816 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



|Jak. 24, 1884, 



renewing my cartridges without moving from my tracks, 

 and lie 1 closed the open breach, still another rose villi a 

 flunking whirr and. essayed to follow its fleeing mates. I 

 beiug a (ritlc demoralized by bo much whirring in rapid suc- 

 cession about my cars, again .scored a miss wit li my right, 

 Which I quickly" redeemed v\ it b my left barrel, winning an 

 enthusiastic bravo from the Mayoral, who was hunting with- 

 out 8 gun. 



Quickly renewing my cartridges the bitch was ordered to 

 retrieve the three dead birds, which she accomplished in 

 about ton minutes of laborious search through the high, 

 thick and matted grass, four of us, all of whom thought we 

 could go din -ctly to where they fell, trying in vain to assist 

 her. because being tenacious of life, the beating of then- 

 wings in their death throes settles then) through the grass 

 down toils very roots; when they become stilled one "may 

 pass directly overthem without finding. 



Patiently we worked the rest of tin-, field over, my com- 

 panion flushing several more guineas and bringing one to 

 bag. We now had eight heavy birds, u very fair bag, even 

 the darkey boys manifesting their enjoyment of the sport by 

 a liberal display of their ivories and insisted upon a division 

 of the load instead of tieing them to the saddles. On our 

 way home we Hushed B bevy ui' Quail and bagged two of 

 them, and as the. darkness was rapidly approaching we hur- 

 ried onward. We had proceeded nearly a quarter of a mile 

 When it was discovered thai the bitch was not with us and 

 wc knew at once that she had stopped ou another point, we 

 having forgotten to call her In after Shooting the quail. 

 Returning, there sure enough she was, representing the role 

 of patience in a statue, just in the edge of a cane-field by the 

 Side of the road. 



We, too, tarried in the full enjoyment of that artistic pose 



but fcusa at a time was more than I could attend to, so 

 I wailed for G. Together, by exercising a little patience, 

 and going through a great deal of manual labor, we. managed 

 to gel seven birds, which added to the fOU1 hi . ififo 

 made eleven. This was certainly more than we e\ g - vii 

 ntt.Tl.-avingBigMursh. Wo killed nothing else except time, 

 but the pleasure we derived from the drive alone more than 

 repaid us lor our trouble. Kemo (of Texas). 



3-A1VESTON, Texas, January, 1884. 



THE CHOICE OF HUNTING RIFLES. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



Custom has made it quite the proper thin 

 this subject to preface their opinions and a. 

 statement as to their experience with the 

 will say I have bad quite an extended expe 

 weapon in the held on large and small game 



writers upon 



mis with a 

 therefore I 

 ; with this 

 :1 at the tar- 



til I be quail aroused us with his 11 u 

 he quickly disappeared into the d 

 There let him rest, for he hud alToi 

 enjoyment as if we had brought h 

 Well his part in an artistic exhibit: 

 have appreciated. If stl he well dee 

 gate and leach to his progeny wl 

 virtue, in Urii/.e cinji/rianas. 

 Havana. Dec. S-l.ISSa. 



night 

 lifrof the cane-field. 



:1 us nearly as much 

 to bag. performing 

 which he, too, may 



ed to live and propa- 



I consider a prime 



Nemo (of Cuba). 



get over ranges between 100 and 1,500 yards. However,! 

 do not expect nor wish this fact to give additional weight to 

 any statement I may make. 



Facts, hard bare facts, are. trumps in this discussion, 

 whether stated by the tyro or the professional. Argument is 

 ever entitled to " consideration ouly to the extent that it 

 embodies fact. 



Accuracy, flat trajectory at hunting ranges, rapidity and 

 durability are the prime requisites of a hunting rifle. This 

 is an axiom. If the arm is to be used on large or dangerous 

 animals, it should possess in addition to the. above, great kill- 

 ing power. 



Let. us tnl 

 ment of the 



The Wim. 

 can we imp 



A TEXAS THANKSGIVING. 



T'lIERli was just a faint indication of approaching dawn, 

 as G. audi left the city bound down ihe island for 

 our annual shoot. 



