58 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



POINT BLANK. 



WE print herewith two letters on this subject, an d 

 have also another communication from "Old 

 Scout," which want of space compels us to omit. We are 

 inclined to think with our friend, Mr. Mather, that an ex- 

 cess of scientific terms is apt to confuse the beginner at 

 rifle shooting, and that the simpler the definition the easier 

 will it be understood, and the principle involved become 

 familiar. However science may define it, we all under- 

 stand "point blank" to be the range of the piece with the 

 simple fixed sights, which may vary more or less with the 

 charge of powder used. For instance: Mr. Greener, in 

 his work on modern breech loaders, in speaking of the ball 

 shooting properties of his shot guns, says that their point 

 blank range is up to fifty yards, beyond which distance a 

 rifle is required for accurate shooting, as in the ball gun 

 the bullet drops rapidly beyond that distance; also that a 

 tight-fitting bullet gives a flat trajectory and a long point 

 blank range. In speaking of the Express rifle, he says : 

 "The actual point blank range of this kind of rifle with 

 four drachms of powder is 130 to 140 yards. One sight 

 only is necessary for sporting distances, and over 200 yards 

 a full fore sight must be taken, as the bullet begins to drop 

 at over 1!;0 yards." In a series of experiments made at 

 Wimbledon in 1870, to ascertain the fall of projectiles with 

 military rifles, it was found that with an Enfield rifle, both 

 weapon and point aimed at being five feet above the level 

 of the ground, with the sight fixed at 100 yards, the mean 

 of ten shots stiuck the ground at 82ii yards. It must be 

 noted, however, that the fall of a bullet when fired from 

 the shoulder is less than when fired from a fixed rest, the 

 reason being that there is a slight tendency of the muzzle 

 to rise when the piece is fired from the shoulder. With 

 regard to the curve of a projectile, we believe with our 

 correspondent "Trax," that most rifles have a flat trajec- 

 tory for a certain distance, and that the ball describes a 

 curve only when the muzzle is elevated. The definitions of 

 point blank in Webster are probably the simplest that can 

 be given. "The point at which the line of sight intersects 

 the trajectory" (the trajectory being the course of the bul- 

 let) and "the extent of the apparent right line of a ball 

 discharged." 

 Editor Forest and Stream:— 



I have read the discussions on this subject in your paper, and think 

 "Old Scout," "Point Blank," "Plain Talk," and others are getting the 

 thing highly mixed, and that some of them might be a trifle more cour- 

 teous toward those whom they criticise, especially as they may possibly 

 have a small particle of "beam" in their own eyes, which conld profit- 

 ably be extracted before plucking the mote that is in their brothers. 

 When I was in the service I learned that "point blank" was the point 

 where the trajectory cut the line of sight the second time without the. use 

 of a rear sight. That is in artillery, the dispart giving sufficient eleva- 

 tion. In heavy garrison guns we used a spirit level with vertical slide 

 to determine the highest point on the base ring and the swell of the muz- 

 zle. This is known as the "line of metal." Inordinary practice there 

 is but oue case where the object is struck by sighting upon the line of 

 metal— this is then known as point blank range. A knowledge of this 

 ran^e for each gun can only be obtained by experiment, as it varies with 

 the length and calibre of the piece as well as the dispart and charge. 

 The "line of metal" is also known as the "natural line of sight," and 

 for all distances beyond point blank a gunner's quadrant or breech sight, 

 (tangent scale,) is used. 



The old 42 and 32-pounder sea-coast guns had no natural line of sight, 

 as the swell of the muzzle was not visible when the eye was on a level 

 with the base ring on account of the extension of the first re-enforce; 

 therefore these guns had no point blank. As ihe rifle has a fixed sight 

 as well as a raised one, I should consider the former as the dispart, and 

 the point blank of my gun as the distance at which I could strike the 

 object aimed at by sighting with this fixed sight, and all distances be- 

 yond this requiring an elevation of the hind sight as beyond point blank 

 range of that gun. Fred. Mather. 



Editor Forest and Stream:— 



"Let us circulate no false theories; these would mislead and be pro- 

 ductive of harm." Now, "Old Scout," this is just what you are doing. 

 I have no doubt that you have received many letters of commendation, 

 but they only show the ignorance of the masses about anything con- 

 nected with the rifle and its projectile. "Point Blank's" article showed 

 your errors very plainly, and now, in order to maintain your position, 

 you reply with an unintelligible jumble of words and scientific terms. 

