GUNS AND AMMUNITION. 



3°7 



A KNOCK-DOWN ARGUMENT. 



Woodworth, Mont. 



Editor Recreation:- I send you by this 

 mail a piece of a domestic bull's skull with 

 a hole in the centre, made with a 25-35 Win- 

 chester bullet. The animal dressed over 

 1,000 pounds. The man who owned him 

 thought my little gun was not large enough 

 to knock the bull down, let alone killing 

 him, but he dropped dead in his tracks. 



I used a soft point bullet. It went clear 

 through the head and lodged against the 

 neck joint. If a 50-100-450 will do any bet- 

 ter work they are made on a different plan 

 than of old. You will notice that the skull 

 is badly fractured. 



I should like to ask Mr. Van Dyke if he 

 has ever used one of the late improved 

 small bore guns. I think not; for if he had 

 he would not load himself with 12 pounds 

 of gun, when 7 pounds will do the work 

 just as well. I can go him one better on 

 big guns; for I have used a 50-115-400 Bul- 

 lard express, which is the largest repeater 

 made, and it failed to do the work of the 

 little 25-35. If Mr. Adams (see November 

 Recreation, p. 397) had been with me last 

 fall he might have wished for his tree or his 

 gatling gun: but I didn't. 



While riding through the timber, one 

 day, I came on a large silvertip. not more 

 than 20 feet away. My horse stopped and 

 the bear sat up to look. I dropped off and 

 gave the bear one of the little " pencils " 

 which did the work. It broke his neck, 

 half way between the shoulders and the 

 ears. 



The hide is stretched nearly square and- 

 measures 6 feet \Yo inches long. I killed 2 

 bears last fall, and one shot was enough 

 for each. 



Now if Mr. Adams will take a 25-35 and 

 a 50-100-450, go on a big game hunt, give 

 both guns a fair trial and then, when he 

 gets home, will say the 50 is the most de- 

 sirable gun to pack, I will send him a good 

 6 point elk head, free of cost. I will trust 

 to his honor as a sportsman to give an hon- 

 est decision. 



As for Mr. Van Dyke, he had not used a 

 smokeless gun. up to the time he wrote in 

 favor of the 50-100-450. 



M. P. Dunham. 



It gives me great pleasure to express to 

 you my appreciation of your valuable mag- 

 azine. I look forward with pleasure to the 

 first of each month, when Recreation ar- 

 rives, and read it from cover to cover. 

 Then I read it again, to see I have missed 

 nothing. 



I am interested in the articles on the 30 

 calibre rifle; more so perhaps because I 

 own a Winchester 30-40, which I think the 

 best gun made. 



I admire the way you set the hogs down. 

 Give them the " hooks." in good shape. 

 Roscoe, Grand Rapids, Mich. 



GUNS FOR BOYS. 



The kind of gun to place in a boy's hand 

 depends on the kind of boy he is. If he be 

 of a nervous temperament it should be 

 rather long (for safety) and heavier than 

 he cares to carry on a long tramp. A 

 heavy, slow boy can better use a lighter 

 arm. A sufficient drop to the butt of a 

 gun is next in importance to its killing 

 power. The tendency of all beginners is 

 to look across the muzzle and fire with the 

 breech low down. For successful shooting 

 the gun must be properly loaded. There 

 is no definite rule, as different arms require 

 slightly varying loads. A good general rule 

 may be stated thus: The weight of shot 

 used should equal that of a ball of pure lead 

 that will fit the bore. This will give a 12 

 bore, iyi ounce; a 14 bore, i J /$ ounce; a 16 

 bore, 1 ounce; and a 20 bore, Y\ ounce. The 

 charge of powder should equal, in bulk, the 

 quantity of shot used. These rules apply to 

 F.F. grain high grade black powder, and 

 to all sizes of shot. Some guns may require 

 a trifle more of both powder and shot. 

 Cylinder bored guns will shoot larger loads 

 with less recoil, and have more penetration 

 than choke bores; penetration, in the lat- 

 ter, being sacrificed to concentration. I 

 am aware that I am courting criticism, from 

 high authority, but I base the statement on 

 an experience of over 60 years. The longer 

 a cylinder bore is used, the better gun it 

 is, if properly treated. It is a common idea 

 with small boys — and some bigger ones — 

 that the larger the shot, the better it will 

 kill. The size of shot must be propor- 

 tionate to the size and vitality of the game. 

 The same number of pellets of small shot 

 will kill quail, rabbits and squirrels quicker 

 than larger shot. Teal and some lesser 

 ducks are more easily killed with No. 6 

 shot than with a larger size. Almost all 

 sportsmen use too large shot. I have 

 killed wildcats, lynx and foxes (animals of 

 great vitality) with No. 6 shot. 



L. A. F. 



SMOKELESS POWDER IX THE 44"4°- 



The new smokeless full metal patch 

 cartridge now made for the 44-40 Win- 

 chester increases its effectiveness a half. 

 The velocity is greater, the trajectory less, 

 and only a little below the black powder 

 40-82. The penetration is about the same 

 as with the 40-82 lead ball, and considerably 

 greater than that of the Marlin 45-70 lead 

 ball. The 44 calibre is large enough with- 

 out the upset gotten with the lead ball. 



I shot, at 18 rods, a 5 point buck, in the 

 neck, half way between head and shoulder. 

 The ball passed back between the shoulders 

 and out on the other side. The buck's neck 

 was broken, and he died instantly. An- 

 other buck, running straight away, was 

 shot at a distance of 43 rods, and fell dead. 

 The ball entering under the ribs, passed 



