324 MEASURING THE STRIKING FORCE OF SHOT. 



At Sixty Yards. 



1st Gun, Left Barrel Hiofbest 1-36, Lowest -50 



38 

 20 

 33 



77 

 87 

 33 



37 



" " Right " " 1-69, 



2d " Left " " 1-47, 



" " Right " " 1-29, 



3d " Left " " 1-27, 



" " Right " " 1-23, 



4th " Left " " 1-11, 



" " Right " " 1-31, 



It was not at all uncommon in tlie sixty -yard test 

 for four or five times the registered average force per 

 pellet of one discharge to be exhibited at another, 

 perhaps the very next, with the same gun ; but the 

 general average business equalized matters wonder- 

 fully, and more credit, I fancy, is really due it than 

 anything else for bringing " order out of chaos," and 

 the trial to a successful (?) conclusion. 



No attempt was made by the managers of the trial 

 to explain these little irregularities, though the editor 

 in his comments says, " at forty yards this tell-tale 

 (the indicator on the target) is perfectly reliable, but 

 at sixty it occasionally errs ; but still even then it 

 gives far better results than brown impery The 

 italics are mine, and I insert them merely to call the 

 reader's particular attention to a long-delayed ac- 

 knowledgment of the inaccuracy of the paper-pad sys- 

 tem. But I cannot agree with the editor as to the re- 



