Some Points and Thoughts on the Book Out on The Pampas

July 31, 2008

I thought that a couple of points from Henty's Out on the Pampas, which my friend Noah Botkin and I discussed on the radio yesterday, were worthy of being discussed on the blog. Among many of the points that we had the opportunity to cover was one which stuck out particularly strongly to me: it is that this was G.A. Henty's first book, and I believe that it, probably, contains some of the most overt Christianity of any of his books.

The story of Out on The Pampas tells about the adventures of the Hardy family as they move from "merry old England" to Buenos Ayres and then Rosario, Argentina. The family, all alone, go to start a little community while facing many obstacles and perils (both from Indians and animals) in this rugged new life style. The Hardy children get to hear an amazing story of adventure and pluck, told first-hand by Seth Harper, "The Yankee," about the Mexican American War (1846 to 1848). Seth's adventures have plenty of Indian fighting and battles for those of you who enjoy the battle side of Henty. The story also contains an amazing amount of facts about the Pampas and South American plains. During the course of the Hardy's adventures, they defend their plantation from Indians, learn about living off of the land, and go on a rescue mission to save their sister Ethel.

Here are a few of our points from the radio show today.

• This was Henty's first "Boys book." what is unique about this story that is different from others is that:

  • Henty once related in an interview how his storytelling skills had grown out of tales he would tell after dinner to his children, (he had this particular story in mind.) A friend had heard him telling this story to his family and told Henty that he had a gift and really ought to publish the story. (The book was published 1868).
  • He named the four Hardy children after his own children (Charles, Hubert, Maud and Ethel).

• Henty really puts great detail into talking about the relationships within the Hardy family in this story. One thing I have always noticed in the different books I have read has been this: what the author writes reflects his beliefs on life and culture, and how he thinks that should look. In this book, Henty really drives the point that the children have great respect for their father, while also showing the love they have for him. He also shows that the father is the head of the home. Mr. Hardy consults his wife on what she thinks about their moving to South America and says he wishes for her help in making the decision to move but there is no question that the final decision rests on him as the head of the home.

• Mr. Hardy also teaches his boys and then later his girls how to shoot because "it is important to know how to defend a home and hunt for food when you are on the prairie." This is not a man who is afraid of guns or has a effeminate attitude toward the defense of the body and family God has given him. In my opinion, Mr. Hardy truly understands that when the sixth commandment says "thou shalt not murder" it also means "you had better protect your family when danger comes around or you are allowing the murder of your family by not defending them."

• Many people have asked me whether girls ought to read the Henty books. While I think girls would enjoy and benefit from all of Henty's works, this book will be particularly interesting to them because of its excellent examples of Christian femininity.

  • The two sisters in Out on The Pampas, Maud and Ethel, are both what any brother would want in a sister. In the beginning we are introduced to them at the age of twelve and eleven, we see that they are girls who want to be of the most help to their family as possible when they find out that they are moving to a foreign country. I noticed that they didn't cry or tell their parents they would miss their friends, but instead they immediately said that they were happy to be of help.

  • The two girls also were not afraid of being willing to help hunt and protect the family from Indians. In one instance Maud and Ethel both have to shoot an Indian to save their brother Hubert who has a group of Indians hot on his trail. Hubert, while out shooting ducks, had been surprised and then chased by a band of thirty or forty Indians mounted on horses all the way to "Mount Pleasant" (the Hardy's home). When I read this story I thought that it was really great to read about two sisters who are willing to be real ladies but at the same time be willing to pick up a gun and shoot an Indian in defense of their brother.

• An interesting fact about this book is that, unlike most of Henty's boys stories, it was not written as a Historical novel but rather as a boys novel that was historically correct. It has been said that the story of Out on The Pampas may have been based on an actual family that Henty knew who went to Argentina and then later returned to England and told Henty of their adventures. Of course Henty would have embellished a little to make the story more exiting, but the sort of adventures which the Hardys experience are not out of the ordinary for the time and location Henty sets them in.

