Read Ebook: Three Hundred Things a Bright Boy Can Do by Armitage Harold Editor

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When he had thoroughly mastered the "twenty-eights," he tried two "fifty-sixes." These he retained for months, being determined not to attempt the heavier bells until he was quite perfect with the lighter ones. At length Mr. Levy was able to put up the 112 lb. dumb-bell. This was more than any member of the Birmingham Gymnasium had ever done, and it then became necessary to add two 84 lb. dumb-bells to the collection. With these Mr. Levy began quietly practising, one at a time. Then he took to using them together, and gradually overcoming the difficulties of the harder work, succeeded one evening in putting them up simultaneously.

From that point he never went back. Having done as much with the dumb-bells as at the time seemed possible, he decided to add the lifting of bar-bells to his exercises. He bought three, weighing 140 lbs., 165 lbs. and 180 lbs. He practised assiduously with these, but all the time he was yearning to do still bigger feats with dumb-bells. At last his opportunity came. One Friday evening, on visiting the Gymnasium, he found a dumb-bell weighing 150 lbs. It had been sent there for exhibition by some professionals who were visiting the city. He tried to put it up, and failed; but the dogged perseverance which marked his whole career came once again to his aid. Finding that the huge plaything was to be left at the gymnasium till the following Tuesday, he began practising indefatigably, and on the Tuesday evening, in the presence of his club fellows, he achieved his self-imposed task. The next week a dumb-bell of the same weight was added to his private collection, and he used it regularly. This private collection now consisted of two 28 lbs., two 56 lbs., two 84 lbs., two 100 lbs., one 112 lbs., and one 150 lbs. in dumb-bells, the three bar-bells already mentioned, and two iron bars, one 70 lbs. and one 120 lbs.--all these, together with two ring weights of 56 lbs. each, representing a total weight of nearly sixteen hundred pounds.

Mr. Levy appeared constantly in public. In 1891 he won the contest, held then for the first time, for the amateur weight-lifting championship, and afterwards he succeeded, at Northampton, in establishing a new record by putting up above his head no fewer than ten times a bar-bell weighing in all 170 lbs.

Of the recognised records for weight-lifting he held as many as nine; but Mr. Levy did not confine himself to one branch of gymnastics, nor made gymnastics his only athletic exercise. Each year at the grand "display" of the Birmingham Athletic Club he figured as a leader in exercises on the horizontal and parallel bars and on the rings. He was also an enthusiastic and expert cyclist, and took an intelligent interest in nearly every form of manly sport. He was, too, a busy brain worker.

His height was 5 feet 3-1/2 inches; his chest measurement 41 inches; he weighed 11 st. 4 lbs., and had biceps measuring 16 inches and a forearm of 12-1/4 inches. At twenty-five years of age, before he took to gymnastics, his chest measurement was 34 inches, and the circumference of his biceps was twelve inches.

To my readers I commend Mr. Levy as an example of what pluck and perseverance will do when used to a rational end. For the benefit of those who may wish to follow in his footsteps, I will quote some advice from his own pen:--

"In gymnastics it is never too late to begin. There may be some who may want, like I did, to emulate the deeds of the strong men whom every age supplies; to them I would say, give yourself up to your favourite exercise as you would to music if you would excel in it. Athleticism is as jealous an accomplishment as any art you would acquire. Excel in it and you will find your reward in that rough physical vigour which the world has not ceased to admire. In order to gain it you will go through a course of training which will lay the impress of health on all you do. Instead of defying nature you will learn more readily to obey her, and your obedience will be gratefully, cheerfully accorded, for you will realise how magnificent it is to be strong yourself, and by your example and your deeds inspire others to dignify their physical powers."

It would be difficult to say which ranks the higher in the estimation of modern boys--brain or muscle. Certain it is that in these days boys of "grit" feel a contemptuous pity for the youth who is "all head and no muscle." Possibly most readers will admit that muscular and mental development should go together, and that modern athletics are the necessary adjunct of school life for the building up of a "sound mind in a sound body" .

