ABOUT SPORTING AND MILITARY WEAPONS. 75 



express bullet fails to do more than inflict a large 

 superficial wound, with which the poor animal 

 usually escapes. On two occasions I have known 

 an express bullet break up and fail to fracture the 

 neckbone of antelopes at close quarters, one of 

 which was a waterbuck weighing probably four 

 hundred pounds, and the other a pallah of about 

 one hundred and twenty-five pounds. Both the 

 animals escaped, but were shot some days after- 

 wards and examined. It was not impossible for 

 both to have recovered from the effects of the 

 express bullet after a prolonged period of suffering. 

 In wild countries like Africa, where the game is 

 seldom within very short range, is extremely wary, 

 active, and tenacious of life, and must be fired at 

 in any position or left alone, the express projectile 

 is worthless. Two double expresses, one by 

 Purdey and the other by Holland and Holland, 

 were tried by me in the field, but I found them 

 useless except for very easy side shots when 

 using the regular express projectile ; with a solid 

 one the performance of these rifles was excellent. 

 Of all the different kinds of rifles I have tried in 

 the field, I distinctly prefer the Lancaster oval 

 smooth-bore. I never got one from the maker 