For fully two weeks we had been planning and arranging 

 mailers, and at list had everything in order, f was a 



with a Parker — my eompauiot 

 expedition — and a belt lull Of e; 

 ot mv shooting coat held even a 

 ried a. light Baker, and to judge f 



many and many such 

 rt ridges," while the pockets 

 many as my belt. G, ear- 

 jm the amount of ammuni- 

 ,s object, not pleasure. To 

 ed every shot we had, and 

 vc been very little use in 



lion be lad, .'■ n tnataon was h 

 " : I out, I am afraid, had we li 

 hilled each lime, there would lit 

 gunners going iu the vicinity we. intended visiting fo; some 



intended making a day of it. we left fully prep i ed 



Indications were favorable, ft was cool and pleasant. 

 The north Wind came across the bay with just force enough 

 to cause a gentle whispering in the weeds that lined the 

 roadway on either side. 



As we crossed Mud Bridge a faint flush of pink in the 

 east, warned us that it would be well for us to move a little 

 faster if we intended to arrive at our destination by sunrise. 

 We took the hint and gently giving our "nag" a reminder 

 with the whip, we were soon jogging along at a consider- 

 ably 7 increased rate of speed. 



f may as well say a few words in regard to our horse, for 

 he merits it. He was ordinary iu color, height;, and speed, 

 but was not as pleasing to look upon as some; still he 

 possessed these qualities, he could keep the same gait for 

 hours, was not the least gun-shy, and could he left as long 

 us a person desired in the middle of a prairie without being 

 tied. Three things that are the most difficult to find, and 

 oi6st desired by the gunner. 



By a little before sunrise we had arrived at the neck of a 

 small marsh where, a few days before. I had bagged some 

 dozen snipe. Leaving Charlie to graze, we proceeded to 

 heat this marsh, but without any success, one snipe only 

 getting up. 1 lulled this fellow, and in getting over a fence 

 to get him, 1 found it would be well to be a little more care 

 i'ul in future, for, although "barbed wire" above a fence 

 rail is almost invisible, it scratches nevertheless. 



One snipe was rather discouraging, but w T e went to out 

 next, ground, Big Marsh, full of hope. Big Marsh well 



As to rapidity, w r e want a weapon with which we can 

 deliver ten shots lief ore a grizzly could possibly reach us 

 from a distance of one hundred yards, the blow from each 

 of wdiich would he like a stroke of lightning. 



My vote 

 iscd them i 



ioth lo 



bottleneck shells every time. Have 

 g-rungc and oil-hand rifles, and find 

 liable to expand and stick in the 



npro 



jut, 



work': In seeking such 

 nind the [act that, oilier 

 er of a firearm is in exact 



things being equal, the killing pc 

 proportion to the area of ils bore. 



Now if we reduce the caliber of this rifle to .40, 

 ils killing power about one-fifth. If 

 to SiO-oOO" wc will get about tli 



r., 300 ya 

 1 sta 



dfial velo 

 slightly flatter t 



,itb a R 

 The forn 



,40-50 and 



trajectory at short hi 



at long hunting ran; 



penetration at all rai 



to be such by actual experiments 



rifle and a Winchester .45-60-300, 



was loaded at the muzzle with 90 grains Hazard F, Gr. 



powder and Wihcbestcr-500 grain bullet. The latter used 



shells loaded with 00 grains same powder and 300-grain 



bullet. The trajectory of the Winchester at. 300 yards 



varied in different atmospheres between ten and eleven 



inches. The trajectory of the. Remington, loaded as above, 



was more uniform, viz'., about ten inches. Now 1 ask, dots 



not the larger bore oi the .45-1111 about, ollsei the ed 



penetration of the ,40-90'.' 



I also experimented with another rifle (side by side with 

 shot ha iTC-1) built to my order by the Anieiiean Arm:.- Co. 

 This rifle was 2S-ineh barrel, chambereel lor .45-100 

 shell. 1 load this sheil with too grains Hazard FG 

 powder and 300-graiu Winchester bullet. The cartridge 

 measures ii inches. The trajectory of this rifle at 200 

 yards is seven inches, with ' penetration sufficient to 

 crush the biggest bones and make two holes iu the hide 

 of any grizzly. 



