GUNS AND LOADS. 
The selection of a gun is a matter which requires 
careful consideration. Weight, bore, and shooting 
qualities are not to be determined arbitrarily. 
As a rule, the novice desires the closest shooting 
gun obtainable, regardless of whether it is appropriate 
to the shooting he expects to have, or whether his skill 
is equal to the exactions of such gun, be the shoot- 
ing what it may. Even superior marksmen are prone 
to use guns of too close pattern and loads of unneces- 
sary power. If the shooter cares to own but one gun, 
and uses it for all-round shooting, a compromise as 
to weights, loads, ete., is desirable, though for cover 
and open shooting special guns are quite the best, a 
modified cylinder for the one and a closer choke for the 
other. 
Whatever the bore, the gun should be as light as is 
consistent with safety. An extra pound or two of 
gun counts heavily in added weariness toward the end 
of a day’s shooting, and at all times in the way of 
slower manipulation. Quickness of execution is one 
of the prime essentials in the practical use of the gun 
in wing shooting. 
In the closing years of the past century the popu- 
larity of the 10-bore rapidly waned, till at last it be- 
came obsolete as a gun for upland shooting. In weight 
462 
