5:30pm Tuesday 7th July 2009
In 1984, whilst resident in Dennis Road, it was my custom to go across to Francis Fields (the ‘archery fields’ of yore) to fulfill my legal obligation under a law of Edward IV to practice archery.
I shot at fairly close range - 30-50`- against a bare clay bank, and in a direction away from frequented footpaths.
No one ever raised any objections, and one or two people came over for a chat.
Half a century ago, in 1958/59, a local lad by the name of Wilson Dagger did the same thing with a few of his friends on the beach by the Alexandra Gardens, shooting obliquely along the beach at a cardboard box filled with sand - again with no objections from anyone as far as I am aware.
In 1966-69, with my best friend, the late Brian Butler, I regularly bowfished for Mullet along Westwey Road.
A cop once saw us and we heard him radio to base for instructions. Evidently he was told it was okay, as he shortly continued in a northerly direction about his business!
We would shoot up to eight or ten fish and, as locals deemed them unfit for human consumption, took them round to a Chinese restaurant then situated near the junction of Bond and Maiden Streets, and with the cash thus garnered would repair to Fortes for a decent meal.
A few weeks ago, mindful of Britain`s current terminal silliness regarding weapons - or anything even resembling one - I called Police HQ to ask if there would be any problem were I to resume archery practice in Francis Fields.
I was told that if I did so I would be arrested for having a pointed weapon in a public place!
Why, I wonder, is long-suffering Joe Public always being denied the right to see anything interesting going on when he is out and about?
And why are we continually being denied the rights we lately had?
Am I then breaking the law if I go spearfishing in the sea? The public has legal access to the shore and the sea, and the spear from a speargun is a pointed weapon!
If the answer to all this lies with the frequency of terrorism in recent years, I would suggest that any sensible government, instead of trying to disarm everyone, should be handing out M-16s to all its citizenry in the face of such threat.
Switzerland, an eminently sensible country, wouldn`t need to take any special action in this regard - everyone already keeps a SIG assault rifle and 50 rounds of ammunition for it in their homes.
But then, that is Switzerland. A sensible country.
Dr Monika Fisher, Chickerell Road, Weymouth.
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