besides, the cattle in exposed situations, and especially in these northern parts, are so impatient of confinement at the commencement of the long, cold, wet nights, that no hedges I have ever yet seen in any part of this island are sufficient to keep them in. These inconveniences probably suggested to the late Sir George Suttie (eminent in East Lothian for his love of, and skill in, agriculture), an idea of a fence, that at once joined the warmth and ornament of the hedge with the almost perpetual fence of the wall. If I mistake not, you have, in some of your useful works, recommended hedges to be planted against the common dry stone walls: Sir George Suttie rather improved on this thought; he planted his hedges after the common method here, in the face of the ditch; but instead of putting a paling, or post and rail on the top of the bank, he placed a wall of two feet and a half high. His local situation induced him to build with lime, and, in places where that commodity is tolerably reasonable, it is the best method, as the satisfaction it affords by requiring no repairs, and the duration more than repays the expense; but, where the price of lime is high, they may be built without any cement, and answer the purpose very well, if the work is properly executed.' Mr. Erskine, after informing Mr. Young that he has now experienced the benefit of these fences for some years,' and that he can with great confidence recommend them as superior to all others,' concludes with the following account of the method of erecting them: "When a new fence is proposed to be made, the surface of the ground of the breadth of the ditch, and likewise for two feet more, should be pared off, to prevent, as much as possible, the weeds and grass from hurting the growth of the young thorns. The ditch should be five feet broad, two feet and a half deep, and one foot broad at the bottom; leave one foot for an edging or scarcement, then dig the earth one spit of a spade for about one foot, and put about three inches of good earth below the thorn, which should be laid nearly horizontal, but the point rather inclining upwards, in order to let the rain drip to the roots; then add a foot of good earth above it; leave three or four inches of a scarcement before another thorn is planted: it must not be directly over the lower one, but about nine inches or a foot to one side of it; then throw a foot of good earth on the thorn, and trample it well down, and level the top of the bank for about three feet and a half for the base of the wall to rest on. The base of the wall should be about nine or ten inches (but not exceed one foot from the thorn). The wall to be about two feet thick at the bottom, and one foot at the top; the cope to be a single stone laid flat, then covered with two sods of turf; the grass of the undermost to be next the wall, and the other sod must have the grass side uppermost; the sods should be of some thickness to retain moisture, so that they may adhere together, and not be easily displaced by the wind; the height of the wall to be two feet and a half, exclusive of the sods, which together should be from four to six inches, by which means the wall would be nearly three feet altogether.' See HEDGES and PALING.

'Next to implements and machinery, and suitable buildings,' says an able writer on this subject in the supplement to the Encyclopædia Britannica, fences are in most situations indispensable to the profitable management of arable land. They are not only necessary to protect the crops from the live stock of the farm, but often contribute, in no small degree by the shelter they afford, to augment and improve the produce itself. On all arable farms, on which cattle and sheep are pastured, the ease, security, and comfort, which good fences give, both to the owner and the animals themselves, are too evident to require particular notice. And as there are few tracts so rich as to admit of crops being carried off the land for a succession of years, without the intervention of green crops consumed where they grow, fences, of some description or other, can very rarely be dispensed with, even in the most fertile and highly improved districts.' But there is no branch of husbandry so generally mismanaged as this. No district, of any considerable extent, perhaps, can be named, in which one does not see the greater part of what are called fences, not only comparatively useless, but wasteful to the possessor of the lands which they occupy, and injurious both to himself and his neighbours, by the weeds which they shelter. This is particularly the case with thorn hedges, which are too often planted in soils where they can never, by any management, be expected to become a sufficient fence; and which, even when planted on suitable soils, are in many cases so much neglected when young, as ever afterwards to be a nuisance, instead of an ornamental, permanent, and impenetrable barrier, as, with proper training, they might have formed in a few years."