• One thing that Henty points out in a number of his books is how important respect for our enemies and taking care of the fallen and wounded, rather than scorning them, really is. We see this clearly applied when three Indians who had been part of a bigger group attacking "Mount Pleasant" are found wounded. In a time when the prevalent attitude was "the only good Indian is a dead Indian," the Hardy's take the wounded Indians into their home, treat them with the utmost respect and then free the Indians, returning their weapons and gear. Later on the friendship shown by the Hardy family is returned when the three Indians help them to get back the youngest daughter (Ethel) who had been captured by Indians towards the latter half of the book.

Over all, I believe that any young man or woman would enjoy reading Out on The Pampas. It contains some of Hentys richest elements while telling the reader all about the type of world the Hardys were living in at the time. To summarize in Noah Botkins words, "reading Henty is always an educational experience. I believe young men [and ladies] need to read more books like this rather then waste their time on frivolities."

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 03:26 PM | Permalink

G.A. Henty Radio Show: Out on The Pampas

July 30, 2008

Noah Botkin

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 08:08 AM | Permalink

Question About Gutenberg Press

July 29, 2008

You have a link to Gutenberg on your website. I was thinking about downloading the free text version they have of Coral Island for my son so that he can get an idea of what Ballantyne's books are like. However, I don't want to do so if it is a revised/modified version which has the Christian content cut out. Do you know if the text version on Gutenberg is the original unaltered text?

Dear Sir, Thankfully Gutenburg believes it is their responsibility to give out the original unaltered text of the books. Except for some possible editing flaw (as in all books) they do strictly stick to the original book. I believe that they followed there normal policy and did not edit any of the Christian content out. I would still get the copy that Vision Forum has printed, but, Gutenburg is one of my favorite online sources for books. -Joshua Titus

Alba Gu Bra, Joshua Titus

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 06:40 PM | Permalink

Of Sailor Tales And Sailor Tunes

July 29, 2008

One of the young men that was directly touched by Ballantyne's witness through literature was a young Robert Louis Stevenson. This young man was so impressed with the story of The Coral Island that he would later base portions of his famous book Treasure Island on themes found in Ballantyne's The Coral Island. In fact, he honored Ballantyne in the introduction to Treasure Island with the following poem:

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 04:20 PM | Permalink

James, John and Sandy, The Ballantyne Brothers

July 28, 2008

While studying some of the great authors of the nineteenth century, I ran across a website dedicated to the legacy of Sir Walter Scott. This particular website had some real gems on the subject of Scott's relation to the Ballantyne family.

One of the things that I found so intriguing about the Ballantynes in relation to Scott was that Scott had known James Ballantyne, the eldest of the three brothers, since they were both young men at Kelso Grammar School.

Sir Walter Scott first met James Ballantyne (1772-1833) when attending Kelso Grammar School in 1783. The oldest son of a thriving local merchant, he shared Scott's love of literature, and the two rapidly became good friends. Like Scott, James went on to study Law at Edinburgh University, returning to Kelso in 1795 to set up in practice as a solicitor. The following year he launched the staunchly pro-Tory newspaper the Kelso Mail, which he both edited and printed.

It was very interesting to see the way that James had thought it was so important to take care of his brother and "teach him the trade" before relocating to Edinburgh.

James Ballantyne

In 1799, James privately printed the two pamphlets with which Scott began his writing career: An Apology for Tales of Terror (containing ballads and translations intended for publication in Matthew Gregory Lewis's much-delayed anthology Tales of Wonder) and the ballad 'The Eve of St. John'. Thus began a literary and business partnership that would last Scott's lifetime. Scott was so pleased with the typographical excellence of these two slim volumes that he offered James the opportunity of printing the collection of Border ballads that he was in the process of gathering. When these eventually appeared as the two large octavo volumes of Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border (1802), there was general astonishment in the British book-trade that a small-town printer could produce work of such quality. Scott immediately urged his friend to relocate to Edinburgh, but James wished first to train up the younger of his two brothers, Alexander ('Sandy'), to take over the running of the Kelso Mail. Sandy, father of the Victorian children's writer, R.M. Ballantyne, would eventually buy James's entire interest in the Kelso Mail in 1806.

