652 
FOREST AND STREAM 
P? w* 
The Manipulation op Cannon. —Relative to the re¬ 
cent statement of our correspondent, “Ego,” that the 
premature discharge of cannon is often caused by remov¬ 
ing the thumb from the vent, a reader sends the following 
communication to the Troy Whig, from General Hagner, 
commander of the Watervliet Arsenal, relative to an ac¬ 
cident almost identical with the one described by 
"Ego:"— 
Editor Whig A news item published In your paper 
this morning stated that a man was injured by the pre¬ 
mature discharge of a cannon be was loading to fire a 
salute on the Fourth of July, at Roimd Lake, and the re¬ 
porter goes on to say, “theman who was covering the 
vent of the cannon with bis thumb removed it, earning 
the premature discharge of the piece.” 
This opinion, so confidently expressed, giving no doubt 
great distress to the man who had “ tended vent,” that 
he could have caused, or prevented premature explosion 
by removing or retaining bis finger on the vent — after 
the cartridge was introducedintothegun — is certainly er¬ 
roneous, and 1 feel sure from my long experience in su¬ 
pervising the firing of cannon, that the poor fellow who 
is thus blamed may entirely acquit himself of being the 
cause of the disaster. The effect intended by closing the 
vent with the cushion of a thumb-stall while sponging 
the gun, is, that if any portion of the cartridge bag be 
left in the gun after the last fire, the sponge pushed down 
upon it would extinguish a live spark if the air was ex¬ 
cluded from entering the vent. Hence the time when the 
closing of the vent can, even theoretically, do any good, 
is during the operation of sponging, for of course, when 
the sponge is out of the bore and the loose fitting cartridge 
is pushed in by the small rammer head, no exclusion of 
ail- can be effected by stopping the vent, and should the 
cartridge be ignited during the loading (by fire remaining 
in the bore) the effect of tne vent being closed would be, 
that the thumb closing it would be blown off, as well as 
the arm of the man using the rammer. The moment the 
sponge is withdrawn, therefore, the thumb should be re¬ 
moved as it has then done all the good possible. I am 
myself convinced that the theory upon tliis subject is 
practically of no value ; no sponge excludes the air so com¬ 
pletely as to produce a vacuum even in the bore of a field- 
gun when the vent is completely closed, aud in larger 
guns as bristle sponges and spring sponges are now used, 
of course no such effect can be produced : hence tending 
vent is unnecessary. The best precautions to urge upon 
all persons firing muzzle loading cannon are : First, use 
woolen cartridge bags, flannel, serge or merino: second, 
never use a soaking wet sponge, the water should all be 
pressed out leaving it damp only ; third, be careful not 
to fire a blank cartridge with the bore elevated, let it 
rather be a little depressed so that no water may rest at 
the bottom of the bore ; fourth, sponge carefully, push¬ 
ing bard against the bottom of the bore and turning the 
sponge in the hand as it is withdrawn; this will gather 
together any fragments of the last cartridge bag and with¬ 
draw them from the bore : fifth, let number one, who 
loads, be careful to expose one band only in front of the 
bore—no more is needed—and sixth, remember that the 
most probable cause of premature explosions in firing can¬ 
non is, that too wet a sponge used in a gun slightly ele¬ 
vated leaves water at the bottom of the bore, wetting the 
powder and the bag. When tliegunisfired, tliewetpow- 
der saturating parts of the bag forms a slow match, which, 
left in the gun by hurried sponging, spits out fire enough 
t,j Ignite the next dry powder that touches it, and blowing 
rtutiL' rammer even before the cartridge reaches the 
P. Y. Hagnee, 
Bvt.-Brig. Gen’l, Colonel of Ordnance. 
EVERLASTING SHELLS. 
Newark, N. J., Sept. Mill. 
EtlUor I IMMf‘ St-rcmf. :■— 
In your ismi' of 1Hr jjt.li inst. I notice a communication from 
T. vas sinned “Gcxnr,' F- which the writer finds considerable 
fault with the •• ivurinetio*' YD" used by him in the Bullard rifle. 
