Slingshot and El Dorado

Magazines

reviewed by John Boehm and David Sweet

Slingshot
by John Boehm

SLINGSHOT is,of course, the official journal of the "Society of Ancients" (contact the Treasurer - Bill Thurlow, 15 Longfleet Rd., Poole, Dorset, BH15 2HN, England, UK for details). It is published 6 times a year and the first three issues have been received. The theme of this year is the "Punic Wars", and if I may say so it is a welcome return to mainstream Ancient Wargaming, at least by my definition. The magazine now seems less devoted to esoteric articles and overly academic dissertations, and instead has many more items of interest, both of an historical and wargaming nature. I would definitely recommend this publication to historical ancient wargamers.

El Dorado Magazine
David Sweet

Available from T.D. Hooker, 27 Hallgate, Cottingham, N. Humberside, HU16 4DN, England, UK. Prices (British currency) 60p per issue, postage UK 20p, surface overseas 42p, American airmail 65p. Subscription rates 6 issues, UK f4.50, elsewhere f5.62.

I have seen VOL 1, No. 1 (May, 1988) and Vol. 1, No. 2 (July 1988). Each issue is about 10 pages long, with few typographical errors, and of sharp, photocopy-like quality in print and paper. My issues were not bound, but they were review copies.

T.D. Hooker's stated aim is to assist in the study of uniforms, organization, and so forth of South and Central America and the Caribbean Islands, so each issue contains 1 pages of introductory material and a variety of short articles, each about 2 pages. The lead article in each issue is actually an installment, in copy taken directly from the original Spanish, of the basic law of the Mexican Army of the Emperor Maximilian, 1865.

Except for unit names and the like, the remaining text is in English, and profusely illustrated in black and white. Matters covered include the Viceroyalty of La Plata (18th Century), Gran Colombia (the revolutionary period, 1814-1826), Brazil (both modern army patches and 18th Century uniforms), the Danish West Indies, and the Gran Chaco War (Bolivia against Paraguay, 1930s).

I suspect, though the issues do not say it, that T.D. Hooker may be the same T.D. Hooker who used to supply articles on South American uniforms to the Guidon of the Miniature Figure Collectors of America. From the items I could check, the sources seem to be good, such as Preben Kannik for the Danes. I do have qualms about some of the Colombians. The ultimate source, apparently presented through a publication of the Colombian Ministry of Defense, seems to be contemporary prints, and another South American writer on the revolutionary period has referred to "the problems of our painters, who, lacking precise data, had to resort to their imaginations". Still, in the confused revolutionary period of clothing, none of the uniforms appear utterly impossible, and, overall, the magazine provides useful information, which can be hard to find elsewhere, for anyone interested in the area.

Reviewing Stand

Back to Table of Contents -- Courier Vol. IX No. 1
Back to Courier List of Issues
Back to Master Magazine List
© Copyright 1989 by The Courier Publishing Company.
This article appears in MagWeb.com (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web.
Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com