316 



FOREST "AND STREAM. 



Zettler* s Gai.lmbt .— The following scores were made at 

 ZeiUcrs Gallery on Nov. 13. Possible 50 ; Creedmoor target 

 reduced. 



PKVisrath 48 L G Beatse i 4i 



A K Moore 47 DLBeekwith 44 



8 Zettler 47 6A Schurinen 43 



i ! S 9 4T M Dorrler 40 



MB Kngel 48 GPetry..... 40 



B ZeW er . .* 45 W W etgandt 40 



j Data 44 K Zimmerman 40 



PFennlug 44 G Connor 40 



Zkttleb Bulk Cxtjb.— Annual election of officers of 

 the Zettler Rifle Club, held Nov. 13, 1877, at 207 Bowery. 

 The following named -gentlemen were elected : President, 

 M. L.Rigffs; Vice-president, M. B. Engel ; Treasurer, C. 

 G. Zettler ; Secretary, Q. A. Schurman ; Captain, B. ZeU'ler. 

 Finance Committee— W. M. Farrow, G. Connor, J. Dutil. 



Buffalo— Crossley's Gallery.— The following fine scores 

 were made on the 14th : 



LPZKlrclumger 5 4 5 4 4 B 6 6 4 4-45 



FPerkins...- 4 4 3 5 5 4 6 B 4 4-45 



The first score won. 



South Carolina— Columbia, Nov. 16.— The State Fair 

 held here annually brings a very large number of visitors, 

 but this year an extra attraction was offered in the way or 

 a prize drill and prize rifle match, open to the United States ; 

 aud the whole of our little State, and representatives irom 

 Virginia North Carolina, Georgia, were also present. The 

 prize drills came off yesterday. First prize, $400, open to 

 any militia company in the United States, was won by the 

 Governor's Guards, of Columbia, S. O. Second prize, $100, 

 open to any company in the State, was also carried off in 

 splendid style by the same company. Rifle match, open to 

 the State militia, was participated in by several teams from 

 different parts of the States. Range, 200 yards ; Creedmoor 

 target; army riflei, six-pound pull, open sight; off-hand; 

 team"' "' " : " ""'"" '" f "" nnit'nVm /if f.nnmanv. to be al- 

 lowed 



sweeping everything. "Below I give the four best scores out 

 of possible 150 : 



German Fusileers, of Charleston, S C 119 



Sumter Guards, " " •■' , ,, 



RIehmoud ILi-s-avs, AueUSta, Ga - 



Car -dlna RlGe Halt alien, of Charlestons C i<w 



The best individual scores were made' by Messrs. Williams 

 and Jopp of the German Fusileers, both making, on first 

 round 23 out of possible 25. On shooting off the tie Wil- 

 liams made a bull's-eye and Jopp a centre. The Sumter 

 Guard team deserve a great deal of credit, as they were the 

 youngest team on the ground, and have been practicing but 

 a short time. 



first step to be taken in the matter is to be quite sure that our 

 team is armed with the very best rifle that can be got. 



In a former issue we assured Mr. Miller that he was in the 

 right direction, and we believe, as perhaps does this gentle- 

 man, that it is more a matter of rifles than drill. The con- 

 clusion of Mr. Miller's letter is manly in the extreme : 



It appears the American N. R. A. has declined to alter the 

 conditions of the Centennial Trophy contest, so as to exclude 

 any British teams but the one selected by our N. R. A. Afler 

 all, this is hardly a question for the Americans, but rather one 

 for ourselves. They, no doubt, wish to avoid treading on 

 the dangerous ground of a private quarrel. Although the in- 

 vitation to shoot in the contest was, apparently, given to the 

 three kingdoms, the promoters left us at liberty to decide 

 whether we should come singly or collectively. Ireland, 

 Scotland, England, have each been beaten individually. If, 

 then, there ever was another occasion for our firmly uniting 

 for a common purpose, surely now is the time. . Let us show, 

 like the man aud his wife, that if we quarrel among ourselves, 

 we know how to combine to beat a stranger. Some riflemen 

 of the sister kingdom seem to object to the term "English," 

 "British," etc. ; then let the next team be sent out under the 

 style and title of the "Combination Team." Forny part I 

 do not care a single pin what we are called so long as we win 

 the match. 



