by Cliff Huntington
The three most recognizable archery books initially published in the United States are The Witchery of Archery, Hunting With The Bow & Arrow and Hunting The Hard Way. I would take this a step further with the declaration that this Trinity has probably encouraged more to accept the challenge of the bow than all others combined. Maurice Thompson's The Witchery of Archery, in my estimation, is the most important of the three and ranks among history's greatest archery contributions. The Thompson brothers' exploits thrilled a Nation still recovering from the effects of a civil war and generated widespread interest in archery, particularly in the area of recreational target and competitive shooting. Next would be Saxton Pope's Hunting With The Bow & Arrow, a spell-binding account of early big game hunting with the bow and arrow, Ishi, instructions on bow-building and Pope's thoughts on archery in general. The final book in the Trinity would be Howard Hill's Hunting The Hard Way. Hill's book brought the art of archery back into the public eye and Hunting The Hard Way found a willing audience in thousands of WWII Veterans a few years out of service, needing the challenge and outlet archery offered. Hunting The Hard Way did much to popularized and glamorize archery during the fifties and sixties.
All three books are a must read to the student of archery and one doesn't have to acquire the scarce 1st Editions to enjoy them, all have been reprinted, some several times in modern editions that are still available at reasonable prices and many libraries have them as well. Not all editions are created equal and in the event you run upon a copy or two at a flea market, it behooves one to have at least a working knowledge of the collectibles.
Thompson's The Witchery of Archery was published in 1878, is so noted on the title page, has a bluish-green mesh cloth binding and the front cover shows the design of a bow and arrow over which is black stamped, The Witchery Of Archery By Maurice Thompson. This is the scarce 1st edition. Due to it's overwhelming popularity, The Witchery of Archery was again published in 1879, but with the addition of chapter XVII, "The English Theory and Practice of Target- shooting." This book has the same cover design as the 1st edition but is brown in color and has printed both the 1878 copyright and the 1879 copyright on the page following the title page. This is the 2nd edition, also quite scarce. The 1928 edition of The Witchery of Archery is commonly referred to as the 3rd edition or Pinehurst Edition. A better title would be The Witchery of Archery; An Anthology as this book is not a reprint of either the 1st or 2nd edition but an edited version by Dr. Robert Elmer with deletions, additions and a chapter by Will H. Thompson titled, "Deep in the Okefinokee." Contrary to what was recently printed in "Bowhunter," Maurice's brother Will did not contribute a chapter to The Witchery of Archery, Dr. Elmer added it in the edited version 10 years after Will's death. This book has a tan ribbed cloth binding, the front cover has black stamped, The Witchery of Archery, J. Maurice Thompson, The Archers Company and has an illustration of a hunter shooting a deer stamped within a rectangular panel. The date 1928 can be found on the page following the title page. It was also issued in a leather bound, limited edition. Dr. Elmer's Introduction at the beginning is a nice touch with a bit of history and a short bibliography of Maurice's published material. The Pinehurst Edition shows up frequently, but still highly collectible and a fine read. Reprints are common, both of the 1879 2nd edition and the 1928 Pinehurst edition. The edition reprinted in the "Legends of the Longbow" series is the Pinehurst edition.
Topic: Sagittarius & Witchery Of Archery (Read 511 times)
