126 THE WILD-FOWLER. 



stock of the gun, it is thus firmly secured : and the stem of the 

 crutch fitting 1 easily into the socket, the gun may be worked as if on 

 a pivot. But this old-fashioned plan is the worst of all, and the 

 most dangerous, it being a gross error to confine the gun so that it 

 cannot be relieved in recoil. And the danger of tearing the cross- 

 piece from the punt is great, the jar occasioned by the recoil when 

 the gun is confined is also very serious ; besides which, it throws up 

 the muzzle, and not unfrequently seriously injures the face or shoulder 

 of the punter. Worse than all, a gun so confined shoots very in- 

 accurately, and has to be laid at a high elevation, because when fired 

 at an object in line it always throws the shot below it. 



The most simple contrivance of all for relieving the jerk of the re- 

 coil is by means of rope-breechings ; and there are two or three 

 methods of employing them. One is by passing a rope, of propor- 

 tional size, through the stem of the punt, and securing it on either 

 side the barrel of the gun by a loop and hitch to an iron cross-bolt, 

 which is passed through that part of the gun-stock which incases 

 the outside of the barrel ; this is as good and simple a plan as any, 

 the length and elasticity of the breechings easing the recoil without 

 jarring the punt or straining anything but the rope. 



Another plan is that of securing the two ends of the rope to a chock 

 or cross-piece inside the punt, by simply reeving them through holes in 

 the chock, and making knots in the ends to prevent their being drawn 

 back ; a loop of the rope is thus formed, which falls into a groove cut 

 in the stock to receive it. For this purpose the rope must be larger 

 than that used for the gun- breechings last described ; and the more 

 elastic the rope the easier will be the jerk of the recoil. 



Another method frequently adopted in open punts, or those having 

 their fore-bows uncovered, is by reeving a rope through a ring firmly 

 bolted to the stem-piece, and leading it aft on each side the barrel ; 

 securing it to the cross-bolt by two loops, or by a loop on one side 

 and a hitch on the other. 



Either of these plans are very simple, and are recommended as 

 safe, serviceable, and inexpensive. But the best plan of all is Colonel 

 Hawker's invention of a steel spiral recoil-spring ; to make use of 

 which it is necessary for a plug to be cast with the gun-barrel, the 

 recoil-spring and its fittings being separately cast, and on being 

 secured by shifting bolts, or otherwise, to a strong chock, the barrel 

 is attached to the recoil apparatus by the iron plug before alluded to ; 

 when the whole force of the recoil is, by means of the patent apparatus, 



