Even in this there is an art. If you merely allow yourself to swing back as you swing forward, you will be disagreeably reminded of your error, by hitting the back of the leg smartly against the edge of the perch. In order to avoid this misfortune, draw up the legs sharply just before you reach the end of the return swing, and you will find them come down on the perch with perfect ease.

If you are using the rings instead of the bar, you can vary this part of the performance by turning round in the air, and crossing the ropes so that you alight on the perch with your back towards the trapeze, though it is necessary to give a sharp twist as your foot touches the perch, and so to turn in the direction in which you started.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

Take notice that the arms are always at full length during the swing, and that the ill.u.s.trations which represent the performer swinging with bent arms are entirely erroneous. There is another fault into which the artists mostly fall. Thinking that they are obtaining pictorial effect, they represent the ropes which sustain the bar as forming an angle with the arms of the performer, whereas the arms, body, and ropes are, or ought to be, all in the same line.

The real att.i.tude in the trapeze is given in the accompanying ill.u.s.tration, wherein it will be seen that the ropes, the arms, and the body are all in the same line; and, indeed, a little reflection will prove that they must be so. Note the position and action, or rather the non-action of the body, and be careful to imitate it. During the swing, let the body and limbs hang at full length, and be sure to keep the feet nearly together, and the toes pointed. The ill.u.s.trations are all wrong in this respect. They always _will_ show the performer in an att.i.tude which the draughtsman is pleased to think a graceful one; but it is inexpressibly graceless and ridiculous in the eyes of a gymnast.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

When you have accomplished the swing and return satisfactorily, you may advance another step. Swing off as usual; and, when you have reached the extremity of the swing, you will find yourself balanced for a moment motionless, the attraction of gravitation being balanced by the impetus of the swing. Just at this important point, shift your hold on the bar, and change sides, as you would do if the bar were hanging quietly.

You will then face the spot whence you started, and in landing on the perch you must be careful to give yourself a twist as you place your feet on the perch, and with a slight exertion of the arms you will draw yourself upright without difficulty, and without running the risk of falling off the perch again--a frequent and ignominious misfortune.

It will now be time to practise the descent from the swinging trapeze to the ground. Begin by sitting on the bar, grasping it with the hands, and falling off backwards, taking care to come to the ground with pointed toes and crossed feet. The reason of this precaution is that, if the feet are crossed, the knees are separated, and that when the body yields--as it must do when it touches the earth--there is no danger of hitting the chin against the knee, and thereby receiving a momentary shock to the brain by the teeth striking together.

When you can manage the "fall-back," as it is called, with tolerable ease and certainty, seize the bar with the hands, set it swinging, keeping your face to the perch, and when you are nearly at the full extent of the swing loosen your hold, and allow yourself to come to the ground. Be very careful to point the toes, as has already been described, and continue the practice until you can stand on the perch, launch yourself backwards, and fly off at the highest point of the swing.

Always leave the bar while you are swinging _backwards_, because the att.i.tude of the body is then such as to insure your coming to the ground in the correct position; whereas, if you do so while swinging forward, you are nearly certain to overbalance yourself, and either fall on your nose, or go staggering along in a very ignominious style.

The next process is to start as usual, raise yourself in a sitting position on the bar, and ask some one to remove the perch. Fall back as before, only, instead of coming on the ground, hang by the legs, and accustom yourself to swing in this att.i.tude. When you can accomplish that feat without difficulty, and feel no nervousness at your strange position, remove one leg from the bar and hang by the other. Practise this with both feet. It is not nearly so difficult as it looks, and is an important feat to perform, because it gives such perfect presence of mind.

The next feat looks positively awful, but, as usual in gymnastic performances, is perfectly easy, requiring no skill at all and only a little courage. Sit on the bar when it is still, and do the "fall-back."

But, instead of allowing the feet to pa.s.s between the ropes, spread the legs as far apart as possible, and bend up the feet rigidly. The consequence is, that the insteps. .h.i.tch in the ropes, slide down them, and the body becomes suspended by the feet, which are firmly hitched between the ropes and the bar, as seen in the accompanying ill.u.s.tration.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

If you possess a second trapeze, you may now proceed to the beautiful series of performances which are achieved upon them.

Let them at first be set moderately near each other, so that when the bar of the first trapeze is at full swing, it pa.s.ses within a yard or four feet of the second. Start off as usual, and just as you are well on the rise, after pa.s.sing through the upright, loose your hold of the bar, and you will pa.s.s through the air towards the second bar which you catch rapidly.

If you perform the feat nicely, you will have so much impetus to spare that you will be carried along on the second bar, and may either attempt to return or quietly drop to the ground at the end of the swing. If you prefer the latter course, be sure to turn through your arms and come down on your toes.

You will find that the return to the perch, simple as it looks, is by far the most difficult feat that has yet been mentioned. Make but the least mistake and failure is certain. If you do not catch the bar exactly at the right moment, you lose your impetus, and if you do not seize it exactly in the right place you do not swing truly between the uprights, and consequently cannot land on the spot at which you aim.

The method of performing this feat is as follows: Swing off the perch, pa.s.s to the second bar, and while at the full extent of the swing, change sides, and give yourself a slight impulse with the feet. You will now meet the first bar swinging towards you, and if you can seize it just at the right moment, you will find yourself with sufficient impetus to reach the perch. If not, swing once more, give yourself a hearty impulse with the legs and try it again. Failure is certain at first, but after a little practice the feat becomes easy.

