2l6 



RECREATION. 



One of our good friends who has re- 

 cently been experimenting tells us that 

 while the larger cartridge seems to have 

 tremendous shocking power at close 

 range, the 30-40 gives better penetration 

 and makes a larger wound, and we be- 

 lieve for all round use the 30-40 is far 

 superior. The velocity of the 30-40 cart- 

 ridge is 1,960 feet a second, against 1,443 

 feet for the 38-72 cartridge, and the pene- 

 tration of the 30-40 cartridges at 15 feet 

 from muzzle, in pine boards, is twice as 

 great as that of the 38-72. 



I also submitted this question to Mr. 

 A. L. A. Hummelwright, one of the best 

 authorities in this country on rifles, and 

 here is his answer: 



On account of the great difference in 

 the velocity of the bullets, it is almost im- 

 possible to compare the killing power of 

 the 38-72 Winchester with that of the 30-40 

 U. S. army cartridge. 



In the 30-40 charge the high velocity of 

 the bullet, compared with the soft nose 

 principle, makes this a very effective 

 charge. When it strikes the right kind of 

 resistance the bullet has almost an explo- 

 sive effect. This is not obtained in the 

 charges having a lower velocity, and for 

 this reason the 38-72 can not be com- 

 pared in an intelligent way with the 30-40. 



It is doubtful if anyone has had an op- 

 portunity to compare the 2 charges in an 

 actual trial on game. In the absence of 

 such data the only way to compare the 

 38-72 charge with any other is to consider 

 its ballistic properties. The velocity and 

 the trajectory of the 38-72 are almost iden- 

 tical with that of the 45-90, a cartridge with 

 which most hunters are familiar. The 38- 

 72 has a little more penetration, and the 

 45-90 has, on account of the larger bore, a 

 larger striking surface. In my opinion the 

 38-72 has not quite the same killing power 

 and general efficiency, as a game gun, as 

 the 45-90, and is perhaps a little more effec- 

 tive than the 40-82. The muzzle energy of 

 the 45-90 is greater than that of the 38-72, 

 the 2 energies being 1,585 and 1,270 foot 

 pounds, respectively. This would indicate 

 that the striking power or the effect of the 

 charge on game would be slightly in favor 

 of the 45-90, the velocities being the same. 



PHILLIPINO GUNS AND AMMUNITION. 



Thinking readers of the "guns and am- 

 munition department" will be interested to 

 learn that their brown brothers over the 

 water are rapidly qualifying as gun cracks. 

 I will describe a few examples of reloaded 

 ammunition I saw in the the Philippines. 



A captured reloading outfit for Mauser 

 cartridges consisted of the following: A 

 machine for grinding the outside of the 

 shell before reloading, which, of course, 



produced the same result as our method of 

 resizing; an assortment of common plug 

 de-cappers; an ordinary lever wire cutter; 

 and a large supply of apparently pure cop- 

 per wire of practically 7 inch diameter. 

 The old shell was ground, de and recapped 

 and charged with powder. A bullet cut 

 from copper wire was inserted and the end 

 filed to a rough point. I have seen 

 Mauser cartridges reloaded with soft lead 

 bullets evidently hammered into shape. 



The natives utilize our 30-40 ammunition 

 in this way. The shell is cut in 2 about 

 an inch from the base, filed a little where 

 it tapers up to the head, reprimed if neces- 

 sary and reloaded with a short 44 caliber 

 bullet set flush with the outside of the 

 shell. The cartridge so made is used in a 

 German revolver, of which the natives 

 have a supply. Factory cartridges for that 

 weapon were marked 44 Eley. 



I have seen belts filled with 43 caliber 

 cartridges for Spanish Remingtons. 

 Among them were numbers of 45-70 car- 

 tridges of U. M. C, Winchester and Gov- 

 ernment make that were sized to 43 caliber 

 by splitting the shell down from the mouth 

 about 1^2 inches, lopping it a little, and 

 hammering down and reinserting the old 

 bullet. 



It is surprising to note the assortment 

 of guns in use among the natives. Among 

 captured arms I have seen the following: 

 German and French Mausers, Remingtons, 

 Krag-Jorgensens, Springfields, Muratas, 

 Peabody-Martinis, Sharps and many others 

 I could not identify. Among one lot were 

 3 44-40, '73 model Winchesters. I once 

 saw taken from a native a pearl handled 

 American revolver, 32 caliber, which had a 

 ring in the bottom of the handle and an 

 inscription in Spanish engraved on one 

 side. 



Since using the Krag-Jorgensen I am a 

 convert to the small bore rifle. Since 

 hiking day after day in the hot sun with 

 that same 9^-pound gun on my shoulder. 

 I am a convert to the light weight rifle for 

 a hunting arm. I use a 30-31, '94 model 

 Winchester, 26-inch barrel that weighs 6^ 

 pounds. I have shot it alternately with a 

 30-30 weighing 7^4 pounds. With the reg- 

 ular smokeless cartridge the difference in 

 recoil in the 2 guns is hardly perceptible. 



I have read Recreation regularly 

 nearly 4 years. While in the Philippines 

 the boys always got it in Manila, when any 

 of them chanced to be sent there on spe- 

 cial duty from the line. After reading it 

 we used to wonder why the War Depart- 

 ment did not organize a few regiments of 

 game hogs and discharge the volunteer 

 army. C. W. L., Springfield, Vt. 



THE SAVAGE IN CEYLON. 

 I recently made a hunting trip with a 

 friend, and one evening between 4 and 6 