After training Sandy how to run the Kelso Mail, James immediately headed out to Holyrood House, in Edinburgh.

Scott finally persuaded James to move to Edinburgh in 1803, loaning him £500 to increase the liquid capital of his business. James initially set up his presses in two small rooms in Holyrood House, but thriving business soon led him to seek larger premises. Orders flooded in from Edinburgh publishers and Scott was instrumental in securing for Ballantyne the right to print Session papers. James first moved to Foulis Close in the Canongate then, in 1805, to Paul's Work, situated between the Canongate and Leith Wynd.

It is always sad to see what happens when one brother decides to take the wrong path. Unfortunately John Ballantyne, the middle brother, to some extent did this. He had a bad reputation as a "high living man about town."

On the face of it, John Ballantyne (1774-1821), with his hard-won reputation as the black sheep of the family, was a bad choice. After serving an apprenticeship at a London banking house, he had been taken on as a partner in his father's business in Kelso. In 1797, however, John set up a rival store. Although it initially prospered, mismanagement, and all-round high living brought John near ruin by 1806.

John Ballantyne

With difficulty, James dissuaded him from emigrating to the West Indies and offered him a clerical post in his printing office, provided that he mend his ways and make up with his now estranged wife. In this new capacity John impressed Scott with his inventive approach to book-keeping. Rapidly tiring of office drudgery, he leapt at the chance to head the publishing firm which was founded in 1809. Based in Hanover Street, it would trade under the name of John Ballantyne and Co. Scott acquired a half-share in the business (again a closely guarded secret), and James and John were allotted a quarter share each. Profits were to be divided in the same proportion and matters of policy to be decided jointly. Later in 1809 Scott renegotiated his position with James Ballantyne's printing company, obtaining a half-share in the business through a new injection of capital.

Not very often do you find a publisher and author who work tremendously together. James Ballantyne and Walter Scott had a very close relationship. This gave James the capability to make friendly edits and comments on the books Scott was publishing that he never could have made otherwise. It seems that Scott had deep faith in the editing capabilities of James.

James's role extended far beyond that of business partner or printer. His and Scott's was a unique literary relationship. Scott consulted James on the artistic merit and likely commercial success of each work. James read Scott's proofs, acting as editor rather than mere proof-reader. He would point out inconsistencies in detail and gaps in the text, insert names of speakers in dialogue, correct punctuation and grammatical errors, and remove close verbal repetitions. The annotated proofs were then sent back to Scott who made further alterations. James made further editorial interventions on post-authorial proofs, making changes that were probably never inspected by Scott.

One of the things that plagued Scott and the Ballantynes for quite a while was the debt that had piled up on the account of James Ballantyne and Co.

The Ballantyne Press

In autumn 1815 James proposed marriage to Christina Hogarth. Her father would only consent if James could prove himself free from debt. Scott agreed to discharge James from his liabilities for the publishing house's debts on condition that Scott assume ownership of James Ballantyne and Co., retaining James as a salaried manager. The irrepressible John, meanwhile, had reinvented himself as a successful auctioneer in his publishing house's old premises. He had even succeeded in selling off a good deal of his own stock by putting it in other people's sale catalogues. Esteeming his ability to drive a hard bargain and his skill in confidential bill discounting, money-changing, loan raising, and double accountancy, Scott continued to employ him as his literary agent.

James's financial worries (which had been building up) eased when, in 1817, he purchased the Edinburgh Weekly Journal along with his brother-in-law George Hogarth. By now, however, John's decades of hard living were catching up with him. After several years of ill health, he died on June 16, 1821 of pulmonary consumption. Shortly before his death, Scott had offered to write biographical introductions for a project that John had long cherished: a series of reprints of popular novels and romances at readily affordable prices. Scott saw through the publication of 'Ballantyne's Novelists' Library' in memory of his dead friend.