I say this after using this rifle several seasons on large 

 game. I regard this 'cartridge, .45-100-300, as greatly the 

 superior to the .40-90-500 for shooting at dangerous animals, 

 because of its flatter trajectory at alllmuting ranges, greater 

 diameter or bullet and consequent killing power. 11 is also 

 greatly the superior lo the .40-00-300 eaitridge by reason of 

 wipe 



■xteuds for fully two 

 iter Lake, and is the 

 •land; at least] had 

 always found there, 

 ouicd to disappoint- 

 roughly, looked into 

 ;d likely' to harbor one 



deserves its name, for it is big. It 



miles, from Sydnor's Bayou to Swcetw 



rendezvous for all the snipe ou the 



judged so from the numbers I had 



This time, however, G. and 1 were d 



meat. We had beaten the marsh 11: 



evety little nook and corner that seem. 



of these skulking little rascals, and as a reward we had three 



between us. 



G. looked at me and I looked at G. Our eyes expressed 

 how we felt, and we turned toward the buggy, I > 

 gusted "shootists." 



Who understands the habits of this game bird'/ I don't, I 

 must confess. Although I have been thrown with them year 

 after year for quite a period, their habits are shrouded in a 

 veil of mystery, too thick for me to penetrate. 



1 had visited this same Big Marsh the Tuesday before 

 Thauksgiviug, and had found snipe plenty; yet on the morn- 

 ing ot the second day after a visit lo the same locality was 

 fruitless. 1 learned later that a party had bagged thirty odd 

 there the day after Thanksgiving. Where were the birds 

 Thanksgiving? That is the question. 



After returning to the buggy G. and I drowned our dis- 

 gust by eating a glorious lunch that fair fingers had put up 

 for lis'lko night before. We did this justice at any rate. 

 Alter finishing we felt in better humor, and as game seemed 

 scarce, we concluded to go ou our expedition further down 

 solely for lun. 



Ou the way to the main road G. killed astray black duck, 

 that probably, as I tell him, had been wounded in the first 

 place. 



We were driving by the edge of the lake, not thinking of 

 anything particular, when suddenly I saw two snipe pitch 

 down iu Us very center. This puzzled me, but upon walk- 

 i eg through the reeds 1 found that last summer's drouth had 

 absorbed the water, leaviug nothing but a boggy marshy I 

 entered slowly, and hud hardly advanced a dozen feet before 

 up jumped a" snipe, rapidly followed by three more. I 

 took advantage of my opportunity, scoring a right and left, 



icr.ratiou. 



1 at our manufacturers 

 ,t proportion of powder 

 i I have any knowledge 



acy in a hunting rifle, is 

 , this we can only get. 

 to the amount 

 •eel proportion, 

 1 put a 800 or &3S grain At 

 jura him one steady customer, 

 ridge is not the one 1 would 



/.....,r.v„'.V , Still greater killing 



Btoconfronl monsters of this 



■ what mv experiments will' 



i propor 



chamber and burst at the bead than the 





if shell, Mv 



is. thai much of the force of the 





an is caught 



on the shoulder of these sheli 





nd re-actjou 



glial, this subjects not only the 





ihe shell, but 



also the action of the arm to a much gr 











the case when the same charge is used i 





ight shell. 





fos. W 



SnCRTEU. 



Ganseyoort. Jan. 15. 







Editor Forest and Hream: 



If in the discussion now T going on in the Forest a.nd 

 Stream We omit all consideration of repeater vs. single- 

 shot rifle, we shall find that the question is one of improve- 

 ment in the ammunition, rather than in the existing arms. 

 The great essentials of a successful huuting ammunition are: 



First — Accuracy. 



Second — Force (not necessarily great penetration). ^ 



Third — A flat trajectory. 



As matters of minor importance, we may add compact- 

 ness, portability, and as light, a recoil as is compatible with 

 the fulfillment of the essentials. 



"D. M. B." proposes a .-tO-'lO-OOO-grain cartridge. This 

 would certainly fail in the third essential, and ijuilc probably 

 ID IheiirM. also. 