l‘ Should Judge h.v MU' time of the article that "Bexar" must 
ben habitual fault Undue. Ho hal no better luck with his shot 
gun than with die rifle, and it appear s to me that the fault does 
notrest entirely upon tho shell I bin • » Ballard rflle and fifty 
everlasting shells* which l have ik«cu 1 ov01 n y™u\ J have firad a 
great many shots In that time, and" U>> ret I rave not found one 
poor shell. On Tuesday last I began shooting about » *■ n. and 
continued for about four hours, using but onei-to '!• J havedouo 
the same thing a number of times before, arid hnvi never been 
troubled with expansion In the slightest, degree. I »>.'«• never 
been troubled with the extractor faiBng to eject the Shell and I 
have never seen any trouble of that kind where the owner o the 
rifle takes pride enough in the same to keep it clean. If is v. ' 
o tsv to pull a boot out of a pool of dear water, bi 11 not so easy to 
uet out of a mud-liole. My rule is-use plenty of lubricant, and 
blaze away. I have fired as high as seventy-five shots without 
wiping the rifle, and the result of the last shot was as good as tho 
first I know nothing about the climate of Texas, and as It would 
not lock well to accuse " Bexar" Of negligence in the care of his 
ria e and shells, X will lay the blame entirely upon the climate, 
and advise " Bexar" to sock a different oHmtrtc,and his ever¬ 
lasting shells will not expand, but will remain, os they are rightly 
named, Everlasting. 
Oil Citv, Pa., Sept. 13th. 
I see by your correspondent "Bexar” In your issue of the 11th 
l Hat he is having considerable trouble with his everlasting shells 
(or his Ballard rifle. _ „ , 
Last winter 1 purchased a 40-calibre mid-range Ballard. I had 
at first the same trouble with the shells that “Bexar” complains 
Of By advice of H. M. Farrow, Esq., I twisted each sheila num¬ 
ber of tiroes in a piece of emery doth, stnoc when I have had no 
trouble. J have used each shell I think at least, forty times since 
1 rubbed them down ou the emery doth, but since then I have 
had no trouble. I think It necessary, however, to keep the shells 
and rifle chamber very clean. 
1 imagine with my Ballard I can bore a deer from stem to stern, 
using 65-grains powder, at any fair distance. I mean to try it in 
November, We have plenty of game of all.kimlH this season. 
' ' " Cell Muzzle,” 
Canada.—T he general competition of the Dominion 
Rifle Association opened at Ottawa on the 10th. The 
meeting is likely to he the most successful yet held on the 
Rideau River. There will be sixteen targets in operation, 
nine of Brunei's system, three of Cassel’s, two of Baeen’s 
and one Beers’, also one target for the 1,000 yards range. 
At the conclusion of the competition the prizes are to be 
presented to the winners by Her Royal Highness, Princes 
Louise. The cermony will likely take place in the 
Senate Chamber. Nova Scotia sends a strong team of 15, 
and others fine sets of men. Over $0,500 are offered, in 
addition to cups and rifles. Interest is also attached to 
the match because the four targets, all patents, are to be 
tested for government purposes during tho match. No 
American will participate, although there is a competition 
open to all comers, for a purse of $400. 
Massachusetts — Boston, Sept. 12th—Mammoth Rifle 
Gallery . — The regular monthly prize shoot is progressing 
fine!}-. Mr. S. B. Braun, of New York City visited the 
gallery and made a fine score of 38, and now heads the 
list of competitors. The following is the standing of the 
several competitors to date: 150 feet; rounds 8 ; pos¬ 
sible 40 : — 
S. B. Braun . 5 5 6 5 4 4 5 5-3? 
H. A. Pollard . 5 4 4 4 5 5 5 ft—37 
E. Whittier . ft 5 4 4 ft 4 5 5-37 
C. Eastwood. 5 5 5 6 4 4ft 4-37 
W. II. Harrison . 4 4 4 4 ft 5 5 5-36 
John ,M. Edson . 4 5 4 4 4 ft 6 !i-3« 
llenry Lowell .5 5 4 4 4 5 4 5-30 
.1. M. Goldsmith . 4 4 4 5 5 5 ft 4-36 
