THE GUN, AND HOW TO CHOOSE IT. 59 
cast-iron, in all parts, except the lock-springs, and I should 
about as soon fire one with a reasonable charge, as I would 
hold a hand-grenade in my fingers until it should explodc. 
My opinion, preference and recommendation, therefore, 
are decidedly in favor of the best English stub-and-twist 
barrels that can be obtained for the price the individual 
sportsman can command; of which I shall speak anon. It 
may be presumed, I suppose, that every person who has 
the taste and means to follow ficld-sports at all, intends to 
follow them to the best of his ability, and to fit himself 
out with the best appliances and outfit his circumstances 
will command. Not because I take it for granted, with 
old Izaak Walton and some modern enthusiasts, that a 
sportsman is of necessity a larger-hearted and freer-handed 
fellow than his neighbor—for I must acknowledge to 
having been cognizant, in my day, of some very bitter 
screws among sportsmen, though, on the whole, I think 
they may claim to be above average—but because it is 
manifestly for their interest and their pleasure, for once, 
in their case synonymous, to be so. 
I shall, therefore, proceed to speak of the work pro- 
duced by different makers, of different localities; first, in 
their relative scale of excellence; second, in their relative 
scale of price. Lastly, I shall state my own views as to 
the comparative ratio of excellence and price combined; 
and the method of purchasing suitably to comparative 
pockets. It must be remembered, that, in all this, I pro- 
fess only to give my own opinions, not to claim for them 
infallibility, or even superiority to the opinions of others. 
I have had some experience, and some opportunities of 
