MUZZLE-LOADERS AND BREECH-LOADERS. 53 
of the breech. A perfectly solid breech, free from 
all suspicious joinings, curves, and openings, must be 
by far the safer and more effective one in any instru- 
ment, in which so searching a substance as gunpow- 
der has to be compressed and exploded.” 
If this last objection is correct the others are 
superfluous, as it disposes of the discussion; and the 
statement will be true whenever it can be shown 
that the cohesion of a tube is increased by forcing a 
screw into it. To silence, however, such senseless 
cavils, gun-makers construct the breech end of the 
barrels shghtly heavier than in the muzzle-loader. 
These being the greater disadvantages, the Dead 
Shot then adverts to the minor ones: 
* On reloading, it is necessary to draw out the case 
of the discharged cartridge before inserting a full 
one. Jt is true the discharged cartridge may gene- 
rally be withdrawn almost instantly ; but if intended 
to be refilled and used another day, it must be care- 
fully replaced in the cartridge-case in one of the 
divisional compartments, for if carried loose in the 
pocket it is soon spoilt. Therefore, if these impor- 
tant minutie be taken into consideration, it will be 
found, after all, that there is very little saving of 
time in re-charging the breech-loader.” 
This is the acme of captiousness ; as though the 
eases might not be placed in the pocket till a favor- 
able opportunity presented to return them to their 
compartments. To any one who, with numbed 
hands on a bitterly cold December morning, is 
watching for ducks at daybreak, and who looks to 