Of the ancients it may be said that their faith was in "muscle." Even old Homer, philosopher and poet, goes so far as to say, "There is no greater honour for a man during his life than that he should be accomplished in the use of his hands and feet." It was the "man of muscle" who in ancient Greece received the highest honours and rewards; it was for him that breaches were made in the city walls that he might pass through in his triumphal march. It was he who was relieved from the payment of taxes, whose statue was erected at the public cost, and whose praise was sung by the poets.

In ancient days leaders and rulers were selected simply on account of their development of "muscle." Hence we read of Caius Maximinus, who from the lowly position of herdsman, was raised to the dignity of a Roman Emperor on account of his physical strength. This Maximinus, it is said, could squeeze to powder the hardest stone with his fingers, and history tells us that on one occasion he "knocked down six men without drawing breath!" Those fingers of his must surely have been moved by muscles of iron, and his "biceps" must have appeared a veritable mountain! A consideration of the fact that Maximinus was upwards of eight feet in height renders these feats less surprising, but to most beef-eating British boys it will perhaps be a "staggerer" to learn that the mighty deeds of Maximinus were performed on a vegetable diet.

It is not the way of modern athletes to show their strength by killing four-year-old oxen, or knocking men down like ninepins. They let us see their development of muscle at the wrestling match, at the oar and the wicket, at swimming and cycling, at their walking, running, and leaping performances, and one great advantage of this is that the ladies, who were excluded from the ancient "gymnasia" on pain of death, can in these days, by their presence, not only secure enjoyment to themselves, but give pleasure and encouragement to many an aspirant for athletic fame, who, if for no other reason, would endure the hardest training to "win the plaudits of the fair."

Every one knows that diet has a great deal to do with the development or deterioration of "muscle," and that meat, vegetables, and drink should be very judiciously combined. Weston--whose great walk, in 1884, of 5,000 miles in 100 days, was spoken of by Dr. Andrew Blyth as "the greatest recorded labour, if its continuity be considered, that a human being has ever taken without injury"--dieted himself as follows:--

BREAKFAST .--Porridge, eggs or fish, bread and butter, toast or mutton, and coffee.

LUNCH .--Bread and butter, and coffee.

DINNER .--Mutton broth, meat, potatoes, cabbage, bread pudding, and soda water or ginger ale.

TEA .--A little toast, and tea or coffee.

SUPPER .--Toast, figs, sponge cake, pudding, and milk or soda water.

Another testimony to the advantage of abstinence from stimulants in the development of "muscle" is given by Louis Cyr, the Canadian athlete, who secured the title of, "Strongest Man in the World" at a Paris Exhibition. He weighed 315 lbs., and mentioned, among his feats, that he could break with his bare fist a stone two inches thick, four inches wide, and six inches long. He took his wife and balanced her on the top of a 12-ft. ladder, resting on his chin. Cyr said that the great secret of his strength was his total abstinence from all alcoholic drinks, and this bears out Dr. B. W. Richardson's statement that "the idea of alcohol giving force and activity to the muscles is entirely false."

WALKING, RUNNING, AND JUMPING

$Walking.$--As a rule, the walking of long distances in a short time is a sad mistake. There is little or no pleasure in it, and the injury it may do you quite counter-balances the satisfaction you may feel in having accomplished it. I wouldn't give a pin to be able to do my three miles in 21 min. 28 secs. like Webster, because I know perfectly well that my mind would gain nothing, or my body either from such an achievement. Every day of the year, unless specially hindered, I walk between eight and ten miles, and I am always discontented if anything stands in the way of my walk. From my own experience, I feel sure that boys, whether training for football, or school examinations, cannot do better for themselves than walk whenever they have the chance. You never know what call may suddenly be put upon the muscles of your legs. A life may depend upon your ability to sprint seven or eight miles in the hour. And if you can walk as many miles straight off and enjoy every yard of it, you may rely on being able to walk and run the distance in the time.

One thing is certain, that bad walkers are very ugly to see, whereas there is something majestic about the carriage of a good walker.

