,.;, i D capacity I 



one-half the plea 

 title Ib found in that pastime, I hove ae 

 Been a. d waa baflly baianci ■! awk- 



wardly, and with me tl objection. 1 heartily 



indorse " Viator's " thrust at " Western Hauler " tot his huge 

 hunting stories The few successful hunk-is never tell hit; 

 stories, not being tempi 



times seem romantic. The anndtedsof unsuccessful 

 ft> appear even with toe successful ones. This propensity for 

 hunting siories prevails not only with the "Western hunter," 

 hut with the duck hunter, the snipe hunter, the quail hunter 

 aad the grouse hunter of the Mississippi Valley and the At- 

 lantic Coast. I had not supposed before, Mr. Editor, this 

 propensity was peculiar to one continent, hut was common to 

 ation and clirne, " from Greenland's icy mountains to 

 India's'- m1 strand." I had imagined, even, that Nimi'od, 

 " the mighty hunter " of old, the tether of the chase, must 

 haye be frith this peculiarity and it had been 



handed down from one generation to another of those who 

 followed the chase. 



" Viator " seems to think thero are exceptions to the gene- 

 ral rule, and that there arc favored regionB where this pecu- 

 liarity is unknown. I have never been to India, nor has 

 " Viator," I believe. It is such a vast country it must have 

 many sportsmen ; and as human nature is the same the world 

 over, doubtless there are some 500 SO bad and some in- 

 different. I doubt not there are some sportsmen there who 

 can even tell a first class tiger story, and yet, like the "West- 

 cm hunter," believe it implicitly. It would be very unusual, 

 and almost a miracle, if there were none such. At any rate, 

 Mr. Editor, it has been my lot to meet hunters "frern across 

 the water " who. bv the number and variety of their hunting 

 stories, equalled, if they did not surpass, any "Western 

 hunter " that walks the prairie, and yet, like the latter, they 

 believed every word the)' uttered. " Viator " does not thiuk 

 a gentleman will exaggerate. Ho certainly should not. Yet, 

 I l»».ve mot sportsmen, both from " the other side of the 

 water" and this side, 'who passed for gentlemen, and yet 

 could tell a good "hunting story." Doubtless, Mr. Editor 

 has met such. 



In his first letter on the "Express," "Viator" thinks no 

 American sporting rifle is suitable for that system— first, on ac- 

 count of the unsuilableness of the rifling, and also on account 

 of an insufficient Charge of powder. In his last he modifies 

 this opinion, and thinks " the only reason " is that the Amer- 

 ican shell does not hold sufficient powder, and that not less 

 thau 110 grains will answer. In this opinion Mr. Jehu Rig- 

 by, of Dublin, does not agree with him, who uses for 360- 

 bore, 2 drams (54§grs.), and for 400-bore, 3 drams, or 82 

 grains, using the American Sj-inch shell. To develop the 

 •' Express" effect, he merely prescribes a proportion of pow- 

 der to ball of 1 to 3. (See letter of Jan. 29, 1878.) That 

 the relative proportion of powder to ball is the true measure 

 of the velocity of the ball, is a well-known law of projectiles 

 — cceteris paribus. In his last circular Mr. Rigby uses in 

 450-bores a proportion of from 1 to 2.73, to 1 to 318; and in 

 500-bores, from 1 to 2.93, to 1 to 3.20. The longest .44 cal. 

 American shell, using a long-loading tube, will hold 105 

 grains Curtis & Harvey No. 6, with sufficient room for a 

 lubricant ; the longest .45 calibre shell, about 107 grains, thus 

 enabling the use of a 275 to 32Cgr. hall. 



1 lately witnessed the shooting of an American rifle, .40 

 calibre, at 200 yarda range, with 80gr. powder and 102gr. 

 hollow-pointed bullet— a proportion of 1 to 2.38. Although 

 the rifleman was not in practice, and this was the first trial of 

 the ball at that range, he grouped 18 consecutive balls (all 

 that were fired) within a 13-inch circle. Thirteen of them 

 were grouped within an 8-inch circle. I was convinced that 

 a rifle properly held would group ten consecutive shots within 

 an 8-inch circle on a calm day. 



The above and my own experience with another rifle make 

 me think that whatever merit may be in the "Express " prin- 

 ciple, can be successfully utilized by most of the American 

 rifles, both in regard to accuracy, trajectory and destruclive- 

 ness. Beak Paw, 



Montana, March 5, 1879. 



