NotbmbkrIS, 1880.] 



FOREST AND STREAM, 



315 



distance had sceu the duck and tried to obtain him. By this 

 time they are near here. I hear the •whistle of I he wings. 

 The trusty Ijj'eech-loader comes up ]il;e a feutlier and the 

 'Charge leaves the muzzle. Yes. lie druppeil. 1 had aimed 

 some six feet ahead, and by the lime Zero had retrieved Ihe 

 cducli a faint hurrah was borne to my ears. xV true spnrisman 

 ihad congratulated me. When the boys eame in twu were 

 at the tents and mel me, immediately picking up mj diuia 

 snd allowing me to walk in with not 'a shell's weight. We 

 had scale.^. The duck was twenty-nine inches long, over 

 forty the extent of wings, and weighed over live pounds, and 

 often now I glance toward the big mallard. 



Bkbt. Natabkb. 



" NESSjrcTK" writes : "I am among the oldest canoeists in 

 the Tjnited States. Have a record of river forty years, ami 

 am frosted cast iron for the double-bladed paddle as iiijuinst 

 oars or canvas. f^liall go thi-ougb furlher und r[\sl"r wsA 

 season than I did this, and -with a Iohl u l;i:i: i •: i ■. :iy 

 Of twenty-five pomids weight and of r, ii, i : i i ii 

 no guide"— I am a guide myself where. . i .i - i i 



fom- inches of ivater. 1 am never half u^ mu.jU u,i ii.jLm.; ;wiil 

 never find tuv self so easy. as when I am lost in one of our 

 forests, wln'n- ilifie is no Ixack or trail, save of the wary 



; \\\ M—InaianoUt,. Jfov. 0.— 6a.rao now in abundance and 

 1 1 : i uually arriving. Saw several flocl?s of swan this morn- 

 ing, the first of the season, and a great many geese and 

 brant. Was out this morning close to town and bagged nne 

 fine goose, one brant and a brace of fine ducks, and was not 

 gone from home altogelher over one hour and a half. Every 

 cold snap there is a regular fusilade at the passing fowl— 

 every one wlio owns a gun or musket turns out. G- A. 



SuEEP vs. Dbkr.— It has been a Ji ,1! iiluint in 



Scotland that a potent cause of man_\ < • > M; dnpj'p- 



ulation and high-priced rneat. w-as il;. : 1^: 1, l.1' tlic 



lands devoted to deer forc-ts insu'ad ul -u Atij:]-, mUuie. .U- 

 tention has been called to tin. sulijijcl li\' 11 disoussion in the 

 London Tinm. In 1873 a selrct coniniiiji-,.- uf the House of 

 Commons w-as appointed to inquire into the merits of the 

 case, and tliat eomniiitoc reported that the evidence lioro out 

 none of the charges. 



— The Sdetttific American of last week contains two full- 

 ipage ilhiatratioiis of Captain Eftd-i' proposed railway for 



'transporting ships with their en:L':t ifr-'"' mntinents. 



Captain Ead.H clainis by his ; :: 1 i. M lu take loaded 



■ships of the largest lonnage [1 1 h' another across 



Ihe Isthmus of 'Panama, as rrini,!., k ■: ^m: II- done by a canal 

 after the Lesseps plan, and at a much less cost for eugincer- 

 jiig cottBtruction. 



—No one imn be sick If the stomach, blood, Uvw and kidneys 

 are well. Hop Bittcra keeps them well. 



Pi,EABB Visit the Eanges— CTwrteston, S. (!., Nov. 8.— Seeing 

 what Mr. Murphy, of AVorcester, has done in shooting, I send yon 

 this : Oct. 16, 45 Ghots, cue huiidroil uieaBm-ed rods, at lU-iiioh bulls- 

 eye, other WiijM ttiird-fbish ia.igft, lu- iii:iiit: 32 Ijiills, 10 centres und 

 3 inncrs. Nov. 1, io rtholB, 500 yards, at 8-ineli liull and fom--loot 

 target. Score — 2!) bnllH and 8 centres ; 22-ineh, 2 inners. One 

 outer the first shot. 



The shooting was done by James Pixley, of Otsego County, in 



the presence of teu or twel ve persons. Ho has now rehirued home. 



Sight on heel of gun. Ho iisod licmington (^reedmoor ride, 107 



grs. Hazard, 5i)(l bullet, hia gim luckuif; su one would think it was 



impossible to bit auytliiiit,' across a tiarn-yard. He did his tirat 



shooting 111 lon^' i-;uii;e tbia Bimmier ; tirat score was 179, last 217. 