The loyalty of Scott to his friends, alive or dead, really struck me as something we should all aspire to. The fact that he continued to work with his friends from years past even under difficult circumstances and did not try to blame the failure of his business on them really spoke to the character of Scott.

Thus in the financial crisis of 1826, when the failure of Hurst, Robinson & Company brought in its wake that of Archibald Constable and the Ballantyne Press. James found himself liable for half of the company's debts. He was forced to sell his new home and all the family valuables but permitted to continue living at St. John Street. Under the surveillance of the trust appointed to administer Scott's earnings, James was permitted to stay on as manager of the printing business. A salary of £400 p.a. with no benefits meant a steep decline in his standard of living. Sandy Ballantyne, who had invested all his own spare capital in the Ballantyne Press, was permitted to resume management of the Edinburgh Weekly Journal.

Sadly, this was the beginning of the end for the Ballantyne brothers. But we know better than to remember it this way. In God's providence, this would be part of the reason that R.M. Ballantyne would go to work in Canada, and subsequently become the great author and man he did.

James, who had been devastated by the loss of his wife in 1829, died shortly after Scott on January 26, 1833. His son, John Alexander Ballantyne, took over management of the Ballantyne Press with the help of John Hughes (who had risen up from the post of compositor). Business continued to thrive for a few years but by mid-century they were suffering serious competition from other steam presses. In Edinburgh, Blackwood's had emerged as serious rivals, and the publishing world was increasingly centred on London. Their Edinburgh printing works finally closed in 1916.

For more of this article go to The Walter Scott Website.

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 08:04 PM | Permalink

When Did Ballantyne Become A Christian ?

July 24, 2008

Here are some things I am curious to know about Ballantyne. When and how did he become a Christian? Also, did he have personal experience with all the settings he wrote [about], or did he rely on others accounts? My family has an old book that is not [published] by Vision Forum, called "Twice Bought," written by R.M. Ballantyne. Did he really write a book named that, and how many books did he write total? -Thank you, Stephen

Stephen, please allow me to answer in Mr. Ballantyne's own words:

"During all the six years that I spent in Rupert's Land I was "without God." He was around me and within me, guarding me, bestowing upon me the physical and mental health by which alone I could fully enjoy a life in the wilderness, and furnishing me with much of the material that was to serve as my stock-in-trade during my subsequent career; yet--I confess it with shame--I did not recognize or think of, or care for, Him. It was not until after I had returned home that He opened my eyes to see myself a lost soul, and Jesus Christ, "God with us", an all-sufficient Redeemer, able and willing to save me from sin, as He is to save all sinners, even the chief."

Alexander "Sandy" Ballantyne, Robert's Father

And, yes, Mr. Ballantyne did write Twice Bought. Also, Ballantyne wrote a total of 80 books, and, for almost all of them, he visited the spot he was writing about.
-Alba Gu Bra, Joshua Titus

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 10:30 PM | Permalink

The Tapir

July 23, 2008

Dear Joshua, Thank you for making the Ballantyne website. I am ten years old. Martin Rattler is my second Ballantyne book to read. I especially enjoyed learning about a rare, endangered animal.

Two types of Tapir

Question: What has 14 hooves, a rubbery snout, and walks underwater?

Answer: A tapir. When Martin Rattler was going towards the sea, he encountered a tapir (Ch. 22). A tapir looks like something between an elephant and a hog but its nose does not have a finger at the end. It is 5-6 feet long and 3-4 feet high. Although ferocious looking it does not like to fight and its hide is so tough that a bullet can hardly pass through. -Your Friend, Joshua K.

