HOW GUN-BARRELS ARE MADE. 223 



stub twist barrels they (and we believe two thirds of 

 the provincial makers also) have ever been served 

 with. Reason with these men, and they will snap- 

 pishly tell you, ' We pay the best price, and we ought 

 to have the best j we don't see that our neighbors have 

 any better.' On one occasion of my calling upon one 

 of the first provincial gun-makers in the kingdom, the 

 subject of barrels was adverted to : ' An excellent 

 work that of yours, I dare say ; but, sir, you have done 

 a deal of harm : it is wrong to let gentlemen know 

 too much ; they give you far too much trouble ; they 

 get too knowing.' These, and such like observations, 

 are the only thanks I ever received from the gen- 

 erality of the gun trade. There are, however, some 

 enlightened men who, understanding the subject, 

 have appreciated my motives ; but by far the 

 greater proportion have done the reverse, asserting 

 * that I had told them nothing but what they knew 

 before.' 



" The mixture of a portion of steel with the stubs 

 having clearly shown an improvement, an increased pro- 

 portion has been adopted by various makers ; we have 

 had as high as three fourths of steel to one of iron. 

 Where proper attention is paid to the clipping of the 

 steel to pieces, corresponding with the stubs, and prop- 

 erly mixing the whole, welding and forging by the 

 heavy hammer, reducing by a tilt and rolling down to 

 the smallest description of rod, a most excellent, 

 tenacious, and dense body of iron is thus obtained ; 

 while, by cutting into lengths of six inches, bundling a 

 number together, and re-welding them into a bar, an 