(tool-go Estes. 5 B 6 4 ft 4 4 4—36 
M. O. Johnson . 4 4 4 4 4 5 ft 5-35 
N. Taylor. 4 5 4 4 4 4 5 5-33 
It. K. Lcyman . ft 4 4 4 5 4 4 5—35 
Goo. M. Smith . 5 5 4 4 4 4 4 5-35 
Ronton, Sept .—There was a good attendance of members 
of the Massachusetts Rifle Association of to-day’s meet 
at the range at Walnut Hill. The competition in 
two matches were quite spirited. The weather conditions 
were goods, the light being excellent, and the wind, which 
ranged from 7 to 8 o’clock, was very steady. Appended 
are the best scores made in the amateur series :— 
D. Whittier. 4 ft 4 4 ft ft 4 5 4 4—44 
K. Davis .4 5 4 5 5 4 4 5 3 4—43 
K. A. Blood. 4 4 4 3 6 4 5 4 4 4—11 
A. B. Archer. 4 4 4 5 4 4 4 3 4 4-40 
In the “Silver Ware” match, the following scores are 
the best :— 
W. Charles . 4 ft 5 4 4 6 5-33 
J. Nichols . ft 6 4 4 4 4 4—31 
H. L. Lee . 4 4 4 ft 4 4 6-30 
E. Whittier . 4 5 4 5 4 4 4- 30 
J. J Jordon. 4 5 4 5 4 4 4-30 
— TheRaymond Sportsmen’s club held their regularcom- 
petition in glass ball and rifle shooting Sept. 12th, at Belle¬ 
vue range, Medford. There was, as usual,a large number of 
the sporting fraternity present, The weather conditions 
were favorable, and the competition in the handicap rifle 
match was well contested, Mr. J. S. Bennett coining to 
the front with a good 46 out of a possible 50. The fol¬ 
lowing are the scores in the same, distance 200 yards, 
rounds ten: — 
J. S. Bennett . 4 ft 4 ft 4 6 4 ft 5 6—46 
J. R. Teele . 545563654 4-45 
l). Kirkwood . 5 5 * 5 4 4 ft 4 4 4—44 
G. B. Blanchard. 4 4 ft 4 4 4 4 ft 4 5—43 
G. E. Everett . 5 4 4 4 4 4 5 ft 4 4—43 
J. Ilarten.3 6 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4—40 
J. (\ Smith. 444 3 44344 fi-39 
C. P. Gleason. 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 ft 4 2-36 
Mr. G. B- Blancluird succeeded in scoring 29 out of a 
posssible 30 in the handicap glass ball match, the result 
of .which is as follows :— 
Single Rouble Rotary 
Trap. Trap. Trap. Total. 
R. B. Blanchard. 10 9 X0 29 
J. C. Smith .. 10 8 7 26 
D. Kirkwood. 9 8 8 2» 
B. J. Risk. 10 5 9 24 
,J.B. Teele. 8 ft 8 21 
G. H. Fox. 7 7 3 17 
Hopkinton, Sept. 10th .—The Rifle Club held a shoot at 
their range at Claflin’s Grove last Saturday. The weather 
conditions were not very favorable, but some respectable 
scores were made. The “blackbird” and the “mag” 
were frequently shown. The conditions were 500 yards, 
ten rounds, with a possible 50. The following were the 
best scores:— 
P W Smith. .,. 5 4 5 5 4 5 5 ft 4 6—47 
d'. C. White. 5 ft 5 1 3 4 4 3 5 4-42 
u Rose . 4 3 4 4 6 5 5 4 ft 3—42 
N. Jewell. 545540544 4—40 
Charles Frost*.... 4 5 4354803 5—36 
O P. Wood. . 4 2 3 0 4 4 5 3 3 2-30 
Medford, Bellevue Range, Sept. 3d.—The following 
scores were made to-day in Sharps Rifle match :— 
n. S. Harris. . 4 4 5 5 5 6 5 5 4 6—47 
E. Whittier . 5 5 4 5 4 5 4 5 4 5-46 
Re-entry. 444444 5 54 4-42 
W. Charles. 5 6 4 4 5 6 5 5 4 4-46 
Ko-eutrv. 46 45 5 44 4 5 o—45 
H. Kimball.... 4 5 5 5 4 5 6 5 4 4-46 
.1. B Osborn. 4 5 4 0 5 5 4 4 4 5-45 
Re-entry . 3 4 4 4 6 5 4 4 5 4—43 
V -Hollis . 4 ft 4 5 5 4 4 5 4 5-45 
' tee-entry. 5 4 5 4 5 5 4 3 5 4-42 
C. 11. Harrison . 4 4 4 5 5 4 4 5 4 5-44 
I. J. flnriu 1 . 4 5 3 5 5 ft 4 4 5 4—44 
Re-entry . 3 3 4 4 4 5 4 4 4 5-40 
II Russell . .. ;. 4 5 4 4 6 4 6 5 4 4—44 
tlifnirtoil. 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 5 5 5—43 
T B., Mean. 4 5 5 4 4 4 4 5 5 4—43 
Re-entry.. 444446446 4-42 
Milford. Sept. Vlth . — At the third practice shoot of the 
team from Co. M. 6th Reg. M. Y. M. held to-day, on the 
Go's range, thfi following were scores made. Distance, 
200 yards; military Springfield rifle, state model, off¬ 
hand :— 
Private Carpenter, second. . 4 3 2 ft 4-18 
Orel . 4 3 2 4 4—17 
>• Gould. 4 3 2 4 4-17 
“ Whitney. 8 0 4 4 4—1ft 
Total. *5 
Previous scores were, September 6th., 73; September 
10th, 83. 