Is also Hplcnthd oft-Laud shot. Will eight his guu on anything, 



distance imknomi, quickest of any man I ever saw. Wlieu he 



shoots he always paces to see how far, and calculates his elevation 



Irom this. J. B. H, 



. . ■#. 



NEAB-SiaHTEDNESS. 



TN your issue of October 21 1 see a commnuication troui " Plula " 

 on the suliject of neor-jJighted persons tiiiootiiig with glasses. 

 Having had imieh experience as a near-sighted shot for the last 

 seven years, and as yom" eorrespoudent'r; ease seems so similar to 

 my own when 1 first began to use the glassy os-als. 1 venture to 

 give a small bit of personal history which may probably interest 

 other near-sighted sportsmen. 



Prom earliest childhood I have been an ardent lorcr of every 

 kiud of -shooting. As a youngster, too small to widJi, 1 followed 

 the himters on my pony, my older friends kmdly prilling down the 

 rid fences for ley i':i---iL'. y-nr-sighted ! I never thought of it. 

 Gron-n older neii r... !i^:i:, iiy light sqiiiiTel riile I found I could 

 MU more than 1.. h.Jim"I-ii .,l..s, but one or two of them could 

 always beat nie rihootinj.; at a, miyk. I would not admit even t.j my- 

 self that I was neai-sigbied. In tact 1 doubt if hiiel, a tliuii^'ht 

 ever entered my head in tliose days. Yet how diotiueth I even 

 now rememljer what a Uu'Ke, dim. hazy look eaeli serap of white 

 paper assumed that was jnit ii]) for a target. In 1S73 I liegan my 

 ooUege com-se in New York city. Troubled in oopying the uitii- 

 cato formula from the board, and seeing others witli glasses, T lior- 

 rowad a po.ir from a class-mate, and oh ! wonders : i liadnt i. 



aginod any one eould see so 

 myhnutiijy ;i!i'. 

 vmecdit was ; 

 Por two years Ixu. .. l; ■ 

 a thing very easy to do withi 

 color of the rainbow. Bub h: 

 my eyes mo us to se 

 rille :•- 

 many - : 



diaoarUL.. -.-,: 

 utterly miJit ti.' shoot 

 drams of powde*r 



«XpQl'il1 



ily. Ketm-uiug h^ 



-, always using glasses, feehng cou- 



','.-■ ever to become an excellent shot. 



me to see that front sight plainly; 



iot the spectacles. I painted it every 



the two years' practice I had trained 



the naked gray sight on a long .Spiingfield 



. one could wish. How ivell, my winning 



ail testify. In my aailiest expeiiraenta I 



aupletoly, as, no matter how good, they are 



with, jimipin;.; olT at e-very explosion 01 f,.iiir 



shot-gun or rille, and. T,-orsr of nlJ, l.'V actual 



the bullet to always gi i wide ot t lie mark- 



several niches at l(.ifl yards, the variation inereasmg- or dimini-hiug 

 as the distanec became gi-eater or less. My LeUei' is tliar all glasses 

 ■whieli hang diagonally octosb the eye] canse a certain amount of 



retraction, wldeh is the case with ohnoat nil eye-glasses. Perfect 

 sight can only be obtained by looking perpeudicidarly through the 

 veiy a.vis of the glass. Good spi.'etaeles 11 re all arranged according 

 to this tact. "Phila's" glasses may all he badly ground, which 

 would of com-se cause much abejTatiou of sight. Yet I think the 

 diiiieidty lies in their not standmg squarely across the centre of 

 the. eye." 



1 o«n a number of rifles, shot-guns and pistols, and shoot them 

 eonstantly, and from my loug thirty-foiu' inch to my short three- 

 iuch Derringer, I liave found, by repeated contests with others, 

 that there 1= no vai-ialion in the amount of elevation necessary be- 

 tween !. I ., :ii 1; . yesight and my eyes assisted by glasses. I 



have KJL i^ 1 .,1:1 I Ii. s for friends, and have repeatedly taken up 

 ft gnu m ,,., jii eiy l,arids before and shot us well as with my own, 

 .showinj,' my sight was not made ahuoniial l.\ the nse of glasses. 

 Pardon me for my intiusion on yom' vulualile spaet. My only ex- 

 eudo for speaking so much of myself is the hope tliat it might aid 

 and encourage others afflicted as Oonulgee. 



