136 SPORTS AND ANECDOTES. 



The people at the Custom House did not know what 

 to call it. They could not call it a gun, because a 

 gun was fired from a man's shoulder, and Hercules 

 himself could not have done this. It could not be 

 called a scioppo a cavaletto, for this was an instrument 

 of warfare, or a sort of wall-piece. At last they let 

 me have it, under the title of pistoni di caccia, or a 

 piston of the chase. All very vexing and very foolish, 

 but so it was, and so long as I got them to let me 

 have my gun and boat, I did not care by what name 

 the said gun went. The Austrians were in power in 

 Milan in those days, and as I knew the governor of 

 Milan and many other Austrians, who were hated 

 by almost all Italians, I conclude they thought I 

 should attempt to besiege and take the town of 

 Belgirate. 



Having got my punt and gun together, and afloat 

 on the lake, the next thing was where to get powder 

 suitable for a gun of the size mine was, which carried 

 three ounces of coarse-grained powder and fourteen 

 to sixteen ounces of shot. I managed to get some 

 Swiss powder smuggled in, but it was all too fine. 

 At last, after various futile efforts, I had to content 

 myself with the common blasting-powder of the coun- 

 try of all beastly stuff the most beastly. It was 



