THE RECKLESS SPORTSMAN. Ill 



THE RECKLESS SPOETSMAN. 



^pjp GrUN" is a very dangerous weapon, even in the hands 

 ^^^ of the most careful sportsman. Thousands of acci- 

 " dents have occurred by guns in the hands of the 

 most careful and experienced sportsmen, and how 

 often, after they have used every care and precaution for 

 years, do we hear of sad and melancholy accidents occur- 

 ring which destroy the peace and joy of a whole family, by 

 the loss of a father or a brother. How often do we hear 

 of a father losing his arm, a brother his eye, or a pai'ticu- 

 lar friend his hand or finger, or being injured for life 

 by the accidental discharge of a gun through reckless- 

 ness, or in the hands of some reckless person. Such acci- 

 dents frequently occur with guns in the hands of the most 

 careful and experienced sportsmen, and they will certainly 

 occur sooner or later with reckless sportsmen. So in hand- 

 ling such a dangerous death-dealing weapon as a gun you 

 cannot be too careful. When out shooting never have the 

 muzzle of the gun pointing towards the jjei'son you are 

 with ; be on your guard and be watchful of this under any 

 and all circumstances, and never have the gun 2>ointing in 

 such a direction that you could j)ossibly shoot yourself un- 

 der any circumstance, but always remember to keep the 

 muzzle of the gun pointing in a direction that, if the gun 

 should accidentally go off, the charge would be harmless. 

 If you ai'e shooting a muzzle loader, after discharging one 

 barrel of the gun, never forget to throw the muzzle of the 

 gun downwards, and give it a slight tap or so before charg- 

 ing it again. This will empty the gun of any little remnant 

 that may remain in the liarrel, which sometimes contains 

 a spark of fire, and if the gun is charged, especially in a 

 hurr}^, without getting it out, the spark will ignite the 



