Cen 

14 IMPLEMENTS FOR COLLECTING, AND THEIR USE. 
ments with a wet (not dripping) rag, and then with an oiled 
one. For the full wash use cold water first; it loosens dirt 
better than hot water. Set the barrels in a pail of water; 
wrap the end of the cleaning rod with tow or cloth, and pump 
away till your arms ache. Change the rag or tow, and the 
water too, till they both stay clean for all the swabbing you 
can do. Fill the barrels with boiling water till they are well 
heated ; pour it out, wipe as dry as possible inside and out, 
and set them by a fire. Finish with a light oiling, inside and 
out; touch up all the metal about the stock, and polish the 
wood-work. Do not remove the locks oftener than is neces- 
sary; every time they are taken out, something of the exqui- 
site fitting that marks a good gun may be lost; as long as they 
work smoothly take it for granted they are all right. The 
same direction applies to nipples. To keep a gun well, under 
long disuse, it should have had a particularly thorough cleaning ; 
the chambers should be packed with greasy tow; greased wads 
may be rammed at intervals along the barrels; or the barrels 
may be filled with melted tallow. Neat’s-foot is reeommended 
as the best easily-procured oil ; porpoise-oil which is, I believe, 
used by watch-makers, is the very best; the oil made for use 
on sewing machines is excellent; ‘‘ olive” oil (made of lard) 
for table use answers the purpose. The quality of any oil 
may be improved by putting in it a few tacks, or scraps of 
zinc,—the oil expends its rusting capacity in oxidizing the 
metal. Inferior oils get ‘‘sticky.” One of the best prevent- 
ives of rust is mercurial (“‘blue”) ointment: it may be freely 
used. Kerosene will remove rust; but use it sparingly for it 
‘‘eats” sound metal too. 
§9. To Loap A GuN effectively requires something more 
than knowledge of the facts that the powder should go in 
before the shot, and that each should have a wad a-top. Prob- 
ably the most nearly universal fault is use of too much shot 
for the amount of powder; and the next, too much of both. 
The rule is bulk for bulk of powder and shot; if not exactly 
this, then rather less shot than powder. It is absurd to sup- 

