Broad-Sword and Single-Stick

At an Irish fair, a woman waits on the edge of a faction-fight with a stone in her stocking. In Broad-Sword and Single-Stick, even a sporting bout has a sharper purpose: it may teach you how to protect yourself.

Writing in the early twentieth century, Rowland Allanson-Winn and Clive Phillipps-Wolley make the case that England is a nation of sportsmen—and that games with sticks, swords and gloves can matter when play turns serious. They trace the quarter-staff from the hard, handy branch a primitive man might use to the old English sport associated with Robin Hood, then move toward its guards, cuts and practical use. A friendly bout, they warn, can break a rib; skill and caution belong together. What can an old sporting weapon teach about the art of defence?

With centuries of literature, it's inevitable that some will fall through the cracks. We hunt down public domain works and restore them so they're not lost to the world.

Who are we? We're Cairn Press. Our background is in design, publishing, typography, and technology. These skills fuel our mission to create the highest quality Public Domain eBooks available online, at an affordable price. We give them the treatment they deserve; our proprietary process restores books for a better overall user experience in design, readability, and e-reader compatibility.