$Sprinting.$--Not many athletes can excel in all kinds of running, and the champion sprinter is not generally a winner of long-distance races. Moreover, it is necessary for each runner to decide which he will be, for the training for each is different. Train gradually. At first take sharp walks of three or four miles. This will make the muscles begin to harden. Then run steadily for a quarter of a mile at a time, not troubling much about the speed. Cultivate the use of the toes and stride straight forward. Towards the end of the run the speed may be increased, for the muscles will then be in working order. Even now, however, the young sprinter should not tire himself. A week should be employed in this way before the more severe training is undertaken. Never begin to run violently at first, and this rule should be observed particularly in cold weather, for until the muscles have warmed to their work they are liable to strain, or even to suffer more severe injury. Practise starting. If you have a friend ask him to act as starter, and start over and over again, going to the mark and putting yourself in position time after time. In a short race like this a good start often makes all the difference, for it means sometimes a gain of a yard.

$Middle Distance Races.$--Speed wins short-distance races; endurance wins long-distance races, but a combination of each is needed in the medium distance contests.

$Long Distances.$--The training for long-distance races needs patience and endurance, for the tax upon the runner is great. Boys should not compete in long distances. No one under eighteen years of age should run a mile. The method of training is to run a quarter, or half a mile, according to the strength of the runner, and then each day to increase the distance or to run the same distance at a greater speed. Gradually by this process the lungs, the heart, and the muscles are strengthened until feats hitherto impossible become easy. In a long-distance race judgment must be exercised whether to go the distance rapidly and trust to endurance or to run warily and win by a spurt at the end, when it may be that your opponent is exhausted.

$The Long Jump.$--Speed is an important element in this feat, more important indeed than the spring. Experts take a run of from a hundred to two hundred feet as though they were running a sprint race and are going at their highest speed when they rise from the ground. When they are coming to the ground again they thrust their legs forward as far as they can, and so gain a foot or even more. This needs practice, however, for if the leaper loses his balance and falls backward his jump does not count. To start from the mark also needs practice, and one of the methods of mastering this feat is to run slowly to a point about nine paces short of the starting place. In training this point may be marked by a piece of paper. Then sprint from the paper to the starting place. Experts are able to jump twenty-four feet, and a leap of twenty-two is excellent, but not many can hope to reach these lengths.

$The High Jump.$--Here the athlete begins his run to the centre of the bar slowly, then he increases his speed a little, finishing with a quick run and a bound. The spring is taken in something like a crouching position with the head drawn in, but in the air the shoulders are lifted and the arms and legs jerked upwards. As the jumper crosses the bar he shoots out his legs, raises his shoulders still higher, and twists his body until he faces downwards. In fact he is then nearly horizontal, and an amateur champion of the world has likened his position at this stage to that of an arrow crossing a bow. When he comes to the ground he faces the bar. Some jumpers rise from the right foot, some from the left. The young athlete should find for himself which method suits him best. It is usual to take the leap as far in front of the bar as the bar is from the ground. Thus, if the bar is four feet high the leap would begin four feet from a point on the ground directly under the bar. The run usually begins twelve good paces from the bar, and consists of one bound after another, concluding with three short energetic ones. Then comes the spring from a crouching position. If the start is from the right foot, this foot should be almost parallel to the bar, and the heel of this foot should be the last to leave the ground. A run would carry you far, but in this feat it is the vigorous spring which carries you high. There are those who can jump more than six-feet high in this way, but they are among the champions.

HOCKEY AND INDIAN CLUBS

The modern hockey stick is to some extent an artificial contrivance after the style of the driver or play club of golf. Indeed, to golf it bears some little semblance, and strangers frequently confound the two pastimes. The Scottish school-boy, when hockey comes on in its turn with other recreations of the playground, sets out for the woodlands with a strong, sharp pocket-knife. He examines carefully all the hedge-rows to see if there is any young plant which has a natural turn at the end. If he can find such with a three feet shaft and a four-inch crook at the end he sets to work there and then, and in due time his "shinty" or hockey stick is pruned and ready for the game. The full-grown Highland player will possibly provide himself with a very heavy oak sapling, and with this he will strike powerful strokes, with his right hand, or both hands if required, when in a close contested maul or fray in front of the goal. These naturally-grown clubs have more spring in them than those of artificial make, but unless they are carefully bound with cord the head is apt to give after a little hard play.

A good deal of the art of the game consists in passing or nursing, as in Association football. A novice would strike the knag or knob away from him as soon as he had obtained his opportunity. Not so the adept, who would "dribble" it forward, to use a football phrase, a few yards at a time, work it on to his partner, back up, and keep following it, then, with one swinging blow, make a shot for goal. In hockey on the ice the dribbling game is seen to most advantage, as the skilful skater can take the knag a hundred yards or more by adroit nursing or passing; were he to strike it away with the first blow the chances are that it would be immediately returned with interest, and a goal scored to the opposite side.

