_Front prove Distance_; and _Slope Swords_. At the order, _Stand on Guard_, the recruit having assumed the Second Position, No. 2, falls on Guard: the pommel of the sword fronts his right breast; the point is directed at his opponent’s right eye; his right arm is extended with an easy bend at the elbow; the wrist is inclined, with the knuckles slightly turned upwards, to his own right, so as to cover him in case of a straight thrust, and the left hand is placed upon the left flank just below the ribs, with the fingers to the front and the thumb to the rear. The several guards (parries) are learned by holding the sword opposite to and in the inclination of the dotted lines which have sword-hilts attached to them; the recruit is thus taught from the Target the angle of the blade and the position of the wrist. The Target directs the recruit _how_ to make the Cuts and to form the Guards, but not exactly _where_; this must depend upon how the opponent acts during the attack and the defence. Cuts 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11 (odd numbers) are all from Carte, which the ‘Infantry Sword Exercise’ calls _Inside_. The corresponding even numbers (2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12) are from Tierce, or _Outside_. The same nomenclature applies to the Guards or parries. When the recruit thoroughly understands the use of the Target he need no longer be practised in front of it; but the instructor (sword in hand) should consider it a sure guide and reference for correctly forming the Guards and for giving a suitable direction to the edge when making the Cuts. § 2. _The Moulinet._[9] This rotation movement should be learnt before the recruit proceeds to the Cut. There is nothing better for “breaking,” as the French say, the recruit’s wrist than this sweep of the sword; and the style of a swordsman may always be known by his Moulinet. We will divide it into three kinds, viz. (1) horizontal, (2) diagonal, and (3) vertical; the latter again may be either (a) ascending or (b) descending; but as the second (diagonal) is a mere modification of the first and the third, it will be sufficient to notice only two; these are:--