BARRELS. 15 



His barrels are as good as any in the world, being 

 made of pure Holland stubs, and twisted in a manner best 

 suited for service and for safety. Within these last two 

 years Mr. Richards has run some of the best London 

 makers so hard that they begin to wish him and his prime 

 minister Bishop in " another and a better world !"] 



Gunmakers, who know their business, form their 

 calibers more or less, according to circumstances, on 

 the plans already stated ; except those of rifles, and 

 guns for firing ball, which must be regularly tighter all 

 the way out, as with these we have no reason to fear 

 the want of strength, or the risk of a recoil, and the 

 only object is to keep the ball in the straightest pos~ 

 sible direction, and regulate the barrel to the most ac- 

 curate line of aim. This should be done by having the 

 gun of the utmost length that can be used, and steadied 

 by immense substance and weight of metal. 



While speaking of rifles, I must not omit to mention 

 two of the finest pieces of mechanism of the present 

 age Mr. Purdey's double rifles, and Mr. Lancaster's 

 new-invented machine for rifling barrels. But to say 

 what is here due to these excellent artists might lead 

 me into a detail that would exceed my intended limits. 



The farther the sight at the breech is placed from 

 that near the muzzle, the more accurate, of course, 

 must be the line of aim ; and the heavier the gun, the 

 more likely you will be to preserve it in firing. 



With regard to having a barrel too far opened for- 

 ward, when left with mere cylinder behind, and the 

 various tricks that are played to ease the explosion, for 

 the sole purpose of throwing the shot as close as possible, 

 it will be needless to trespass on the reader's patience. 



Though a barrel, bored as before mentioned, will not 



