THE SCHOOLE OF SHOOTYNGE 47
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r greye fether? Thirdly, in settyng on of your fether,whether it be pared or drawen with a thicke rybbe, or athinne rybbe (the rybbe is ye hard quill whiche devydeththe fether) a long fether better or a shorte, set on nere thenocke, or farre from the nocke, set on streight, or somewhat bowyng? and whether one or two fethers runne on thebowe. Fourthly in couling or sheryng, whether high orlowe, whether somewhat swine backed (I muste use shoterswordes) or sadle backed, whether rounde, or square shome?And whether a shaft at any tyme ought to be plucked, andhow to be plucked. Phi. Surely Toxophile, I thynke manye fletchers (al-though daylye they have these thinges in use) if they wereasked sodeynly, what they coulde saye of a fether, they couldnot saye so moch. But I praye you let me heare you moreat large, expresse those thynges in a fether, the whiche youpacked up in so narrowe a rowme. And fyrst whether anyother thyng may be used for a fether or not. Tox. That was ye fyrste poynte in dede, and bycausethere foloweth many after, I wyll hye apace over them, asone that had manye a myle to ride. Shaftes to have hadalwayes fethers PUniusin Latin, and Julius Pollux in Greke,do playnlye shewe, yet onely the Lycians I reade in Hero-dotus to have used shaftes without f edders. Onelye a f edderis fit for a shafte for. ii. causes, fyrste bycause it is leatheweake to give place to the bowe, then bycause it is of thatnature, that it wyll starte up after ye bow. So, Plate, woodor home can not serve, bycause the[y] wil not gyve place.Againe, Cloth, Paper, or Parchment can not serve, bycausethey wyll not ryse after the bowe, therfore a fedder is onelymete, bycause it onelye wyl do bothe. Nowe to looke onthe fedders of all maner of birdes, you shal se some so loweweke and shorte, some so course, stoore and harde, and therib so brickie, thin and narrow, that it can nether be drawen,pared, nor yet well set on, that except it be a swan for adead shafte (as I knowe some good Archers have used) or adacke for a flyghte which lastes but one shoote, there is nofether but onelye of a goose that hath all commodities in it.And trewelye at a short but, which some man doth use, yePecock fether doth seldome kepe up ye shaft eyther ryght
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