By way of general hints, he adds, 'the exposure of the land should be considered, in order that the fences may give the shelter that is most required:-the form of the field should be such as to render it most accessible from the farm buildings, and that it may be cultivated at the least expense, the lands or ridges not being too short, nor running out into angles at the points where the fence takes a different direction:-and the soil of the enclosure should be as nearly alike throughout as possible, that the whole field may be always under the same kind of crop. It must, in general, be a matter of consequence to have water in every enclosure; but this is too obvious to escape, attention.'

"The most common fences, of a permanent character, are stone walls and whitethorn hedges. Stone walls have the recommendatior of being an immediate fence; but the disadvantage of going gradually to decay, and of requiring to be entirely rebuilt, in some cases every twenty years, unless they are constructed with lime mortar, which is in many districts much too expensive to be employed in erecting common fences. Whitethorn hedges, on the contrary, though they require several years to become a fence of themselves, may be preserved at very little expense afterwards in full vigor for several generations. It is scarcely necessary to add, that upon wet soils, where hedges are employed as fences, it is of importance that the ditches be drawn in such a direction as to serve the purposes of drains, and also that

they may receive the water from the covered drains that may be required in the fields contiguous. According as the line of the fence is more or less.convenient in this respect, the expense of draining may be considerably diminished or increased.'

'The expense of enclosing, and, of course, the direction and construction of the fences,' concludes this writer, ought to be undertaken in almost every case by the proprietor, not merely for the sake of relieving the tenant from a burden which may be incompatible with his circumstances and professional duties, but also from a principle of economy on the part of the landlord. Whatever may be the tenant's knowledge and capital, it is not to be expected that his views should extend much beyond his own accommodation during his temporary occupation; whereas the permanent interest of the landlord requires, not so much a minute attention to economy in the first instance, as that the amelioration shall be as complete and as durable as possible. The tenant's outlay on fences must inevitably be returned by a diminution of the yearly rent, and probably with a large profit for the first advance of the money; while, at the same time, that money may be expended in an improvement which is neither so complete nor so lasting as it might have been rendered, had it been done at the expense, and under the direction of the proprietor. But another error of the same kind is probably still more common, and by far more pernicious to landholders. The fences are to be kept in repair by the tenant; which, in so far as regards stone walls, is a stipulation no way objectionable. But it often happens that a landlord, even though he runs a hedge-fence at his own expense, leaves it to be trained up by the tenant without his interference; and the consequence is, that, in perhaps nine cases out of ten, it never becomes a sufficient fence at all; that the original cost is lost for ever; and that the land which it occupies is not only unproductive, but actually a nuisance. Besides, it is evidently improper to require of a tenant to rear up a good fence, commonly by a greater outlay than was required for forming it, when the half of his lease

perhaps must elapse before he can derive much benefit from it. This mistake on the part of proprietors is probably the principal cause of the badness of hedge-fences; for if they are neglected when the plants are young, if cattle are allowed to make gaps, water permitted to stagnate in the ditch, or weeds to grow unmolested on the face of the bank, no labor or attention afterwards will ever make an equal and strong fence. As it is well known how difficult, or rather impossible, it is to enforce this care by any compulsory covenants, the best plan for both parties is that which is adopted in some districts, where hedges are reared at the mutual expense of landlord and tenant, the thorns, while they require it, being protected by rails, or otherwise, so as to give the tenant all the advantages of a complete fence in the mean time. In this case he cannot justly complain that he pays a share of the expense, and this payment furnishes the strongest motive for preserving the young thorns from damage, and for training them with such care, as to become a complete fence in the shortest possible period.'

Rammed earth, or en pise walls, are very common in France, both as fences and walls for buildings. They have been described at great length in the communications to the Board of Agriculture, and in other works, and tried in various parts of this country with tolerable success, though they are by no means suited either to our moist climate or degree of civilisation. In constructing them the earth is previously pounded, in order to crumble any stones therein; clay is added thereto in a small quantity, about one-eighth part. It is all beaten and mixed up together by repeated blows with a mallet about ten inches broad, and ten or fifteen inches long, and two inches thick. The earth being thus prepared, and slightly wetted, the foundation of the wall is dug; this is laid with stone, and when it is about one foot high above the surface of the ground, planks are arranged on each side, and the space between filled with the earth intended for the wall. It is strongly beaten; and this method is continued successively, till the wall is completed.