Five years ago I accidentally discovered that I hadhecome neai'- 

 sighled. 80 griulnally had the focal point changed that I was un- 

 aware ot it until I happened to try the glasses of one of my near- 

 sighted friends, wlren lo and behold ! a brighter worid lay before 

 me. Prcviv.us to that time, when in the woods, 1 experienced some 

 diiliculty in judging distances, and detected myself squinting 

 eontmually, as that seemed to clear the vision somewhat. At the 

 oidi.ua.]y r.-adiiiy distance my eyesight is perfect, apparently, but 

 beyond thiit ;i glass about No. 30 is necessaiy to give me a clear 

 outline of anyrhii.g. 



In shootuig with a v'^' ... -r.. 1 al ways use glasses, but have 

 never experienced the .J : .i.l' n : ' I'hila'' eoinplaiiis of — viz., 

 shooting over; and, it Is ■■ M. 1 .. Ii ; glasses whenever be does his 

 rifle, I thhik with iiroperly ad.jiisted sights ho wUl have no trouble. 

 I have made and used several varieties of fixed rear sights, but the 

 ve-y best one I have ever had I have just purchased from Wm. 

 Lyman, ui Jfidfllefield, Conn. The fi'out sight viewed through 

 this, as well as the object aimed at, is rendered perfectly clear. 



This Bight is one of the many Kood things with which I have be- 

 come acquainted tliroiigi. l'-i. ...Irrip.s of FoBESx AND Steea3I. 



As a relief froi 

 week -with del 

 lovers.. I .■ .1 -I 

 hfean.l - I 



i^r.r.'.'...., '■•■ 



the .. i .! I. .Ob, it is hailed from week to 



f A;...l. fi..i;: 1 Ij. uiformation that Interests all 

 :.:;i. it stimulates a desire for more out-of-door 

 . . iition. Long may it wave. H. H. H. 



HUNTING EIFLE8. 



IN your issue of November i I read a letter signed "Otto," 

 with reference to the Kemiedy magazine rifle, and elaimmgan 

 undisputed superiority for it in its class as a repeating ai-m. I 

 have very lately had au opportunity of in.sjjocting a Kennedy ritio 

 and of comparing it with one of the Winchester patiem, but faded 

 any advantage in the new arm that is not possessed to au 



equal extent by its older rival, and 

 copy in which tlie !aodilieati...u .if i 

 constitute a dilTi ia.ii..-e. Will, the eo 

 used «itli both IheH.. ir.!r.. i nuall 



ehan 



breech ; and sli..-il.! si.y I 



fective cartridge, ihe i...,'iilL-, ■ 

 than in the Wmehester, as Ih 

 closed when the rille is lu'ed 

 whUe in the latter the lock « 

 escape freely uito the au. ^ 

 the old weu'-kuown arm, who 



incUned to look npou it 

 is so trilling as hardly to 



eonii«iratively small powder charge 

 uall in a sporting sense), I do not 



on either system bursting at tlie 

 it occiu- from the explosion of a de- 

 idd be more>erious in the fvennedy 

 4U<img lock cover in the former is 

 id the escape of gas is retarded ; 

 tir remains open, and the gas can 

 re I buying a rifle I would prefer 



performances in skilled hands are 



of world-wide renown. I do not think that the limit of excellence 

 has yet been reached in repealing anas, and aa a hunter I would 

 welcome any improvement that would lead to the greater efiicieney 

 of the aiTu. Thi: small charge of iiowderand consequently low- 

 velocity of the projeetilo is the weak point of the repeater, and 1 

 would suggest to the manufaeturers to direct .tlieir attention to 



the production .■+r.-.i!' ■ n u! E.vpress rifles on the repeating 



pnnciple— ar-i-L. ijele «itb the performances of the 



English Expr.. ilile of beiug safely used with large 



ohaiges, say loo gi.i.o,-, o. j, o .. doi' behind a 300-grain bullet iu a 

 bore of .5 inch. 



Constructed as.the present repeaters are, a charge like the above 

 might b.-- d;..,ge!-"n". f " "-Tg- f'-iv in tie.- rft-ts of the mochaiUKm 

 sustai,.; .- I.. ;... •. i - I .... -.!... I- i : . give ivay and give 



rise t... ... ' ... ;.:..,.. -J does not entirely 



close th., L.,„i..L „.- ..1,., ...OL ean oi.aer.o; loi himself, a ring of the 

 metal of the liase of tlie shell beiug'plaiuly visible and imsupported, 

 und this in some cases might give>ay and allow the gas to flush 

 bacl;. T > 1 .-. e. . .-thing rf this kind, I would recommend that 

 the 111. iilge shell shoidd be encased in that of the 



barr... I which should be recessed to include the 



(iange ,,i i u, -,u ,. ...,-,,. while the top of the breeeh-ptop].>eT or hnlt 



should be made uiitre-sbaped to tit into this recess and t I'll itniilly 

 seal the end of the bore. An ammgement of this Liml T\...iild give 



.perfectsafetyintbecveLd of the biurafieg' ; i. nidge. It 



remains to he seen to what extent the ji leeharusm 



will be able to resist the backward strain i _;e, but iu 



every ease some arrangement should he aooo,.., uuai .u ma event ot 

 anytbhig giving way, the bolt be kept from being habia to fly back 

 in the firer's fiwie. 