Your correspondent, "Fenbody-Martini," has pointed out 

 ■i, ,i ■ : .-..eessive rotation is necessary to keep this 500-gmin 



Oiectile (probably four calibers long) point on. 



His si liemenl is confirmed by the experiments of our own 

 and foreign ordnance boards, and also by those of gunmak- 

 El's, notably Whil worth. 



Nor does this .40-90 500 ammunition fullill our minor con- 

 ditions. It would be clumsy, heavy, and give an excessive 

 recoil. Thus if would Only have its great, penel ration to 

 recommend it. But will a bullet that will pass through the 

 body of a grizzly and still possess reserve force be any more 

 effective than one that will pass through the body and lodge- 

 in the skin on the opposite side? 



"C. 1 1." proposes a .40-90-300 cartridge, which ought to 

 fulfill ail the conditions much better. 



On the other side of the question we have the fai 

 express, giving a flat trajectory with sufficient accuracy ha- 

 sh ort range work, and a not too excessive recoil, but it is 

 confessedly lacking in penetration. 



For the special purpose of hunting grizzlies, Mr 

 fjeld advocates « 18 bore doublfliifle,. snooting a i <a 

 with 130 grains of powder, and advances seemingly 

 reasons for the faith that is in him. But as the f 

 this arm is limited, and as the round ball i 

 a heavy 13-gauge cylinder smooth-bore answer his pi 

 Buch a gun could lie used for shot, and prob: 61 v, 



its flatter trajectory aud increa- 



Right here I will indulge in a 

 of sporting ammunition. The j 

 to lead in any rifle cartridge of 

 is one to five'. This is all wrpn 



What we want most, ucxl lo 

 flat trajectory at hunting range 

 bv using laige powder charges 



of lead used. One to three m i 



and if some inanufactuivi 



bullet in the market, I wi 



However, the .45-100-300 



recommend for use on Ui 



power is desirable when ( 



sort, and I will now des 



hunting rifles and my experience iu shouting at large game 



leads me to believe would be the best weapon for such 



shooting. 



A lever repeater of .50-caliber aud 33-inch barrel, cham- 

 bered for. 00-150-100 cartridge. This rifle, by reason of its larger 

 caliber, higher velocity of its projectile and equal penetra- 

 tion at hunting ranges, would undoubtedly possess twice the 

 killing power of the .40-90-500. The length of the cartridge 

 would be about three inches, necessitating a frame one- 

 fourth longer and a weight somewhat greater than that of 

 the .43-60 Winchester, 



Notwithstanding the strictures of "W. JT. B." in your issue 

 of Jan. 10, I regard the repealer as immeasurably the 

 superior of the single-loader for hunting purposes. Hi; 

 article simply proves that even in America there are mei 

 who are entitled to a medal for stupidity. But the stupidity 

 of the lot he was with when those magazine rifles bccaan 

 clogged must have been exceptional, else, having discowrct 

 the legitimate result of their ignorance or carelessness, they 

 would also have discovered that their rifles could still have 

 been used as single-loaders as effectively as the Sharp; 

 the metamorphosed Springfield musket. 



The reasons for my choice of the rifle briefly described 

 above, may 7 be summed up as follows: 



We want, first of all, iu a sporting rifle, accuracy, to enable 

 us to strike the spot aimed at. This implies the use of a 

 bullet long enough in proportion to its diameter lo give it 

 steadiness" Next we want flat trajectory at hunting ranges, 

 *. e., all distances up to 300 yards, to eliminate as far as pos- 

 sible Ihe necessity of estimating distances. Thisimphes apow- 

 der charge large'in proportion to amount of lead used. If 

 the rifle is to be used on dangerous animals, we want it to 

 possess great killing power, and be capable of rapid 

 manipulation. This implies large caliber, high velocities at 

 hunting ranges, combined with bullet heavy enough to pul- 

 verize the biggest bones and go through the carcass ot the 

 animals on which it, is to be used. Manufacturers of express 



bullets have sought to attain the effect of large CSli IV 



, a lE i ■ poinl of the bullet hollow, but have failed in a 

 large measure because the points' of these bullets when 

 striking bones or tough muscle have a tendency to fly off in 

 splashes as far back as the hollow extends, leaving them 

 too light to give necessary penetration. 



