from the outside of the old, to the interior of the new building, and the epitaph still survives to tell us Sir William Wood lies very near this stone, And his great age to that alone did owe. Among the many old archery societies with which the names of some of our eminent men have been associated, may be noticed that popularly known as the "Woodmen of Arden," the rules of which were suspended in favour of Sir Robert Peel, on the occasion of the Jubilee festival in 1835. The shooting grounds are in the Forest of Arden, the silver bugle-horn having been presented in the year 1787, by the Earl of Aylesford. Another famous society was the Irvine, formed in the year 1814. Its members took part in the Eglinton Tournament, clad in Lincoln green and buff, and wearing buckskin boots. They were commanded by Captain Grahame; and the Earl of Eglinton, afterwards Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, was so impressed with the event, that he offered for annual competition, a gorgeous gold belt and quiver, set with large and costly carbuncles, and known as the "Eglinton Tournament Belt." An accomplished archer was Richard Owen Cam bridge, whose charming villa at Twickenham was known as the hospitable rendezvous of the scholar, the statesman, the philosopher, and the wit. Boswell, for instance, has given us an account of an interesting party which assembled here in 1775, at which were present Boswell himself, Dr. Johnson, Sir Joshua Reynolds, and Gibbon, the historian. Although he cared little or nothing for the sports of the field, he nevertheless arrived at such expertness in the use of the bow and arrow, that we are told "the head of a duck swimming in the river was a favourite mark which he seldom missed." His fondness for this pastime partly originated in his having, at one time, made the history of archery his study, and, partly, by his having amused himself with forming a collection of ancient and modern weapons connected with the art, which collection he subsequently presented to Sir Ashton Lever's museum. Sir Henry Raeburn was another good archer, while some of our noted men, such as John Leech, and Vice-Chancellor Shadwell, exercised themselves by athletic sports. The late Bishop Wordsworth always referred with pride to his athletic attainments in early life. Indeed, he was the first in all those athletic exercises which are prized, and honoured by schoolboys, no less than proficiency in intellectual ac quirements. He was the best cricketer, the best football player, the best fives player with both the hand and bat, and the best runner in Winchester School. In the cricket match between Winchester and Harrow, of the year 1825, Wordsworth caught out Henry Manning, and always spoke with glee of the feat. The two men, in spite of religious differences, remained firm friends throughout life. Then, again, Lord Lawrence, during his home life in England, spent his summer evenings at Southgate House in croquet, cutting himself adrift altogether from London gaieties. From a charming sketch of Lord Lyndhurst as he was in his home*-in a letter to Sir Edmund Beckett by Miss Stewart, who lived as governess and companion to his daughters for many yearsit appears "there was a very deep and strong attachment between him and his aged unmarried sister, who lived in his family. This affection was the greatest treasure of her quiet, unselfish existence. He played backgammon with her almost every evening before joining in any other game or in conversation with those present. It was fun to watch the barefaced manner in which he cheated her, and the many side-glances that revealed his treachery to lookers-on. At last she would find * "Life of Lord Lyndhurst," by Sir Theodore Martin, 1883, 509. him out, and loud and long was the burst of laughter, sweet music to the dear old lady." Charles Darwin enjoyed his game of backgammon, when the work of the day was over, and he could join his family circle; while David Hume would occasionally rest his brain by a game of bagatelle. Of sedentary or arm-chair amusements, a prominent place must be given to chess, despite the fact that Lord Bacon censured it as "too wise a game," and that Sir Walter Scott withdrew from it, alleging that "he saw a man might learn another language with less strain to the mind." But complaints of this kind are certainly the exception, considering by what a variety of remarkable personages it has been patronized. Thus, Charles XII. of Sweden was passionately attached to it; and who can forget the amusement which it afforded to Napoleon during his monotonous captivity at St. Helena? Indeed, it is affirmed that Charles I. was actually playing when he received the tidings that the Scots intended to deliver him up; and Frederick the Great, Elector of Saxony, returned calmly to his game after yet bitterer news. In truth, a game with so many historical associations may justly override adverse criticism; for its characteristic power of engrossing the mind, and withdrawing it, perhaps, from sub jects of painful contemplation, is a feature to be commended, rather than blamed. In short, the weight of authority is strongly in favour of chess, whatever Cowper may say to the contrary Who, then, that has a mind well strung and tuned A scene so friendly to his favourite task, In balance on his conduct of a pin ? It has been suggested-and rightly so that had Cowper given to the close, and methodical calculations of chess, some of those hours which he passed in gazing dreamily on the drawing fire, he might have been far less subject to morbid thoughts and fancies. On the other hand, among the eminent men who made chess a favourite recreation, was Samuel Warren, who, in his “Introduction to the Study of the Law," has strongly recommended it as a most desirable recreation for those training for legal honours. In his early life Sydney Smith was fond of chess, but left it off for many years. One winter evening, however, he took it into his head to resume it, and selected as his antagonist his daughter. "His mode of play," she writes, was very character |