I was reading my Meyer today, and i was pondering the squint cut in particular. In all the instances meyer speaks of the squint it speaks of a short edge cut. This made me wonder and question whether it is a short edge cut to the inside or outside of the body.
The way i was taught, the shiller is thrown from on high with a turn of the blade so you strike with the short edge instead of the long. You can preform a short edge cut the same way you would preform a zorn hau with a step to the inside of the body (left foot forward vom tag to right foot wechsel). This always seemed awkward to me because why would you short edge cut with a weaker grip when a long edge cut would work just as well?
I started to look at the images in particular and one struck me as strange, when i read the description it enlightened me. The plate was M and it was the two figures in the foreground.
http://www.thearma.org/pdf/jmgsx5.jpg
The description of the interaction is that the fellow on the right has wound around the left and is in "the old squinting cut".
The guy one the left is throwing a zwerch with the short edge. from left to right. This is shown by the position of the left fellows hands. His wrist is behind the pommel showing that he is applying pressure to it with his left while likewise applying pressure with the fingers of his right. His thumb most likely on the flat. He has missed his intended target and is in the back swing.
The guy on the right has wound around the man on the left and is in the "squinting cut" position as meyer describes it. This directs the left man's blade downward. The over the cross grip of the right man give the sword enough angle to hit the left man in the head or ear if he preforms it as a cut.
If this is preformed as a cut, it makes me think the shiller is a short edge cut from the inside of ones body to the out through the downward diagonal. (if right foot forward like the plate, from the upper left quarter to the lower right.)
I looked up squint and found its definition to include "to look sideways". When you look at something sideways you turn your head to the side. Meaning that if you look at something sideways with your left foot foreward, you are looking at it with your head tilted to the left, or to the outside.
In meyer he describes the squint as the counter to plow. We know this. But it is not a strike and counter at the same time as the crown hau is. Meyer speaks of "laying on to the opponent with the squint", then working the openings. This makes me believe it is a two step process.
If an opponent is in left foot forward pfluge and you in left forward vom tag (as we most likely are as it is favorable) then a short edge strike from vom tag from upper right to lower left would clear the opponents tip from you in the most expedient manner and open him up for any number of strikes.
It is becasue of these reasons that i feel a schielhauw is a zorn like strike from the inside of the body to the out with the short edge as opposed to the long.(upper left to lower right if left forward, turning the tip to the outside of the body, or the left side to push the opponents tip out.)
Let me know what you all think, as this is just a theory and i have no idea if this has been considered in the past.
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