»»» 



—The prizes won by the Twentieth Battalion team at 

 Glendrake this fall are on exhibition in the show window pf 

 Winter's book store, on John's street, Kingston. They are 

 two groups of bronze representing the personal combat of the 

 Duke of Richmond and Richard III at Bosworth, and the 

 combat of James Fitz James with Roderic Dhu. 



Yenots. 



For Forett and Stream and Rod #>u! Gun. 

 THE RIFLE ON RUNNING DEER. 



BY T, S. VAN DVKH. 



!': 



S\n Accident to a Marker at West Albact.— The 

 Troy Times- of the loth gives the following account of a 

 fatal accident at the range in West Albany: " A number of 

 o-er.tlcmen, among whom were Drs. Hasluns and Lansing, 

 proceeded to West Albany for the purpose of enjoying a 

 half-day's long-range practice. All of the marksmen lay in 

 a recumbent position, the result of each shot being signaled 

 by Clapper. In due time Dr. Lansing's turn arrived. 

 Taking long and careful aim, the physician fired, lne 

 pany waited several minutes for the 'marker's' signal, but 

 none was made. A glass was then brought to bear upon 

 Chipper and he was found to have fallen from his upright 

 position. The party hastened in alarm to where belay, 

 and found him dead. An examination was made by the 

 physicians, aud it was ascertained that Dr. Lansing s bullet 

 laid passed directly through the poor mans heart, pro- 

 ducing it is supposed, instantaneous death. Clapper s 

 father "Was a witness to the shooting, and saw his sou fall. 

 As to Dr. Lansing's proficiency with the rifle, the Argus 

 savs ' Dr Lansing was regarded as one of the best marks- 

 men iu the city, ami his proficiency had almost passed into 

 a proverb, he "being called, among his associates, Old Ke- 

 liable." ' There wits no negligence on the part of any one, 

 and the family of the deceased exonerate Dr. Lansing from 

 blame." 



—Leading riflemen in England are still contributing most 

 interesting letters to the Volunteer Service Gazette, in regard 

 to their defeat'in the United States. Mr. Herbert P. Miller, 

 .a portion of whose communication we published some time 

 ago, has another excellent letter. We regret our inability to 

 give it in extenso. Mr. Miller begins as follows : 



I fear the majority of your correspondents have so far mis- 

 understood me that they imagine I attribute the late American 

 defeat lohoUy \o an inferiority in the British rifles, but in 

 fact 1 merely suggested the probability that they might be 

 defective as compared with the American arms; and to my 

 mind, nothing has yet transpired to shake that piobal h y. 

 M«ior Young states iu his last letter that " some of the Bntish 

 team have Supplied themselves with American rifles; that 

 looks as though some of them, at least, thought there might 

 be a superiority in the American weapons. f< rorn tne nrsi, 

 everv irniurtial mind must have felt that the English team, 

 man for man, was quite equal to anything that Americans 

 could bring against them, and that if they failed it must be 

 due to the rifle: the system, or to both, and this premise has 

 bten verified. In spite, however, of all equalization, natural 

 weaknesses will no doubt assert themselves This brings us 

 to the point I have bee.n trying to enforce all along-namely, 

 that if our team again fails if shall be from natural weakness 

 and not from any defect m rifle or system. . . ■ ■ • " 

 should be remembered that superiority after all, is but a 

 mail er of contrast. 1 1 is not enough to show that our higbj 

 and Metford muSBzIe-loaders are splendid amis, which they 

 undoubtedly are; but the poifit is, are they m aU respects 

 equal to the American 1 noech-loaders ? It Major Young will 

 nay as much attention to a good American breech-loader as he 

 has done to the Metford, and if he then declares the Mettord 

 to be best I shall be uady to accept, his conclusion ; but un- 

 less he does this his experience is worth but little as a com- 

 parison of rifles. "The competitor who has ]ust made al 

 uiiU's-eyes with his Bnider, experiences" a feeling almost of 

 contempt as he passes the small-uore man who hasMitett to 

 do equally well" Why is this? Because he understands 

 the Snider, but knows nothing about the small-bore, and so 

 he deludes himself that the Snider must be the best. In our 

 lose for what we have, is it not possible that we may be de- 

 luding ourselves about the quality of the American rifles : 

 iv rate the point is sufficiently important to call tor a 

 petitivc trial before BOme such tribunal as suggested in 

 ier to you to yon of October 34, Clearly, the very 



NO. I. 

