GUNS AND AMMUNITION. 



SYRACUSE, WINCHESTER AND KING. 



Editor Recreation: 



The last number of your bright and 

 newSy magazine is at hand, and as usual I 

 turn to the department most interesting to 

 me, Guns and Ammunition. I do not pose 

 as a know-it-all or an indisputable au- 

 thority on the subject; but I have crowded 

 a great deal of enjoyment with dog and 

 gun into the past 20 years. I have killed all 

 the different varieties of smaMl game, from 

 Minnesota arH South Dakota to Okla- 

 homa. Have used all kinds of American 

 guns, as well as several of English make. 

 Have shot over all the different breeds 

 of bird dogs, from a cross-eyed Irish 

 setter to the Kent and Croxteth and Pape 

 strain of pointers. Have used all the shot 

 guns advertised in Recreation, with the 

 exception of the Forehand. For shooting 

 qualities they are excellent value in double 

 guns. Syracuse guns are the most se- 

 curely fastened and are built on perfectly 

 sound mechanical lines. For guns ranging 

 in price from $50 up there is not much dif- 

 ference in the various makes. The $30 

 Syracuse is the best value ever offered in 

 the gun line in this or any other country. 

 If I were to buy a carload of $30 double 

 guns they would all be Syracuse. I don't 

 owe the Syracuse Gun Company any- 

 thing. I bought 2 guns of them, both of 

 their cheapest grade. I received 100 cents 

 in value for each dollar I paid them. I ad- 

 vise anyone who is undecided as to what 

 gun to buy to make up his mind whether 

 he wants a double gun or a repeater. If 

 the former, try the Syracuse. In pump 

 guns there is only one, the Winchester, '97 

 model. Because a man prefers a pump gun 

 it is no sign he has bristles and desires to 

 exterminate the game. A sportsman is 

 not made or unmade by the gun he carries. 

 If he were, many a kid glove sportsman, 

 with a high grade ejector, would have to 

 take a back seat for the farmer's boy in 

 blue jeans with his cheap Belgian gun and 

 black powder shells. I am willing to buy 

 my celery from Kalamazoo, Michigan, but 

 I beg to differ from "Old Shooter" of that 

 place when he says in your September is- 

 sue that a man shows the nature of the 

 barn-yard animal when he buys a pump 

 gun. A man mav only have $18 to invest 

 in a gun, and that amount is better in- 

 vested in a repeater than in a cheap double 

 gun. With a single barrel he can get a 

 more accurate aim. The pumn gun is con- 

 sidered by many soortsmen the more hu- 

 mane weapon, as the extra shells in the 

 magazine may be quickly used to put a 



crippled bird or animal out of misery. 

 That is a distinct advantage over the dou- 

 ble gun, as wounded game often gets away 

 to die a painful, lingering death before the 

 man with the double gun can reload; while 

 the man with the pump gun merely has to 

 press the button and the cripple is at once 

 freed from suffering. I see no excuse for 

 this tirade against the repeater. Limit 

 the number of birds to the gun, as fish to 

 the rod, if you will, but never undertake to 

 dictate to the sportsmen of this great coun- 

 try that they must use a certain kind of 

 gun to be called true sportsmen, or refrain 

 from using another kind for fear of being 

 called game hogs. Let us all remove the 

 shells from the gun, call the old dog to 

 heel, and quit when we have a reasonable 

 bag of game. Then and not until then 

 will there be an abundance of game left 

 for those who are to follow us. 



I have used all makes of powder. I no- 

 tice some companies do not advertise in 

 Recreation. I infer from this they do 

 not want the trade of the better class of 

 sportsmen. Well, they should not have it 

 unless they will contribute their mite to- 

 ward game protection by advertising in 

 your magazine when you are spending so 

 much money for the cause. 



In answer to one of your readers who 

 wished to know how King's semi-smoke- 

 less acted in shot guns: It is the cleanest 

 powder I ever fired from a gun. Makes 

 almost as much smoke and noise as black 

 powder, but on the score of cleanliness and 

 strong shooting leaves nothing to be de- 

 sired. Am going to try it In a Remington 

 army revolver and will report results. 



I heartily commend your work for game 

 protection. You are doing more effective 

 service in its interest and for all that con- 

 stitutes true sportsmanship than all the 

 other papers and magazines combined. 

 Recreation is in a class by itself. 



C. H. Kessler, Des Moines, la. 



A BUNCH OF ANSWERS. 



Kindly allow me to answer a few queries 

 which I have seen asked in recent issues 

 o£ your interesting magazine. 



First, I should like to give the results of 

 a little shooting I did with a Winchester 

 repeating shot gun: 



1. At 40 vards 3 drms. smokeless pow- 

 der, 1-15 chilled; result, 1-3 inch in pine 

 target. 



2. At 50 yards. 3,% drms. black powder, 

 i-B B; result. V4 inch in pine target. 



3. At 65 yards, 3 drms. smokeless pow- 



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