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 11:41 PM | Permalink

Follow Up Email On The 'Story of Scotland'

July 21, 2008

Hello Joshua, Just in case some of your readers are interested, H.E. Marshall's book, 'Scotland's Story', is back in print and can be purchased at Yesterdaysclassics.com. There are also many other wonderful titles by H.E. Marshall available at this site as well as other excellent history books. Your antique, illustrated edition looks like a terrific find, congratulations! Sincerely, Mrs. Winton.

P.S. My sons, 14 and 16, love Henty and are just becoming interested in Ballantyne's books through the first title we purchased to try out, 'Hunted and Harried'. I will share your site with them.

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 11:50 PM | Permalink

AIG: Defending Your Faith Conference

July 18, 2008

This week I have had the privilege of getting to attend The AIG Defending Your Faith Conference located in Branson MO. The speakers have been Dr. Ken Ham, Voddie Baucham, and My father. Dr. Ham opened the week with a message on "Genesis and the Secularization of America". My father followed it up with "A Family Vision of Victory" and Thursday morning (July 16), Mr. Baucham spoke on "Culture War".

The conference begins.

Dad speaks on "Taking Every Frame Captive".

Mr. Baucham speaks on "Biblical Manhood".

Virginia enjoys a bag of Cheeto's.

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 05:27 PM | Permalink

A Couple of Recent Emails

July 17, 2008

Lately I have received some very good emails. I am very thankful for all the encouragement and comments that came in during the Scotland Tour. A couple of my favorite emails from the last two weeks are here.

Joshua, Thank you for such an informative site. Our family discovered The Coral Island while on a trip to New Zealand some years back but I regret to say we haven't read near the volume of Ballantyne books as he had written.

I was wondering if you have ever read Captain Marryat's book Children of the New Forest ? Set in England during the Reformation, it is an adventure story of children left parentless, of brothers defending sisters, of valor and honor. We have loved it so much, I have bought each child their own copy. I'd have to say it's in my top five. -Blessings, Mrs. Fletcher

Dear Mrs. Fletcher, Yes, I have read the book Children of The New Forest. His writing style is really fabulous. I do think that the noble way the sisters are guarded by their brothers is worthy of praise. The author also sets a very good example of sibling attitude towards each other for the reader. Sadly, it is an anti-reformation story. The children (the main characters) are actually the children of a royalist at the time of Charles I and Cromwell. Unfortunately, I felt that they presented an unfair view of Cromwell and the Parliamentarians to the reader. When reading books like this it is important to understand historical prejudice (good or bad) and to see the wonderful way the hand of the lord can be on an author like Marryat or Henty. -Joshua Titus

Joshua, I have read almost four Ballantyne books, and are enjoying them so much, especially because the stories are, like you said, "Explicitly Christian." Your website, is great! And I love to look at your Blog with the pictures from the Scotland faith and freedom tour. This is not a very important question, but was Ballantyne ever in the army? He new a lot about subjects that somewhat relate to the military. -James

James, Thank you for your question. No, Ballantyne was never in the army as far as I know. He did join the Edinburgh Volunteers at one point, but was never part of a standing army. A lot of his information comes from hist vast knowledge of the times in which he lived and the people he knew. -Joshua Titus

Hello J. Titus and Greetings, I wrote to you once before indicating that we would take your advice and purchase the Coral Islands to give Mr. Ballantyne a try. I am please to report that we have done so and my 3 oldest sons and I agree that it is a smashing success. We look forward to finishing this work and moving on to others. Keep strong in the faith and thank you for your guidance! - The Thisse Family

That is tremendous! I hope y'all enjoy the rest of the Ballantyne books as much.

