LANCASTER'S BREECH-LOADING RIFLES. 341 



the force of the explosion is not very great; so that I have 

 no doubt that the method adopted is sufficient to close the 

 breech ; but though I have never seen it shot, I should have 

 little doubt that there is a considerable escape. As to the 

 rifling, the bore is octagonal (see fig. 86 g), but each side of 

 the octagon is slightly convex, and hence there is no sharp 

 angle or groove cut in the ball, but eight concave grooves are 

 impressed on its surface. Beneath the socket for the lever 

 is a lock bolt, which is depressed by the latter when closed, 

 the object being to prevent the possibility of a discharge 

 while the breech is open. This is a recent addition, made, 

 I believe, to meet the objection offered by the " Small Arms 

 Committee," that the rifle might easily be exploded by a 

 careless man with the lever only partially depressed. 

 The cartridge used is of the ordinary kind. 



LANCASTER'S BREECH-LOADING RIFLES. 



Mr. Lancaster, with his usual ingenuity, has produced two 

 breech-loading rifles. One of these is a purely military 

 carbine, having the cock below the barrel and in front of 

 the trigger, so that it will be unnecessary to allude to it 

 here. The other is a double sporting rifle, exactly similar 

 in its breech and locks to the shot-gun described at page 276, 

 but rifled on the oval spiral method partially alluded to 

 among the muzzle-loaders at page 318. As, however, this 

 kind of sporting rifle has obtained a considerable reputation, 

 it will be necessary to describe it here more minutely. I have 

 before remarked, that the locks and the method of opening 

 and closing the breech are exactly as given at page 276, the 

 cartridges also being made in the same way. The barrels 

 are of course rifled, and this is done on the oval spiral 

 method adopted by Mr. Lancaster in all cases. The twist is 

 one in 32 inches, which is the length of the barrels, and the 

 bore 498. The variation of the bore from a perfect circle is 

 only '01 in half an inch, being scarcely to be detected by the 

 eye without the aid of some mechanical appliance such as a 

 gauge. This method of rifling has been compared to a rifle 

 with two grooves cut very shallow, and with the angles 

 ground down. It is alleged by the advocates of the prin- 



