56 ON THE WING. 



mospheric pressure, in the barrels of the long gun, 

 are sufficient, I think, to neutralize the extra force 

 imparted by excessive combustion. 



Many experiments have been made, both in this 

 country and in Europe, in order to determine which 

 of the two, a long or a short gun was the more 

 servicable. 



About thirty years ago, very short barrels with large 

 bores were all the rage on the other side of the water, 

 and they performed excellently. But a great error 

 was made in increasing the size of the bore with 

 the decrease in the length of the barrel. Had the 

 bore been proportionately decreased, these guns would 

 not have been given up for others of different di- 

 mensions. 



There was formerly a definite proportion between 

 the gauge and the length of the barrel. The English 

 adopted the rule of one forty-eighth of the length of 

 the barrel for the size of the bore ; and some adhere 

 to that rule now. 



But, in spite of conflicting opinions, one thing is 

 quite certain, — the short guns of proper calibre, such 

 as are now used, perform much better than the guns 

 of the " long-gun age." 



In this connection I will add a few extracts from an 

 "Essay on Shooting," published about eighty years ago, 

 and giving the experience and the conclusions of an 

 English writer on this subject. 



He says- : " We have at different times compared 

 barrels of all the intermediate lengths between 28 and 

 40 inches, and of nearly the same calibre, i. e. from 



