212 



RECREATION. 



jacketed bullet of 255 grains. Use the 

 present 38-55 shell. It is better than any 

 bottle-necked shell on the market. 



The velocity of this bullet probably would 

 not exceed 1,800 feet a second and should 

 be more accurate than the 30-30. The pres- 

 ent black powder load of 55 grains could 

 be used; also for close pointed, grooved 

 bullet of 115 grains. The pointed bullet will 

 not mangle small game as would a flat 

 tipped one. The bullet should have at least 

 2 grooves for lubrication. A gun of this 

 description might be secured by having a 

 30-30 rebored and chambered to a 38-55. I 

 believe the future demand will be for a 

 larger caliber than the 30-30. 



A. E. W., Logan, la. 



A NEW RECAPPER. 

 723,838. — Cartridge Recapper. John B. Cre- 

 peau, Haverhill, Mass. Filed July 5, 

 1902. Serial No. 114,430. (No model.) 



Claim. — 1. In a recapping machine the 

 combination, with a base plate having a 

 hole in it, of a cartridge support slidable 

 on the said base plate, a spring supported 

 pin slidable vertically in the said support 

 and retractable when over the said hole, and 

 a pivoted operating lever provided with a 

 hollow die arranged to one side of the said 

 hole and a recapping pin arranged over the 

 said hole, substantially as set forth. 



2. A standard projecting from the base 

 plate and supporting a reservoir for caps; 

 of a spring pressed slide slidable crosswise 

 under the reservoir and provided with a 

 cap chamber, a cartridge support slidable on 

 the said base plate, a spring supported pin 

 slidable vertically in the said support and 

 retractable when over the said hole, a guide 

 secured to the said standard and engaging 

 the cartridge rim when the said support is 

 slid opposite the said slide, and a pivoted 

 operating lever provided with a recapping 

 pin. 



TO INSURE SAFETY. 



Frequent accidents caused by careless 

 handling of guns, or defects in their mech- 

 anism, distressing as they sometimes are, 

 do not seem strong enough as object les- 

 sons to prevent their recurrence. The re- 

 cent chronicling of a fatal accident to a 

 duck hunter emphasizes the importance of 

 all devices which will make guns safe from 

 accidental discharge. In the case in ques- 

 tion the lock of the right barrel of the gun 

 was defective, so that in closing the gun 

 sharply the shock caused the hammer to 

 fall accidentally. 



Any gun is liable to do this through ac- 

 cident, misuse or neglect. The ordinary 

 safety, as commonly used on the hammer- 

 less gun, would not prevent this in case of 

 the failure of the notch or sear to hold the 

 hammer when cocked. Numerous devices 

 have been constructed with the object of 

 affording additional safety; some so com- 

 plicated and expensive as to be of little 

 practical value, others so defective in prin- 

 ciple as to be unreliable and useless. 

 Among the most practical of these is the 

 block system of the Baker gun, which is 

 as safe from accidental discharge as any 

 mechanism can be made. The device con- 

 sists of steel blocks pivoted to the frame 

 on either side and operated by the trigger. 

 As the trigger is pulled, the block is re- 

 volved free of the hammer, but when re- 

 leased it rotates back into position between 

 the frame and the face of the hammer so 

 as to catch and hold the hammer, prevent- 

 ing its reaching the firing pin in case of ac- 

 cidental fall. 



While the hammerless gun of itself is 

 quite as safe to use, with such devices, as 

 is the gun with exposed hammers, custom 

 and habit have educated sportsmen pri- 

 marily to the use of the hammer gun by 

 reason of its earlier development, and they 

 are frequently careless with the newer 

 guns. Every practical device to prevent an 

 accidental discharge is not only of great 

 value, but should be insisted on by all 

 users of guns, if not by legal requirement. 

 F. M. Farwell, Batavia, N. Y. 



TO KILL WOODCHUCKS. 



J. F. Roberts, of Cassville, N. Y., asks 

 about the 32 Ideal cartridge for 'chucks. 

 He says his 28-30-120 is too small for 

 'chucks at over 100 yards unless they are 

 shot in the head or neck. I do not pose as 

 a small bore crank or a cannon lanyard. I 

 have not shot game from Hammerfest to 

 the Antarctic archipelago, but I have shot 

 and I can shoot woodchucks. My experi- 

 ence teaches me this : 



Use an extremely accurate gun; have an 

 easy hair trigger on your chuck rifle ; shoot 

 for the head ; target your run carefully for 