Here we must protest against the totally erroneous ideas of artists respecting the att.i.tude of the body while the performer pa.s.ses from one bar to another. We think that without an exception they all represent him as shooting horizontally through the air, with his hands stretched out, and with one leg bent and the other straight. Now, if any one will watch a performer on the trapeze, he will see that the att.i.tude is nearly perpendicular, and that any other position is really absurd and impracticable.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

In the accompanying ill.u.s.tration, we have given a sketch of the real att.i.tude of the performer, wherein it will be seen that the body is nearly perpendicular, and that the arms are kept bent, with the hands close to the shoulders, ready to be darted out in a moment when the trapeze swings within distance.

We are the more particular in giving these ill.u.s.trations, because they are needed in order to correct the very false notions which are prevalent respecting this beautiful exercise. Parents especially are apt to form their judgments from the ill.u.s.trations which are seen upon advertising bills and in ill.u.s.trated journals, and thinking that the exercise must be attended with great danger, do not like to give their permission for their sons to learn it.

Let our readers be a.s.sured that there is no more danger in this beautiful exercise than in jumping over a chair--perhaps not quite so much--while the manner in which it develops the muscular powers of the arms, shoulders, and loins, is unapproachable by any other system.

One caution is, however, needful. Take care that every loop and splice be perfectly secure, look over the whole of the apparatus daily, and never venture upon the trapeze until you have ascertained that nothing is likely to give way. If you perceive the slightest feeling of insecurity, the whole enjoyment of the exercise is lost, and no benefit can be expected from it.

TRICKS AND FEATS OF GYMNASTICS.

_The book._--Fix a book between the toes of the feet, and, by a jerk, throw it over the head.

_The chalk line._--Draw a line with chalk on the floor; against this place the toes of both feet; then kneel down, and rise up again without leaving the line, or using the hands.

_Stepping through._--Take a small piece of cane about a foot long, and holding it between the hands, leap through it. Afterwards take a tobacco-pipe, and perform the same feat without breaking; after this, join the hands together, and leap through them, which is not very difficult of accomplishment.

_Armless._--Lying upon the back with the arms across the chest, the attempt must be made to rise on the feet again.

_Hop against the wall._--Stand with one toe close against the wall, about two feet from the ground, and turn the other over it, without removing the toe from the wall.

_Stoop if you can._--One boy having placed his heels against the wall, another must place near his toes a shilling, and tell him he may have it if he can pick it up. This he will find to be impossible for him to do while his heels touch the wall, as there is no room for his back to balance the other parts of his body.

_The spring from the wall._--Placing yourself at a proper distance from the wall with your face opposite to it, throw yourself forward until you support yourself by one hand. Then spring back into your former position. Begin this feat at a short distance from the wall, and increase the distance by degrees. The "athlete" will, in a short time, be able to stand at nearly the length of his body from the wall. This feat is sometimes called the palm spring, but the palm has really nothing to do with it. The thumb spring is similar, but dangerous, and many have sprained their thumbs in attempting it.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

_The long reach._--This is a somewhat difficult feat, and requires great caution in its performance. A line is chalked on the floor, at which the toes must be placed, and from which they are not to remove. The left hand is then to be thrown forward in a long reach until the body descends upon it, without any part touching the floor in its descent; the right hand is now to be stretched out as far forward as possible, and with a piece of chalk, a mark is made on the floor at its fullest extent, the body being sustained by the left hand during the operation.

The boy should now recover the upright position on his legs, by springing back from the left hand without touching the floor in any way.

The length reached, and the perfection with which the body recovers itself, distinguishes the winner of the game.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

_The stooping stretch._--In this feat a line is drawn on the floor, at which the outer edge of the left foot is placed, and behind this, at a short distance, the right heel. Taking a piece of chalk in the left hand, the youngster pa.s.ses it between the legs, and under the bend of the left knee, chalking the floor with it as far forward as he can. He then recovers his position without moving his feet from the line at which they had been fixed.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

_The chair feat._--Place three chairs in the situation indicated in the cut (p. 264), and lay down upon them, the head resting on one, the heels upon another, and the lower part of the body on the third or middle chair, which should be much lighter than the others. Then, by stiffening the body and limbs, and throwing up the chest into a state of rigidity, it will not be difficult for a boy to remove the middle chair, and to pa.s.s it quite over on the other side of him.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

_The poker feat._--Take a common poker and hold it the lower end downwards, in the manner shown in the cut, _i. e._ by the fingers, thumb, and ball of the palm. Then, by the mere motion of the fingers and thumb, and the fulcrum of the palm, work the poker upwards till you raise it through the whole length to that part of it which goes into the fire. This trick depends mainly upon the strength of the muscles of the hand and fingers, combined with a certain knack to be acquired by practice.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

_The stick feat, or from hand to mouth._--Take a piece of stick of the length of the fore arm, measuring from the elbow to the end of the middle finger. Hold it in the hand horizontally before you, the knuckles being down and the nails upwards, and the elbow being on a line with the hand. Then raise the left end of the stick from the breast to the mouth, without any other movement of the hand than the arm at the wrist. This is a difficult feat, but may be easily acquired by practice.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

[Ill.u.s.tration]

_Walking on stilts._--Among the Swiss, and in several districts in the South of France, walking on stilts is not only an amusing, but a useful practice, as by means of these crane-like legs men and women transform themselves into the order of "Waders," emulating the long-legged storks and herons, and can cross over marshes and flooded grounds without wetting their feet. Stilts are easily made, being nothing but a pair of poles, with a wooden step at the sides for the feet to stand on. The poles are kept in their proper place by the hands. A little practice will soon render a youth "easy on his stilts," and they may be made an amusing and healthy exercise.

HOCKEY.

In all the general principles, hockey bears a great resemblance to foot-ball, the game consisting in driving a ball through a goal. The ball, however, is of much smaller dimensions, even where a ball, and not a bung, is used; and it is impelled, not by the foot, but by certain sticks, or clubs, called hockeys, or hookeys, because the end with which the ball is struck is more or less hooked.