Liteh- 



ld ball 



ion 



11 gC of 



Id be 



much cheaper that 



These calibers, 

 tremes. The into 

 earnest partisans, a 

 severest practical 



Mv own prefer* 



the rifle. 



.40 ami .73. may he regarded as theex- 

 •mediate calibers. .40 and .50. have mauy 

 vho have put their favorite weapons to thi 



e.-ts. and have not found them wanting. 

 ice is for a .43-caliber rifle. 20-inei round 



barrel, chambered 



for the Ceivenimeut ammunition, rZx- 



baustive tests by the Ordnance Department have shown that 

 a 33-inch barrel possesses no advantage for accuracy over a 

 30-inch, even at BOO yards. The longer barrel would prob- 

 ably impart a higher velocity to the bullet, as the powder 

 would be more thoroughly consumed, and the powder gas 

 would act 0E the bullet 'through a greater space. But this 

 advantage would, to my mind, be more than counter- 

 balanced by the superior "portability and lightness of the 

 shorter arm. My style of loading "is quite similar to that 

 adopted by "Big lnjiii." By carefully tilling lb 

 ment shelf, S3 grains of F. G. powder can readily be accom- 

 modated. Oil tbis a hard, grooved and lubrieai ; 



grain bullet is placed, and the shell crimped around it, 



' This gives a cheap, compact and waterproof cartridge, 



that will stand ar 



The tra 

 tlieaecur, 



ably light 

 run out, 



used with 



If thou; 



a very ell 



iboll, tak 



.ill be 



1K< 



idlh 



xpit 



this g 

 s rifle 



rood, and the recoil reasem- 



p li ammunition should 



loading not be at hand, the 



sable everywhere, may be 



into 

 ineh 



i can be readily converted 

 chambering for the 2.0 



-„ 110 "grains of powder and a 322-grain bullet. 

 This is exactly the charge used in the Holland .43-bore 

 double express, the winning gun in the London Field 

 trials. 



This gun weighed 8 pounds 4 ounces, and with a 

 velocity 'of 1770 f. s, gave a versiue of 4.08 inches at ': : ) J &rds 

 in a range of 100 yards. Theacouraej - 3triugo£14 4!l-iuelies 



■i ;, i -l.nts at 150 yards) which they considered vei | f 



will not, 1 think, strike your readers as anything 

 enal. The recoil was not greatly in excess of that of the 

 Springfield rifle using the service ammunition. In the 

 accounts of these trials the weight of the bullet is variously 

 stated at 291 and 322 grains. I "have taken the latter weight, 

 as its calculated trajectory agrees more closely with that 

 actually obtained. J*MB3 DnitNB, 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



"1>. M. B.,"in your issue of Dec. 13. complains ot the 

 want of killing power of English express rifles on aeount of 

 the small penetrative power of their projectiles. Ofcouse 



-d'to the he 



their hollow -fronted bullets a 



r&n ! but that can hardly be said to B 

 rifles, which can use solid projectiles, with 

 native power, equally well, preserving all i... 

 their very flat trajectory. Simp 1 

 though desirable in many ways, does not 



-IV ..'....-.I ;., J t,i.i.,-i.) i.. I r.li- 1-ilHin.- .in nni'mnl if ' 



kind 

 f ths 



je 



prove 

 effectual in immediately killing an animal if no vital part is 

 struck. Peuetratiou can be combined, when desirable, with 

 Ihe explosive effect of the ordinary hollow fronted express 

 making the projectile of hardened lead with a 

 smaller hollow in its front, leaving a good solid cylinder in 

 ths rear end of the bullet, so that, though Ihe front part 

 of the bullet expands on striking and jjeJS tuto mushroom 

 shape and splinters, the solid base end goes slraig.hi on pene- 

 trating aud smashing everything in its course. Of course, 

 the advantage claimed for the ordi ■ rxpres hallwtaat 

 in tiyiug to pieces after passing through 

 these pieces may wound a vital part. 

 bullet cannot do 'if its force is expended entirely on the sur- 

 face of a heavy animal's body and before it has penetrated 



