Every Boy's Book: A Complete Encyclopaedia of Sports and Amusements Part 53

Such are the outlines of the German plan of swimming; and, much as we dislike the German educational quackery, we are still obliged to confess that schools for swimming might be, and ought to be, established in this country in unison with the above system. No well-conducted boarding-school ought to be without a swimming-school; and the hints above given will be exceedingly useful to the swimmer who has to teach himself, as well as to the gymnastic tutor who has to teach others the art; and we conclude by earnestly recommending the accomplishment of swimming to our young readers.

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TRAINING.

It is impossible that any one can indulge to any extent either in pedestrianism or rowing without going into some sort of training, however slight it may be. Before either can be thoroughly enjoyed, it is essential that the body should be brought into condition, and the const.i.tution prepared for the severe tests to which it is sure to be put. Until this has been satisfactorily accomplished (and it cannot be done without much perseverance and self-denial) success at regattas or in athletic sports is quite out of the question, and the most serious results will attend any attempt to take part in such proceedings.

Courage and determination to win a race, whether on land or water, are qualities very much to be admired, yet they are entirely after considerations; the first and chief endeavour must be to reduce the superfluous fat without weakening the system, to secure soundness in wind and limb--in short, thoroughly to prepare the body, so that it may be equal to the emergencies that may hereafter present themselves.

Training should not, however, be begun hastily. Before it is commenced, care should be taken to get the stomach into condition for the dieting it will have to undergo. These preliminary proceedings will be more or less prolonged, according to the habits of life of the patient. If a boy has been given to drinking large quant.i.ties of beer, eating indigestible things, or smoking, he does not commence under such favourable circ.u.mstances as those who have not so indulged themselves. Probably he has injured his digestion and interfered, however slightly, with his liver; a state of things that he can readily appreciate by the restlessness of his night's rest, and a furred tongue, and unpleasant taste in his mouth in the morning. The first thing he must do is gradually to lessen his quant.i.ty of beer daily, till he can leave it off altogether if necessary, to eschew the pastry-cook's and fruiterer's, and consign his pipe to the dust-hole. When once he has made up his mind to go in for a system of training, he should commence by taking a mild aperient dose, such as some salts and senna, or a rhubarb pill, the latter followed in the morning, if necessary, by a black dose. He must avoid going to the extreme, and purging himself too violently--the medicine is solely intended to clear the stomach preparatory to its new treatment--and having gone thus far he may, without any fear, put himself upon the diet which shall presently be set out. He who has been wise enough to satisfy himself with very little beer, and still less of raspberry puff or unripe greengages, and has refrained altogether from tobacco, which to young people is simply poison, may, unless of weak or sickly const.i.tution, begin to train without any preliminary preparations. If his heart and soul are really in the contest for which he desires to get himself into condition, and he possesses a small amount of strength of mind, he will soon become accustomed to the daily routine of food and exercise. It is no use beginning, and then yielding to the temptation for this or that nice thing; when once the ordeal has been commenced, it must be carried out strictly and accurately, or it may as well be abandoned altogether. For the desired state of body can only be arrived at by one means, namely, a large amount of self-denial and close adherence to the prescribed diet.

There is of course some slight difference in the systems of training to be pursued for rowing and pedestrianism; at the same time, in the chief and important points precisely the same course has to be taken. If a boy has a walking or running race in view, he must remember this, that he has to suit his daily exercise according to the distance of the compet.i.tion in which he is going to take part. For short races he need do little more than keep his digestion and wind in good order, taking care to have say a couple of hours' good exercise in the course of the day. We would here venture to correct a grave mistake made very often by young runners, who think that by continual practising and "spurting"

they learn to improve their pace. They can adopt no better means for defeating their own end than this, as it will tend far more to diminish their pace than to improve it. On the other hand, if they have a long course of several miles to get over, speed is not so much a matter of importance as endurance, and this latter quality can only be obtained by accustoming the body to long and severe exercise. For young persons, however, it is extremely injudicious to attempt too great distances, and we would advise that two miles, and no more, be made the outside limit.

Longer spins than this are seldom, if ever, tried in ordinary amateur races.

Accordingly as the match that is to be contested is in running or walking, so must the day's exercise be regulated. Avoid, if for the former, taking too much running practice, and that never for a greater distance than that of the race in which you are to take part. Good sharp, brisk walking is more serviceable than anything else in getting the body into order. And now, presuming that a boy is in sound health, with good lungs and no unpleasant thumpings about his heart, let us see how he should regulate his training. Six o'clock to get out of bed and commence the day. No one who intends to train himself really seriously will wish to lie longer. Then a cold tub with a big sponge and lots of water, followed by a severe rubbing with a rough Turkish towel, that leaves you all a-glow. Dress as quickly as you can, and go out for half an hour's walk, or run, as you feel inclined. Be sure, however, not to fatigue yourself, and see that you come in to breakfast, say at half-past seven, with a good appet.i.te. Those who can eat porridge will find it a capital thing to commence breakfast with, followed by the lean portion of a broiled chop or steak, with bread at least two days old.

Tea we believe to be undesirable, and a pint of really sound bitter beer will be found to agree much better.