This company have been enlisted only a few months, 
and the men composing the teams are entirely unused to 
range shooting; and above three scores am.fee only times 
they have ever used the rifles. Knowing tihisa facts, the 
scores speak well for the future. 
The “Fox ” gun offered by the band at their fair, held 
during the past week, to the person receiving the hipest 
number of votes, was secured by John Martin, he having 
the fortunate highest number. Sumner. 
Clinton, Sept. 10th .—At the rifle shooting-match this 
noon James Burt did some fine work with his Creedmoor 
rifle, making 48 out of 60. John Greenwood made 49 out 
of 60. 
Connecticut— Collinsville, Sept. 10th .—Canton Rod 
and Gun Club, Riverside Range. Practice meeting at 200 
yards; off hand; 3 pounds pull; 10 shots:— 
Mars. 0 .1 Aldas. G. 
Lewis. 97 42 Pfister. 81 39 
Hull . 93 40 I Andrews. 79 38 
Moore. 89 411 
—The Bridgeport Rifle Association held their regular 
semi-monthly meeting at Sea Side Range, Friday, Sept. 
12th. The afternoon was fine, the wind light and vari¬ 
able, ranging’from about 11 o'clock to 1. There were five 
competitors with the following results :— 
Sharps Rifle Match; 10 shots ; carton target; handi¬ 
cap ; 500 yards; 7 entries:— 
F. W. Peek, mid-range, 1st prize_ 464665646 6—53 
S. 11. Hubbard, mid-ranitn,2d prizo. ft ft 6 ft 4 I 4 4 ft 6—48 
D. N. Conger, mid-range, 3d,prizo. .0 63 4. 56464 6—43 
(The first and third score in this match was made with 
a Sharps mid-range rifle, 40-calibre, chambered for 60 
grains powder.) 
Sharps Rifle Match ; 10 shots ; 200 yards ; 10 entries :— 
G. W. Kerr, 1st prize. 5 4 5 454544 4-44 
Harry Nichols, 2d prize. 4 4 4 4 5 4 4 5 5 4—43 
S. H. Hubbard, 3d prize. 8 5 4 4 5 4 5 4 4 4—42 
Silverware Match ; 7 shots ; 200 yards ; 18 entries:— 
Harry Nichols, 1st prize . 5 5 5 4 4 4 5—32 
J. MeConrt, 2d prize. 4 4 5 4 4 4 5—30 
S. H. Hubbard. 5 4 5 4 4 4 4—30 
Nichols Gold Badge Match; -7 shots; 200 yards ; 7 
entries :— 
Harry Nichols .,5 3 4 5 4 5 5—31 
Ladies’ Match; 5 shots ; 200 yards; 8 entries 
Mrs. John Slatclier, 1st prize.. 4 4 3 3 4—18 
Mrs. S. V. Nichols, 2d prizo.-. 4 2 3 4 8—16 
Mrs. F. W. Peck, 3d prize... 4 4 3 2 8—16 
Mrs. Geo. F. Hull. 4 3 3 4 0—14 
Manhattan Rifle Club.—F ourth shoot for the rifle 
iresented by Messrs. Shoverling, Daly & Gales, Friday, 
iept. 12th, at Schuetzen Park, Union Hill:— 
C. G. Zcttlcr. 15 14 23 20 17 25 25 19 23 21-205 
John Raschen. 18 19 20 23 17 22 20 21 23 24 207 
Win. Hayes. 14 21 22 1U 21 18 24 20 22 21-202 
Wm. Klein. 21 13 24 17 21 24 23 20 23 24—210 
I). Miller. 23 19 21 23 19 19 19 21 25 25-214 
L. Vogel. 23 10 17 17 15 16 23 19 19 21-180 
New Jersey —Rrinton, Sept. 6th .—Winchester Re¬ 
peating Match ; fifth competition ; 21 entries :— 
A7Io«J- 
Name. Rifle. Score. ancc. Total- 
D. F. Davids.Military... 4 5 5 4 5 4 4 4 4 5—44 3 47 
H. W. Gourley.Military.. 4 4 4 4 5 4 5 4 4 5-43 3 46 
E. M. Squicr.Military... 4454454 5 4 4-43 3 46 
J. W. Todd.Sporting.. 44445 5 4 5 5 4—.. - 45 
T. Fitz.Sporting.. 5 4 4 5 4 5 5 4 4 5—.. - 45 
F. II. Holton.Sporting.. 5 4 5 4 5 4 4 5 5 4—.. - 45 
Col. D. I .odor .Military... 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 ^ 40 3 43 
M. Sharp.Military... 4 5 4444444 3—40 3 43 