 In nearly all countries where large game is at all shy, or is mnch 

 hunted, thegreater number of chances to kill will be on the run. Of the 

 many thousands who are increasing the ranks of votaries of the rifle 

 many widdoubtless be anxious this coming fall and winter to try their 

 skill in the field. And many of those who figure most successfully at 

 Creedmoor and the galleries will be greatly astonished to find how little 

 their skill at the target, even when combined with extraordinary skill- 

 with the shot-gun, will at first avail them in the field on rnovirg gLine. 

 Shooting on the run with the rifle is an art that every thorough sports- 

 man should by all means learn. In many places it is absolutely indis 

 pensable to any sort of success. And even where it is not, the satisfac- 

 tion of overhauling a bounding deer with a single ball is so intense that 

 good running shooting on game casts even the best of shot-guu shooting 

 far in the shade. 



The number of successful running Bhots, even among good hunters, 

 is surprisingly sma'l. I know several men who have killed over 600 

 deer, who do not hesitate to admit that they never have even scratched 

 hair on one running. I know many good hunters who never even at- 

 tempt it. TJpou tuls important subject almost all sporting books are re- 

 markably silent. From hunters who can shoot well ou the run little or 

 nothing is to be obtained in the way of information, home of them 

 cannot, analyse the process; while others, especially those of the real 

 old, or " Leatherstocking," type, are prolific only of winks and shrugs, 

 suggestive either of some mysterious gift which nature has beptow.ed 

 upon them alone, or else of some marvelous secret too precious to be 

 even breathed to common mortality. 



That it is a difficult art to acquire cannot be denied. But the difflculfy 

 lies principally in the fact that a person almost invariably commits cer- 

 tain blunders' which are always fatal to success. And these he will 

 rarely discover, or even suspect, until he has wasted a large number of 

 splend id chances aud been dozens of times mortified far past the swear- 

 ing point by seeing deer skip unharmed away almost within buck shot 

 range. As an illustration of this 1 might cite the case of Col. Gilder- 

 sleeve on his first performance last spring on the Creedmoor running 

 deer target. Here was one of the most noted riflemen in the country, 

 aud, as 1 understand, a good shot with the shot-gun, making ouly one 

 hit out, of thirteen shots. And this on the easiest kind o£ shooling, with 

 nothing to excite htm, at a known distance and with the motion of the 

 deer and all other conditions uniform. And yet this was nothing what- 

 ever to be ashamed of, hut only what hundreds of as good off-hand 

 short-range Bhots as he have done in the field to a far greater extent. I 

 freely admit that I have done even worse. 



I purpose, in as brief a manner as possible, to point out these errors 

 ■and put the lover of the rifle, who wants to try the noblest and most 

 exciting of all hunting, iu a position where he will be as well qualified 

 to go ahead as if lie had lost a hundred or more deer in working out this 

 iulo.maiionfor himself. Ot course nothing can entirely supply the 

 place of practice. But I know of no case in which directions will not go 

 far toward doing so. Because if left to yourself you will almost cer- 

 tainly fall into errors which you may easily avoid if forewarned. 



Supposing you to be a good off-hand shot on standing game, which is 

 an indispensable pre-requlstte, let us go to the field and try a deer run- 

 ning The deer is the hardest of ah large game to hit (other things 

 being equal of course), and if you can learn to hit him well everything 

 else of his size will be ea-y. . 



For the. best work you must hive a moderately coarse f . ont sight that 

 is easily eaogtat and held by the eye. Ivory is, except on snow, the 

 best of all for flris, though in most lights cither brass or silver are very 

 Mod Cut off those "horns" or sides from your back sight, hling it 

 down until you can clearly sec the whole body of a dog over either side 

 when the front sight, is held from one to six, or eight feet ahead ot him 

 at a hundred yards. File it with a forward slope lo the top edge to pre- 

 vent the reflection of Hie sun.and blacken or rust, it with iodine, or acid. 

