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7

On the Management aj a Bell.

handstroke—either ahove or beiow the pupil's hands—so that I can prevent the beli being ^4<thrown ovcr," should he altogether miss the sally. After a few turns at both these exercises, the pupil can beallowed to manage the beli at each stroke, but the instructor should take care to stand in such a position that he can alsograsp the saily and assist in the management of the beli at hand-stroke until the learner can be trusted to puli the beli with-out aid. When the new hand has acquired the art of managing his beli so that he may be trusted to puli away at her without assistance, he should, as I have previously observed, practise until he has rnastered the different tnotions of the hands and the ropę so thoroughly as to be able to ring without having to think of such matters. The better (his has been done, the

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morę qualified will he be to overcome the difficuities to be encountered in learning change-ringing.

The instructor nmst see that the paths of the sliders do not nilów the belis to set too far over, as it is better for the learner to “bump a beli off" than to break a stay.

It is impossible for any written description of the best way of handling the ropę, and accommodating the arms to its move~ ments, to be of as much benefit to a learner as his observation of a good ringer who bas, what the old writers on this subject called, an “agrecable” puli. As Shipway says, “it would be . weil for young practitioners to notice such ringers as have an easy and agreeable puli with them, and imitate their example.’'

The following hints with regard to handling the ropę, &c., may not, bowcver, be useless or uninteresting. I believe it to be immaterial whether the rope-end be hehl in the right or left hand. Formy own part, 1 hołd it in the left; considering thatonaccount of the right being morę generally used, and its reach, therefore, slightly greater than the left, the right hand should be free to take the uppermost position at hand-stroke. There are pienty ofgood