210 OF SHOOTING, 



not confined to any particular maker, and 

 though the minutiae peculiar to each, may de- 

 termine the purchaser in his preference, no 

 person need fear much disappointment in the 

 essential qualities of a lock, provided he goes 

 to a good price : it is of more consequence 

 to the excellence of a lock, that the springs 

 be proportioned to each other, than that 

 they should be made very strong ; a moderate 

 degree of force is sufficient to produce the 

 required effect, and whatever exceeds this, 

 proves detrimental, by rendering the trigger 

 difficult to draw, or throws the piece from 

 the direction in which it was pointed. Some 

 gunsmiths contend, that a barrel, in order to 

 throw its shot close, ought to have its caliber 

 narrower in the middle than at either the 

 breech or muzzle; whilst others insist that 

 the caliber ought to contract gradually from 

 the breech to the muzzle : with respect to 

 these circumstances I shall only observe, that 

 both are admirably calculated to make the 

 piece recoil much. Of all the contrivances 

 Which have been mentioned, not one appears 



V 



