362 GUN, RIFLE, AND HOUND. 



course to a less extent, to all rifles, 'and till recently 

 the difficulty was insuperable. Now, however, the 

 well-known gunmaker, Charles Lancaster, of New 

 Bond Street, has surmounted it in his admirable 

 system of " oval-bore " rifling ; and I may add that 

 there is no firm to whom the sportsman can more 

 safely entrust that most important of all items of 

 outfit his battery. 



There is one point on which I cannot speak too 

 strongly, and that is the danger, to the user, of all rifles 

 fitted with safety bolts. Of course this remark only 

 applies to countries in which dangerous game is to 

 be found, otherwise the only risk is that of that vexa- 

 tious occurrence a lost shot. Why on earth gun- 

 makers ever thought it desirable to fit safety bolts 

 to hammers I cannot conceive. * It is possibly a 

 survival of muzzle-loading days. As hammerless guns 

 and rifles become universal, this drawback will dis- 

 appear, for the hammerless weapon having no half 

 cock, necessarily has a safety bolt, which being in 

 full view is in every way a different thing. Even 

 these safety bolts are better made non-automatic. 



Magazine rifles I only mention to condemn them 

 utterly, and to express my regret that all other nations 

 have not imitated the Swiss, whose game law forbids 

 their use. I never met with but one man who had 

 used them for dangerous game. The action jammed 



* I have heard the excuse made that when using very heavy charges 

 the shock of the first shot might jar off the second hammer. I have 

 used up to half an ounce of powder myself, but never knew this 

 to happen. If I did, I should say the locks were defective. 