J. R. Byrd.Military... 3 4 4 5 4 3 4 4 4 2-37 3 40 
Brinton, Sept. 13th —8 p.m.—S harps match; 200 yards; 
military rifle ; 23 entries; the following being the best 
scores:— 
D. T. Davids. 4 5 4 4 4 4 5 4 4 6-43 
W. A. Robinson. 454544444 4—42 
H.W. Gourley. 4 4 4 1 5 5 3 4 3 4^40 
Ft. J. McCabe. . 4 4 4 4 5 3 4 4 4 3-89 
F. Brown. .... 2B5434354 4—39 
Col. G. E. E. Howard. 44 5 343344 4—38 
J. R. Byrd. 6 3 4 4 4 4 3 3 4 4—38 
Same Date, 4 P. m.—A ssociation match; 200 yards; any 
rifle; 23 entries; the following being the best scores :— 
E. M. Squires. 4 6 5 5 ft 4 4 ft 5 6-47 
T. Fitz. 4 5 4 5 5 4 5 6 5 4-46 
F. Ilrown. 4 ft 5 4 ft 4 4 4 4 5-44 
1). S. Ranks. 5 4 4 4 4 4 5 4 4 4—42 
•I. W.Todd. 4 4 4 4 4 5 8 4 4 5-41 
C. K. Bon nett. 3 4 4 0 4 4 5 3 4 3-39 
Sept. 0th .—Ballard match, sixth competition; 200 yards; 
the following being the best scores:— 
E. E. Lewis. 5 45454546 4^-45 
L. K. Grove.5 5 4 4 ft 4 4 4 4 5-4t 
Col. Howard. ft 5 5 5 5 5 5 4 4 5—43 
D. S. Banks.5 4 6 4 4 4 4 5 4 4-43 
Col. D. Lodor. 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 5-41 
P. Bonnett. 4 5 4 4 4 4 4 3 4 6-41 
P. Bonnett, Secretary. 
West End, Sept. 15th .—Remarkable scores were made 
in the match for the Sharps mid-range rifle shot to-day at 
the range of the Columbia Rifle Association. In the last 
competition A. G. Holcombe of Brooklyn made the best 
score on record—109 out of a possible 200. The conditions 
of the match are 500 yards, 10 shots, any rifle, any posi¬ 
tion ; military rifles allowed five points over sporting 
rifles. The winners of two former competitions were Dr. 
Dudley and Mr. Rathhone. Eighteen entered for to-day’s 
match. The contest lay between Mr. Rathhone and the 
last winner, A. G. Holcombe. In the first round Rath- 
bone and Holcombe each scored ten straight bulls-eves; 
Falco, 47 : Green, 43, and Turner, 37, The match then 
narrowed down to Rathhone and Holcombe. Rathhone 
again made ten consecutive bull's-eyes. Holcombe kept 
his string good until his tenth shot, when he made a cen¬ 
tre. The competition and prize were given to Mr. Rath- 
bone. The best scores were as follows : 
.__ 155555 5 5 55 5-60 
Bathbono. '(555655655 5-BO 
__... (55655555 5 5-60 
Holcombe. 1565555556 4-49 
C. Falco... 55564545 5 4—47 
The beginners’ match—100 yards, ten shots, any rifle— 
was then shot, and resulted as follows : C. J. Falco, 43 ; 
Col. B. F. Hart, 42; F. Dudley, 41; W. O. Weatberbee, 
40 ; J. K. Gorkman, 40 ; S. Parrish, 39. 
Louisiana —New Orleans, Sept. 1th. —To-day was an 
important one at Frogmoor, and the riflemen were out in 
force. The weather was well suited for the sport. The 
sky was overcast with clouds hut tho atmosphere was clear 
and the wind very gentle and regular. Under the con¬ 
ditions the “Washington Artillery team put up the best 
score yet made in the inter-State contest, while the Con¬ 
tinentals seoured points to an extent which in any of the 
previous matches would have given them the victory. 
In the Louisiana Field Team, excellent shooting was 
made at the 200 yards target, the lowest score being 23 
points. 
The result of this match ties the Washington Artillery 
team with that of the Louisiana Field Artillery, both 
having won thrice. 
iri'M.MARY—Inter-State, or Mobile trophy; sixth compe- 
