24 THE GUN: AFIELD AND AFLOAT 



further venture to remark, whilst on the subject, that if 

 the War Office could have, say, half-a-dozen different 

 forms and sizes of these metal stocks served out for the 

 service rifle, far better shooting would result, particularly 

 in the heat and stress of actual warfare. 



Duck-guns may be sharply divided into two main 

 classes swivel-guns, and guns that are fired from the 

 shoulder. The former are designed specially to be used 

 from a yacht, launch, or other largish craft, or, more 

 frequently still, from a single- or double-handed gunning- 

 punt. Such guns range in size from the small swivel- 

 gun of about 4-bore and from 25 Ib. to 30 Ib. weight, to 

 the ponderous stanchion-gun carrying charges ranging 

 from 1 8 dr. of powder and 6 oz of shot up to half-a- 

 pound of powder and 2\ Ib. of lead. 



The accompanying table of bores, weights, charges, 

 and lengths may serve as a guide, although somewhat 

 astonishing departures from these figures may be ob- 

 served now and again : 



SWIVEL-GUNS. 



It will be a tolerably safe guide for the users of these 

 guns to remember that the proportion of powder to shot 

 may generally be fixed in the ratio of I to 5 ; to this 



