224 OF SHOOTING, 



METHOD OF LOADING A 

 FOWLING-PIECE. 



Some attention is requisite thereto ; the 

 powder should only be slightly rammed 

 down, for which purpose it is sufficient to 

 press the ram-rod four or five times on the 

 wadding, in order to mould it to the barrel. 

 The usual practice is to rain down the wad- 

 ding by main force, which is wrong, for by 

 compressing the powder in this violent man- 

 ner, some of the grains will be so bruised 

 that the explosion will not be quick, and the 

 shot will be spread wide : in pouring the 

 charge of powder into the barrel, care should 

 be taken to hold the measure as much as 

 possible in a perpendicular line, that the 

 powder may more readily fall to the bottom ; 

 it is even of service to strike the but-end of 

 the gun gently on the ground, in order to de- 

 tach those grains of powder which in falling 

 dow r n adhere to the sides of the barrel. The 

 Bhot should never be rammed down so tight 



