In the old frontier days
in the Territories, the woodsmen far eclipsed Tell with his bow
or Robin Hood's famed band by their unerring aim with their
rifles. It is only lately that there disappeared in this country
the last of many woodsmen, who, though standing many paces away
and without the aid of the improved sights of modern guns, could
by means of a rifle-ball, with marvelous precision, drive a nail
"home" that had been placed partly in a board. The experts who
shoot at glass balls rarely miss, and when we consider the number
used each year, the proportion of inaccurate shots is
surprisingly small. Ira Paine, Doctor Carver, and others have
been seen in their marvelous performances by many people of the
present generation. The records made by many of the competitors
of the modern army-shooting matches are none the less wonderful,
exemplifying as they do the degree of precision that the eye may
attain and the control which may be developed over the nerves and
muscles. The authors know of a countryman who successfully hunted
squirrels and small game by means of pebbles thrown with his
hand.
Physiologic wonders are to be found in all our modern sports and
games. In billiards, base-ball, cricket, tennis, etc.
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