FENCING, in military exercises, is the art, or science, of making a proper use of the sword, either for attacking an enemy or defending one's self. On this elegant and manly exercise Sir John Sinclair observes, There is no exercise, with a view to health, better entitled to the attention of those who are placed among the higher orders of society, than that of fencing. The positions of the body, in fencing, have for object, erectness, firmness, and balance; and, in practising that art, the chest, neck, and shoulders, are placed in positions the most beneficial to health. The various motions of the arms and limbs, whilst the body maintains its erect position, enable the muscles in general to acquire vigorous

strength, and in young people the bones of the chest and thorax necessarily become more enlarged, by means of which a consumptive tendency may be often prevented. It has been remarked, also, that those who practise the art are remarkable for long life and the good health they enjoy. These considerations, combined with the graceful movements which it establishes, and the elegant means of self-defence which it furnishes, certainly render the art an object of considerable importance.'

Fencing,' says Locke on Education, is so necessary a qualification in the breeding of a gentleman, and has so many advantages in regard to health and personal appearance, tha

every gentleman of respectability ought to have so striking a mark of distinction."'

But fencing is not the exercise of a few days, or even months; the practice of two or three years is requisite to enable a person to become a skilful fencer. In France, where the best fencers in Europe are found, a very indifferent opinion is entertained of any one if he cannot boast of at least four years regular practice in the fencing schools.

This art is, however, too much dependent on personal instruction and practice to demand any lengthened treatise in a work like the present. We shall, therefore, only attempt to give a succinct account of the first lessons, the thrusts, parades, &c., following Monsieur Danet's wellknown arrangement.

It will be necessary, first, to observe that the sword is divided into two parts: the strong part, or fort, as it is usually termed, reaching from the hilt to the middle of the blade, and the weak part, or foible from the middle to the point.

Thrusts are made either inside, or outside, over, or under the arm, and ought to be parried with the fort of the blade. Supposing the sword held flat before you, the inside is that edge which is nearest the left side, the outside that nearest the right; a thrust put above the sword is over the arm, one put in beneath it under the arm.

The GUARD.-The only regular guard in fencing, is assumed after the following manner. Hold the sword with the thumb flat upon the handle, at about the distance of an inch from the guard, pressing the hilt principally with the little and ring fingers; incline the edge of the blade a little inwards, the hilt being at the height of the right breast, and the point a little higher. The body is to be turned, so as to present the profile of it, the heel of the right foot in a line with the ancle of the left, at the distance of at least twice the length of the foot, and at right angles with each other. The right arm must be a little bent, the elbow inclining inwards; the left arm raised to the height of the head, and forming an easy semi-circle, the fingers a little bent, and the index just touching the thumb.

The THRUSTS.-In fencing there are nine different positions of the arm and wrist in thrusting, which are thus distinguished. 1. Prime of the modern nomenclature, commonly called high carte, inside the arm; 2. Ancient prime; 3. High tierce or modern seconde; 4. Old seconde, a mere low tierce; 5. Low carte of the moderns, the common carte of the ancient school; 6. Quinte, the same in both modern and ancient style; 7. Carte, over arm; 8. Carte, cut outside; and 9. Flanconnade.

It is necessary to observe that all thrusts and parades are included in but three positions of the wrist, viz. supination, the palm of the hand being turned upwards; pronation when reversed or turned downwards; and the mean position the medium between these two, the thumb being above the fingers as they are bent.

