[r-t] Re: Exercise Mathods

[Richard Smith]

Thanks, Hayden.  That's just what I was after!

Hayden Charles wrote:

> According to Wilfrid Wilson's 'Change Ringing',1965, chapter 24,
> 'Extracts from Decisions and Definitions adopted by the CCCBR', [...]
>
> Plain Methods. These consist of:
>
> a) Bob methods: these have the Plain Bob place, either before or behind,
> or both, the place being made by the working bell coming in front of the
> treble. The simplest example is Double Bob. Any method in which such
> places occur is automatically a 'Bob' methos, irrespective of any other
> class to which it may also belong.

Ah, I hadn't realised this.  So according to this, any Plain
method with seconds at the lead end or a penultimate place
at the half-lead wass a Bob method.  So, for example,
Reverse Canterbury Doubles would have been a Bob method, by
this logic.  Now I think about it, I have a vague
recollection that the 1980 collection of Doubles methods
calls it "Reverse Canterbury Pleasure Place Bob Doubles".
(I can check this evening.)

It's interesting that Double Bob is considered simpler than
Plain Bob or Reverse Bob?

> b) Imperial methods: these have contiguous places made as, for instance,
> in Kent Treble Bob.

Hmm.  So why weren't Plain Minor methods such as Ennerdale
and Killarney called Imperial?  These were in the
1960-something collection of Minor methods, but I'm fairly
sure they did not include the word "Imperial" in their
names.

> c) Court methods: these have places made other than those in bob or
> imperial methods.

Again, this is interesting -- there's no requirement for the
places to be adjacent to the treble, which is what one
naturally thinks of as Court places.

> d) College methods: in these methods the normal characteristic is the
> dodging which takes place in 1-2, the bells which the treble leaves
> there dodging until it returns, e.g. St Clement's College Bob.

So this was (and is) called "St Clement's College Bob" --
presumably because the seconds at the lead end make it a Bob
method and the dodging in 1-2, a College method.

> Is it possible to get all of these characteristics into a plain major
> method?

If I'm understanding it correctly, you can do it in a Minor
method:  St Nicholas College Bob Minor, &34.16-36-36,12.

I think the 12 lead end should make it a Bob method;  the
34, an Imperial method; the 36, a Court method; and the
dodging in 1-2, a College method.  Perhaps I'm missing
something, though.

> According to the Visual Method archive, the name Imperial has
> been used only for Imperial Surprise for Royal and Maximus.

See my previous email -- it's still in use as part of the
method name for Plain Major, Caters and Cinques.

> St Clement's
> does not come up there for maximus either. Is it unrung?

Yes, it is unrung.  I can't say I'm particularly surprised.

Richard