Sling

Sling, a weapon much in use before the introduction of firearms, consisted of a piece of leather, with a round hole in the middle and at each end a cord of about a yard in length. The slinger held the free ends of the cords in one hand, and whirling the weapon round and round with his utmost force in a vertical direction, suddenly let go one of the cords. This propelled the stone or other missile that was placed in the leather at a great speed forwards for a considerable distance. Slings fastened to the end of a short pole were capable of discharging a bolt with such force that at 500 yards distance it could pierce a helmet or a thin shield. The sling is not mentioned in the Heud, but already in the Persian wars we find traces of its use. The Acharnians, and later the Achæans were the most skilful, but amongst all ancient races the Balearic islanders were counted the most expert; and the sling was a favourite weapon of several semi-savage peoples, notably the Tahitians in the Pacific. They were used by the besiegers during the defence of Chitral; see Sir G. S. Robertson's Chitral (1898).