THE FOWLING-PIECE. 191 



" This lock is entirely different from the common 

 gun-lock. It produces inflammation by means of 

 percussion, and supercedes the use of flints. Its prin- 

 cipal advantages are the following : The rapid and 

 complete inflammation of the whole charge of gun- 

 powder in the chamber of the barrel. The preven- 

 tion of the loss of force through the touch-hole. Per- 

 fect security against rain or damp in the priming. 

 No flash from the pan. And less risk from an acci- 

 dental discharge of the piece, than when the common 

 lock is used. This being new, and different from the 

 lock in general use, very particular printed instruc- 

 tions are sent with each gun, to prevent any chance 

 of mismanagement." 



A long account of this apparently important ac- 

 quisition to the fowling-piece appeared in the Sport- 

 ing Magazine, written by a person, who details a num- 

 ber of experiments which he says he has tried with 

 it. It is not necessary for me to detail these experi- 

 ments; but I will extract the following from the arti- 

 cle in question : 



" The inflammation of the charge is produced 

 (without flint) by a sharp blow given to a very small 

 quantity of inflammable powder, confined between 

 two pieces of hard steel. The flash from the powder 

 is driven violently into the chamber of the piece, and 

 at the same instant inflames the nearest and the most 

 distant particles of the powder. It can be affected 

 neither by rain nor wind; it is not so liable to fire 

 by accident as the common lock, having not only the 



