Harper's Round Table, February 16, 1897

Copyright, 1897, by Harper & Brothers. All Rights Reserved.

When I was a boy I belonged to a small company of young fellows, all under fourteen, who had banded themselves together for the purpose of practising archery. Our company owed its name to our great admiration for Major Ringgold, about whose valiant exploits in the Mexican war we had often read and talked. He was a romantic man, and romance always has a charm for the young, even when they do not understand it. The Major was a brave cavalryman, and we had seen pictures of him charging at the head of his horsemen, with his long hair floating in the wind. In this long hair lay his romance; for we had heard the story that, having been crossed in love, he vowed he would never again cut his hair. The point of this resolution we did not then understand, nor can I say that I fully comprehend it now, but I am quite sure that each one of us would have been perfectly willing to be crossed in love if the result should be that we would charge at the head of some brave cavalrymen, with our sword drawn and our long hair floating in the breeze.
When we had decided upon the name of our company, and had elected officers, we considered that the next most important thing was to provide ourselves with a uniform dress. This subject did not occasion very much discussion. The color for an archer could be nothing else than green; and as to the cut and general make-up of the dress, it would have to be very simple, for none of us were able to afford an elaborate uniform, so it was decided that a blouse long enough to cover our ordinary coats and fasten around the waist with a belt would be quite sufficient. As to our head-gear—we all wore straw hats, and if we chose to put feathers in them we could do so, but this was left for future consideration.
The material of our uniform was determined by the state of our finances. When each one of us had put into the treasury all the money he could afford, it was plain to see that our blouses must be made of some cheap stuff.