 Either you have misundei stood the subject or the work from which,, you 

 have obtained your information was incorrect. I do not think you will 

 enlighten many gunsmiths or any one else. 



In the first place, in your farmer letter you assumed that the bullet 

 fired from every rifle describes a curve, whose highest point from the 

 line of sight is four inches at one hundred yaids distance. This may be 

 so with the guns'you have been accustomed to shoot, but take the good 

 small bore rifles and you will find they have to all intents and purposes a 

 flat trajectory for from 123 to 140 yards, and in some guns even more, 

 and no perceptible curve for a still greater distance, and to the distance 

 which a gun will carry without perceptible fall of the bullet is the point 

 blank range, which varies according to the gun and the charge used. 

 Point blank, by which you mean artificial point blank, you describe 

 properly. As regards your theory of the curve of the ball you are wrong, 

 and any practical gunmaker will tell you so. The ball does not describe 

 a curve from the moment it leaves the gun; the fall of the bullet is grad- 

 ual, and as it increases it describes a hyberbolic curve, owing to its loss 

 of momentum consequent on the resistance of the air and the attraction 

 of gravitation. Now, if "Old Scout" is correct in his theory of a con- 

 stant curve, how will be account for the increased trajectory that can be 

 given a rifle by using a light ball and a heavy charge of powder, as in the 

 English express rifles and our own Kentucky rifles? Let him go into 

 the backwoods of Pennsylvania or Virginia to a turkey shoot and he will 

 see a turkey set up eighty rods away and the natives with their open V 

 and bead sights that they cannot raise loa#ins with two or three of their 

 ordinary charges of powder, and taking a full sight of the head, unmind- 

 ful of the increased recoil, shoot, and occasionally win a turkey merely 

 by increasing the trajectory of their gun by a large charge of powder. 

 Over that distance the ball undoubtedly falls very quick with a curve 

 that would delight "Old Scout." 



"Point Blank" hopes to see the times when the same sight can be used 

 up to 1,000 yards. That he will never see, but he can see the same sight 

 nsed up to eighty rods, or about 400 yards, which practically proves his 

 theory and that of all practical gunmakers. In the immortal words of 

 the learned Professor of Chemistry, "Gentlemen, tbe experiment has 

 failed, but the theory remains the same.'? So "Old Scout" will prob- 

 ably stick to his, but neither he nor any other man can calculate the 

 parabola of a rifle ball on the principle he advocates. The practice at 

 Creedmoor is conducted on the. true theory of raising their sights till 

 they hit the target. ' Trax. 



[FROM 4 OUR, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT.] 



MISSOURI 'CLUBS AND OTHER MAT- 

 TERS. 



Southern Hotel, St. Louis, August 25,1875. 

 Editor Forest and Stkeam:— 



Tlie St. Louis and King's Luke Fish Breeding Assoeia- 

 tion hold their grounds seventy miles up the river, and 

 four miles back of. Sterling's Landing. This lake is 

 25 miles long by an average of a half a mile wide. It 

 is fed by springs and river, and abounds with croppies and 

 black bass. Adjoining are extensive prairie hunting or 

 shooting grounds. This is said to afford the best fishing 

 waters within one hundred miles of the city. The club 

 has an extensive boat club house, with all the appliances 

 foa fishing and good cheer. It numbers about eighty mem- 

 bers. The veteran fisherman and gun dealer, Mr. R. 

 Beauvais is President; E. M. Leeds, Vice-President; J. B. 

 Beauvais, Secretary and Treasurer. On the Illinois side, 

 twenty-six miles below here, is located' the fishing grounds 

 of the St. Louis and Murdock Fishing Club. This is 

 smaller in extent than King's Lake and like the same is 

 four miles from the river, under the bluff, where probably 

 the main channel of the stream remotely took its course. 

 The club has been to considerable expense to put the lake 

 in good order and beautifying the scenery, and eradicating 

 the "baser fry," and stocking it with croppies and black 

 bass. This lake is only nine miles long by an average 

 width of one-fourth of a mile. It is under the. same man- 

 agement, yet distinct in its organization, and unincorpo- 

 rated, unlike the former in this respect. The sportsmen of 

 St. Louis, if not as enthusiastic at trap shooting as those 

 of Chicago, certainly are not a whit behind in the 

 field where the true test of skill should be exemplified, 

 judging by what I have been assured, read and observed. 