Hosting Rifles.— Baton Rouge, Louisiana-Some very 

 instructive and interesting articles on hunting with the rifle 

 have appeared in your valuable paper, signed Mr. V au Dyke. 

 As I am very fond of big game hunting, and have had some 

 yeaTS of experience in the Kocky Mountains and on the 

 plains, I would like to write a few lines on big game rifles, 

 and also wish to ask Mr. Van Dyke a few questions. 1 

 agree with the before-mentioned gentleman most heartily in 

 h?s advocacy of large calibres ; they are certainly necessary 

 for killing game clean. The great fault of our American 

 breech-loading rifle makers has been that the hunting qual- 

 ities of their rifles have been entirely sacrificed to the mili- 

 tary and target qualities of their rifles. A target or army 

 rifle requires long range, and as much accuracy as possible 

 at long range. The military rifle, moreover, needs penetra- 

 tion. 'Our makers have sought for accuracy and penetration 

 at long range, forgetting that both may be easily combined 

 in a rifle every way worthless for killing game. This desire 

 of their's, first encouraged by the civil war and since nursed 

 by Creedmoor, has made them adopt very small calibres and 

 long bullets, which give great penetration and range, but are 

 for many reasons totally unfit for a hunting rifle. An officer 

 of the British array, thirteen years ago, in a resume of prac- 

 tical experience on big game in India, says : "The prime 

 object of a shot fired at any animal is to kill or disable it on 

 the spot." Penetration being sufficient, that projectile which 

 has the largest striking surface is the best for hunting. Better 

 than all the magnificent modem inventions — better, that is 

 for game-killing purposes— is the plain poly-grooved rifle, 

 used with the old-fashioned globular ball. Dimensions of 

 syherical ball, breech-loading rifle, 12-gauge(.73 of an inch 

 cal.) , twist, one turn in 10ft. 3in.; powder, 4idrs.; lfl-gauge 

 (.Gti'cal); twist one tUXll in 8ft. Sin.; powder, 4. drs.; 18- 

 gauge (cal. .03); twist, one turn in 7ft. Sin.; powder, 3£ 

 drs. Now our fashionable rillo makers here in America 

 make nothing but target and military rifles. They cannot 

 disguise this fact. They may try and do so, as all of 'them do, 

 by calling certain of their rifles "sporting,'' "hunting " rifles, 

 but they are not. What they are is simply this i military 

 rifles with fine sights, well made stocks, etc. None of them 

 will drop big game, as a rule, unless the game is hit in either 

 the head, heart or back-bone. By dropping I mean knock- 

 ing over in his tracks the elk or big-horn, not having him 

 run from 100 yards to five miles, as has often happened with 

 me when shooting game with a .44 cal. It is a very few 

 number of sportsmen who can generally hit the game in a 



vital part, especially win ,un." Mr 



Batty, in your paper, writes iu favor of the Amerii 

 calibre, long bullet rifle for hunting iu the Fat West, ft tic 



he will find nn article I 

 himself iu the American, fjportmqn for July 4, 1871. in 

 which he says: "A. .44 ball, shot from a Sharps sporl 

 went through. the base of the born and part of the top or 

 solid portion of the skull of a ROcIty Mountain sheep, and 

 failed to have any effect on an adult ram." If Mr. Batty had 

 used a rifle with a round ball, from 10 to IS shot-gun gauge, 

 ■ ; shot would have gotten him his game. 1 would 

 like to ask Mr. Van Dyke the following questions, and I feel 

 sure, should lie answer them in your esteemed paper, his 

 answers would be very interesting to many of your readers, 

 who, like myself, arc fond of using a rifle, not on a target, 

 but in hunting. First— Why does he use an Express rifle 

 (cal. .05) instead of using a rifle of same calibre, but with a 

 round ball ? Second— At what he considers hunting ranges, 

 i. ft, less tnan 350 yards, his rifle, if made with a very slow 

 twist, and with the "right charge of powder, and with a round 

 ball, would give as tint (flatter, I think, on account of the 

 much greater in, vel. of the sphere over any other projectile) 

