300. ACCIDENTS WITH GUNS. [chap. x. 



The accident occurred among Cornelius's tribe, and as 

 they were a very susi^icious set, I feared that some 

 foul play might have been the cause of his death; 

 however, Cornelius took gi'eat pains in forwarding 

 messengers to me, with full particulars of the case, 

 and I could not hear that anj^ robbery had been com- 

 mitted upon him. The cause of this accident was 

 that of four-fifths of those that occur, namely, the 

 cock being allowed to lie down upon the nipple 

 instead of being kept at half-cock. As the unfortunate 

 man, while sitting in the waggon, drew his gun up 

 to him by the muzzle, it appears that the cock caught 

 against one of the spokes of the wheel, which lifted it 

 a little, so that, when released, it snapped back and 

 the gun went off. Few as the peoj)le are who possess 

 percussion-guns in this remote corner of the world, 

 there have been three deaths and one bad accident 

 with them. 



For travelling purposes, I do not approve of carry- 

 ing a gun half-cock, because, in the very careless way 

 that the men persist in holding their fire-arms, the 

 half-cock very frequently becomes full cock without 

 their knowing it, and the cap also is liable to fall off. 

 I think the safest plan with a common gun is to put 

 a piece of thick rag on the cap, and to let the cock 

 down upon it. But I much prefer having a thu'd 

 nick cut in the " tiunbler," by which a very low half 

 or quarter cock is produced, the cock just clearing the 

 nipple and securing the cap from being dislodged; 

 many pistols are made in this way. I have adopted 

 this plan for a very long time in my travelling guns, 



