‘Waring said the furthest distance attained with an English flight arrow, of which he had ever heard, was 335 yards, and that Lord Aylesford had once shot one, with a slight wind in his favour, 330 yards. Waring told me that he himself, in all his life, had never been able to send a flight arrow above 283 yards.
‘The Turk was not satisfied with his performance, but declared that he and his bow were stiff and out of condition, and that with some practice he could shoot very much further than he had just done.
‘He said, however, that he never was a first-class bowman, even when in his best practice, but that the present Grand Seigneur was very fond of the exercise and a very strong man, there being only two men in the whole Turkish army who could shoot an arrow as far as he could.
‘The Turk said he had seen the Grand Seigneur send a flight arrow 800 yards.
‘I asked Waring to what he attributed the Turk’s great superiority over our English bowmen; whether to his bow or not. Waring replied he did not consider it was so much the result of the Turk’s bow, but rather of his strength and skill, combined with the short light arrows he used, and his method of shooting them along the grooved horn attached to his hand.
‘Neither Waring nor any of the Toxophilites present (and many tried) could bend the bow as the Turk did when he used it.
‘So much for the triumph of the Infidels and the humiliation of Christendom.
‘Yours aff.,
‘W. Frankland.
‘To Sir Thos. Frankland, Bt., M.P.
‘Thirkleby Park.’
[53] T. Waring, author of a Treatise on Archery, 1st ed. 1814, last ed. 1832. Waring was an accomplished archer and a well-known manufacturer of bows and arrows.