suit the different manners of shooting practised by the archers. Our author then gives some instruction as to the management of the bow, and first recommends a graceful attitude.

Another writer says:-"The shooter should stand fairly and upright with his body, his left foot at a convenient distance before his right, holding the bow by the middle, with his left arm stretched out, and with the three first fingers and the thumb of the right hand upon the lower part of the arrow affixed to the string of the bow. Secondly, a proper attention should be paid to the notching, that is, the application of the notch at the bottom of the arrow to the bow-string; the notch of the arrow should rest between the fore-finger and the middle finger of the right hand. Thirdly, the proper drawing of the bow-string is to be attended to. In ancient times the right hand was brought to the right pap, but at present it is elevated to the right ear; the latter method is to be preferred. The shaft of the arrow below the feathers ought to be rested upon the knuckle of the fore-finger of the left hand, the arrow to be drawn to the head, and not held too long in that situation, but neatly and smartly discharged, without any hanging upon the string."

We must not judge of the merits of ancient bowmen from the practice of archery in the present day. There are no such distances now assigned for the marks as we find mentioned in old historians or old poetical legends; nor such precision even at short lengths in the direction of the arrow.

"The stranger he made no mickle ado,

But he bent a right good bow,

And the fattest of all the herd he slew,
Forty good yards him fro;

'Well shot! well shot!' quoth Robin Hood, &c."
Old Ballad.

Few, if any, of the modern archers in long shooting reach four hundred yards, or in shooting at a mark exceed eighty or a hundred. It must be borne in mind, however, that archery is now followed only for amusement, and as a delightful and healthful exercise for both sexes.

Strutt observes:-"I remember, about four or five years back, at a meeting of the Society of Archers, in their ground near Bedford Square, the Turkish Ambassador paid them a visit, and complained that the enclosure was by no means sufficiently extensive for a long shot; he therefore went into the adjacent fields to show his dexterity, where I saw him shoot several arrows more than double the length of the archery ground, and his longest shot

fell upwards of 480 yards from his standing. The bow he used was much shorter than that used by the English archers, and his arrows were of the bolt kind, with round heads made of wood."

"This delightful amusement," says a writer in "Colburn's Kalendar of Amusements for 1840," "is becoming almost as popular amongst us as it was with our forefathers. It decidedly is the most graceful game that can be practised, permitting the utmost exertion of skill and address, and, from bygone glorious associations, recommending itself instantly to every lover of pleasure. The ancient festival of 'Robin Hood and May-game' was so much in repute in the reign of the eighth Harry, that he and his nobles would frequently appear as Robin and his merry men, dressed in Kendal green, with hoods and hosen. In an ancient drama called The Play of Robin, very proper to be played in May Game,' a friar, surnamed Tuck, forms one of the principal characters. He comes to the forest in search of the bold Robin, with full intent to fight with him, but is prevailed upon to change his intention and to become chaplain to Mayde Marian. The character of Marian was generally represented by a boy; it, however, appears, from an entry in a list of the expenses of the play at Kingston-uponThames, that it was twice performed there by a female, who for each year's services received the sum of one shilling!"

The presence of ladies at the gatherings of the Toxophilite Society having largely increased, about 1839, the meetings began to be wound up by balls, which grew to formidable dimensions, and threatened to eclipse the object of the society; accordingly, they were given up, and instead was established a "Ladies' Day," annually on the 5th of July, on which the fair "archeresses" of Englandso called in the records of the society, be it observed -compete for silver bugles, bracelets, and other prizes. The average number of ladies who join in the shooting on these occasions is between fifty and sixty. The late Prince Consort and the Prince of Wales have successively been patrons of this society, whose meetings are among the pleasantest gatherings of the London season. In due course of time, though contrary to the spirit, if not to the letter, of the rules of the society, croquet became legitimised on these days. In 1869 the grounds were turned to a novel use in winter, by being laid down as a skating-rink. In the grounds is a pavilion, called the Hall, for the use of the society, tastefully adorned with stags' heads and antlers and the armorial bearings of members. The silver cups, badges, and other treasures of the society, we may add, are worth inspection.

masses.

