MUZZLE-LOADERS AND BREECH-LOADERS. Sy 
tridge cannot be discharged unless touched off with 
a lucifer match or a lighted cigar—a performance 
that probably few persons out of a lunatic asylum 
would attempt. And as for recapping a cartridge 
that once missed fire, it cannot be done, as the cap 
is inside. What species of cartridges the Dead Shot 
must have used, the writer of this cannot imagine. 
In case of a miss-fire the cartridge has to be unloaded, 
and may then be recapped and reloaded like any 
other. 
The writer experimented extensively in reloading 
cartridges, using some a dozen times, and has ex- 
perienced the annoyance of sticking cases and sepa- 
rating capsules, and tested it thoroughly; and he 
must say that if a cartridge is loaded over three 
times with heavy loads it is apt to stick, especially 
if it is loaded shortly after being discharged, and 
while it is still soft from the heat. The cases should 
be left for several hours before they are reloaded, 
until they are dry and hard, and, if there is time, 
should be reloaded in the mould—a block bored 
out to the exact size, in which they fit accurately, 
and in which they cannot spread. | 
They rarely stick, however, before the third dis- 
charge, and then may be pulled out by force—in 
pieces, if necessary, and thrown away. If, however, 
they cannot be forced in, and are torn apart before 
they are discharged, which never happens except 
after repeated use, the charge is wasted ; the powder 
should be at once poured out, the wads pushed 
aside by the extractor to let the shot escape by the 
3* 