 The advantage of this 1 will mention hereafter, though it will soon be 



^.Tflrrtrntetakeyou will be apt to make when a deer jumps (es- 

 pecially if used to wing shooting with the shot-gun) will be to forget 

 your sights, catch a shot-gun aim and blaze away. Therefore bear con- 

 kutlvin mud that you have a rifle ami not a shot-gun in your hand 

 and think of it first thing when he springs. After a while you will 

 have no trouble to recollect it. 



There, arc live principal ways in which running shots will present 

 themselves, and all others are only variation** these 1. A broadside 

 ' . ... ' _ ,„. a i,w,„risiriP.. 3. The same, straightaway. 4. The 



your sights as you would in a target prize match, and be sure you don' 1 

 lose it. Make the sights the first thing in order of importance; next 

 get your eye on the deer. Of course this will, or should, be practically 

 all one act. I only mean to make the deer second to the sights in order 

 of prominence. Now, either bring your rifle up to him, or let him come 

 to it until it is about one and a half or two feet ahead of h is breast and 

 a little below the line of the centre of his body. Be very cautious 

 about getting it too high. Kmr pull. 



He jnmps, runs a few paces, plunges and falls shot just back of the 

 shoulder, nearly three feet from where yon held, Toti see, if you had 

 held on his middle you would have missed him. 



Let us now try one on the lope. This Is the next easiest and ia, I 

 presume, the movement of the Creedmoor running de>r. [The Creed- 

 moor deer glides along on tramways.— Ed.] If not it should oe, to be of 

 much value as practice. Now catch your sights as before ; but instead 

 of firing as soon as yon get the proper distance, follow him fur several 

 jumps until you get the length aud height; of his jump. Try to lire just 

 as he is at the highest point of his bound, and hold about whore you 

 think he will be when he comes down, regulating the distance ahead by 

 hia speed which is now greater than when trotting. If he runs low you 

 may disregard the up and down motion, and shoot as you did oefore, 

 with no allowance for anything but his f'rward motion. But if he runs 

 high you must not disregard it unless he is going to be out of sight in a 

 jump or two, or is running very fast, in which case you must of course 

 risk the other method . There are two ways in which you will be very 

 apt to miss this shot. 1. By shootingtoo far, or not far enough Bhead. 

 2. By shooting too high. Unless very cautious you win shoot at the cleva- 

 i Ion at which he is when in the air, which will bring your ball just a Jew 

 inches above his back as he strikes the ground. 



Let us next try one quartering. This is on the same principle a3 the 

 last. But with this difference— that even after you have learned to hit 

 broadside shots you will be unconsciously deceived into overlooking, or 

 forgetting the absolute importance of shooting ahead of the spot you 

 wish to strike. Even if running at an angle of only twenty degrees to 

 the line of fire, agd only fifty yards off, it will always be prudent to see 

 a few inches of daylight in front of his breast. If you are not careful 

 you will find yourself involuntarily holding on his rump, or middle ; and 

 just so sure as you do just so sure you will miss or only scratch him. 



The next one is a straightaway lope. Here there is no forward motion 

 to allow for. You catch a full, clear Bight on his stern and pull. .Ton 

 see the dirt fly from a little knoll beyond, just In line with him, but Just 

 over him. 

 " Strange!" you exclaim. " I had a splendid Bight on him." 

 Not strange at all. You only made the most natural blunder In the 

 world. You shot at the highest place where he was and hit it very 

 nicely. But he wasn't there. He had just left it and your ball was an 

 instant too late to catch him. It was all right to shoot when he was In 

 the air, but yon should have held from twelve to eighteen inches lower. 

 Thus far our deer have been loping with a very reglar bound. But 

 deer do not, always run so. Where the ground is rough, rocky, brushy, 

 or covered with logs or fallen trees a deer's gait is generally very dif- 

 ferent. He now goes with quick, high springs, very irregular both in 

 height and length according to the nature of the ground. Aficr what 

 you have Been you will readily undersiand that this Is the most difficult 

 of all. And you will understand it still better after you have Bhot at a 

 few of them, in the other cases the rise and fall is not always so great 

 as to make its calculation indispensable. But now, juet eo t-urely as you 

 hold where he ia, just so surely will your ball strike where he is not. 