To fnlly secure the advantages of the' Express system, such a 

 veloeily nnist, lie eoimuunirated to the bullet that aft-i rthe penetra- 

 iiou of any hutt bod.\ , it shoidd break up and the eomponent frag- 

 ments fly furwtud like a ..'.:■- ' I'l-i-ihot just after leaving the 



muzsile of aguu, and . tying iu their path into 



IJulj). Iha.ve seen a 1:, .id on being hit by a buUet 



fired from a Henry Eaj ..r- n,,.-. unoig live drams powder, and 

 on opening the carcass hardly a trace of the metal of the bullet 

 could be found, but the work done inside the animal was territie. 

 The lungs were ]."'r ' i-.^ . . . i :'i.,,i «i.'- "^liatcoidd be ladled 

 out with a spi s . . iinm.'d, and done 



■nith a soft EH 1 Against thick- 



skinned game the i.iooii.r,.. ,oiu .;i . ,i, ... ii;, i.uhet must be modi- 

 fied, t)ie canity iu some cases lining eutnely snppressed. 



I am certain if your rille makers ivonld turn tlieir atteution 

 toward the perfecting of a poweifnl repeating Express rille that it 

 would meet with a ready sale in aU parts of the world \tliere the 

 sport^loving Anglo-Saxon geeks the escitoment and pleasure of the 

 chase. GnuMai!. 



MILITABT 3MALL-.4EMS. 



T>EIG-GEN'E S. V. BENET, Chief of Ordnance, V. S. A., has 

 just made a. very mterestijig report of the doings of his de- 

 dortment dming the past year to the Secretary of "War. Iu addit- 

 ion to the routine notes of progress he gives very fully his views 

 about the advantages of a ready National Guard. Speaking of the 

 Fi"ankford Arsenal ammunition lie says ; 



"It has for some time been my intention to recommend the adop- 

 tion of a reloading cartridge as an economy, and the trials and es- 

 peiiments conducted with that in view will soon enable me to reach 

 a defimte conclusion. The present long-range excitement points 

 to heavy charges and Revere recoils, but the experience of other 

 aiiuies and a httle reflection convince me that for .irmy purposes 

 the best average results can be obtained by keeping the charge with- 

 in moderate Umits." 



The report shows thattherewere manufactured at the Springfield 

 Armory during the fiscal year, 20,387 rifles and carbines, and on 

 this subject Gen. Benuet says : 



" The operations at the armory have been eouducted in the ad- 

 mirable and satisfactory manner which alway.s characterizes the 

 performances of every duty by Col. J. G. Benton, commanding. 

 The reputation of the work there doue has never stood higher than 

 now, and it can safely rest on the deseiwed excellence of its arms, 

 known and recognized everywhere. 



" On the 1st of July there were in store as a reserve sujiply, in- 

 cluding the above number made, only 22,979, showing that the 

 number on hand at the beginning of the year had been weU-nigh 

 exhausted during the twelve months, by issues to the Army and 

 malitia, etc. At this rate of manufacture .and consumption, the 

 day is far distant when om' reser\-e supply of arms will have reached 

 what all nations consider a proper one. 



"At its last session Congress made an appropriation of $300,000 

 for small-anus, being au increase of f' 50,000 over the appropriation 

 for the year jirevious, and I indulge the hope that the amount will 

 continue to bo increased from year to year untU the country is bet- 

 ter jjrepared for any imforeseeu exigency. 



"The Springfield rifle continnefi to give very general satisfaction, 

 and the complaints made against it are not greater iu number nor 

 more intense than is the ease in other arniien the world over. I am 

 satisfied that as a single breech-loader it has no superior as a imli- 

 tnry arm, and that it will not be superseded hy anything short of ft 

 magazine gun. The latter will nnrptestionaljly lie adopted, and 

 we will as certainly do so, as not many years ago we adopted the 

 revolver. No magazine giui has yet attained that perfection and 

 completeness that will warrant its general introduction in theai-my. 

