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Title
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The Remise
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Date
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December 1940
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volume
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5
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issue
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6
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page start
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12
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page end
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13
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content
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en
The Remise
Of course all of you saw the picture of Orest Meykar, the New Orleans professional, in one of the November issues of Look Magazine. Many of you have brought it to our attention already and so we are only mentioning it in passing. Look Magazine featured ten pictures showing a typical (?) day in the French Quarter of New Orleans with Meykar showing up in picture nine in a terrible fencing pose. He never looked like that when I fenced with him this summer.
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Meykar’s pose in the fencing picture brings up a subject that has been troubling us for some time. Press photographers generally have a keen imagination for the picturesque but no idea of fencing. If you permit them, they will shoot you in poses that would make thousands of dead duelists turn over in their graves and say, “Good Lord, even we weren’t that bad and see where we landed.”
Fencers should take the position that Helena Mroczkowska’s coach took recently. As American Women’s Foil Champion, she was approached for some fencing pictures. They all but hung her from a chandelier when her coach asked, “Do you want these pictures?” “Certainly.” “You can have them only in correct fencing positions. None of this funny business. I don’t want her to look ridiculous to the real fencers who see these pictures.” Correct pictures were then taken.
Fencers have to put up with a certain number of publicity pictures taken of people who never before saw a foil. These phonies bear some such caption as, “Hazel Twerp, beautiful Streetville debutante, returns from the polo field daily to don fencing ensemble and enjoy a fast joust with her private fencing master.” Then there is the one of the row of bathing beauties straddled out in a line on a beach with foils in hand—“Lifesavers beware as these beautiful girls lunge and parry at Miami Beach.” No one with sane mind takes such pictures seriously.
The pictures we really hate to see are those of good fencers who because of photographic economy are crowded so close together that they resemble Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy. This usually demands a definite overline by one and fencing’s least practical parry, prime, by the other. You can count such pictures by the score during the season. (Meykar worked the prime in his.)
Last but not least we hope never again to see those two favorite cliche captions, “Touche” and “Foiled Again.” Although hope is said to spring eternal we have definitely given up hope of ever outliving those two old chestnuts.
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We have always looked with scorn upon the occasional fencer who may be termed a “medal-chaser.” He enters competitions primarily to win a medal and, if he is good enough, he becomes a collector. To enter a competition implies that you will do your best to win and rightfully so. A medal should be considered a reward and never an objective in itself.
We, therefore blush to admit that we nearly dusted off our sabres and entered the Junior Sabre competition on November 30th. Nothing but an unusual enticement would make us do such a thing. Mind you, we think that sabre is an excellent weapon for others and we always enjoy watching its devotees belt one another with them, but we long ago learned that a left-hander takes a horsewhipping on his upper arm and shoulder and that you cannot parry a head-cut by merely shutting your eyes. Nevertheless, we were definitely tempted and the reason was no other than the beautiful set of medals designed and presented by Nicholas Muray.
We have seen a great many fencing medals in our day; others have been kind enough to show them to us. Of these, three have stood out particularly in mind; the Arthur S. Lyon medals, one set of the Pieter Mijer medals, and the German Helmet medals in Hans Halberstadt’s collection in San Francisco. We are now placing Nick Muray’s new gift along with these as medals which are intrinsic art in themselves.
The new medal was especially conceived by Muray, whose artistry as a photographer is recognized throughout the world. He employed a fine sculptor to execute the work which is simply a sabre handle gripped in Nick’s bare right hand against a background of flag stripes and stars to symbolize the American flag. The sabre guard is polished, the remainder of the medal is in dull finish. Robert Stoll, Inc., produced the medals.
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In Mike de Capriles’ article in this issue, he mentioned the opportunity and need at this time for some energetic writer to undertake a history of the A.F.L.A. He gave mention of a few of the personalities and incidents that should not be omitted from such a work and whose accomplishments, until now passed on by word of mouth, must soon be inscribed in written history or be irrevocably lost with the passing of time.
It would be a crime to permit the amusing controversy of 1891 be forgotten. In those days fencers were all men of means and few in number. The National Foil Championship was the only competition of the year, and as Donald Barnes mentioned in his article, the fencers didn’t particularly care if any spectators attended or not. The controversy arose as to the site of the Championship. Samuel Shaw offered his estate at Oyster Bay. Eugene Higgins offered the special fencing Salle aboard his 306 foot yacht, The Varuna. Each offered to pay all expenses for a full week-end with champagne and all the trimmings. Personally, I would have voted for the cruise, but the fencers were so evenly divided in choice that the Championship was finally held at the New York Athletic Club, followed by a banquet specially prepared by William Munchenheim, the A.C.’s famous chef of the 90’s.
