“Your conjecture has the weight of testimony,” replied the vicar; “when Isaac sent Esau to the forest, he said, ‘Take, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver, and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me some venison:’[48] and it is even a question, whether the _Saxon_ bow was ever used by the Anglo-Saxons and Danes for any other purpose than that of procuring food, or pastime; for the representation of this bow, in an ancient manuscript[49] of the tenth century, shows it to have been very differently constructed from what one might expect in a military weapon; in size, too, it was a mere toy, compared with the bow of succeeding ages.” “There can be no doubt that the bow and arrow were employed for the purpose of killing animals for food from the earliest times; but its principal interest is derived from its military applications; will you, therefore, give us a sketch of its history, and confine yourself to its practice as a warlike instrument in England?” “And may I also beg of you, my dear sir,” added Mrs. Seymour, “to explain the different terms which are employed to denote its parts and applications; such information will be, just now, highly acceptable to me, as I am reading some romances, in which those terms are constantly occurring.” “You shall be obeyed, madam,” replied the vicar, with a courteous smile. “We are, probably, indebted to the Norman conquest for the introduction of the bow and arrow as a hostile weapon; but, before I enter upon that subject, it is necessary to state, that the bows in use in England, have been of two kinds, the common or _long_ bow, and the _cross_ bow. The former does not require any description from me, the latter, or _Arbalet_, as it was called, (from _Arbalesta_, i. e. _arcu-balista_, a bow with a sling,) consists of a steel bow, fastened upon a stock, and is discharged by means of a catch, or _trigger_, which probably gave rise to the lock upon the modern musket.” “Excuse the interruption,” said Mrs. Seymour, “but do allow me to ask whether _Arquebusade_ does not derive its name from its having been formerly applied to wounds inflicted by the cross-bow or _Arbalet_?” “I thank you, madam; that etymology is entirely new to me, and will explain the medical name, _Aqua vulneraria_, which has been applied to that spirit.” The vicar now proceeded without further interruption.