and trees are mostly of a wild character, such as furze, broom, ivy, privet, clematis, thorns, mountain ash, &c., and these are clustered together in tangled In the very midst of a highlycultivated scene, which is overlooked at almost every step, and adjoining a compartment in which the most formal systematic arrangement is adopted in beds, and almost within the limits of the great metropolis itself, such an introduction of the rougher and less cultivated features of nature is assuredly to be deprecated. Several platforms on the face of the mound, and especially one at the summit, afford the most beautiful views of Regent's Park and its villas, Primrose and other neighbouring hills, and the more distant country. On a clear day, and the wind south-west, west, or north-west, these landscapes are truly delightful. There is a mixture of wood, grass, mansion, and general undulation, which is singularly refreshing so near London, and which abundantly exhibits the foresight that has been displayed in the formation of this mound. Unquestionably, when the atmosphere is at all favourable, the ascent of the mound is one of the greatest attractions of the garden to a lover of landscape beauties. Descending the mound on its eastern side, a small lake, out of which the material for raising the mound was procured, is seen to stretch along its base, and to form several sinuous arms. Like the mound itself, an air of wildness is thrown around this lake, which is increased by the quantity of sedgy plants on its margins, and the common-looking dwarf willows which abound near its western end. In this lake, and in some of the small strips of water by which it is prolonged towards the east, an unusually complete collection of hardy water-plants will be found, and these are planted without any appearance of art, so as to harmonise with the entire scene. There is a rustic bridge over one arm of the lake, which, being simple and without pretension, is quite in character with the neighbouring objects. Between the lake and the boundary fence, in a little nook formed on purpose for them, the various hardy ferns and Equiseta are cultivated. The plants of the former are put among masses of fused brick, placed more with reference to their use in affording a position for growing ferns than for their picturesque effect. This corner is," in fact, adds the writer, "altogether an episode to the general scene, and does not form a part of it.

"On a border near these ferns, and extending along the south side of the lake, are several interesting collections, illustrative of one of the society's objects, which is to show, in a special compartment, the hardy plants remarkable for their uses in various

branches of manufacture. Commencing at the western end of this border, we find, first, the plants which afford tanning materials; the Rhus cotinus and coriaria, the Scotch fir, the larch, and the oak, are among these. Next in order are the plants whose fibre is used for chip plat, comprising Salix alba, the Lombardy poplar, &c. Then follow the plants whose fibre is adapted for weaving, cordage, &c.; the Spartium junceum, flax and hemp, rank in this class. The plants used in making baskets, or matting, &c., next occur, and embrace the lime and osier among others. Grasses of different kinds then illustrate the plants whose straw is used for plaiting. The cork-tree and Populus nigra furnish examples of plants whose bark yields cork. A collection of plants whose parts furnish materials for dyeing finishes the series. Altogether, this is a very instructive border, and all the objects are labelled under the respective heads here given, so that they may be readily referred to.

"A large herbaceous garden adjoins the lake at its eastern end, and the plants are here arranged in beds, according to the natural system, the species of each order being assigned to one bed. Of course, the beds will thus vary greatly in size. Three or four crescent-shaped hedges are placed here and there across this garden, partly for shelter, but principally to act as divisions to the larger groups of natural orders. These hedges separate the garden into the great natural divisions, and each of the compartments they form is again subdivided into orders by walks four feet in width, the sub-orders being indicated by division-walks of two feet in width. The inquiries of the student are thus greatly aided, and he is enabled to carry away a much clearer impression of the natural system than can be had from books. This is an excellent place for ascertaining what are the best and most showy herbaceous border flowers. Further on, in the same direction, is a garden assigned entirely to British plants, disposed, in conformity with the Linnæan system, in long beds, with alleys between. In this division will be seen how very ornamental are some of the plants to which our soil gives birth; and the less informed will be surprised to find that many of their garden favourites are the natural products of some part or other of our own country. A well-stocked 'medical garden' terminates this chain of scientific collections, and is more pleasing than the other two, on account of the plants being much more varied. The arrangement of this tribe is founded on the natural system, and the plants are in narrow beds, which take a spiral form. Near the medical garden are the plant-houses, pits, and reserve-ground, in

Regent's Park.]