 They are now having a lively time with the chickens, for 

 this kind of game never was more plenty. The grangers 

 are a little troublesome to strangers, by attesting their 

 vested rights over their domain; nevertheless, our country 

 friends are readily approached, through acquaintances, and 

 cheorfully take a hand or point the way to fields of abund- 

 ance. I am happy to know that Col. Williams, of Quiucy, 

 has formed a company in this city, consisting of a few of 

 the leading financial men, with a capital of $50,000, for the 

 purpose of manufacturing his patent cartridges, to which 

 1 think I called your attention in one of my communica- 

 tions last Winter. The machinery is expected to be com- 

 pleted in ninety days. The officers in the management of 

 the company are Ckas. L. Hunt, President; N. S. Chou- 

 teau, Vice-President; Win. A. Albright, Secretary and 

 Thos. Hunt, Treasurer, <aud will be known as the St. Louis 

 Patent Shell Manufacturing Company. The patent con- 

 sists simply of a concentrated inner base of the shell, 

 giving thereb}'" greater efficiency and preventing recoil, all 

 of which, it is claimed, can be made 75 per cent, less than 

 any other. Anything that will lessen the expense and at the 

 same time increase its efficiency, will be welcomed by the 

 brotherhood, and the agency liberally encouraged and re- 

 warded. A gentleman, not interested in any way in these 

 shells, other than general good, made a comparative test. 

 Perhaps I could do no better than to give the trial in his 

 own language : 



"After taking from my library several pamphlets, of the 

 light literature of the day, to test the penetration of my 

 shot, I proceeded to the trial with the following result: 

 Mv object was to make the investigation as thorough and 

 complete as possible, so that no regrets in the future would 

 arise in my own mind as to the thoroughness of my work. 

 First firing was at Victor Hugo. I blazed away at the 

 creator of Monte Christo with a plain paper shell; distance, 

 56 yards, 4 drachms of powder, 1£ ounce of No. 6 shot. 

 The old man must have dodged, for not a solitary shot 

 took effect. I then tried a patent shell, 8 drachms of 

 powder, 1 ounce of shot; same distance. Seven shots took 

 effect, giving a penetration of 42 leaves. 



I next used plain metalic shells, No. 6' shot; same dis- 

 tance as before. 



5i drs. powder, 14 oz. shot, penetrated 87 leaves. 



4| " H " " 10 u 



Pat. shell, %\ drs. powder, 1 oz. shot, penet'd 32 leaves. 



3 '" 1 " " 50 " 



re 4 « . 21. « t< 'j^ « 



Pat. shell, paper, 3 J drs. powder, 1 oz. shot, penetrated 

 50 leaves. 



Plain shell, paper, 4 drs. powder, 1 oz. shot, penetrated 

 42 leaves. 



Pat. shell, No. Gshot, 3 drs. powder; distance, 38 yards, 

 penetrated 100 leaves, with many shot buried deep in the 

 bark of the tree. This I consider the best shot out of all 

 my tests, as the gun was loaded the same as a muzzle loader, 

 with one wad on top of powder. The distribution was 

 perfect, the shooting hard and the penetration extraordin- 

 ary. The "Countess of Thule" and "Rob Roy," the 

 bold moss trooper, came in for a share of my attention, 

 with about the same results. I don't hesitate to say that a 

 complete revolution in this branch will take place as soon 

 as these patent shells arc placed upon the market." 



Personally, I have carried one of these shells in my 

 pocket and exhibited it to many sportsmen throughout my 

 travels, all of whom accepted the theory of its construction 

 favorably, and will hail their introduction into the market 

 with pleasure . 



I find two clubs, one the St. Louis Gun Club, organized 

 for perfection in trap and field shooting. The other is for 

 the protection of fish and game, called the Sportsmen's 

 Club." These are distinct in their organization and man- 

 agement, but composed of almost the same members. A 

 great many leading sportsmen are out on the wing. A few 

 by the sea shore, on the lakes and streams in the higher 

 latitudes. By-the-by, I must not forget to mention the 

 popularity of the Dane gun throughout the valley of the 

 v Mississippi and its tributaries. Dr. McKellops,ithe leading 



dentist of this city, takes pride in showing up this gun and 

 its superior action, and he does not hesitate to pronounce 

 it the par excellence in the gun line. He is equally skilled 

 with the "shooting iron" as with the forceps, and is, ranked 

 with the leading sportsmen of the city, and it is fair to 

 presume that when he praises anything in the line of field 

 sports, he knows what he is talking about; besides, I find 

 this confirmed by many others of no less pretentions. B. 