Incidentally, William Munchenheim and his brother Fred, were names in the culinary art which caused epicures to sit up and drool. The fencers appreciated this skill and often retained these chefs for their special annual banquets. The record board cost such fencers as W. T. Lawson, H. K. Bloodgood, C. G. Bothner, Samuel T. Shaw, Eugene Higgins and George Lord Day $28 per plate. The present Hotel Astor is said to have been built to give William Munchenheim a proper dining room for the exploitation of his art.
You should be told about James P. Parker, Sr., of Boston, who placed in the Finals in 1901 but suffered an accident in the following six months which required the amputation of his right hand. He returned to the Championships the next year, fenced with his left hand and won.
Then there is the paradoxical story of G. W. Postgate, present professional at Carnegie Tech, who won the National Sabre Championship in 1908, because he was hit more times than his opponents. Sabres in those days were heavy and wielded with a vim and carry-through that would have shamed a Roman gladiator. Wells were the order of the day and the average sabreman became so inured to a sound thumping that he ceased to feel anything that didn’t jar his teeth. Even though hit, he continued on to slam his bold opponent in return. A special rule had to be made to prevent hitting after being hit. It stated that if any fencer hit an opponent after he, himself, had been scored against he not only lost the touch but had one touch deducted from his own score.
Postgate was a light hitter, a forerunner of the modern sabreman. His opponents seldom realized that he had hit them. His light touches were invariably followed by a return action from his opponents. This meant a plus one touch for him and a minus one score for his opponent. He went about piling up his own score and cancelling his opponents’ scores and won the Championship after a full evening of “whams” received.
These are a few of the yarns that could be woven into any history of the League. Mike has mentioned others and there are countless more. Someone should collect them for posterity.
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Two of our former Olympic Team members have just won their bouts against white-masked surgical knife-wielders. George Breed came off with a head-cut and Al Strauss took a mean cut in the midsection but both are reported as doing nicely. Al Strauss is claiming a foul on the grounds that he was outnumbered and attacked when he had his eyes shut.
Incidentally, when Breed is up and around again he will find that the A.F.L.A. has elected him its first Honorary Life Member in return for his many years of faithful service to the League in general and to the difficult task of Foreign Secretary in particular.
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The Selective Service Draft will undoubtedly have its effect upon the fencing situation in the current season. The A.F.L.A. has already recognized this problem by extending its memberships by one year without dues assessment, if called to service. The large bulk of active A.F.L.A. fencers come within the age limit. The Collegiate groups for the most part are under the lower age limit and not heavily affected but it is entirely possible that somewhere between one tenth and one quarter of the A.F.L.A. active membership may be called for Selective Service.
One of our National Champions, Fred Siebert, a Reserve Officer, has already left for Scott Field, Ill., but hopes to continue his fencing this season in St. Louis which is just across the Mississippi River. Jean Gronobach and Winslow Cotner are reported as having returned to the Army as Captains. Of course, too, there are a great many A.F.L.A. members who have been Army or Navy officers right along. Some of the well-known fencers in this group are Heiss, Sands, Weber, Doughty, Steere, Kunzig, Mayo, and Manzo.
This development need not be considered as all loss and no gain for the sport of fencing. There will be fencers going into camps throughout the country. There will be many long evenings to while away. It will not be long before fencers will make use of these evenings by fencing together or teaching others to fence. Marson, Lada-Mocarski and Donovan lost no time at Plattsburg this summer in introducing fencing to their friends in camp. Should the Army ever suddenly appreciate the benefits to eyes, wrists, body, wind and general well-being that fencing offers at little cost and without too great indoor space requirements, it might back a fencing program to interest its men during evenings in camps. There are possibilities here that would greatly offset the lull which threatens A.F.L.A. activity.
Professionals would be wise in watching for and endeavoring to promote any such development. Thousands of physically perfect young men may create a demand for fencing instructors that would dwarf any demand to date. The whole Army program is permeated with the idea of making Army life attractive to its new men. Sports activity is looked upon favorably. Fencing is ideal for the purpose and the opportunity to develop the sport further should not be overlooked.
