208 ON THE WING. 



gunnery, I shall content myself with quoting freely 

 from his work entitled "Gunnery in 1858," a work I 

 would recommend to every sportsman. 



Materials for Gun-barrels. 



Mr. Greener says, in speaking of the difficulties that 

 surround the supply of the materials for gun-barrels 

 in England : — 



" The improvement in the manufacture of gun-bar- 

 rels depends on the quality of the iron entirely ; for 

 it would be a useless waste of time to endeavor to 

 make a good barrel of inferior metal. Science and 

 experience have worked a wonderful change in the 

 mixture of the superior qualities of iron : we have 

 had announcements of silver-steel barrels at ten 

 guineas a pair in the rough, of Brescian steel 

 barrels, carbonized iron, and I know not how many 

 more descriptions of compounds of metals, to form 

 the best material for high-priced barrels. We have 

 now metal which, in the rod, cannot be sold for less 

 than one shilling and twopence per pound : the iron 

 for a pair of barrels thus costing sixteen shillings and 

 fourpence. This is good ; nay, more than good, — 't is 

 excellent. But there is a dark side of the picture, over 

 which I would fain draw a veil : but I must not. Bel- 

 gium, France, Holland, and Germany are improving, 

 are marching onward, and we, alas ! are standing still. 

 Competition and cheapness combined are driving 

 our gun trade into a labyrinth, out of which it will be 

 long ere it finds the clew of exit. Our manufacture of 



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