Hello, I have been enjoying looking through your website and think that my brother and I would enjoy reading some of the Ballantyne books, however, is there any particular order that they should be read in? Or is there any particular book that you would suggest to a first time Ballantyne reader? Thank you so much, God bless, Elizabeth

Elizabeth, No, there is not any particular order to read the books in. Mr. Ballantyne has one set of books that go together (The Coral Islands and the Gorilla Hunters, with The Coral Islands coming first.) Other than that you can read the books in any order. -Alba Gu Bra, Joshua Titus

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 05:01 PM | Permalink

Scotland's Ancient Books

July 14, 2008

Over the next week I hope to post on a couple of the books I acquired while in the UK. One of the books I found was this, a really interesting "young person's history of Scotland." It was written by H.E. Marshall and illustrated by three men: J. R. Skelton, John Hassall and J. Shaw Crompton in the late nineteenth century.

Scotland's Story.

Title page.

The book contains many beautiful full page illustrations ranging from the days of Columba all the way to Bonnie Prince Charlie.

"Yonder is Macduff" from the story of Macbeth.

"The King would read stories out of old books." Robert the Bruce reads stories to cheer his men.

" 'Gentlemen,' he cried, drawing his sword, 'I have thrown away the scabbard.' " Bonnie Prince Charlie leads his men, first to victory, and then defeat.

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 09:45 AM | Permalink

Urquhart

July 12, 2008

While at Urquhart Castle I was given a new challenge. I had for a long time thought that my family had one of the greatest working trebuchets, but now I have been challenged to build bigger! I believe this trebuchet would still function if it had all its ropes in place.

Mr. Bill Potter speaking on the defenses of Urquhart.

The castle of Urquhart.

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 04:21 PM | Permalink

Stonehenge

July 12, 2008

Stonehenge

As my father noted on his blog, Stonehenge is an "homage to paganism." It reminds us that men will go to great lengths to worship nature and rebel against God. The existence of Stonehenge, the most notable of the ancient stone circles of Great Britain (and there are hundreds), reminds modern man that his ancestors were very capable individuals. Both the precise astronomical calender reading system of the massive stone circle, as well as the existence of such a significant feat of construction before the advent of modern technology, shows the folly of the evolutionary view which always paints ancient man as simple in comparison to modern man. Many consider modern man the greatest, smartest, most evolved people of all time. But our generation is not uniquely brilliant. We are simply the heirs to the accumulated wisdom and knowledge of the past.

As one might expect, there were a number of Druid wannabes out there telling everyone to "return Stonehenge to its natural environs", though I don't think many people understood what they meant by that.

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 10:49 AM | Permalink

Runnymede

July 12, 2008

Runnymede!

Charging across the field.

In front of the Jamestown Tree.

Virginia running up to the Runnymede monument.

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 09:39 AM | Permalink

Holmes and Watson

July 11, 2008

Sherlock Holmes, detective, and Dr. John Watson.

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 10:59 PM | Permalink

The Professional Detective; Sherlock Holmes

July 10, 2008

One of my favorite visits on the journey across England after the Scotland Tour was our visit to Sherlock Holmes house, 221b Baker Street London. Despite many of the problems with Arthur Conan Doyle and even his hero in the stories, The Sherlock Holmes mysteries have been one of the most captivating series of books I have read. I had not been the mystery-adventure-loving-type until I first read Doyle's A Study In Scarlet. This was the first "Holmes" adventure I had read and it sent thrills up my back to see the magnificent way Doyle had interwoven the past and present of the main character's life into Holmes and Watson's adventures.

Sherlock Holmes was a famous fictional detective of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He first appeared in publication in 1887, the creation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (another Scot). An ingenious detective living with his friend Dr. Watson at 221b baker street London, Holmes is probably best known for his method of detection, deductive reasoning and abductive reasoning plus an amazing sense of observation, giving him the ability to solve the most difficult cases.The original Holmes stories cover the period of 1878 through 1903, with a final case in 1914.

As one person notes on the character of Holmes,

Holmes is always fearless. He dispassionately surveys horrific, brutal crime scenes; and does not allow superstition (as in The Hound of the Baskervilles) or grotesque situations to make him afraid. He intrepidly confronts violent murderers, and is generally unfazed by threats from his criminal enemies, and indeed Holmes himself remarks that it is the danger of his profession that has attracted him to it. The only thing that truly bothers Holmes is boredom.

