It is evident that the different sizes and various powers of cross-bows occasioned a great diversity in the distance of their range. Thus, in Henry 5th’s time the range of the cross-bow is stated to have been forty rods (220 yards), and it never appears to have been more powerful than at that period. ~Range in Elizabeth’s.~ M. de Bellay says that the cross-bowman will kill at 100 or 200 paces, which gives a great range to the arbalests of Elizabeth’s time. Sir John Smith, however, in his observations, not long after this, very much contracts the distance of their shot, for he says that “a cross-bow will kill point-blank between 40 and 60 yards, and, if elevated, 120, 140, or 160 yards, or further.” The former probably alluded to the prod, the latter to the latch. COMPARATIVE MERITS OF THE LONG AND CROSS BOW. How inefficient the cross-bow was found, when opposed by English archery, appears in every page of the histories of the fourteenth century. ~Why long-bow superior.~ The superiority of the long-bow mainly depended upon the strength and skill of the archer, while a greater amount of accuracy at shorter ranges could be had out of the cross-bow, with much less training; and the success of the English archers when opposed to cross-bowmen may be mainly ascribed to the more “rapid” fire of the former. ~Celerity the great advantage of the long-bow.~ It is generally conceded that the long-bow could deliver at least six shafts while the cross-bow discharged one; and, “with such odds against them, it became impossible for the bravest and most expert troops, whether at Cressy or elsewhere, to make a stand against their opponents”. ~Cross-bow best on horseback.~ On the other hand, the cross-bow was decidedly a more convenient weapon on horseback than the long-bow. COMPARATIVE MERITS BETWEEN BOWS AND EARLY FIRE-ARMS. The invention of gunpowder, and its application to artillery and small arms, did not produce that sudden change in the art of war, or in weapons, that might, on a first consideration, have been expected. Many of the old soldiers were much divided in their opinion of the superiority of fire-arms, nor does it appear that the government of those days were decided upon it, as the strongest statutes for enforcing the practice of archery were enacted after their introduction. ~Long-bow preferred in Edward III.~