ick-player will not find many opportunities of displaying his skill in
public. As far as the present writer knows, there are only two prizes
offered annually in London for single-stick, and neither of these
attract much attention. One of them is given at the Military Tournament
at Islington, in June, and one at the German Gymnasium, in December. The
former of these prizes is open only to soldiers, militia-men, or
volunteers, the latter to any member of a respectable athletic club, who
is prepared to pay 2_s._ 6_d._ for his entrance fee. The attendance of
spectators at both shows is very poor, which is to be regretted, as the
interest of the public in any game generally goes a long way towards
insuring improvement in the play.

It is just as well, before entering for either of these competitions,
to know something about the conditions under which they take place, and
the rules which govern them. The bouts are generally played in a
fourteen foot ring, at least that is the statement in the notice to
players, and it is as well to be prepared to confine your movements to
such a limited area. As a matter of fact, no objection ever seems to be
raised to a competitor who transgresses this rule, and we remember to
have seen a nimble player skipping about like an electrified eel outside
the magic circle, until stopped by a barrier of chairs at the edge of
the big arena.

At the Military Tournament the play is for the best out of three hits,
_i.e._ the man who scores the first two points wins. At the German
Gymnasium the competitor who first scores five wins the bout. This is
better than at the Tournament, although it will seem to some that even
this is hardly a sufficient test of the merits of each player. The bouts
seem too short, but probably this is unavoidable; that which is to be
regretted and might be remedied, being that no points are given for
"form:" the result is that, in many cases, the anxiety to score the
necessary points as soon as possible results in very ugly and
unscientific rushes, in which no guards are attempted and from which the
most reckless and rapid hitter comes out the winner. This, of course, is
the same for every one, and therefore perfectly fair, but it does not
tend to elevate the style of play.

But the great difficulty at these competitions appears to be the
difficulty of judging. And here let me say at once that it is as far
from my intention to find fault with any individual judge as it possibl