 trajectory, less recoil and a much greater shock to the game 

 than his long bullet. Why, then, does ho not use a spheri- 

 cal bullet ? Third— There can be no comparison between 

 the accuracy of the sphere, at hunting ranges, and the Ex- 

 press bullet. Why, then, does Mr. "Van Dyke use the long 

 boll. ? The reasons that, the sphere is no longer used for 

 military and target rifles is because of its short rauge, its 

 weight, being so light in proportion to the surface it presents 

 to the air that it cannot compete with the small calibre, long 

 bolt of the modern rifles. But the sphere is very much bet- 

 ter for hunting, having au exceedingly flat trajectory, great 

 initial velocity," and great killing power. We don't shoot 

 deer at 1.000 yards, and what I consider the great need of 

 hunters in the United States is to have a rifle that will drop 

 the game iu its tracks, even if not shot in a vital place, and 

 not to have to follow wounded game over many a weary 

 mile, perhaps to see it at last get away merely to be the 

 food of gray wolves, coyotes and ravens. Suns* South. 



Express Bullets. — In reading over the communication 

 headed " Express Bullet Experiments " I find my language 

 is stronger than was the intention iu regard to the compara- 

 tive accuracy of a 275 grain hollow ball and a 450 or 529 

 grain solid hall with a heavy charge of powder. My mean- 

 ing was that it was good average shooting to group ten con- 

 secutive shots within an 8 inch ring with the heavier balls, 

 and that under favorable circumstances the same shooting 

 could be done with the light ball with a large charge. I have 

 no doubt the heavier ball, with flue, close shooting, can be 

 grouped within a smaller circle, even the same as was ac- 

 complished by Mr. Rabbett, though that is an exceptionally 

 good score. Since then, on a favorable day, I grouped ten 

 consecutive shots within an 8-inch circle, a steady wind 

 blowing. On two other days, under not so favorable cir- 

 cumstances as to wind, firing twelve consecutive shots, ten 

 were grouped within an 8-inch ring, though I can't say they 

 were consecutive shots. The twelve shots were grouped in 

 alJ.V-inch ring. The other trial grouped ten consecutive 

 shots within a 10-inch ring. All these trials at 200 yards 

 range, 105 gr. powder and 275 gr. ball, m each experiment 

 aiming at the centre of the same bull's-eye. As the vitals of 

 a deer are covered by a 12-inch circle, the abovo shows suffi- 

 cient accuracy for hunting at that distance. Killing a deer 

 at 200 yards, with the usual drawbacks to accuracy in hunt- 

 ing, is an extra good shot. In the same article the typos 

 make me say " for hunting a powder is required that will 

 give the highest velocity with very little resistance in the 

 barrel," It should have been residue, at least that was my 

 meaning. P. 



Montana, March 26, 1879. 



HIGH WATEK l'OE THE WEEK. 



April IT 

 April is 



A on; la 

 April '■:». 

 April at 

 April -.5. 

 April 23, 



Boston. 



Seta York. 



H. M. 



S. H. 



8 87 



6 43 



9 41 



6 27 



10 24 



7 10 



n (15 



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11 43 



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Mora. 



9 06 



20 



9 40 



YACHTING NEWS. 



The New Fivb-Tonjsbk. — The little Corinthian cutter 

 building by Piepgras, of Qreenpoint, to which reference has 

 been made in these columns, is fast approaching completion. 

 The model of this boat is necessarily full, for* it would be 

 next to impossible to expect sharp or hollow lines in a ship 

 of 24ft. water hue, 8ft. beam and 4ft. 3in. hold. But if full 

 to the eye, the draft shows her lines to be fair and easy, with 

 " sweet " looking section lines fore and aft, and, we" think, 

 that unless driven hard, the cutter will surprise most of her 

 critics by exhibiting a fair amount of speed. As she is 

 built for a cruiser, however, her racing qualities may be left 

 out of consideration. It ia enough to know that she has the 

 room in her of an ordinary sloop half as large again, and that 

 she is sure to " stay bv you'' in any kind of wind and sea, 

 for she draws 4ft. Apart from the question of design, this 

 cutter is an example of strength and solidity of construction 

 worthy of the highest commendation, and therefore deserves 

 this public notice. It is to be hoped that she will not be 

 simply an isolated case of honest build, but that the good ex- 

 ample set by her builder and owner will be more generally 

 adopted, and that selected material, ample scantling and 

 clinch fastening may supersede the kindling-wood and ten- 

 penny-nail st}de of work which has so long been a byword 

 and reproach to our fleet. 