1. Prime or high carte, inside the arm.-This thrust is the prime of the moderns, not only because it is the highest elevation of the wrist, but because it is also the easiest, most used, and most simple thrust in fencing. It is given inside

the arm, the wrist in supination raised about three inches above the crown of the head during the movement of the right foot. The instructions for performing this thrust, as given in Rolando's modern art of fencing, are the following:-Carry the right foot forward to its greatest point of extension, which is generally about four times its length; and in the very time of this action, when you ought to direct your point, adjust your thrust without vacillation towards your adversary's right breast; but, as soon as the point of your sword reaches within three or four inches of his body, form the opposition of your wrist, the nails uppermost, your chest a little inclined forward, the head turned a little outside, the left haunch steadied, the shoulders well turned out, the right knee outwards, and bent perpendicularly with the instep; the left heel on the same line with the right heel, the leg well bent, and the foot firm upon the ground. The right hand, in directing the thrust, must always set out first, and the other parts of the body should follow rapidly. The thrust being made, get up quick on guard, joining your adversaries blade without forcing, and holding your point still opposite to his breast. In every thrust all these evolutions are to be executed with the same precision. This thrust is parried either by high carte, prime seconde, or octave. See plate I. FENCING, fig. 1.

2. Ancient prime.-This was the first thrust of the ancient school, and was so named as being the natural attempt made by any one, who had never learned to fence, to thrust with a sword. it is executed by raising the wrist in pronation about three inches above the crown of the head; and, in plunging the point at the adversary, the body is inclined somewhat more forward than in high carte: the remainder is executed in the same manner as described in the account of that thrust. In order to obtain an opening for this thrust, which is generally put in after the prime parade, it is sometimes necessary to step out of the line, to the right, as you make your thrust. This is parried by prime, half circle, and octave.

3. High tierce, or the seconde of the moderns.-In making the thrust of high tierce the wrist should be in pronation at about the height of the crown of the head; the sight may be directed under the arm, the body should be a little more inclined forward than in high carte, and the thrust should be given between the arm-pit and the right breast: the rest as in high carte. This thrust is parried by tierce, carte over arm, and pointe volante. Although this thrust is given in the same situation as the old prime, it differs from it not only in the height of the wrist, but in the more marked opposition of the fort of the blade. See plate I. fig. 2.

4. Seconde of the ancients, or low tierce of the moderns, is thus performed: lower the point of your sword under your adversary's guard, and thrust under his arm; the wrist in pronation raised as high as the eyes, directing the point under his arm-pit, and inclining the body and head farther forward than in the preceding; covering, particularly the head, as much with the wrist as by the fort of the blade. This thrust is parried by the half-circle, prime, seconde, octave, and quinte.

5. Low carte, of the modern system, or common carte inside the arm, of the ancients, is thus executed. Being on guard, in carte, direct the point of your sword along, and underneath your opponent's wrist; and, when about four inches from his body, raise your wrist in supination as high as the mouth, and throw the point into the pit of his stomach without extending your body so much as in the preceding thrust. This thrust is parried by low carte, the octave, half-circle, prime, and seconde. Rolando's Modern Art of Fencing, p. 28.

6. Quinte, both ancient and modern, was the fifth thrust, whence it derives its name. It is thus given the wrist, being in the mean position, should be held as high as the chin, the fort of your blade opposed to the foible of your adversary's, and supporting thus your opposition pass as it were by stealth your point under his wrist, and thrust at his abdomen, still in the attitude of carte with the flat of the blade uppermost. This thrust is parried by quinte, seconde, octave, and the half circle.

7. Carte over arm, or modern prime over arm, is a carte thrust, passed over the arm along your opponent's blade, with the wrist in supination three inches above the head; the right arm should be entirely extended, and the other parts of the body placed as directed in high carte. This thrust is best parried by pointe volante; it may also be parried by tierce, and the cart cover arm parade.

8. Carte cut outside the arm, is thus executed: when on guard in tierce over your opponent's arm, lower by stealth your point by means of a half circle outside the arm; adjust your point under his arm-pit, the flat of the blade uppermost, supporting the sword precisely under his elbow; the wrist will then be in the mean position with the same position as in low carte. This thrust is to be parried by the half circle, seconde, quinte, or octave. See FENCING, plate II. fig. 1.

9. Flanconnade, so called, because mostly touching only the flank, is thus performed: being engaged in carte, lower the point below your opponent's wrist, take the foible of his blade without quitting it, and plunge your point into his flank under his elbow outside the arm; the wrist raised and supported in the mean position as high as the mouth; oppose suddenly the left wrist close to the elbow, the hand open, and stoop at the same time to avoid being touched by seconde. This is parried by seconde and low carte. See plate II. fig. 2.

