| Courage and skill being often of little use without a | | | | bends being of a soft temper, seldom breaks; but a |
| good weapon, I think it necessary, before I lay down | | | | stiff one being hard tempered is easily broke. the third |
| rules for using it, to show how to choose a good blade, | | | | observation is to be made by breaking the point, and if |
| and how it ought to be mounted. | | | | the part broken be of a grey color, the steel is good; if |
| The length of the blade ought to be proportional to the | | | | it be white it's not: or you may strike the blade with a |
| stature of the person who is to use it: the longest | | | | key or other piece of iron, and if he gives a clear |
| sword, from point to pommel, should reach | | | | sound, there is no hidden fault in it. in bending a blade |
| perpendicularly from the ground to the navel, and the | | | | you must not force it, what i have said being sufficient |
| shortest, to the waste; being large in proportion to its | | | | to know it by, and besides by forcing it, it may be so |
| length, and not extremely large, nor very small, as | | | | weakened in some part as to break when itcomes to |
| some people wear them; the over large blades being | | | | be used. |
| unwieldy, unless very hollow, which makes them weak, | | | | It would not be amiss for a man to see his sword |
| and the narrow ones being not sufficient to cover the | | | | mounted, because the cutlers, to save themselves the |
| body enough. | | | | trouble of filing the inside of the hilts and pommel, to |
| How To Choose Your Perfect Bladein order to | | | | make the holes wider, often file the tongue of the |
| choose a good blade, three things are to be observed: | | | | blade too much, and fill up the vacancies with bits of |
| first, that the blade have no flaw in it, especially across, | | | | wood, by which means the sword is not firm in the |
| it being more dangerous so than length-way. secondly, | | | | hand, and the tongue being thin and weak, is apt to |
| that it be well tempered, which you'll know by bending it | | | | break in parrying or on a dry beat, as has been |
| against a wall or other place; if it bend only towards | | | | unhappily experienced. care should also be taken that |
| the point, 'tis faulty, but if it bend in a semicircular | | | | the end of the tongue be well riveted to the extremity |
| manner, and the blade spring back to its straightness, | | | | of the pommel, lest the grip should fly off, which would |
| 'tis a good sign; if it remains bent it is a fault, though not | | | | be of very dangerous consequence. |
| so great as if it did not bend at all; for a blade that | | | | |