The Team in Brooklyn.— Gen. Dakin and his com- 

 panions of the victorious rifle team were entertained on 

 Wednesday evening last at a banquet held at the Brooklyn 

 Academy of Music. After the viands had been disposed of 

 Mayor Hunter welcomed the General and his friends in a 

 congratulatory speech, in which he alluded to the fact that 

 the team having their work to do, had done it well, and 

 that the confidence placed in them as fit representatives of 

 their country bad not been misplaced, concluding by pro- 

 posing Gen. Dakin's health, and wishing that he might 

 always hit the mark at which he aims. After the applause 

 had subsided Gen. Dakin arose and replied to the call made 

 upon him. After alluding to the departure of the team 

 and the pleasure experienced by himself and associates in 

 receiving so warm a welcome both abroad and at home, 

 he expressed his indebtedness to the press of both countries 

 for their liberality in devoting so much of their space to 

 the doings of the team, and to the almost marvellous cor- 

 rectness and exactness of their reports, as well as for the 

 many pleasant words they have published complimentary 

 to the team and also to himself. Less than one year ago 

 we assembled here as now, only then it was to bestow 

 honor upon a few of Ireland's noblest sons— [applause]— 

 whom it was our good fortune and pleasure to meet. [Ap- 

 plause.] We have since seen them in the land which gave 

 them birth, and in return for the treatment they received 

 here they have shown us that the hospitality of the Irish 

 people cannot be excelled — [applause]— nor can the mag- 

 nifience and splendor of their banquets be eclipsed by any 

 nation." 



Col. Gildersleeve /.responded to the toast of "The Ameri- 

 can Rifle Team" and Col. Mitchell to "The Irish Rifle 

 Team." Other toasts were proposed and responded to by 

 various gentlemen. Judge A. H. Dailey in responding to 

 "The city of Brooklyn," presented to the team an old 

 time musket which had been used by Patrick Henry in 

 "Virginia during the. revolutionary war. The gun came 

 into the possession of Mr. Dailey's family, and on his last 

 visit to his old home he secured it. He proposed that it 

 should be shot for every year. Major Fulton accepted the 

 gun, which was handed to him in its old buckskin case, 

 and he said that the team would shoot for it in preference 

 to the most magnificent trophy. 



Here is what our artist intended should be a fac simile 

 of this old arm, from a drawing attempted upon the spot, 

 but the banquet was too much for him. 



•&&£j£r 



The festivities were not concluded until a very late 

 hour. 



— The various prizes won by^the American rifle team at 

 Dollymount and Candeboye, together with the massive 

 challenge cup presented by the National Rifle Association, 

 of Great Britain, to the National Rifle Association of 

 America, for competition at annual meetings of the latter, 

 are on exhibition at the establishment of Messrs. Tiffany & 

 Co. , in Union square. 



— On the evening of August 80th a banquet wat tend- 

 ered to Major Henry Fulton, of. the American rifle team, 

 by the Freemasons of Williamsburg, at the banqueting 

 hall of DeWitt Clinton Commandery in Broadway. Dr. 

 Charles A. Doane, Master of Progressive Lodge, presided, 

 the guests being limited to seventy-five, representing tlie 

 various lodges. 



—The American rifle team will be tendered a grand com- 

 plimentary banquet at Delmonicos, on Monday, Sept. 6th. 

 About 200 guests will be present. 



— A reception will be tendered at Poughkeepsie, on 

 Monday, Sept. 13th, to Col. John Bodine and Capt. R. C 

 Coleman of the American rifle team. The other gentle- 

 tlemen of the team will be present also. A splendid badge 

 will be offered for competition among the American viae 

 team at 500 yards, on the grounds of the Hudson River 

 Rifle Association, during the afternoon. On Tuesday the 

 team will proceed to Utica. 



—The Ninth Annual Reunion of the Army of the Cum- 

 berland will take place at Utica, N. Y., September 15 and 

 16, 1875. President Grant, Gen. Sherman and Sheridan 

 are expected to be present. The American rifle team have 

 received invitations and signified their intention of being 

 present. Col. Gildersleeve having been an active member o 

 the Army of the Cumberland during the war. 



Milner's Muzzle.— We do not refer to Milner's dogs, 

 of which he has several very fine specimens, but to t e 

 muzzle of his rifle, which was the cause of his poor scoie 

 in the International match. Since the return of the Amer- 

 ican rifle team we have been informed that after the matc& 

 his rifle was examined, and upon the breech of the Dair _ 

 being removed, it-was found that the rifling was entire i y 

 effaced up to within three or four inches of the muzzle, 

 proving conclusively that the rifle was defective, if not aD ' 

 solutely worthless, for fine shooting. 