In the Highlands it is a grand sight to see two opposing bodies of clansmen--met as of old they met with targe and claymore--to fight out a friendly game. Everything is cast aside but shirt and kilt, and bare-headed and bare-legged the contestants seem to have walked out of the picture of some ancient Highland foray. Striking off in mid-ground the welkin soon rings with their shouts in Gaelic, their cheers and expostulations. Blows that were meant for the knag sometimes fall heavy upon an opponent's knees, and soon legs are to be seen streaming with blood. In the heat of the play they feel it not, though next day they will possibly not have a part of their under limbs without bruises between ankles and knees. With terrific swing Donald or Duncan, who stands six-feet two in his socks, will drive it like a cannon ball through the air; and arrested by Malcolm's head in its flight the latter drops like a stone, only to recover his senses in a minute again and go off in wild pursuit. When the sun sinks, the game is proclaimed over, and both sides shake hands, dress, and depart homeward, well pleased with their sport, no matter whether they may have won or lost.

$Indian Clubs.$--Club swinging, if carried out in the correct style, brings almost every muscle into play, develops the chest and arms, imparts an easy carriage to the figure, and, if persevered in, under proper conditions to be hereafter mentioned, will ultimately enable the most round-shouldered individual to assume that lissom and perpendicular attitude which is the characteristic of the finished athlete.

First let me impress upon you the importance of avoiding heavy clubs when you commence the exercise, or even after becoming moderately proficient. Difficult feats are not easy to accomplish with very heavy clubs, besides the latter, instead of strengthening the muscles, are more likely to produce the opposite effect. Directly the club is heavy enough to sway you about on your feet, the exercise is doing you harm, and your attitude will appear ungraceful. Should you be ambitious to swing very heavy clubs, be advised to proceed cautiously, and gradually increase the weight at long intervals. Clubs recommended for ordinary use should weigh between 1-1/2 and 2 lbs. each, as that weight affords plenty of muscular exertion to strong and comparatively weak men alike, especially in difficult exercises. After becoming fairly proficient with the lighter weights, heavier clubs might be used with advantage, say three or four pounds each, but a practised athlete of great muscular power may safely swing clubs of twenty pounds or more. A club, say twenty-two inches in length, made of willow which should weigh about 1-1/2 lbs., is the most suitable for young boys or ladies. The club should be well tapered towards the top and artistically shaped: an ill-shaped club is a very awkward and unsatisfactory instrument. In nearly all exercises the feet should be some distance apart in proportion to your height: for a man of five feet nine inches, about the proper distance between heels would be seventeen inches. For many exercises the shoulders should be kept square to the front, while in others it is necessary to turn more or less to the right or left. If the shoulders are turned through half a right angle, reckoning from the position with the shoulders square, the shoulders are said to be half-right or half-left; if the shoulders are turned through a complete right angle, the shoulders are considered full right or full left as the case may be. Style is a most important item to be considered, not only for the sake of appearance, but also in order that the utmost physical benefit may be derived from the exercise. An eminent authority, in speaking of style, remarks: "If you swing clubs without regard to style, you will naturally contrive to cast almost all the labour upon your strongest muscles, so that the exercise, instead of searching out and strengthening your weak points, will merely tend to increase the muscles which are already disproportionately developed; whereas, if you attend carefully to style, you will be compelled to bring a great variety into play, so that your weakest muscles will be at first most severely taxed, and will gradually become developed in proportion to those which are naturally strong."

It is necessary that the knees be kept straight and the muscles of the legs well braced, as there is a tendency at first, especially with heavy clubs, to let the knees bend in the course of certain movements; the head should be carried erect, and should turn with the shoulders, so that you always look in a direction at right angles to the line of the shoulders. The best way to keep the head steady and in its proper position is to fix the eyes on some point a trifle above their own level, in a direction at right angles to the line of the shoulders for the time being. Should you allow your eyes to wander, you will find it impossible to keep the head steady. In summing up the chief points relating to style, the following should be kept in view, viz.:--

All unnecessary movement of the body should be avoided, the head should be carried erect, and the feet firmly placed at a distance apart in proportion to your height.