We shall now endeavour to give a short description of the different simple parades. A parade, or parry, is formed by giving a dry beat on your opponent's sword, to avoid being touched by his point. A dry parade, is the action of striking his blade with a firm vivid motion, so as to turn it aside without following it. There were for merly only six parades taught; there are now fifteen in use.

The first is that of high carte, or modern prime, which is thus executed: supposing you are on guard, and your opponent thrusts high carte, then turn your right side so as to oppose as narrow a front as possible, and parry with a dry beat from

the inside fort of your blade against his foible, lowering yours about six inches inside the arm, the wrist in the mean position at the breast height, and return high carte.

2. Ancient prime parade.-If when on guard your opponent thrusts ancient prime, parry with the fort outside of your sword, the wrist in pronation being as high as the forehead and opposed inside the arm; then extend your arm, and throwing your point below his stomach return ancient prime.

3. High tierce, or modern seconde, parade.—If when on guard your opponent thrusts high tierce, parry with a dry beat, fort against foible, outward from within; wrist nearly in pronation at the height of the flank, the arm extended in order better to be able to return with high tierce.

4. Ancient seconde parade.-If when on guard your opponent thrusts ancient seconde, parry with the inner fort of the blade turned out; the wrist in pronation breast high, the arm extended to return ancient seconde.

5. Low carte parade.-If from the guard your opponent thrust low carte, parry with a dry beat from the fort inside of your blade; the wrist in the mean position at the height of the abdomen, the point a little more elevated, and return low carte.

6. Quinte parade.-When from his guard your opponent makes the thrust of quinte, parry with the fort edge of your blade against his foible; lowering your wrist to the mean position, perpendicular with your knee, and the edge of your sword to the height of the thigh, somewhat inclined inwards, return low carte.

7. Carte over arm parade.-Upon your opponent's thrusting from his guard carte over arm, parry with your arm bent, with the fort outside of your blade against his foible, the wrist being in the mean position at the height of the chest, in the same situation as in carte outside the arm, and return with carte over arm.

8. Low tierce parade is adapted in the same manner either to a tierce or carte over arm thrust, and is thus executed :-Upon your antagonist attempting either of these, parry with the inner fort edge upon his foible by a dry beat, lowering and bending your elbow a little; the wrist in pronation at the height of the haunch, the point elevated, and return seconde.

9. The octave parade, so called as having been formerly the eighth and last of the parades, is thus performed:-Upon your antagonist's thrusting carte cut outside the arm, parry with the fort outside edge of your blade against his foible, the wrist in the mean position at the height of the breast; the arm bent outwards, the point low; and then return carte over arm.

10. Half circle parade upon low carte.-When from his guard your opponent thrusts low carte, parry with a dry beat from the inner fort edge of your blade against the foible of his, forming a half circle outside the arm; stretch out your arm, the wrist in supination the height of your mouth, and return carte.

11. Flanconnade parade.-If from the carte engagement your opponent thrust the flanconnade, turn your wrist suddenly in pronation at the height of the haunch, forming an angle from it

to the point of the sword, the arm bent at the same time that he endeavours to assure himself of your blade, from the foible to the fort, and return seconde

When this parry is used in the attack it is in the following manner :-If your opponent from the guard in carte thrust flanconnade, parry carte; without quitting his blade, lower your point a little, and pass it immediately under his wrist; thus binding his blade, and returning his sword to nearly the position in which it before was. This is however a dangerous parade to use in an attack, as a quick fencer would often, by disengaging carte over arm with the strong part of his sword against the foible of yours, thrust you at the same time you were thrusting at him.

12. Pointe volante parade is the twelfth and last of the simple parades, and is so named from the swiftness with which the point of the sword is thrown over the shoulder When your antagonist thrusts carte over arm, parry rapidly by bending your elbow, and throwing the point of your sword over your shoulder without displacing your wrist from the situation in which it was in the guard in carte; the outside edge of your sword thus gliding from one end to the other of your antagonist's will throw it sufficiently aside to enable you to return to your guard.

