FOR THE HIMALAYAS. 25 



with the edge A (if not, the paper was started a little crooked). 

 Then roll on until the paper comes to an end, being careful that all 

 the edge A B is even. You will then have it as 3. Change the 

 bullet now the other way, into the left finger and thumb, and twist 

 up the paper that is surplus at base of bullet (4). Lay it by and 

 continue with the next. When all are wrapped, cut off most of the 

 screw of paper with a pair of small scissors (5). Get your servant 

 to dip each bullet now into a pot of melting wax and mutton fat, 

 about four parts wax and one part fat. They should be covered 

 with this mixture about as far as the dotted line in Fig. 5, but do 

 not require dipping more than once ; it makes the paper keep firm 

 on the bullet when loading, and subsequently prevents moisture 

 passing towards the powder ; it also keeps the bullet firm in the 

 cartridge, and dispenses with " choking " the case around it. 

 When you have dipped all your bullets, pour the wax mixture into 

 a flat plate to make lubricators of. It should be about one-eighth 

 or one-sixth of an inch thick when cool, according as the cases have 

 little or much room to spare over the powder, the great thing with 

 rifle cartridges being to have about half the cylindrical portion of 

 the bullet in the case, so that the nose and front half rest in the 

 rifling, and get driven in tight at once by the shock of discharge. 

 If the bullet is mostly imbedded in the case, it will be expanded 

 first in the chamber, and, as it moves, will suddenly receive a great 

 check from the rifling ; the recoil or strain on the rifle is greater, 

 and the shooting not so reliable. 



It will be gathered from the above, that bullets should not 

 fit the bore tight until fired. The best fitting are those you can 

 drop in at the muzzle, and slide down by their own weight to the 

 breech. The shock of discharge will expand them, and make them 

 fit tight. The bare bullet, without the paper wrapper, is here 

 alluded to ; the wrapper does not make it fit, it prevents leading, 

 though it does make it fit a little tighter. 



To cut the lubricators out of the sheet of wax stuff, a small 

 wad-cutter is required. It can be made out of an old case that has. 

 had the base cut off, and mouth choked to the original size of a 

 new one. It will want a collar (A A) soldered on, so as to allow 

 the handle (BB) to be attached. With this little tool any number 

 of wax lubricators can be cut, as the string of them will come out 

 at the top, between the fingers at C. They will be solid wads of 

 course, and to make the bullet fit well, with the paper screw in the 



