THIRD POINT.
GUARDS.
Wait after the third point has been delivered for the word
Defend.—At this word draw up the hand smartly, and form the first guard. Make the other guards in succession as they are named, while the instructor proves their accuracy by giving the corresponding cuts. The guards must be learned from the target, by placing the sword in exactly the same position as those [delineated]. The guards are these:—
- First guard.
- Second.
- Third.
- Fourth.
- Fifth.
- Sixth.
- Seventh.
The two spots H and I mark the places towards which the points are made, H for the first and second point, I for the third.
PARRY.
The parry or parade of a thrust is executed with the back of the sword. The firmest way of parrying is to hold the sword perpendicular, with its edge to the right and its hilt about the height of and close to the right shoulder; then, by sweeping the sword round from left to right, any thrust within its sweep is thrown wide of the body.
The parry is executed with the wrist and not with the arm, which must not move.