We have now enumerated the twelve simple parades commonly in use: there are now three others, of the circular kind, remaining to be no ticed, the first of which is,

The counter carte parade, the chief of the circular parades, as it envelopes almost every thrust in fencing, either inside, outside, over or under the arm. It is in fact describing a small circle round your adversary's blade to throw it aside when you join it.

The counter of tierce is neither so easy nor so certain a parade as the last, and ought only to be used when out of measure.

The circle parade is performed by wheeling your sword closely and rapidly round from right to left so as to throw off your adversary's point from the centre of attack. This is the most difficult to perform of all the parades now in use, and is eminently useful as it embraces all the thrusts that can be aimed at you in retreating. Indeed, if it could be continued as long as it might be necessary to join an adversary's blade, who possesses both vivacity and address, it would be general against every attempt; but, as the arm and wrist after the fourth or fifth round become considerably deranged, a quick fencer, in order to follow you, will describe a smaller circle and easily come within its central point. To effect this parade with certainty, extend your arm, the wrist in supination being as high as the mouth, the point of the foil very low, and by the motion of the wrist alone describe from right to left, in an oblique manner, the figure of a cone in as small a compass as possible. See plate II. fig. 3.

Having now enumerated the principal thrusts and parades, we shall give some account of the common artifices in fencing, and a definition of some of the common terms.

The appeal.-Marking an appeal is an en

deavour to throw your adversary off his guard by inducing him to make some thrust for which being prepared you may return to advantage. This artifice consists in a lively close stroke from the fort to the foible of his blade to throw it aside, and by giving a stamp with the right foot induce him to parry at a thrust you never intended to give, or to thrust you at a time when you expect and are prepared for it. The greatest attention should however be paid, lest your adversary, anticipating your intention, throw in his thrust at the very time you are executing your appeal, and thus seizing the time touch you before you are prepared.

Beating. To beat the foil is to strike the foible of your adversary's blade with the fort edge of yours, as often with a view to turn his point aside as to open his guard so as to be enabled to touch him. See BEAT, in fencing, in the body of the work.

Binding.-To bind and cross an adversary's sword is to join it by sliding and forcing strongly upon it with your edge from the fort to the foible under his wrist, to drive it away, as it were, so that you may be sure to touch if not disarm him. For this reason it is a method of disarming the most advantageous, as, if well executed, it becomes, if not absolutely certain, yet very useful, as being attended with no comparative danger.

Coup de fouet, or lashing, is the act of giving a firm dry beat or jerk upon your opponent's blade, when he holds it flat and stiffly before him, in order to cause him to let it fall.

To disengage is to carry or pass the point of your sword from one side to the other over your antagonist's, by joining it without forcing.

Glizade is the act of sliding your blade upon the foible of his : the body must be well effaced and firm upon the left haunch; the sword directly before you; and when you close slide upon your adversary's blade by the fort of your

own.

Volting. To volte is to turn your back almost entirely upon your adversary, by a half wheel to the left to about the distance of the guard, throwing back your point at the same time to his body. The volte is only useful when you are engaged with one, who, without any knowledge of fencing, rushes upon you with a curved arm, not suspecting the danger; or who, being acquainted with the danger, cautiously uses this method of fighting, with the view either of surprising or disconcerting you.

'It is not a little surprising,' says Mr. Forsyth in the treatise we have already quoted, that such dangerous manoeuvres have been invented and adopted, so diametrically opposed to the true principles of fencing, which only require firmness of the body and legs, a requisite that can never be supplied in the action of volting, which too evidently and too frequently exposes us to be hit, before we can completely command this hazardous and uncertain evolution, and which, should we fai. in our design, leaves us without a resource with a stroug quick fencer, who will seldom fail to take advantage of the disorder into which these dangerous experiments are sure to involve us.' For SPADROON EXERCISE, and SWORD EXERCISE, see those articles.