oe 
GUNS AND AMMUNITION. 
the “Maine and Adirondack guides is for 
the larger bores. They go back to the 
.45’s and .50’s. 
The drop of the .30-30 at 100 yards is 2 
inches; that of the .45-70 is a little over 
3 inches; not an appreciable difference. 
At 200 yards, the drop is 5 inches for the 
.30-30; 13 inches for the .45-70; this is a 
difference th-t tells. At 300 yards the drop 
is, for the first, 13 inches; for the second, 
32 inches; which, at that range, would be 
conclusive for the .30. 
The penetration of the .45-70 is all that 
_could be desired. The Winchester table— 
and I advise all interested to send for a 
Winchester catalogue—says it will pierce 
14 % inch boards. The Ideal Co. has an 
ingenious device to improve the .45-70 
bullet. It is a bullet top up with a bev- 
elled shank, to be cast separately. It is 
then inserted in the regular mould and the 
regular mixture poured in. So the tip 
can be of solder, or even of antimony, for 
penetration, or of soft lead for mushroom- 
ing. It is well worth the consideration 
of those outfitting for a hunting expedi- 
tion. . Boone. 

HOW TO JOAD. 
In reading your magazine I often notice 
articles on loading shells for shot guns. 
Many of these articles are both interest- 
ing and instructive. They are the first 
thing I look for when I get RECREATION. 
This is a subject to which I have given 
much thought and experiment, having load- 
ed thousands of shells with nitro powder. I 
find no trouble in loading Dupont’s, W. 
A., or Gold Dust, when following mak- 
ers’ directions, except as to W. A. I 
loaded 63 grains of the latter in a 2% 
Blue Rival shell, using regular wadding, 
same as for all others. Result: gun 
boomed like a cannon, kicked like a 1600- 
pound mule, burst the~ shells at the 
folded rim, smoke issued from the breech 
and made the bells ring in my ears like 
Christmas chimes. I fancy I hear some 
W. A. man calling out, “You didn’t know 
how to load it, and used a common meas- 
ure and had some old trap of a gun;” but 
the powder was weighed on 4 different 
druggists’ scales and one diamond scale, 
and was just the amount recommended on 
the can for medium to strong loads. Fur- 
thermore it was fired in a new No. 3 gun. 
Then I drew the balance of the loads, be- 
cause I could not give them away 
to anyone who had _ “seen the _ trial 
(some Io to 15 members of the club) and 
I dared not give them to anyone 
who had not seen the trial. Therefore I 
drew the loads and reloaded with 54 grains 
and have never seen nor used a more 
pleasant or effective load. The’ experi- 
ment convinced me the powder was 
461 
not. uniform in pressure. If so it could 
not be reliable and might prove too weak 
or too strong at some critical time, result- 
ing in lost birds if weak or in a burst 
gun if too strong, neither of which is par- 
ticularly enchanting to a common trap- 
shooter. 
Were it not for the disagreeable effluvia 
that arises from Gold Dust I should pre- 
fer it to all others. In ease of loading, 
sure ignition, quickness and effectiveness 
it is unsurpassed. 
I cannot understand why the makers of 
Gold Dust don’t advertise it in RECREA- 
TION. If they would do so they would 
sell 100 pounds in the East where they now 
sell one pound. 
But, taking all points into consideration, 
I am in line with the great majority of the 
shooters, and pronounce in favor of Du- 
pont. In this I do not decry other brands. 
There is one point, however, which I 
am unable to understand. That is, many 
recommend the use of an 11% or even an 
II gauge wad somewhere over the pow- 
der and others advise a 12 gauge. Now, 
if the large wad be placed first as most 
recommend, then every man knows, who 
has ever pushed a wad into a shell, that 
the shell is enlarged so the 12’s are loose 
following. Again, if the 12’s be of any 
use in the propulsion of the load through 
the barrel why is it then necessary to 
make use of the 11% or 11? If the larger 
wad be right, then it follows the smaller 
are of little, if any value, except to raise 
the shot in the shell up to proper place to 
crimp and it becomes a waste, trouble 
and needless expense to use any except 
the shortest shell on the market. Again, 
all our modern made guns are said by 
their respective makers to be bored for 
No. 12 wads. My experience along this 
line convinces me that the maker knows 
what he is talking about, and that larger 
wads get up a little more friction on the 
point of contact, commonly the shoulder 
and cheek of the shooter and the stock of 
the gun, but no better results are obtained 
at the other end. Try to of each kind on 
a target at 35 yards and note results. You 
will find equal penetration and better pat- 
tern where all 12 gauge wads are used. 
John H. Vernon, Sioux City, Ia. 

AGAIN THE .30-30. 
N. L. Davis is too hard on the .30-30. I 
used one last fall in Maine and I think any 
gun from the .38-56 is sufficient for nearly ° 
all big game, except the grizzly bear. I 
never had a chance at one of them but if 
I had should prefer a .45-70 or .45-90. The 
.30-40 has the best penetration but I do 
not like the shape of it and it is too light 
at the muzzle. I bought a .30-30 because 
it is elegant in shape, light and well bal- 