which all the plants are grown for stocking the conservatory, flower-beds, borders, &c. The planthouses are constructed in a very simple manner, with a path down the centre, flat shelves or stages at the sides, the hot-water pipes under the stages, near the walls, the lights resting on the side-walls, and all fixed, with ventilators, in the shape of small sashes, here and there along the top of the larger lights, on both sides of the centre. One of these houses, which is used for orchids, has no means of ventilation at all, except at the end, over the door, where there is a small sash capable of being opened. With proper shading it is found, both here and elsewhere, that orchids very seldom require fresh air. One of the span-roofed houses is almost wholly occupied with a cistern containing the great Victoria regia, Nymphæa cærulea, and other aquatics. From the reserve-ground a few steps lead to the large conservatory, which is more appropriately termed the 'winter-garden.' At the eastern end of this conservatory, and in a corresponding place at the other end, there is a large vase placed on the gravel; and along the front of the conservatory, at the edge of the terrace, are several more vases, of a handsomer kind. The conservatory, which is of large dimensions, is of the very lightest description, built wholly of iron and glass. The front is simply adorned with a kind of pilaster, composed of ground glass, neatly figured, which gives a little relief, without obstructing the light. The central flattish dome has an ornamental kind of crown, which helps to break the outline. The roof is, for the most part, composed of a series of large ridges, the sides of these being of an inverted sort of keel shape, and a transverse ridge extending along the principal front from either side of the domical portion. The warming of the building is effected by means of hot water circulating in cast-iron pipes, placed in brick chambers under the surface of the floor, and by a continuous iron tank, eighteen inches wide and six inches deep, placed in a brick chamber around the building. The heated air escapes by perforated castings level with the floor, and airducts communicate with the chambers containing the pipes and tank, bringing air to be heated from parts of the house most remote from the heating surface. Ventilation is provided by means of sashes made to slide on the roof, and worked simultaneously by means of simple machinery, and at the ends of the house and in the front by casements hung on pivots. The conservatory is capable of accommodating 2,000 visitors, and it was erected at a cost of about £7,000."

The gardens are open every week-day, from nine till sunset, and on Sundays after two o'clock; and

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we need hardly add that during the summer, and in the height of the London "season," its pleasant pathways and rustic walks form very agreeable promenades and lounges for the "upper ten thousand," and especially on fête-days.

Leaving the gardens by the gate on the eastern side, and passing for a short distance along Chester Road, we enter the "broad walk" of the Park, and proceeding northward, find ourselves at the entrance to the Zoological Gardens. These gardens, it need hardly be stated, are the chief attraction of Regent's Park to the thousands who flock to London during the holiday seasons. Here, as almost all the world knows, is collected the most comprehensive assemblage of animated nature in the whole kingdom, perhaps in the whole world. Here the different animals and tribes of animals, instead of being confined in wooden cages, and bandied about the country in travelling menageries, are surrounded by the very circumstances which attend them in their wild state, as far as that is possible, and thus they live, and thrive, and multiply almost as freely and certainly as in their native homes. The denizens of this unrivalled spot must be numbered by thousands, and they embrace not only all that roam the forest and the desert, and cleave the air, but some others that dwell in the caverns of the deep. The gardens, as we have stated above, are on the north-west side of the Park, and are about seventeen acres in extent. They are divided into two parts by the "Outer Circle" or carriage-drive, which passes through them elliptically, each part being appropriately connected by a short tunnel. The north entrance to the gardens is in this road. A straight principal walk passes through the gardens at an oblique angle from the main entrance in the Broad Walk, and leads by a flight of steps over the roof of one of the larger menageries, this roof being balustraded at the sides, and forming a large terraceplatform, from which a large part of the gardens, and also of the Park, may be viewed. The sides of the walk leading to this terrace are bordered by small flower-beds, backed by shrubs. The rest of the garden is laid out in the most irregular manner possible, so as to obtain a greater number and variety of walks. Several of the structures appropriated to the different animals are picturesque and pleasing examples of the rustic style; and in different parts of the gardens are sheets of water, some of them containing miniature islands, wherein the various species of water-fowl disport themselves. The northern division of the gardens is connected. with the other part by a tunnel, which passes under the roadway. The ground in this part of the garden is on the slope of the banks of the canal,

Davy, Sir Stamford Raffles, and other eminent individuals, "for the advancement of zoology, and the introduction and exhibition of subjects of the animal kingdom, alive or in a state of preservation." The collection of animals first established here in 1828 was soon after swelled by the royal collection in the Tower of London, of which we have spoken in a previous volume,t the remains of which were transferred hither in 1834. The collection in the Tower is said to have grown out of a group of three leopards, presented by the Emperor Frederick II., the greatest zoologist of his day, to Henry III., in allusion to the three leopards which then adorned the royal shield of

large number of species of mammalia and birds has been obtained, either by bequest or by purchase, detailed lists of which are to be found in the successive annual reports of the society. To these there were added, in 1849, a collection of reptiles, which has afforded great facilities to the scientific observers of this class of animals, and, more recently, a collection of fishes and of the lower aquatic animals, both marine and fresh-water, which has given rise to many interesting discoveries in their habits and economy.

That part of the menagerie over which is the terrace of which we have spoken above was formerly called the house of the "great carnivora." Here were exhibited, in dens, the lions, tigers, leopards, jaguars, panthers, &c. ; but at the com