Thibault appears to come from an era where stupidly long swords were fashionable. I cannot think of any other reason why he is so determined to instruct his students to use shorter blades.

Figure A

This shows how a proper gentleman hangs his sword as to not offend or annoy those around him. Note that the sword is vertical, possibly so that those behind him do not trip over it.

Figure B

This figure demonstrates our fencer grasping the scabbard just prior to drawing the sword. Note that it rests at a continent height so that one does not need to bend in order to reach it.

Figure C

The next figure actually draws the sword. The right foot must be raised to make this possible, and even then we are seeing the longest possible sword that one may draw without much inconvenience. Believe it or not, this is considered to be a graceful sword draw.

Figure D

Another demonstration that the correct length of the sword is that of the navel to ground or twice that of the raised arm to the ground. I wonder how anyone could sheath a longer weapon.

Figure E

In this demonstration you can see that the height of our fencer us equal to the length of the sword and arm measured from shoulder or armpit to the point.

The other man is assisting by using a staff to measuring our fencer.