The frames of this little 5-tonner are of hackmatack 2x3in.; 

 double floors of natural crook, running up to turn of bilge, 

 and single futtocks above ; keel, stem and post of oak. The 

 former sided about 4in. and moulded I7in., one foot of which 

 is below the rabbet, the floors being scored down flush with 

 the lop of the keel. Room aad space, 14iu,; stem and post 

 sided 4in.; bottom plank clear, selected cypress l£in. thick; 

 ceiling of white pine Jin. thick; deck beams ol oak and 

 short beams of yellow pine, spaced 18in. and 2Jx2iin. They 

 are all let down into oak clamps 1 fin. sided and Siu". moulded, 

 being securely bolted to the clamps, and the latter through 

 fastened aad worked in two lengths fore and aft with a lock 

 scarph, 20in. long t near amidships. Keelson of yellow pine, 



5x4in., through bolted between every frame; deck-knei 

 ward of oak, 2in. thick and Din. at throat, through bolted ; 

 I white pine, 2x1 jin.; covering board of oak, Sxl^in., 

 the hood ends of deck planking butting against jogs left ou 

 the covering board or waterways for that purpose, giving a 

 good chance to calk ; cabin and cockpit waterways, 3.U3J, 

 yellow pine, three bolts in every scarph at the quarter turns ; 

 fore hatch combings of oak, 5xl^in. ; mast partners of white 

 pine jogged up between two oak beams, with Jin. bolts run 

 through fore and aft each side. Stem head at deck, -lin. 

 moulded and 3fin. sided; bitts of oak, 4x4in. at deck; rail, 

 6in. high, of teak, with locust staunchions every 18in. and 

 an extra one abreast of rigging ; staunchions, ljfxlin. The 

 teak makes a beautiful finish to the deck fittings. There is 

 unfortunately none of it to be found in the market here, 

 Piepgras having consummated a lucky bargain with an Eng- 

 lish skipper w t 1io was looking after a now spar while in port 

 here and exchanged for a stick of teak. Staunchions for the 

 counter are formed of raking knees, riveted through the arch- 

 board of the English cutter stern ; rudder, 20iu. across widest 

 part, with a stock 3iin, diam. at its head; house, 9in. high 

 with 4iu. crown. 



Total displacement, 6 tons: ballast, 4 tons iron, cast to fit 

 the garhoards. No metal on keel. Mr. Piepgras makes his 

 own drafts and calculations, and goes about his work in an 

 intelligent manner. If any one doubts the cutter's stability, 

 he quietly points to her metacentric heighten the draft; 'if 

 the model is criticised as too full, he shows his mentors her 

 lines on paper in indication of his design. Nothing is left in 

 doubt or in vague and unscientific generalities ; but the boat 

 and her peculiarities are reduced to figures that will not lie, 

 and that often stand witness to the deceptive impressions re- 

 ceived from a mere glance at the boat under the shed. 



The rig will be that of a full-fledged cutter, as any small 

 yacht claiming a sailor for her owner ought to have. Mast 

 deck to lower cap, 17ft. 6in.; masthead, 3ft.; topmast, 18ft. 

 heel to head ; bowsprit, lift, outboard, fitted at side of stem 

 and to reef; boom, 20ft.; gaff, 14ft.; topsail yard, 8ft.- 

 mast, Sin. diam. at heel, Sin. at centre and a 4in. square 

 masthead, with a slight taper ; topmast at cap, 3fln,; gaff in 

 centre, 3£in., and boom, 44in. in centre; bowsprit, 4|in. at 

 2ft. outside of stem and 4|iu. square at stem-head ; slightly 

 flat on bottom to facilitate hauling in. The total cost of 

 boat, ballast and rig is only as much as that of a cheaply 

 built, flimsily rigged sloop with one-half the accommodations 

 below or on deck. Doubting Thomases, go and see for your- 

 selves. Here is a little bit of thing, no longer than most of 

 our abominable "open boats," and costing little more, yet 

 able to stow away two in the cabin and berth the crew for- 

 ward in ample comfort, cruise where they list, and enjoy 

 solid sport, seamanship, navigation and adventure to their 

 heart'B content ; and yet there arc those who seriously defend 

 our open boats as excellent craft and suitable to the work they 

 are built for ! The trouble is, they are built for the wrong 

 kind of work, and the same amount of money invested in 

 something more akin to the cutter under review would Dad 

 yachtsmen at a bound from the one-sided sport of tooling 

 racing machines to the higher and more enjoyable phase of 

 yachting to be found only in the sea-going ship. The new 

 rive-lonuer is the property of Mr. Wm. G-. Diodrickson, 

 a resident of New York, and since no name has been de- 

 cided upon lor the little cutter, we suggest Corsair as a fitting 

 choice. 



