WOOD FOR STOCKING. 431 



crippled Avith tliem in the course of a year. A full description 

 of all these metals will be found in Greener, as also a general 

 expose of all the deceptions carried on in the gun trade. 



AVOOD FOR STOCKING. 



Walnut is universally preferred in America for stocking; it 

 is abundant, strong, durable, and handsome, and therefore com- 

 bines many, if not all, the qualities calculated to recommend 

 it to the Gunsmith. Its natural beauty is very much improved 

 by staining, and many useful points under this head may be 

 learned from llawker. The following method, however, we 

 meet with in Greener's work, and as we have tested its merits, 

 we feel no hesitation in recommending it to our readers: "After 

 having got them (the stocks) dressed and sand-papered as fine 

 as you possibly can for walnut, take a composition of unboiled 

 linseed oil and alkanet root, in the proportion of four ounces of 

 the latter to half a pint of oil. These, after being amalgamated 

 for a week, will be a beautiful crimson color, and will not fail 

 to make walnut a handsome brown, on beino" laid on three or 

 four times with a sponge." 



Bird's-eye maple is also used for stocking, and is preferred 

 by some to walnut on account of the greater beauty of its grain ; 

 we, however, and most other Sportsmen, consider it far inferior 

 to walnut. Greener remarks, that maple possesses less "con- 

 ducting principle" than any other kind of wood, and therefore 

 is well calculated to lessen the recoil, and on this account it is 

 best calculated for eun-stocks. This arsrument, however, we 

 think very lightl}'- of, for the reason that no Partridge gun 

 properly loaded should recoil sufficiently strong to be unplea- 

 sant, whether the stock be made of walnut, maple, or any other 

 kind of suitable wood. 



The following method for staining maple, taken from the 

 same source as the above, we have also used — not on a gun- 

 stock, however, as we have no gun stocked with this descrip- 

 tion of wood ; but we tried it on some articles of furniture, and 

 found it to answer a most excellent purpose ; in fact, imparting 

 a beautiful and elegant appearance to the wood. 



" Mix an ounce and a half of nitrous acid with about the 