 You need not now be at all ashamed of a miss, for anything like certainty 

 is even much less attainable than it- was before. 



The only way to reach a deer going this way is to keep perfectly cool, 

 take plenty of time, remember that haste will be utterly useless, and 

 follow him patiently for a few jumps with the rifle not quite so far 

 ahead as in the regular lope. Shoot when he is in the air, fromone and 

 a half to three feet below his highest, point. Sometimes you will have 

 to shoot still lower, as when he is running through a windfall crosswise 

 and clearing a big log at every jump or two. In Buch case, unless you 

 have a good side view of him, you had better hold your lire until he 

 gets on more open ground. And you had better always do so unless the 

 windfall is a large one, or you have a repeating or double rifle. For the 

 chances are against you on every shot. Still, with care, some wonder- 

 ful shots may be made in this way which will makeyou stand a moment 

 in delighted amazement and break tuto an cjaculatory soliloquy that 

 would be amusing to your friends if they could hear it. One deer 

 stopped in this way will give you more satisfaction than a dozen killed 

 standing, and you will chuckle over It for the next three weeks, Iu my 

 next article I will give some general hints that, will go far toward help- 

 ing you In your practice. 

 Miner's Rmwht, San THego Co,, Cal. 



i A canter, or lope broadside. 3. The same, straightaway, 

 sante quartering,- or at an aeu'e angle to the line of fire. 5. Broad- 

 side straightaway or quartering, with high springs more or less irreg- 



^rS.^T»eU X.e.t^ut soil you must do no careless 

 ,S £(** -ndenum- easy to miss even** ** SSSSi 



a deer on a trot at right angles lo the Hue of lire and distant about IS 

 JS - seldom takes this gate and rarely holds it for more ban 



A DUCK-STEALING BAGGAGE-MASTER 



NEW YORK, Nov, 12, 1S77. 

 Fim-on Forest akd Steam : 



1 would like to warn the sporting fraternity against, the thieving 

 proclivities of the employees of the Southern R. R. of Long Is- 

 land. A friend and myself had the good fonone to shoot a 

 few ducks at South Oyster Bay, and the misfortune to deliver 

 the same to the baggage-master of the Sunday afternoon train 

 to New York (yesterday). This worthy suggested that we 

 "ought to give him some of (hem for minding them,'' but as we had 

 no little trouble and hardship, and sotne expense in procuring them, 

 and had a good use for them, we suggested that any regular charges 

 we were willing to pay, but were under the impression that the'RR. 

 company were the parties supposed to pay him for attending to his 

 business. His conduct aroused our suspicions, aud four separate 

 times vve went, forward to the baggage-car and looked at the birds to 

 gee if they were all right. On reaching home and setting to work to 

 divide up onr game preparatory to Bending it to different friends, we 

 dlacovored that four of our best birds (two black ducks, one broad-bill 

 audared-head) had been deliberately cutoff from the bunch. The 

 thief had evidently tried to untie them, but could not, succeed, and had 

 cot off the bodies, leaving necks and heads for ue to count and swear 

 over As we believe the committee Investigating the affairs of this 

 road find that it has been nimble to protect itself from the peculations 

 of its employees, It is perhaps aaWng too much that, they anoold protect 

 the travelers on the road. But the writer would give tSS for the satis- 

 faction of punishing that baggage man whom he believes stole the 

 birds, or if he did not, allowed some one else to do It. As I have 

 previously lost game on this road, I think it is well to call the attention 

 of sportsmen to the matter, that they may keep a look oat, as I shall do 

 in future. 



Would have Bought redress from the compauy, but the question 

 irises "Who is the company?" Perhaps the Tims, which has followed 

 the matter, might inform us. I luclose my card and that of my friend. 



G. C. B. 

 . ■»• 



—Messrs. Tiffany & Co., have notified the General In- 

 spector of Rifle Practice tliat the " marksman's badges," to 

 which the bare for the present year are to be attached, must 

 be delivered to them during the present week, iu order to in- 

 sure their completion before the rush of work entailed by the 