A Deep Sloop. — The Mermaid, sloop, is being almost en 

 tirely rebuilt at Pottery Beach, Greenpoint, by J. J. Driscoll 

 She is one of the deep type, has a long body, aad is very 

 roomy below and above. She has been lengthened 6ft. by 

 the bows, making her now 51ft. on deck, 14ft. 6in. beam and 

 6ft. 3in. depth of hold. Mr. F. C. Finnan, her owner, has 

 cruising only in view, but we learn that while out last year, 

 the Mermaid always managed to hold her own fairly with the 

 rest of the sloops, though carrying only a moderate rig. Her 

 new suit of muslin will be 38ft. hoist, 42ft. Gin. on boom, 

 22ft. on head, and a 34ft. jib. Greatest draft aft, -5ft. Din., 

 with about 12 tons of iron underneath the floor ; centreboard', 

 14ft. long; keel, 10xl2in. oak; stem and post sided lOin. at 

 soarphs ; keelson, yellow pine, 9xl0in., tapering to 5in. for- 

 ward and aft ; frames of hackmatack, 2£x-lin. double; beams, 

 yellow pine, 3|x3i'in.; carlins, 2ix2£in.; bilge strakes, lfin. 

 pine : siding of centreboard box, 2in. pine ; head pieces, 2J 

 in.; trunk logs, pine, 4xl2in. ; ceiling, l]in.; planking, yel- 

 low pine, with oak top-streaks and garboards, If in. "thick ; 

 knees, 7in. throat and 18in. arms ; clamps fastened with 5-16 

 in. bolts ; covering board, 12in. wide, of oak ; deck, 2in. 

 square, white pine, hood ends butting against a pine water- 

 way; rail of oak, 12in. high forward and Sin. aft, locust 

 staunchions; house, 20in. high at side aft. The keel projects 

 5in. below rabbet. 



Mr. Driscoll has built a number of boats of excellent repu- 

 tation, among them the Lizzie L., recently sold to Narragan- 

 setl waters, the Eolite, Martha Munn, P. O'Brien aud others. 

 He builds from a draft, and has ample facilities and a fine 

 beach for turning out any kind of work. 



Southern Yacht Club. — The annual meeting of the 

 Southern jYacht Olub was held at Hawkins' Club Boom on 

 Thursday evening, the 3d instant. The following officers 

 were elected to serve.for the ensuing year : Emile J, O'Brien, 

 Commodore (re-elected) ; H. Rareshide, First Vice-Commo- 

 dore (re-elected); E. I.Israel, Second Vice-Commodore; O. P. 

 Jemison, Secretary (re-elected) ; J. B. McDonnell, Treasurer. 

 The following committees were appointed by the Chair: Fi- 

 nance, A. A. McCutchon, F. B. Green, T. I. Airey : Regatta, 

 J. H. Behan, W- J. Hare, John F. Pollock; Douse Committee, 

 J. B. Lallande, H. D. Hopkins, Edwin Harris, T. R. Richard- 

 son, A. A. Maginnis \ Measurement, J. D. Hughes, Robert 

 Brewster, G. Y. McNeil; Prizes, E. P. Rareshide, A. Frell- 

 son, B. Herrick. Monday, May 12, is fixed for the annual 

 regatta, when boats will be sailed by members and amateur 

 crews, and Wednesday, the 14th, for a free-for-all. The club- 

 house is now finished, and is the most complete building of 

 the kind in the United States. It will be turned over to the 

 House Committee in about ten days, when it is proposed to 

 give a hop and general house-warming. * fr : 



Boston Yacht Cltjb. — The matches of the club have been 

 settled upon for June 21 and September 0. 



QtraiOT (Mass.) Yaoht (Ji.tjB. — At the annual meeting 



the following officers were elected, most of them having 

 already served a teiin or more: Commodore, H. A Keith; 

 Vice-Commodore, W. H. Nicholson ; Fleet. Captain, Joshua 

 Binney; Secretary and Treasurer, George W Morton; 

 Measurer, P. B. Turner; Regatta Committee, the Commodore 

 (ex-oflicio), Edward It. Souther, James T. Penniman, George 

 W. Morton and B. P. Bass. Keel boats are to sail in a 

 separate class, measurement to be taken on water-line and 

 one-third overhang added. The second class was fixed from 