When we went in to the home of the Detective and the Doctor it was like stepping into a time capsule. The house was every thing I had ever imagined it could be. The rooms and furnishings, unlike the houses portrayed in all the old (and new) films, was perfect to every detail in the original books, down to the inch. One of the things that you see immediately on coming in to home is the giant "V. R." which stands for "Victoria Regina" (the Queen of England) shot into the wall with his revolver. It was funny to think of a time when that is the sort of thing men would do for target practice. The main room is gloriously manly! With their revolver on the desk and all sorts of equipment in the room it was like stepping into a world of the past.

One of the things that I appreciate about the character created in Holmes is the fact that he has trained himself to take dominion of the mind that God has given him and even with all his faults he understands how to use what he has to the fullest extent.

221b Baker Street.

The far famed "desk of Holmes".

The detective's violin.

The archenemy, Moriarty!

Sherlock Holmes, Detective.

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 09:35 PM | Permalink

Praising the Lord From Iona

July 09, 2008

One of the highlights of the week was the privilege of listening to Mr. Charlie Zahm sing the great songs of the past in the Abbey of Iona. To get to hear his glorious voice reverberating from the walls of the more than one thousand year old church was something I will never forget. It was also wonderful to hear my father share the Gospel with travelers from around the world who were visiting the Abbey of Iona and stopped in to hear the concert.

The Abbey.

Mr. Zahm preparing to sing "St. Brenden's Fair Isle".

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 06:36 PM | Permalink

Our First Try at Archery

July 09, 2008

We also had an opportunity to try our hand at archery, something we had never done in depth before.

Jubilee, crack shot.

Trying my hand at the craft.

Checking our shots.

Justice's bullseye.

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 06:03 PM | Permalink

Remembering the Old Hunting Traditions of Scotland and England

July 08, 2008

While in Scotland we had the opportunity to go hawking and to have a lesson in shooting the bow. We started off with a beautiful little hawk that had a bit of a temper but was an amazing flyer. The trainer would send the bird up into the sky and than call to it to come and get the "bait" the trainer gave each of us. The bird would come zipping down out of the sky at a tremendous rate and land on the arm of who ever was there with the food. It was really neat to see this little hawk come shooting out of a tree or the air and land suddenly upon command. One thing that we did see with this bird is that unlike a dog or cat, a hawk is not a pet. Even though they are hand raised from an egg, these birds are wild animals and have no love for humans. The only reason why the bird keeps up his end of the relationship is that it knows there is food at the end of the day in the trainer's bag.

Our fiery little hawk.

In the process of landing.

A giant Owl named "Joock" (The Duke).

Joock had a tremendous wingspan of just under six feet.

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 11:57 PM | Permalink

My Latest Aquisition In Eton

July 07, 2008

Over one hundred beautiful metal soldiers.

WWI style British devision.

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 07:01 PM | Permalink

Walking With Murder; On The Kidnapped Trail

July 07, 2008

To find out the true history of James Stuarts execution, David Balfour's journey and Robert Louis Stevenson's Kidnapped read Walking with murder; on the kidnapped trail by Ian Nimmo.

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Posted by Joshua Phillips at 06:36 PM | Permalink

Remembering Our Heroes

July 06, 2008

Huzzah!

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 10:38 AM | Permalink

The Battle Field of Culloden

July 01, 2008

The last and final battle of Bonnie Prince Charlie's cause (the Jacobite cause) was the battle of Culloden. The plaque on the Culloden monument reads;

The Battle of Culloden was fought on this moor 16th of April 1746. The graves of the gallant highlanders who fought for Scotland and Prince Charlie are marked by the names of their clans.

Mr. Bill Potter telling the story of the battle.

Mr. Charlie Zahm singing "will ye no come back again".

Our reenactment of the battle.

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 11:19 AM | Permalink