THE SPORTSMAN IN FRANCE. 211 



There is an unglazed, soft kind of 

 powder, manufactured among the moun- 

 tains, very proper for rifles. Owing to 

 its softness, the patch carries down all 

 the dirt every time you load. The char- 

 coal employed in making this powder is 

 prepared from hemp stocks ; but soft 

 powder does not keep well. 



OF THE BALL. 



I prefer a rifle that carries not more 

 than sixty to the pound. If smaller, 

 they easier get foul, and are much more 

 difficult to clean, neither can they be 

 much depended upon for long distance. 

 The ball should not be perfectly spherical ; 

 it should be a little oblong ; and the neck 

 should be cut off flat, which should always 

 be put downwards. This configuration 

 keeps the ball from roUing over, or chang- 

 ing ends in its flight, and preserves the 

 rotatory motion on its own axis. 



