(J College Con he in ANTI -HOLDUP TECHNIQUE
k JHHH sSi
■ fl|
|j^;'... ',
|pi j|3
In these three pictures, Dr. Mason demonstrates effec
tive maneuvers of self-defense. Above, left, he bends
an assailant’s thumb back and prepares to land a right
hook on the jaw; center, he uses an arm twist to get
a club out of an attacker’s hand; at right, he illus
trates the toss-overhead throw.
By Madelin Blitzstein
■HEN you were very young,
and were fond of amusing
yourself by playing cops and
robbers, you didn’t look for-
W
ward to the time when you might be
walking along the street on a dark night
and find yourself suddenly confronted
with a real, honest-to-goodness bandit
But since this sort of thing is fairly
common nowadays, men and women
often find themselves in the position of
wondering whether they would have
been able to ward off a sudden, unex
pected attack had they known just what
to do at the proper moment.
For the purpose of teaching modern
college boys how to save their belong
ings from a holdup man as well as
how to protect themselves from assault,
and perhaps even deliver over the tres
passer to a minion of the law, the Uni
versity of Pennsylvania now has on its
curriculum the first course in self-de
fense in any university in the land.
Entitled “A Course in Self-Defense
Against Sudden Vicious Attacks” and
subtitled “A Knowledge of How to Ac
quire Certain Skills in Tumbling, Dodg
ing and Falling Which Will Lessen or
Prevent Injury From Accident,” this
course includes instruction in boxing,
wrestling, jiu-jitsu, and the French art
of kicking, known as “Savate.”
The man who has devised the series
and who is giving the course is Dr. J
Leonard Mason, instructor and boxing
coach in the University of Pennsylvania
Physical Education Department.
“Os course, it is necessary to remind
my pupils at the start that there are
many situations where it would be fool
hardy to try to resist an attacker,” says
Dr. Mason.
“If a holdup man has a knife or a
club or a loaded gun, I caution my pu
pils against resistance unless there is a
very good chance of disarming the op
ponent in one quick movement. I know
of some instances where this has been
done effectively.”
r T , HE course begins with exercises in
which the entire class practices
fundamental gymnastics. They take
part in walking at an ordinary pace
and then, at the sound of a short signal,
they come to an abrupt stop. They are
taught to walk backwards at a rapid
pace and then they begin to receive
instructions in learning how to take
"snappy” single setbacks such as are
used in boxing.
A series of boxing steps is taught.
and short forward jumps are rigorously
practiced for the first few lessons* Skip
ping rope and hopping exercises are
then brought in for the rest of the pre
liminary training.
When these are mastered, the pupils
are given instruction in the proper way
of “hitting the turf.” For this purpose,
they practice doubling up like a ball
and rolling around like a hoop snake;
they get pushed around by their part
ners in such away that they learn to
duck their heads at the right time and
fall to the floor so that their momentum
helps them get to their feet again.
“Our course in self-defense,” explains
Dr. Mason, “aims to improve the stu
dent physically, to increase his muscular
development, to give him necessary
mental alertness, to remove awkward
ness, to overcome fears, to develop bod
ily skill, and to appreciate the value of
health in meeting life's emergencies.”
In the course at Penn, games are
used to good advantage since they are
valuable in making the players less
awkward on their feet and in develop
ing quicker reactions in an emergency.
Boxing and wrestling are, of course,
fundamental. But boxing alone is not
enough for warding off a gunman. Dr.
Wr c pF m
Barf ft
■ J| » f|
jfl
mßgttaggg&mp
What to do when three people set on you. Dr. Mason pushes off two stu
dent “assailants” and prepares to turn on the third.
iBHg •' Pfhr' jk
• m flk 5 1
g|| W JBgt iflSs: H
HF ■ B|
B
Mason instructs his pupils in fighting
with their bare fists. In the manner
of the Japanese, they toughen their
hands by striking the ends of the fingers
against the wall. ThuA they avoid the
danger of breaking their hands when
striking with the bare fist.
“Man’s first impulse in a competition
is to play fair,” Dr. Mason says. “But
the rules of the game have no place
in warding off the attack of a bandit.
For this reason, my pupils are taught
certain things which are barred from
supervised sport. Elbows are a good
weapon of offense in sudden attacks,
and feet must not be forgotten. Knees,
too, are valuable.
“The science of jiu-jitsu is very im
portant. Many of the holds used in
ordinary wrestling and jiu-jitsu are
taught but I think the ‘fall back and
toss overhead’ is one of the most effec
tive. This particular hold is used in
case of a front attack. You see, while
the attacker is holding you, your foot
is placed in his groin and you throw
him overhead by a forcible straighten
ing of the leg as he falls toward you.
“We also teach the best principles
of the French contest, ‘savate,’ the fine
art of kicking. Although this may be
Bite i J
V jj
p ' W f ' \. Kyra y ‘
- || $
■jPp..'W a ~ * < l f t/-^“
repulsive to'our best sporting instincts,
it is valuable in a street attack. If one
is knocked down and approached by
his assailant, the kick becomes a very
effective defense. Considerable care
must be taken during the instruction
of such methods.”
\ NOTHER novelty introduced in the
course is that the class discusses
actual situations which happened to
them or their friends. The facts are
laid before the class; there is discussion
as to the best methods of meeting them
and then the class works them out in
actuality.
“We use light clubs to re-enact at
tacks,” says Dr. Mason. “We emphasize
the necessity of absolute accuracy in
warding off knives, because a miss may
be fatal. We repeat studied moves over
and over again so that through practice
they may become reflex actions.
“We have enacted the following sit
uations in class; being jumped on from
the rear, being grasped from the front
or side, both with arms pinned and
arms free, having the neck grasped, be
ing stunned by a blow and lying on the
side, the face or the back, being assailed
by one, two or more attackers.
“Our more advanced pupils learn a
series of effective punches, like the
straight left to the chin, the right and
left hook to the jaw, the quick one-two
punch, the ducking and countering right
or left to the solar plexus. We teach
them the cover-up defense and the use
of the elbow in hitting, or the ‘rabbit’
punch, as well as flat-hand blows, to
sav nothing of various wrestling holds.”
Nothing seems to be lacking from a
complete knowledge of self-defense.
“We give instruction in various arm
locks, the fall back and toss overhead
ihrow, and the throw which disables
the opponent. The flying mare and ham
mer-locks are favorites.
“In addition to all these different
holds and attacks, there are other meth
ods of defense which can be used. You
can pull your assailant’s coat down over
his shoulders, secure his arms in a hold,
and then get in a quick right hook to
the jaw. You can shove his hat down
suddenly over his face, thereby blind
ing him for the moment. You can jab
your fingers at his eyes; this is good
for women who are held up.
“Often an assailant’s hold can be
broken by knowing some simple trick.
One of the best-known principles is
found in turning the wrist against the
opponent’s thumb, if the latter has used
a wrist grip.”