In swings, keep the arm as nearly straight as possible; in twists, the hand should be kept almost in the same place throughout the movement.

The movement of the club should be kept even, and avoid all abrupt or sudden changes of pace.

The clubs should be kept in accurate turn with each other.

In order to correct your own style, a good plan is to practise before a looking-glass.

The proper position for holding the club before beginning an exercise is called "the carry." Stand erect and grasp the club with the right hand, lift the club and hold it up vertically, with the hand just in a line, and not raised higher than the shoulder.

Club exercises are divided into four series. The first, called Outward, are those in which the right club moves in the same direction as the hands of a clock facing you, whilst the left club moves against the hands of the clock.

Inward exercises are those in which these conditions are entirely reversed, and parallel exercises are those in which both clubs swing with or against the clock. Windmill exercises are explained at Fig. 2, the subject is made clear in Fig. 1, where, for the sake of simplicity, both hands are holding the same club; the right hand, which is travelling in the same direction as a clock facing the athlete, is making an outward circle, as the left hand is working against the clock, the left hand is making an inward circle, and as both hands are swinging with the clock, a parallel exercise would be in progress, if there were two clubs instead of one as shown in the illustration.

The outward front swing follows "the carry" as a natural consequence. Straighten the arm completely till the hand is above and about three inches in front of the shoulder; the point of the club should then be allowed to move slightly forward, with the wrist turned in, then let the hand and club move to the right, the arm being kept straight, and the club being kept in a straight line with the arm throughout the movement. A circle can then be described and a return made to the initial position.

To make this description more easily understood, I have a capital illustration in front of me, and I cannot do better than quote it.

"If you were to stand with a wall about ten inches in front of you, the point of the club, would, in the preparatory position, just touch the wall at the highest point you could reach with the club; and as you did the swing, the point of the club would always touch the wall, and, if it were chalked, would draw a circle on the wall, of which the radius would be as nearly as possible equal to the length of your arm and the club together."

This is one of those simple-looking movements which are by no means easy of accomplishment. The arm should be kept straight with the arm and the club in a line, and avoid stooping as the club passes in front of the legs. Beginners should practise front swings, and follow them up until they are done with before attempting anything else.

CIRCLES, SWINGS, AND TWISTS.--It should be noted that circles are divided into "swings" and "twists". The club and forearm acting in a straight line during the movement would come under the heading of "swings," whilst circles swung from the wrist with the hand as a centre point are reckoned as "twists." Some of the very advanced movements, however, unite the characteristics of both swings and twists, and it is difficult to say under which heading they should be classed.

Fig. 2 illustrates the outward front swing with both clubs. The exercise shown is a cross windmill, the performer with both clubs straight above the shoulder swings the left club outwards; so soon as the left club points downwards he will swing the right club outwards, and it will arrive at the lowest point just as the left club has completed its circle.

THE OUTWARD BACK TWIST.--From "the carry," raise the hand a little above the shoulder, passing it slightly to the rear, so that the forefinger is level with and within two inches of the lobe of the ear, the elbow being raised to the right till it is nearly as high as the shoulder, allowing the club to slope a little backwards from the hand. From this preparatory position, let the point of the club move to the right, and, keeping the hand close to the ear throughout the movement, a circle can be described by the point of the club.

In this twist get the point of the club sufficiently to the right and to the rear as the club descends, in order to avoid letting the point of the club pass too far to the rear as it ascends. Care should be taken to keep the hand in the same place throughout the twist, and don't duck the head forward during the ascent of the club. This tendency is produced by the fear of a blow on the head while the club is travelling in its upward course.

WINDMILL EXERCISES.--The exercises known as windmill are very interesting. As in parallel exercises, the one club does outward circles and the other inward circles, keeping exact pace with each other, the one being always half a circle ahead of the other; therefore, when one club points straight up, the other points straight down, so that when viewed from the front, the clubs appear always to point in exactly opposite directions. A windmill exercise is difficult to learn, but when grasped, you should at once tackle the corresponding form on the other side.

Fig. 3 shows the inward back twist being cross windmilled.

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