There is no need to bind yourself down to a stipulated quant.i.ty of food; eat what you feel to require, and no more. After breakfast get as much rest as you can, say for a couple of hours; then take yourself off for a couple of hours' walking or running, getting back to dinner by about two o'clock. The programme for this meal is simple enough: a joint of roast meat, either mutton or beef, a potato, and sometimes a little cauliflower, or brocoli, just to make a change, bread as before, and another pint of bitter beer. The liquids are the things in which the strictest care must be taken, and the daily quant.i.ty regulated. Poultry is sometimes introduced, but we hardly think it good--in fact, as far as you can, stick to the good plain joint, or chop, or steak, with bread and beer, and you will be astonished how you will find your condition improved. After dinner rest again for two or three hours, and then about six o'clock take yourself off for another hour's exercise, on your return from which you will no doubt be fully prepared with an appet.i.te for supper. This meal should always be a light one, as it is bad at all times, and especially in training, to go to bed on a full stomach.

Unless you feel you absolutely require it, do not take any meat; otherwise, a chop is the least objectionable, and a half-pint of beer.

Never, under any circ.u.mstances, exceed three pints of beer a day.

b.u.t.ter, spices, peppers, and sauces should on no account be taken, and, as we said before, so we again repeat, smoking must be abjured. If the directions given are followed out, defeat will not be occasioned through any error in the system of preparation.

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PART III.

Scientific Pursuits:

INCLUDING

ACOUSTICS.

AERONAUTICS.

CHEMISTRY.

ELECTRICITY.

GALVANISM.

HEAT.

HYDRAULICS.

MAGNETISM.

MECHANICS.

MICROSCOPE.

OPTICS AND OPTICAL ILLUSIONS.

PHOTOGRAPHY.

PNEUMATICS.

SPECTRUM.

ACOUSTICS.

Acoustics is the science relating to sound and hearing. Sound is heard when any shock or impulse is given to the air, or to any other body which is in contact directly or indirectly with the ear.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SOUND AND NOISE.

Noises are made by the cracks of whips, the beating of hammers, the creak of a file or saw, or the hubbub of a mult.i.tude. But when a bell is struck, the bow of a violin drawn across the strings, or the wetted finger turned round a musical gla.s.s, we have what are properly called sounds.

SOUNDS, HOW PROPAGATED.

Sounds are propagated on all bodies much after the manner that waves are in water, with a velocity of 1,142 feet in a second. Sounds in liquids and in solids are more rapid than in air. Two stones rubbed together may be heard in water at half a mile; solid bodies convey sounds to great distances, and pipes may be made to convey the voice over every part of the house.

TO SHOW HOW SOUND TRAVELS THROUGH A SOLID.

Take a long piece of wood, such as the handle of a hair broom, and placing a watch at one end, apply your ear to the other, and the tickings will be distinctly heard.

TO SHOW THAT SOUND DEPENDS ON VIBRATION.

Touch a bell when it is sounding, and the noise ceases; the same may be done to a musical string with the same results. Hold a musical pitch-fork to the lips, when it is made to sound, and a quivering motion will be felt from its vibrations. These experiments show that sound is produced by the quick motions and vibrations of different bodies.

MUSICAL FIGURES RESULTING FROM SOUND.

Cover the mouth of a wine gla.s.s, having a foot-stalk, with a thin sheet of membrane, over which scatter a layer of fine sand. The vibrations excited in the air by the sound of a musical instrument, held within a few inches of the membrane, will cause the sand on its surface to form regular lines and figures with astonishing celerity, which vary with the sound produced.

TO MAKE AN aeOLIAN HARP.

This instrument consists of a long narrow box of very thin deal, about six inches deep, with a circle in the middle of the upper side of an inch and a half in diameter, in which are to be drilled small holes. On this side seven, ten, or more strings of very fine catgut are stretched over bridges at each end like the bridges of a fiddle, and screwed up or relaxed with screw pins. The strings must all be tuned to one and the same note,[5] and the instrument should be placed in a window partly open, in which the width is exactly equal to the length of the harp, with the sash just raised to give the air admission. When the air blows upon these strings with different degrees of force, it will excite different tones of sound. Sometimes the blast brings out all the tones in full concert, and sometimes it sinks them to the softest murmurs.

[5] D is a good note for it. The upper string may be tuned to the upper D, and the two lower to the lower D and D D. The "harmonics"

are the sounds produced.

A colossal imitation of the instrument just described was invented at Milan in 1786, by the Abbate Gattoni. He stretched seven strong iron wires, tuned to the notes of the gamut, from the top of a tower sixty feet high, to the house of a Signor Moscate, who was interested in the success of the experiment; and this apparatus, called the "giant's harp," in blowing weather yielded lengthened peals of harmonious music.

In a storm this music was heard at a greater distance.

THE INVISIBLE GIRL.

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The facility with which the voice circulates through tubes was known to the ancients, and no doubt has afforded the priests of all religions means of deception to the ignorant and credulous. But of late days the light of science dispels all such wicked deceptions. A very clever machine was produced at Paris several years ago, and afterwards exhibited in London under the name of the "Invisible Girl," since the apparatus was so constructed that the voice of a female at a distance was heard as if it originated from a hollow globe, not more than a foot in diameter. It consisted of a wooden frame something like a tent bedstead, formed by four pillars _a a a a_, connected by upper cross rails _b b_, and similar rails below, while it terminated above in four bent wires _c c_, proceeding at right angles of the frame, and meeting in a central point. The hollow copper ball _d_, with four trumpets _t t_, crossing from it at right angles, hung in the centre of the frame, being connected with the wires alone by four narrow ribbons _r r_. The questions were proposed close to the open mouth of one of these trumpets, and the reply was returned from the same orifice. The means used in the deception were as follow: a pipe or tube was attached to one of the hollow pillars, and carried into another apartment, in which a female was placed; and this tube having been carried up the leg or pillar of the instrument to the cross-rails, had an aperture exactly opposite two of the trumpet mouths; so that what was spoken was immediately answered through a very simple mode of communication.