 The HotchkiBS has met with ie\ erses, due to hasty manufacture 

 aud imperfect design iu some of its minor parts, which can hardly 

 he charged to the invention. It is believed that these defects, in 

 which the mechanical principles of the invention were not involved, 

 have been con-ectcdin the new model, and more favorable results 

 may now be anticipated. The inannfactm-er's experience with this 

 gun proves that difficulties are ever to be met and overcome in per- 

 fecting a uew invention that has to stand the severe test of field 

 service. As a rule, a hrst-rate military arm must, be of gnradual 

 growth : and be finally made up of successive improvements ren- 

 dered necessary' to correct defects developed in tlie hands of the 

 soldier. The luiuciple ot the Hotchkiss is a good one, but there 

 seems to be some prejudice existing in our scvice against the holt 

 system audits awkward handle that time and custom may overcome. 



" The calls for magazine guns by our cavalry, the improvements 

 being made in these arras, and the necessity of extenchng the in- 

 quiry iu order to get the best, induces me to reecommeud that an 

 appropriation be made to enable this department to further study 

 and test by trial iu the field a few of the best magazine systems. 



" Au appropriation of ?'500,000for the manuf actm'e of the Spring- 

 field gun diuing the next year is deemed a reasonable one. The 

 strongest and most convincing argument for a continued peace is 

 being thoroughly prepared for war. Our armories and arsenals 

 fuUy stocked with war matarial, om- fortresses weU armed, tmd our 

 malitia well orgaiuzed, armed, and equipped to march shoulder to 

 shoidder with om- small body of regulars.conBtitute the best peace 

 offering we can present to the world. In the matter ot prepai-atiou 

 economy dm-ing peace means extravagance in war aud, as a finan- 

 cial problem, the wise and timely expenditures of the present will 

 be the tniest economy," 



As an appendi.'i to the report there is au account of a series of 

 trials on the extreme ra}iges of miiitaiy small-arms. These trials 

 were condueted by (lol. lienton and Ctipt. .T. E. Greer. These 

 trials were undertaken and prosecuted luider instructions from the 

 Ordnance office, and the work has lH*n performed \rith a great de- 

 gree of thoroughness and coinpletenegs. These reports will am- 

 ply repay carcfid perneal by those in the Army aud out of it who 

 are mterested iu rifle firing, aud much of the data given will be 

 fonud new and useful. The use of the telephone iu determining 

 the time of ihght of projectUes, esiieciaUy at voiy long ranges. Has 

 first made at the Sandy Hoeik Proving Ground, and its application 

 in these expruneids ivas found most valuable and importaut. 



Among Captain Greer's couclnsions ;ue the following : 



Ah a residt of these tiials it will be seen that the service rifle 

 with serviee carti-idge is amplv Huffieient to disalile and possiblv to 



kUl up to nearlv 3,000 vards ; 'that the cio , 1 1 „., , .r 1 1, ,,.i-.i„e 



using the rille cartridge ; that ihe 500-.: . ' - oiv 



rifle with a twist s-iiflieient to give the rs , „ 



nearlv ,1,700 vards : that variations ii. . ,]^„ 



^tJjjj, ,,, ,i;. ,,-,,-, I,,.,, I-.. |, ,-,,...,„. ,.4rr.,-t,;... . . , , .;,,-, ;,i,^„H. 



velo.-.;.; ■■■■'■•■ .....I I ,.,: idatwilb u 

 cartr.. ,. . : weight of 



bidl, h I. ,, . i.i:..i-,.i .ii.Mi -.!, -e- i.ii.g a ranging 



Another Easoe Si.atiohter — ChartoUelMon, P. E. Island, JVou, 



4.— We are baring an inquest to-day over a dead marker, shot iu 

 the usual maimei. ly ateppmg out from the target while shooting 

 was stdl in progress, and ,Tas. .1. Ileaj-fj; was pierced with ti bullet. 

 Capt. Longwortb who bred the fatal shot tells Ills version of the 

 manslaughter by stating that " Nov. 3 was set apart fi..r the band's 

 annual shouting matek, and us u is attached to tie; Vid Battalion, 

 myself and Lieut. Daniel Stewart, attended in command. When I 

 went to the range before thematch eommonced, I fouud thei-e were 

 no signals. I immediately sent to town fm- them. When they ai'- 

 rived they were put in the proper places and given to the propel- 

 parties, and the raatcli eoiumeru^cd— deceased, actuig as marker, re- 

 ceived the signals which the marker uses. Eveiythiug went on 

 weU. When the baudsmeu had finished shooting at the SOO yards 



